SlimBoat

You will need a browser to be able to go online and surf the web. You could use Internet Explorer (IE), the default Windows browser for the job, or you could use one of the many 3rd party-developed browsers that are available for free. One such option is the FlashPeak’s free and versatile web browser SlimBoat.

You can easily install SlimBoat on top of several editions of the Windows operating system, Windows 7 included. The developer explained that a SlimBoat version for Mac and Linux would be released in the future. The Windows installation file for SlimBoat is little over 10MB in size. Run the file and click through the setup wizard to get the browser installed on your PC. The setup wizard will ask you to pick one of several supported languages and choose the installation directory.

The SlimBoat interface is typical of what you would expect to get from a browser. As a Firefox user, I had no problems getting accustomed with the interface. By default the homepage is set to a custom version of Google search. At the top you will see a Bookmarks Bar which comes with some pre-populated items; there are also some built-in links in the New Tab button as well. At the top there are some handy navigation shortcuts, and a traditional file menu. If you decide to change the default homepage, you have easy access to Google Search functionality from the search box in the upper right hand corner.

From a functionality point of view, SlimBoat has all the features you would expect from a modern web browser. Type in a URL and visit a webpage, add and manage bookmarks, perform web searches using different search engines, block popups, download data from the web, customize the look of the interface, and more.

SlimBoat has a few functions that privacy-oriented users will like. With a simple mouse click you can turn on Private Browsing mode and surf the web safe in the knowledge that the browser will not remember where you go and what you do. Another nice thing about SlimBoat is that it can clean up the browsing traces you leave behind – you can set it up so that your browsing history, quick-search history, address bar history, cookies, icon cache, and cached files are automatically removed when you exit the application. Moving on SlimBoat comes with an auto-lock feature (the browser will be locked after a specific amount of time, a password will have to be provided to access the browser) and it supports hotkeys so you can easily hide the browser out of sight.

If you ever come across a foreign site and you need help understanding the foreign language, SlimBoat is here to help you out. The browser can translate a whole webpage or just selected text using Google Translate or Bing Translate.

When I want to check the weather, I take a look at my weather widget, which means I have to minimize the browser. With SlimBoat you don’t have to leave the webpage you’re on – set your location and the browser will present weather info in the status bar in the bottom right hand corner. Click status bar and a prompt with more info about the weather will show up.

These are the features I liked most about the SlimBoat web browser. There are several other handy and interesting things the browser can do. You have all the time in the world to uncover the application’s full functionality and that’s because SlimBoat is freeware. Cons:
None that I could think of.