Editing Web browser (section)

==Features==
The most popular browsers share many [[software feature|features]] in common. They automatically log users' [[Web browsing history|browsing history]], unless the users turn off their browsing history or use the non-logging [[Private browsing|private mode]]. They also allow users to set [[Bookmark (digital)|bookmarks]], customize the browser with [[Browser extension|extensions]], and [[Download manager |manage their downloads]]<ref>{{cite web | title=Download a file | website=Google Chrome Help | url=https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/95759?hl=en&sjid=17722824076517891817-NC | ref={{sfnref|Google Chrome Help}} | access-date=2025-03-21}}</ref> and [[password]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Balaban |first=David|date=17 February 2021|title=Password Manager Comparison: Top Password Managers for 2021|url=https://www.eweek.com/search-engines/comparing-in-browser-based-commercial-password-managers/|access-date=4 November 2021|website=eWEEK|language=en-US}}</ref> Some provide a sync service<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Ioannou |first1=Pantelina |last2=Athanasopoulos |first2=Elias |chapter=Been Here Already? Detecting Synchronized Browsers in the Wild |date=2023-07-01 |title=2023 IEEE 8th European Symposium on Security and Privacy (EuroS&P) |chapter-url=https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10190548 |publisher=IEEE |pages=913–927 |doi=10.1109/EuroSP57164.2023.00058 |isbn=978-1-6654-6512-0}}</ref> and [[web accessibility]] features.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-04-17 |title=Accessibility: What users can do to browse more safely - Accessibility {{!}} MDN |url=https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/Accessibility/Accessibility:_What_users_can_to_to_browse_safely |access-date=2024-07-28 |website=developer.mozilla.org |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[File:Chromium (web browser).png|thumb|right|220x220px|Traditional browser arrangement has [[user interface]] features above page content.]]

Common [[user interface]] (UI) features:
* Allowing the user to have multiple [[web page|pages]] open at the same time, either in different browser windows or in different [[Tab (interface)|tabs]] of the same window.
* ''Back'' and ''forward'' buttons to go back to the previous page visited or forward to the next one.
* A ''refresh'' or ''reload'' and a ''stop'' button to reload and cancel loading the current page. (In most browsers, the stop button is merged with the reload button.)
* A ''home'' button to return to the [[home page|start page]].
* An address bar to input the [[URL]] of a page and display it, and a search bar to input [[web query|queries]] into a [[search engine]]. (In most browsers, the search bar is merged with the address bar.)

While [[mobile browser]]s have similar UI features as [[desktop computer|desktop]] versions, the limitations of the often-smaller [[touchscreen|touch screen]]s require mobile UIs to be simpler.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lee |first1=Simon |title=The Limitations Of Touch Interfaces |url=https://thisisglance.com/the-limitations-of-touch-interfaces/ |website=Glance |date=29 March 2019 |access-date=23 April 2021}}</ref> The difference is significant for users accustomed to [[keyboard shortcut]]s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chrome keyboard shortcuts |url=https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/157179 |publisher=Google Inc. |access-date=23 April 2021}}</ref> [[Responsive web design]] is used to create websites that offer a consistent experience across the desktop and mobile versions of the website and across varying screen sizes. The most popular desktop browsers also have sophisticated [[web development tools]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 June 2012 |title=Browsers are the new IDE for Web Development |url=https://devworks.thinkdigit.com/Software/Browsers-are-the-new-IDE-for-Web_9995.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120702141638/http://devworks.thinkdigit.com/Software/Browsers-are-the-new-IDE-for-Web_9995.html |archive-date=2 July 2012 |website=devworks.thinkdigit.com}}</ref>

Access to some web content — particularly [[streaming media|streaming services]] like Netflix, Disney+, and Spotify — is restricted by [[Digital Rights Management]] (DRM) software. A web browser is able to access DRM-restricted content through the use of a [[Content Decryption Module]] (CDM) such as [[Widevine]]. As of 2020, the CDMs used by dominant web browsers require browser providers to pay costly license fees, making it unfeasible for most independent open-source browsers to offer access to DRM-restricted content.<ref>{{cite web | last=Doctorow | first=Cory | title=Three years after the W3C approved a DRM standard, it's no longer possible to make a functional indie browser | website=Boing Boing | date=2020-01-08 | url=https://boingboing.net/2020/01/08/rip-open-web-platform.html | access-date=2025-03-22}}</ref>