What is a Browser?

Last updated: February 8, 2026Reviewed date: February 8, 2026Reading time: 11 min read
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A browser is a software program that is used to explore, retrieve, and display the information available on the World Wide Web. This information may be in the form of pictures, web pages, videos, and other files that all are connected via hyperlinks and categorized...

For severe symptoms, danger signs, pregnancy, child illness, or sudden worsening, seek urgent medical care.

বাংলা রোগী নোট এখনো যোগ করা হয়নি। পোস্ট এডিটরে “RX Bangla Patient Mode” বক্স থেকে সহজ বাংলা সারাংশ যোগ করুন।

এই তথ্য শিক্ষা ও সচেতনতার জন্য। এটি ডাক্তারি পরীক্ষা, রোগ নির্ণয় বা প্রেসক্রিপশনের বিকল্প নয়।

Article Summary

A browser is a software program that is used to explore, retrieve, and display the information available on the World Wide Web. This information may be in the form of pictures, web pages, videos, and other files that all are connected via hyperlinks and categorized with the help of URLs (Uniform Resource Identifiers). For example, you are viewing this page by using a browser. A...

Key Takeaways

  • This article explains History of Web Browser in simple medical language.
Educational health guideWritten for patient understanding and clinical awareness.
Reviewed content workflowUse writer and reviewer profiles for stronger trust.
Emergency safety firstUrgent warning signs are highlighted below.

Seek urgent medical care if you notice

These warning signs are general safety guidance. Local emergency numbers and clinical judgment should always come first.

  • Severe symptoms, breathing difficulty, fainting, confusion, or rapidly worsening illness.
  • New weakness, severe pain, high fever, or symptoms after a serious injury.
  • Any symptom that feels urgent, unusual, or unsafe for the patient.
1

Emergency now

Use emergency care for severe, sudden, rapidly worsening, or life-threatening symptoms.

2

See a doctor

Book a professional medical evaluation if symptoms persist, worsen, recur often, affect daily activities, or occur in a high-risk patient.

3

Learn safely

Use this article to understand possible causes, tests, treatment options, prevention, and questions to ask your clinician.

A browser is a software program that is used to explore, retrieve, and display the information available on the World Wide Web. This information may be in the form of pictures, web pages, videos, and other files that all are connected via hyperlinks and categorized with the help of URLs (Uniform Resource Identifiers). For example, you are viewing this page by using a browser.

A browser is a client program as it runs on a user’s computer or mobile device and contacts the webserver for the information requested by the user. The web server sends the data back to the browser that displays the results on internet-supported devices. On behalf of the users, the browser sends requests to web servers all over the internet by using HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol). A browser requires a smartphone, computer, or tablet and the internet to work.

History of Web Browser

  • The WorldWideWeb was the first web browser. It was created by W3C Director Tim Berners-Lee in 1990. Later, it was renamed Nexus to avoid confusion caused by the actual World Wide Web.
  • The Lynx browser was a text-based browser, which was invented in 1992. It was not able to display the graphical content.
  • Although, the first graphical user interface browser was NCSA Mosaic. It was the first most popular browser in the world, which was introduced in 1993.
  • In 1994, there were some improvements occurred in Mosaic and came to Netscape Navigator.
  • In 1995, Microsoft introduced the Internet Explorer It was the first web browser developed by Microsoft.
  • A research project started on Opera in 1994. Later, it was publicly introduced in 1996.
  • Apple’s Safari browser was introduced in 2003. It was specifically released for Macintosh computers.
  • In 2004, Mozilla introduced Firefox as Netscape Navigator.
  • In 2007, a browser Mobile Safari was released as Apple mobile web browser.
  • The popular browser Google Chrome was launched in 2008.
  • The fast-growing mobile-based browser Opera Mini was released in 2011.
  • The Microsoft Edge browser was launched in 2015.

Features of Web Browser

Most Web browsers offer common features such as

  1. Refresh button: Refresh button allows the website to reload the contents of the web pages. Most web browsers store local copies of visited pages to enhance their performance by using a caching mechanism. Sometimes, it stops you from seeing the updated information; in this case, by clicking on the refresh button, you can see the updated information.
  2. Stop button: It is used to cancel the communication of the web browser with the server and stops loading the page content. For example, if any malicious site enters the browser accidentally, it helps to save from it by clicking on the stop button.
  3. Home button: It provides users the option to bring up the predefined home page of the website.
  4. Web address bar: It allows the users to enter a web address in the address bar and visit the website.
  5. Tabbed browsing: It allows users to open multiple websites in a single window. It helps users to read different websites at the same time. For example, when you search for anything on the browser, it provides you with a list of search results for your query. You can open all the results by right-clicking on each link, staying on the same page.
  6. Bookmarks: It allows the users to select a particular website to save it for the later retrieval of information, which is predefined by the users.

What is the URL (Uniform Resource Locator)?

A uniform resource locator is the address of a resource on the internet or the World Wide Web. It is also known as a web address or uniform resource identifier (URI). For example, HTTPS: www.javatpoint.com, which is the URL or web address for the website. A URL represents the address of a resource, including the protocol used to access it

A URL includes the following information:

  • It uses the protocol to access the resource.
  • It defines the location of a server by IP address or the domain name.
  • It includes a fragment identifier, which is optional.
  • It contains the location of the resource in the directory of the server.

A URL forwards users to a particular online resource, such as a video, webpage, or other resources. For example, when you search for information on Google, the search results display the URL of the relevant resources in response to your search query. The title which appears in the search results is a hyperlink to the URL of the webpage. It is a Uniform Resource Identifier, which refers to all kinds of names and addresses of the resources on the webservers. URL’s first part is known as a protocol identifier, and it specifies the protocol to use, and the second part, which is known as a resource name, represents the IP

Component of a Web browser

The primary components of a browser are shown in the below image:

  1. User Interface: The user interface is an area where the user can use several options like address bar, back and forward button, menu, bookmarking, and many other options to interact with the browser.
  2. Browser Engine: It connects the UI (User Interface) and the rendering engine as a bridge. It queries and manipulates the rendering engine based on inputs from several user interfaces.
  3. Rendering Engine: It is responsible for displaying the requested content on the browser screen. It translates the HTML, XML files, and images, which are formatted by using CSS. It generates the layout of the content and displays it on the browser screen. Although it can also display the other types of content by using different types of plugins or extensions. such as:
    • Internet Explorer uses Trident
    • Chrome & Opera 15+ use Blink
    • Chrome (iPhone) & Safari use Webkit
    • Firefox & other Mozilla browsers use Gecko
  4. Networking: It retrieves the URLs by using internet protocols like HTTP or FTP. It is responsible for maintaining all aspects of Internet communication and security. Furthermore, it may be used to cache a retrieved document to reduce network traffic.
  5. JavaScript Interpreter: As the name suggests, JavaScript Interpreter translates and executes the JavaScript code, which is included in a website. The translated results are sent to the rendering engine to display results on the device screen.
  6. UI Backend: It is used to draw basic combo boxes and Windows (widgets). It specifies a generic interface, which is not platform-specific.
  7. Data Storage: The data storage is a persistence layer that is used by the browser to store all sorts of information locally, like cookies. A browser also supports different storage mechanisms such as IndexedDB, WebSQL, localStorage, and FileSystem. It is a database stored on the local drive of your computer where the browser is installed. It handles user data like cache, bookmarks, cookies, and preferences.

How does a browser work?

When a user enters a web address or URL in the search bar like javatpoint.com, the request is passed to a domain name server (DNS). All of these requests are routed via several routers and switches.

The domain name servers hold a list of system names and their corresponding IP addresses. Thus, when you type something in the browser search bar, it gets converted into a number that determines the computers to which the search results are to be displayed.

The browser acts as a part of the client-server model. A browser is a client program that sends the request to the server in response to the user search queries by using Hypertext Transfer Protocol or HTTP. When the server receives the request, it collects information about the requested document and forwards the information back to the browser. Thereafter, the browser translates and displays the information on the user’s device.

In Brief

  • When a user enters something (like javatpoint.com) in the browser, this request goes to a domain name server.
  • The browser sends the user request to the server using an IP address, which is described by the domain name server.
  • The domain name server sends an IP address to the web server that hosts the website.
  • The server sends the information back to the IP address, which is defined by the browser at the time of the request. The requested page may include links to other files on the same server, like images, for which the browser also requests the server.
  • The browser gathers all the information requested by the user and displays it on your device screen in the form of web pages.

List of Internet Browsers

There are various types of internet browsers, which are as follows:

  • Microsoft Edge: Microsoft Edge is a web browser that comes pre-installed with Windows 10 operating system and Windows Server 2016. It was introduced to replace the Internet Explorer Web browser, and its code name was Spartan. It offers various features such as freestyle writing over Web page displays, refined search, and presentations for e-books and other reading resources.
    Microsoft Edge was developed under the Spartan codename Project. In April 2015, Microsoft changed the project Spartan name to Microsoft Edge. Although Internet Explorer and Edge are included with Windows 10, Edge act as a default browser. It combines new web technology evaluations and enhances the speed of browsing. Although Internet Explorer 11 was available in Microsoft Windows operating system, Microsoft Edge has become the default browser in Windows 10. It needs at least 1 gigabyte of memory. It offers several types of features, such as annotation features, a new rendering engine, easy-to-use icons, etc. Furthermore, it also provides better security as compared to Internet Explorer, and it can be combined with Cortana, Microsoft’s virtual personal assistant.

Features of Microsoft Edge

  • It provides support for Firefox and Chrome add-ons.
  • It can fill out the form automatically.
  • It can be integrated with Cortana.
  • It provides faster page rendering.
  • It has more security features and also allows private browsing.
  • It is modern, lightweight, and reduces resource consumption.

Latest versions of the Edge browser

PlatformVersionsRelease Date
Window 1079.0.309.7122-01-2020
Window 10 Mobile40.15254.60321-01-2020
Xbox One40.15063.030-08-2018
  • Amazon Silk: Amazon silk is a proprietary Internet browser. It was released for Fire OS devices on 15 November 2011. It is based on the open-source Chromium project and derives most of the features from the Google Chrome browser. It divides the task of loading webpages between Amazon’s servers and Fire. Silk is the default browser on most Amazon hardware devices as well as on app-based Kindle devices, TV, Fire, and compatible Echo devices. Furthermore, it is the first new mass-market, client software delivery mechanism, which should be built from the base of the cloud, not only the web.

How does Silk Work?

Silk browser works through Amazon EC2 (Elastic cloud computing). EC2 acts as the middleman between devices and webpages and simplifies them for examined mobile consumption. Then, it includes the whole host of processes like page caching, file compression, and local file storage.

It tries to guess your browsing habits. Accordingly, it predicts the pages that you may like to visit, and then pre-loads those pages in advance. These background processes use lower bandwidth and promote the speed of page loading. If EC2 is offline, the silk browser switches to a backup mode where it translates all information on the Kindle Fire itself.

Rendering pages on EC2

When all contents of a page have been fetched on EC2, it renders the pages for display in the client’s browser window. It depends on the amount of load and the client’s network conditions.

The components that can be handed off to EC2 to speed up browsing are HTML, CSS, Networking, JavaScript, Block building, Marshaling, Native OM, etc.

  • Opera: An Opera web browser was first conceived at Telenor company in 1994, later bought by the Opera Software on 1 April 1995. It was designed for desktop and mobile interfaces, but it is more popular now for mobile phones. It is based on Chromium, and it uses the blink layout engine. An opera mini was released for smartphones on 10 August 2005 that could run standard web browsers. It can be downloaded from the google play store or Apple play store.
  • Apple Safari: Safari is an internet browser available for the Macintosh, and Windows operating systems including the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. It was developed by Apple, Inc. on 30 June 2003. It is the default browser for the operating system in its products, such as OS X for the MacBook and Mac computers and iOS for the iPad and iPhone mobile devices. It is number four in the browser market after Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome. It uses the WebKit engine, which is used for rendering fonts, displaying graphics, determining page layout, and running JavaScript.
  • Google Chrome: Google Chrome is an open-source internet browser. It is developed by Google on 11 December 2008 for Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, Android, and iOS operating systems.
  • Mozilla Firefox: The Mozilla Firefox web browser is developed by the Mozilla Foundation and its subordinate company, Mozilla Corporation. It was first released was beta on 23 September 2002. Although it was released as the Mozilla Browser, it was internally code-named Phoenix. The First version 1.0 of Firefox was introduced on 9 November 2004.
  • Internet Explorer: It is a web browser that is manufactured by Microsoft Corporation, and it is included with the Microsoft Windows operating system. But It was removed in Windows 10 in support of Microsoft’s new Edge Browser.

How to download different types of browsers

Follow the below links to download the different browsers

Doctor visit helper

Prepare before seeing a doctor

A simple rural-patient checklist to help you explain symptoms clearly, ask better questions, and avoid unsafe self-treatment.

Safety note: This is not a prescription or diagnosis. For severe symptoms, pregnancy danger signs, children with serious illness, chest pain, breathing difficulty, stroke-like weakness, or major injury, seek urgent care.

Which doctor may help?

Start with a registered doctor or the nearest qualified health center.

What to tell the doctor

  • Write when the problem started and how it changed.
  • Bring old prescriptions, investigation reports, and current medicines.
  • Write allergies, pregnancy status, diabetes, kidney/liver disease, and major past illnesses.
  • Bring one family member if the patient is weak, elderly, confused, or a child.

Questions to ask

  • What is the most likely cause of my symptoms?
  • Which danger signs mean I should go to hospital quickly?
  • Which tests are necessary now, and which can wait?
  • How should I take medicines safely and what side effects should I watch for?
  • When should I come for follow-up?

Tests to discuss

  • Vital signs: temperature, pulse, blood pressure, oxygen saturation
  • Basic physical examination by a clinician
  • CBC, urine test, blood sugar, or imaging only when clinically needed

Avoid these mistakes

  • Do not use antibiotics, steroid tablets/injections, or strong painkillers without proper medical advice.
  • Do not hide pregnancy, kidney disease, ulcer, allergy, or blood thinner use.
  • Do not delay emergency care when danger signs are present.

Medicine safety and first-aid guide

This section is for patient education only. It does not replace a doctor, pharmacist, or emergency care.

Safe first steps

  • Rest, drink safe water, and observe symptoms carefully.
  • Keep a written note of symptoms, duration, temperature, medicines already taken, and allergy history.
  • Seek medical care quickly if symptoms are severe, worsening, or unusual for the patient.

OTC medicine safety

  • For mild pain or fever, ask a registered pharmacist or doctor before using common over-the-counter pain/fever medicines.
  • Do not combine multiple pain medicines without advice, especially if you have kidney disease, liver disease, stomach ulcer, asthma, pregnancy, or take blood thinners.
  • Do not give adult medicines to children unless a qualified clinician advises it.

Avoid these mistakes

  • Do not start antibiotics without a proper medical decision.
  • Do not use steroid tablets or injections casually for quick relief.
  • Do not delay emergency care because of home remedies.

Get urgent help if

  • Severe symptoms, confusion, fainting, breathing difficulty, chest pain, severe dehydration, or sudden weakness need urgent medical care.
Medicine names, dose, and timing must be decided by a qualified clinician or pharmacist after checking age, pregnancy, allergy, other diseases, and current medicines.

For rural patients and family caregivers

Patient health record and symptom diary

Write your symptoms, medicines already taken, test results, and questions before visiting a doctor. This note stays on your device unless you print or copy it.

Doctor to discuss: Doctor / qualified healthcare provider
Tests to discuss with doctor
  • Basic vital signs: temperature, pulse, blood pressure, oxygen level if needed
  • Relevant blood, urine, imaging, or specialist tests only after clinical assessment
Questions to ask
  • What is the most likely cause of my symptoms?
  • Which warning signs mean I should go to emergency care?
  • Which tests are really needed now?
  • Which medicines are safe for my age, pregnancy status, allergy, kidney/liver/stomach condition, and current medicines?

Emergency warning signs such as chest pain, severe breathing difficulty, sudden weakness, confusion, severe dehydration, major injury, or loss of bladder/bowel control need urgent medical care. Do not wait for online information.

Safe pathway to proper treatment

Care roadmap for: What is a Browser?

Use this simple roadmap to understand the next safe steps. It is educational and does not replace examination by a doctor.

Go to emergency care if you notice:
  • Severe or rapidly worsening symptoms
  • Breathing difficulty, chest pain, fainting, confusion, severe weakness, major injury, or severe dehydration
Doctor / service to discuss: Qualified healthcare provider; specialist depends on symptoms and examination.
  1. Step 1

    Check danger signs first

    If danger signs are present, seek emergency care and do not wait for online information.

  2. Step 2

    Record the symptom story

    Write when symptoms started, severity, medicines already taken, allergies, pregnancy status, and test results.

  3. Step 3

    Visit a qualified clinician

    A doctor, nurse, or qualified healthcare provider can examine you and decide which tests or treatment are needed.

  4. Step 4

    Do only useful tests

    Do tests after clinical assessment. Avoid unnecessary tests, random antibiotics, or repeated medicines without diagnosis.

  5. Step 5

    Follow up and return early if worse

    If symptoms worsen, new warning signs appear, or treatment is not helping, return for review quickly.

Rural patient practical tips
  • Take a written symptom diary and all previous prescriptions/test reports.
  • Do not hide medicines already taken, even herbal or over-the-counter medicines.
  • Ask which warning signs mean urgent referral to hospital.

This roadmap is for education. A real diagnosis and treatment plan requires history, examination, and clinical judgment.

RX Patient Help

Ask a health question safely

Write your symptom story. A health professional or site editor can review it before any answer is prepared. This box is not for emergency care.

Emergency first: Severe chest pain, breathing trouble, unconsciousness, stroke signs, severe injury, heavy bleeding, or rapidly worsening symptoms need urgent local medical care now.

Frequently Asked Questions

History of Web BrowserThe WorldWideWeb was the first web browser. It was created by W3C Director Tim Berners-Lee in 1990. Later, it was renamed Nexus to avoid confusion caused by the actual World Wide Web. The Lynx browser was a text-based browser, which was invented in 1992. It was not able to display the graphical content. Although, the first graphical user interface browser was NCSA Mosaic. It was the first most popular browser in the world, which was introduced in 1993. In 1994, there were some improvements occurred in Mosaic and came to Netscape Navigator. In 1995, Microsoft introduced the Internet Explorer It was the first web browser developed by Microsoft. A research project started on Opera in 1994. Later, it was publicly introduced in 1996. Apple's Safari browser was introduced in 2003. It was specifically released for Macintosh computers. In 2004, Mozilla introduced Firefox as Netscape Navigator. In 2007, a browser Mobile Safari was released as Apple mobile web browser. The popular browser Google Chrome was launched in 2008. The fast-growing mobile-based browser Opera Mini was released in 2011. The Microsoft Edge browser was launched in 2015.Features of Web BrowserMost Web browsers offer common features such asRefresh button: Refresh button allows the website to reload the contents of the web pages. Most web browsers store local copies of visited pages to enhance their performance by using a caching mechanism. Sometimes, it stops you from seeing the updated information; in this case, by clicking on the refresh button, you can see the updated information. Stop button: It is used to cancel the communication of the web browser with the server and stops loading the page content. For example, if any malicious site enters the browser accidentally, it helps to save from it by clicking on the stop button. Home button: It provides users the option to bring up the predefined home page of the website. Web address bar: It allows the users to enter a web address in the address bar and visit the website. Tabbed browsing: It allows users to open multiple websites in a single window. It helps users to read different websites at the same time. For example, when you search for anything on the browser, it provides you with a list of search results for your query. You can open all the results by right-clicking on each link, staying on the same page. Bookmarks: It allows the users to select a particular website to save it for the later retrieval of information, which is predefined by the users.What is the URL (Uniform Resource Locator)?

A uniform resource locator is the address of a resource on the internet or the World Wide Web. It is also known as a web address or uniform resource identifier (URI). For example, HTTPS: www.javatpoint.com, which is the URL or web address for the website. A URL represents the address of a resource, including the protocol used to access it A URL includes the following information: It uses the protocol to access the resource. It defines the location of a server by IP address or…

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