New Safari (beta)

[Paul Benjamin]

Has anyone tried the new (beta) Safari version 4?

The public beta is available for download for both Mac and Windows at Apple's website.

Reviews run the gamut, but the most frequent comments indicate:

1.) It's wicked fast! Apple claims it's the world's fastest browser. Reviewers largely agree it dramatically outpaces everything else, especially any version of Internet Explorer.

2.) There are some user interface tweaks that get mixed reviews. The "tabs on top" feature is the one that seems to give some folks the most discomfort. This, despite the fact that it 1) increases usable screen real estate for the content of the browser window (more and more important in this time where notebook computers have outpaced desktops as computer of choice) and 2) was already previewed as a feature in the recent introduction of the Chrome browser from Google.

Since it's still a beta, there are a few rough spots, though not many! I have tried it on both a Windows desktop (Win XP Pro) and a Mac PowerBook (Mac OS X 10.5.6 Leopard). My own experience is pretty much a confirmation of the speed— yeah, it IS fast! But the video content of some (not all) sites is choppy. I feel pretty confident that speed bumps like this will be smoothed out in the final release.

Although the "tabs on top" feature takes a little getting used to, it does have some advantages, including the aforementioned increase in the browser content area. In addition— and contrary to what some reviewers have reported— the entire window can be moved by a click-drag from any tab, active or inactive. What some users also miss, is that when you open a new window, it opens so that the original tab (as well as successive ones you open) appear in a nice, neat row immediately below the original window and its tabs. This is a nice usability feature, especially for those of us that have multiple window and tabs open on a regular basis.

Give Safari 4 a try, and share your own impressions with the rest of the SI Apple User's Group.

Paul Benjamin

[Robert Overton]

Does seem to be pretty fast at times. Sometimes however, I think that it runs a bit slow. I have had one instance since installing today that it shut down on me.

I am sure though that since it is in beta that all this will be worked out soon.

1 and 1/2 thumbs up so far.

Robert
'From My Corner'

[Adam Yale]

I was reading about this today. It supports HTML 5 and CSS 3. HTML 5 is supposed to bring the web to maturity as a full-fledged application platform. As a web developer, I'm also very interested in CSS3. Bring it on!

[Jordan Brown]

One thing that drives me crazy is that when I open a new tab and want to visit a new site it's a little slow, due to trying to read my "Top Sites". Other than that it works pretty well. I'm in web development so the "inspector" feature is really nice.

I'm not a big fan at all of the tabs on top, so luckily there's a way to revert them back to the good ol' fashion way.
If you close Safari and open terminal you can type in:

defaults write com.apple.Safari DebugSafari4TabBarIsOnTop -bool NO

And that will allow the tabs to fall back into their "normal" position.

[Devi Multimedia]

Agree with Jordan... prefer tabs the old way. I also miss the blue progress bar for sites loading maybe because I'm impatient and that sorta keeps me in check... I enjoy the "top sites" preview but agree is a bit slow. I like the whole page zoom functionality. I was a never a fan of adding new bookmarks and lengthy scrolling I sometimes must go through since I have large bookmarks library. I use it primarily for browser testing websites. Overall I really enjoy it as I do with most anything apple related. My 2¢

[Lance Speelmon]

Agreed - but I think those issues are resolved in the final version. :)

[Lance Speelmon]

I have been running it ever since it was released and the now final GM version is out. It is a must have. The one add-on I cannot live without is "Saft" - which remembers and restores all of my open windows/tabs when quitting/starting Safari. Enjoy! L

[Douglas Karr]

Love the fact that they have their own developer tools now... select "Inspect Element". It's pretty obvious that they 'borrowed' from Firebug, but it's a huge step up. Now if they had a Delicious plugin, it would be my browser of choice.