Choice on the Web

I don’t use Google Chrome or any of its descendants. Not only because Google increasingly made self-serving choices in the last couple of years when it came to advancing Chrome, but also because the richness of the web increasingly relies on a single vendor.

Personally, as an Apple user, I use Safari for the ecosystem integration, platform-respecting features, and low power consumption.

Professionally, as a web developer, I use Firefox to utilize a different browser during development than my colleagues, who mostly use Chrome.

Single-vendor ecosystems, like the mobile dichotomy of Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android, are not good for society. If you choose one, all your money and therefore power flows in their respective direction, starving other companies.

Furthermore, imagine, if you want to go shopping online, there’s only Amazon. If you want to listen to music, there’s only Spotify. If you want to watch a movie or TV show, there’s only Netflix.

It’s tempting to choose “the best” on the Internet. No restrictions induced by geographic location apply. Great for users in the beginning, but very bad in the end. This not entirely unreasonable behavior creates monopolies, and monopolies are ineffective at best and toxic at worst.

It’s in the best interest of everyone to keep the web’s diversity alive.