Review: Opera 9 web browser

When any software reaches maturity it can become hard to justify new releases. However, Opera 9 brings with it a selection of new features without damaging the existing ones.

One addition that might cause some controversy is built-in Bit Torrent support. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with Bit Torrent but, apart from Linux ISO images, it does have a reputation for being used in piracy.

Despite this, it's still a very useful tool, especially as the Opera method helps you avoid exceeding your ISP's bandwidth restrictions.

Bit Torrent works on the premise that everyone who downloads a file also makes it available for others to download.

Very altruistic and, as a result, it can lead to a lot of traffic. The option in Opera to turn off sharing might be a little selfish, but it will help avoid some nasty bills.

Downloading files in this way using Opera 9 is simple and the Bit Torrent lists can be searched from the toolbar.

Opera 9 also comes with its own widget engine for displaying news feeds or other small applications like clocks.

Although helpful in avoiding the installation of more software, there are some criticisms. Unlike the Yahoo widget engine there is no hotkey to bring all the widgets to the foreground. This is a little odd, especially since it was possible with the beta of Opera 9.

Each widget also has an entry on the Windows Taskbar, which can lead to a certain amount of congestion.

Unlike some rival browsers, including Firefox and Flock, there is no way to create extensions yourself, so using Widgets is the only way users can add extra functionality to Opera 9.

Sadly lacking from Opera 9 is a built-in calendar. This is a shame because it already handles email and contacts, so a calendar would seem like an obvious item to include.

Despite these shortcomings, Opera still excels as an Internet browser. It is small, fast and secure.

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