Normally I’m no fan of new web browsers. More and more do I see this space being filled by developers copying what Mozilla has already done with Firefox then brandishing it under the guise of some niche feature that’s hardly ever going to get used. As a web developer of sorts I get to feel the full brunt of a poorly developed browser; and when adventurous clients are the proud owners of them, I can factor in at least another day on the job explaining to them why their site isn’t broken but their browser is.

But Flock is different. Without sounding too much like I’m on their PR team, I’d even venture to say Flock is revolutionary. Oh don’t get me wrong, I’ve been a staunch Firefox fanboy since the days of its inception, and the whirlwind of extensions,themes, and add-ons for Firefox are truly compelling. But lets face it, Mozilla built a browser with an eye to speed and an eye to extendability. They did not build a browser with native intuitive features in mind. This is the space that Flock has come to fill.

I don’t know too much about the Flock team or their work. I suppose a quick read through the Wikipedia article on them is somewhat revealing, but the essence of what their browser is and what their browser does is difficult to size up in words. The self-appointed title of “Flock: the social browser” might sound somewhat eagerly pretentious, but for a browser that manages to pack so many features in one neat package, it may not be too far off the mark.

So what does Flock do exactly? Simple. Say I’m on the web, minding my own business, browsing about, and I come across an article of interest which I’m certain is worth mentioning here on Hadithuna. In Flock I simply highlight the text, then right-click and choose “Blog This.” Voila! A new window opens with the highlighted content already formatted in a neat box that looks very much like the picture attached to this post.

In fact this entire post was written and blogged about from Flock, without ever signing into my blog, without ever even visiting my blog. Nothing too amazing here, but this is just one example of how a much-needed solution has come bundled in a great browser. So ends Part 1 of my browser review, tomorrow we should see its concluding chapter.

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