Even if the Internet has been significant in our lives since the end of the nineties, its role has been growing very rapidly over the last three years. This was mostly due to new web sites, new ways to collaborate over the web, new applications replacing stand-alone ones, and a new perception that the web is the platform.

If the web is the platform, then the web browser and its ecosystem—plugins, custom toolbars, and other extensions—play and will play a crucial role. It could be interesting to survey computer users by asking them a few simple questions:

• How much time do you spend using a browser compared to standalone applications?
• Which browser do you use? How many extensions have you installed, and which ones do you actually use?
• Where is your home page? What five web sites do you visit most?
• How do you search the web? That is, do you perform your web searches using Google or some other search engine? Do you type URLs in the search box? Do you enter search terms in a browser search window? Do you type the search token instead of the URL?
• Are you a bookmark-oriented or search-oriented person? That is to say, do you bookmark the sites you want to revisit, or do you remember how to search for them?

Which of the following activities do you perform mostly on the web?

• Reading the news
• Booking a plane or a train
• Finding a map
• Placing a phone call
• Watching television
• “Going to” your bank or post office