Browsers

• Although Web surfers can use any browser to view Web pages, most use popular browsers such as Internet Explorer for PCs and Safari for Macs. Others use Mozilla Firefox which runs on both PCs and Macs. A Web browser is a computer program that displays websites and pages. A Web browser works when a user types in a URL, which is the global address of a Web page, or clicks on a link that directs the user to a specific website.
  
  

Helpful Sites

• Websites are now being designed to help surfers find sites of interest on the Web. For example, by signing up for StumbleUpon, users can download a toolbar that contains a “thumbs up” and a “thumbs down” icon. If the surfer stumbles upon an interesting web page, he can give that page a “thumbs up.” StumbleUpon then shares those pages with users who have similar interests listed in their profiles.
  
  

Popular Sites

• According to Alexa, an Internet statistics analysis site, the most popular 10 sites visited by Web surfers at the end of September 2011 include: Google, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Yahoo, Blogger, MSN and Wikipedia. Google and Yahoo are search engine sites that users can enter keywords and find existing web pages. Facebook and Twitter are social networking sites where users join and connect with others, post status updates, view photos and learn about upcoming events. MSN is the Microsoft portal where a user can view breaking news, weather, stock market data and entertainment updates. Blogger allows users to create blogs, which are websites, where people can write about whatever interests them on an ongoing basis. Others can subscribe to popular blogs, share links and make comments.
  
  

Time and Location

• People of all ages surf the web. In 2010, the demographic that spent the most time surfing the Web per week was the 45 to 54 age group at 39.3 hours. The lowest demographic was the 12 to 17 age group, which spent less than 23 hours per week surfing the web. About 21 percent of people surf Facebook from work, and 23 percent surf Twitter, according to the Internet data site ComScore Data Mine. The remaining percentages surf these social networking sites from home. According to the Huffington Post, surfing the Web from a mobile phone comes in second place only behind using a mobile phone for texting.