OxScience

Browser and search engine are terms of common use when referring to two different forms of software necessary to retrieve information through the Internet. As we know, the latter is a wide and vast network of computers interconnected globally, sharing information, data and offering numerous services.

To access it, therefore, it is necessary to have a computer with the appropriate communication protocols and the relevant programs, as well as access to a telephone line or local banking network.

Although these are different instances in the world of digital communications, it is often not clear what they are and what the differences are between them since the Internet has the conceptual difficulty of not being “anywhere”, that is, It is not a physical location or a tangible tool, nor is it contained in a storage device of any kind, which is why it is often referred to as “the cloud”.

However, it should be clarified that both the browser and search engines are basic tools for managing this powerful global data network.

Browsers

The name of “browsers” obeys a usual metaphor when it comes to explaining the Internet, which compares it to an “ocean of information”. In this sense, a program is necessary that allows “surfing” on the Internet, and this is where browsers or browsers appear: programs that are installed on the computer and are designed to intermediate between the user and the Internet.

Each one has different specifications according to its programming and its specific use aesthetics, and also lends itself more or less to a specific operating system, computer system, or user taste. You can install as many browsers on your computer as you like and prefer.

Examples of browsers

Search engines

If browsers or browsers are our windows to the Internet ocean, search engines or search engines are our guides.

These are computer systems that make life in it and that, through a content index present on various servers (that is, on other computers anywhere in the world), allow us to search for information on the subject that interests us, such and as a library file, but automated. In fact, they work with keywords and hierarchical trees by theme.

Search engines usually operate with their own Web page, which we can access through a specific address or, if appropriate, through other search engines, and are a way of organizing for consumption the unfathomable universe of information that is online.

Without them, our experience of the Internet would be chaotic, and we would have to know the URL addresses of each page we would like to visit, which is simply impossible, as we often do not know what we can find with each search.

Examples of search engines

Although they fulfill the same functions, each search engine offers a different interface and a particular index review, so it means a different search method.

Differences between browser and search engine

The differences between one and the other are elementary, since they are entirely different digital tools in their nature, namely:

1. Browsers are installed on the computer’s hard drive, while search engines are accessed through a browser and a specific URL (for example http://www.google.com ). That is, the search engines are on the Internet, and do not require to be installed anywhere .
2. A browser resides on the computer and can be uninstalled, lost in a physical accident of the computer or victim of a virus, and can be downloaded and reinstalled (using some other browser, such as those that come with the operating system). Instead, no matter what happens to our computer, search engines will remain unchanged online .
3. With the same browser, we can visit different search engines and obtain different results, but we cannot access a search engine if we do not have a browser. The same, a specific search engine can be accessed from any browser we choose since they themselves are a Web page to visit.
4. A browser can be started in the absence of an Internet connection since the software will be installed on the computer. It will not be possible to navigate, of course, but the application will start and throw an error. Instead, a search engine cannot be accessed without an operational Internet connection.
5. Many browsers or browsers include a default search engine, especially those search engines that were developed by a company that also has a search engine, such as Google Chrome and Google, Internet Explorer and Bing, etc. However, it is possible to modify these settings and use the search engine that you want, without having to give up the browser.
6. A browser allows you to visit many types of web pages, including search engine pages.