Mac and Windows users: Download Apple's Safari browser 3.0 beta

[Heath McKnight]

http://www.apple.com/safari/

heath

[Paul Leung]

Thanks for the link.

I am using it now on my PC. It gives my pc a Mac feel.

[Andrew Clark]

Just an FYI here...

http://news.com.com/8301-10784_3-9728500-7.html

[Heath McKnight]

Thanks for the head's up! Take care, Windows users.

heath

[Kyle Prohaska]

One thing I dont like is embeded WMV doesn't work...

btw, not bashing anything but making a big deal (not you guys but other people who probably will) out of the few problems with it that need to be fixed is rediculous lol. IE is FAR worse overall im sure.

- Kyle

[Steve Benner]

I have been wanting Tabs forever, and now have them. Love Safari...also great on the old windows machine as well. So far, no problems to report on my end on the Windows machine...

[Eric Dyer]

Originally Posted by Kyle Prohaska

One thing I dont like is embeded WMV doesn't work...

btw, not bashing anything but making a big deal (not you guys but other people who probably will) out of the few problems with it that need to be fixed is rediculous lol. IE is FAR worse overall im sure.

- Kyle

I don't know if there is a windows version, but I have "flip 4 mac" which embeds WMV's as quicktimes within safari.

[Liam Carlin]

Originally Posted by Paul Leung

Thanks for the link.

I am using it now on my PC. It gives my PC a Mac feel.

yeah i know what you mean! cant wait to finally get a mac, a couple more years and I'll spend the cash, but for now I'll do with the mac feel :)

[Simon Wyndham]

I have been wanting Tabs forever, and now have them.

Firefox has been around for a while ya know!

I do like Safari on Windows. I love the way they have incorporated Mac style smoothed fonts in it so web pages look far better than in any other Windows browser.

However I don't find it as usable as Firefox or Opera. For one thing Safari doesn't even allow a 'new tab' icon in the toolbar. You are force into using a keyboard shortcut to open a new tab if there isn't a 2nd open already.

Also there is no ability to get it to open links that use the "target='_blank" command to open in a new tab. They always open in a new window. Highly irritating. Firefox allows you to tell the browser to always open such links in a new tab automatically.

I find the bookmarking system odd too. To create a new folder requires a keyboard shortcut or going to the 'file' menu. You can't create a new folder by right clicking on the bookmark list, and you can't create a new folder when you add a new bookmark either. This latter point is also highly irritating. In Firefox I can add a new folder at the same time that I am adding a new bookmark.

Lack of add-ons. Firefox is totally customisable, from add ons for extra control over security, integration with other apps, better download managers, skins, extra tab functionality, Skype integration, the list goes on and on.

So while Safari looks nice, for me as far as usability goes it is a long way behind Firefox.

[Mitch Chapman]

Originally Posted by Simon Wyndham

However I don't find it as usable as Firefox or Opera. For one thing Safari doesn't even allow a 'new tab' icon in the toolbar. You are force into using a keyboard shortcut to open a new tab if there isn't a 2nd open already.

You can also right-click (with a multi-button mouse) or control-click in the tabs trough, and then select 'New Tab' from the popup menu.

Originally Posted by Simon Wyndham

I find the bookmarking system odd too. To create a new folder requires a keyboard shortcut or going to the 'file' menu.

There is also a '+' button just below the bookmark list. Click it and a new folder is created with the name 'untitled folder'.

Originally Posted by Simon Wyndham

Firefox is totally customisable, from add ons for extra control over security, integration with other apps, better download managers, skins, extra tab functionality, Skype integration, the list goes on and on.

I think extensibility is Firefox's greatest strength. The Firebug extension alone has saved me hours of effort in debugging Ajax apps.

[Simon Wyndham]

You can also right-click (with a multi-button mouse) or control-click in the tabs trough, and then select 'New Tab' from the popup menu.

This is no good if I need a new clear tab. I use a trackball and I find icons more convenient than keyboard shortcuts.

There are other worse problems though. Like the way it won't allow you to tell it to open links that normally open in a new window to open in a new tab instead. Safari also can't be told to remember the last session. So if I have a lot of tabs open and I want to go to bed and carry on in the morning Safari won't remember which sites I had open. With Firefox it will open all the tabs I had open during the last session automatically if I want it to.

Safari could certainly be very good, but I think it falls well short of being anywhere close to Firefox. On the Mac itself I'm hearing that Omniweb is far better than Safari too.

If Apple can sort out the issues then it will be great. IE needs serious competition and Apple have the clout to be able to give it to them (would be even better if they made OS X for PC's!)

[David Rice]

I have been using Safari for three days now. It is faster than Explorer, However, I have been having trouble with it crashing. There doesn't seem to be any reason. It just crashes without warning.

[Joe Busch]

Try Firefox if you like Safari for windows...

It's honestly faster, and way easier to use...

I can operate a PC 10x more effectively than I can a Mac... maybe it's because I've been using them 4-20 hours a day (even longer) for the past 15 years... :)

www.gofirefox.com

[Greg Boston]

Originally Posted by Simon Wyndham

Safari also can't be told to remember the last session. So if I have a lot of tabs open and I want to go to bed and carry on in the morning Safari won't remember which sites I had open.

Hmmm, try this menu Simon. Open History, you'll see 'Re-open all windows from last session'. Admittedly, this is the OSX version, but I would think the Windows version offers the same functionality.


-gb-

[Mitch Chapman]

Originally Posted by Simon Wyndham

This is no good if I need a new clear tab.

Sorry for having to ask, but what do you mean by "a new clear tab"? When I right-click in the tabs bar and select "New Tab" I get a new, empty tab; hence the question.

Originally Posted by Simon Wyndham

There are other worse problems though. Like the way it won't allow you to tell it to open links that normally open in a new window to open in a new tab instead.

You can right-click on any link and select "Open Link in New Tab". And the preferences "Tabs" pane lets you specify that "Ctrl-Click" always opens a link in a new tab.

But you're right, AFAICT there's nothing equivalent to Firefox's option to open all new pages in new tabs.