The big advance in Avant 9 is the tabbed interface, which can also be found in browsers such as Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and Netscape. This function makes it possible to open multiple windows all inside of the same browser and to then "tab" between them, providing a quick and simple way to move around between multiple web pages while keeping previous pages open and readily accessible.
A single Control-N keystroke opens a new blank tab. Tabs appear at the bottom of the browser window, with each tab identifying its related contents. Clicking on the tab brings that page to the front — no more repeated openings and closings, and no pile of windows cluttering up the scene. Another benefit is that no matter how many browser windows you have open, only one tab shows up for Avant on the Windows Start bar.
Like a good pop-up stopper, a tabbed browser will rapidly become an indispensable part of your internet experience. This is so much better than opening new windows, it's not even funny.
The basic controls of Avant are simple and intuitive, as well they should be, given Avant's close ties to Internet Explorer. That relation to IE has other advantages, too — for example, the automatic import of your Favorites list and Home Page upon installation.
The application offers seven default "skins," or graphical schemes, to choose from. In the Xito scheme the toolbars appear in a pleasing light gray shade. In Tristan they are dark gray and silver. The other five variations are equally subtle. Beyond the color tweaks, if there's any point whatsoever to this feature, we failed to grasp it.
