Confession
I used to be a hater. I can admit it. Before 6 months ago the last Microsoft browser I used routinely was Internet Explorer circa 2006. In the years since, I’ve been a dual user of Safari and Chrome since becoming a Mac user more than a decade ago. Chrome quickly became my solution for standardizing my browser needs as I live and work more and more across Mac and Windows. Especially in the last couple of years as my career increasingly requires me to become familiar with Microsoft products in general. There’s a lot already written about the pros and cons of all the popular browsers out there. But I clung to my Chrome browser when away from my personal Macbook and the Safari browser I was so accustomed to. Now, just 6 months later, I use Edge exclusively at work and miss it when I’m not using it at home (*pauses to download Edge for Mac*...no, seriously). So, here are the four big reasons for my conversion, almost exclusively to Edge. Quick disclaimer: I’m not selling anything here. Simply being real about my experience. So, take it for what it’s worth.
Collections
I have been a browser tab junky for a long time now. During that time my solution to the disorganization that can come with trying to multitask with this phenomenon was to utilize multiple browser windows for different projects, each with 6-10 tabs open at a time. One major drawback here is performance. Especially with Chrome as one window alone requires a sizeable chunk of resources to run, let alone 2, 3, even 4 windows at once. Collections not only makes it easy to have all of that consolidated into one browser window, the functionality that Edge has built into Collections enhances my process when doing research by enabling me to focus and move fluidly between tasks and projects. For more depth on how to use this feature, check this out: Organize your ideas with Collections in Microsoft Edge - Microsoft Support.
Alt-Tab
Building on my new-found affinity for the Collections feature, I must talk about an old favorite—Atl-tab. This feature has been around a long time and exists in some variation across all major platforms (I.e. “Command + Tab” on Mac). Building on the power of the Collections feature, Microsoft expands the power of the Alt-Tab feature by making individual tabs in Edge a separate instance that can be toggled to when using it. If you’re using a trackpad this feature goes to another level as you can use the three-finger swipe on your trackpad to quickly move between tabs (and other open programs) in any direction.
Workspaces
Admittedly, this is not a feature that I have utilized personally. But, after doing research for this blog, I want to. Even if I have to make up ways to do so because it’s such a powerful feature. If you find yourself working collaboratively and in situations where staying in real-time sync across a serious of web links is crucial but difficult, Workspaces solves this:
- “Instead of sharing multiple project links back and forth with a working group, you can create an Edge Workspace with your project’s websites and working files open as browser tabs and share it with the group with a single link. Updates to the tabs happen in real-time so everyone can stay on the same page using the Edge Workspace.”
- “If you're working on multiple projects, you can create an Edge Workspace to organize the open tabs you have for each one. Whenever you want to work on a project, just open the project’s Edge Workspace and you’ll have all your websites and working files open in one place.”
I’m just scratching the surface here and have only begun to explore the power of this feature for myself. For a deeper dive from Microsoft on how to get started, check this out.
Copilot
This feature sealed the deal for me. Opinions abound about the use of A.I. and there’s plenty to be said about the pros and cons (that’s a topic for another blog). But it’s nearly impossible to argue against the inevitability here. I find myself taking the stance of cautious optimism when it comes to A.I and chatbots more specifically. But Microsoft recently integrated Copilot with Bing Chat into a convenient side-bar feature in Edge and it’s...incredible. This feature is so new it’s difficult to summarize with pinpoint accuracy as it’s constantly evolving. Any attempt at a comprehensive tutorial here would be like trying to hit a moving target. So just dive in and ride the wave (with caution, of course). But here are the standout points from my experience so far:
- Source citation: I tend toward a “never-trust-always-verify" philosophy in many areas of my life, but most especially when it comes to web content. My first real exposure to chatbot use, like so many others, was ChatGPT. In the beginning, my biggest concern was the lack of citation when using ChatGPT (I know things have since evolved with ChatGPT in this realm). Bing gave me peace of mind very quickly. Ask it a question, get a solid response...with hyperlinks to the source. This not only makes research quick, it makes fact-checking quick as well.
- Copy/Paste: When using the sidebar, by simply highlighting a block of text in an article for example, it will recognize the block you’ve highlighted and intuitively give you the ability to “Send” that text to the chat with follow-up options to “Explain”, “Revise”, “Summarize”, and “Expand” on whatever the content is. In my case, when doing research online, if I run across anything I want quick background context or explanation for, rather than opening a separate browser tab and doing a basic web search, I use this feature and the answer is a couple of clicks away.
- Link Summarization: Bing Chat can analyze a URL and summarize the content in seconds. Simply paste the URL into the input field along with a simple request for what you want Bing chat to do with the URL, something like “Summarize this article into bullet points”, and BINGO!
Again, I’m barely scratching the surface here. And this tool is constantly evolving. For a deeper dive check this out.
That’s It!
There it is! Microsoft Edge in a humble nutshell. Seriously though, just dive into it and try it out for yourself. Or don’t. Who am I to say? I just have my years of reasonable experience with a handful of prominent browsers on which to base my opinion. And I will be living life on the *Edge* as a result...at least for now.
Be good!
-Jared Landt- Service Desk Engineer. Cybersecurity Wizard. Part-time Rockstar.
