Safari on Windows!

[Mike]

In response to the high demand for the iTunes software on windows Apple have released their browser to try and increase their market share. I don't know if this will catch on but I will be giving it a try to see if it is indeed faster than the Internet Explorer / Firefox as they claim.

Are any of you interested in trying it out?

[mr_e]

I currently have Internet Explorer, Firefox and Opera instaled on my computer. It'll need to offer something pretty good before I even consider installing it, so I'll await your opinions first, Mike (squeal for me, guinea pig!).

[Mike]

I would wait a little while longer to change. There have been some dangerous bugs reported which people are able to use to take control of your computer. I know that this is only a beta but it is disappointing that they did not fully test prior to release! They better fix it pretty quick!

[John Knight]

If Vectorworks and I tunes are anything to go off this piece of mac ported software will be a disasterous addition to any pc.

[Mike]

The software is actually about twice as fast at displaying websites as IE and 1.6 times faster than Firefox.

Despite your distaste of iTunes you can not deny it is actually a very popular piece of software!

[John Knight]

Yeah with two sub programs. I-tunes helper and i-pod service which run at start-up whether or not you run I-tunes itself. There is now way of disabling them and they use a significant piece of memory. The only way to get round it is by ctrl +alt + del and end the processes.

[John Knight]

Oh yeah and every toime I update I-tunes because it automatically updates my quicktime half my sodding tools in Vectorworks stop working.

I spent 3 months with no trim tool because of I-tunes

[mr_e]

And there I was thinking most Mac software is bug-free.

But no trim tool!? That's weird, as I can't quite see how it relates, but it's a pretty essential function either way.

[Mike]

I can't see how that the trim tool is iTunes fault?! Surely that is to do with Vectorworks. . . . still another mac based programme but still I personally don't like the way that Quicktime is bundled with iTunes either - that seems anti competitive to me.

Mac software is not bug free, it is more stable and more secure by nature but no one is perfect!

[mr_e]

It may be possible there are some shared files that both Quicktime and Vectorworks use.

You could be forgiven for thinking they were perfect after watching the Mitchell and Webb adverts...

[John Knight]

For some reason vectorworks runs using quicktime and generally speaking it isn't wholly happy unless it is running the version it was shipped with. Trim tool is just the weirdest example but I have experienced other issues when I have updated I-tunes on other occasions.

[Mike]

OMG. Safari 3 Beta is by far the fastest internet browser I have ever seen. It is incredibly efficient and I am really impressed. I can't wait for the new version to come out and be without dangerous flaws! :D

[Mike]

The improved Safari has been released with a security update to ensure that safety is maintained. I have tested this on windows now and it is an interesting one. The programme is slower than on a mac. Significantly slower, which surprises me. I have not been able to tell if one browser is faster than another yet. I usually use Firefox and will check a couple now to see if there is a significant difference.

The fonts are indeed different, but I don't think they are blurred as reports suggest. The Fonts are actually really clear and slightly bolder than Firefox / IE7 microsoft's font rendering system.

To re-iterate, Safari's initial safety flaws have been fixed.

[Mike]

They have just updated Safari 3 to 3.1 and on my mac here it seems a little bit jerky which is very strange. I wonder if there is anything on the apple forums explaining issues. . . [going off to check now].

[Mike]

I have found out nothing special (save it might be the os x update 10.5.2 that needs more ram for the computer to work effectively). I don't have the problem at home so I assume it must be older specification machines that are the problem. There have also been lots of reports of Safari 3.1 being distributed pretty ruthlessly by Apple via the Apple Software update engine for Windows users. Now I am usually an apple nut, however, I don't think you should sneak the install into the software update (as if it is a free install then it would not be an update would it?) It is veering very close to malware installation techniques there. It just goes to show that you should always check what you are installing on your computer.

The most annoying one I found was the windows 'Genuine Software' and 'Malware Scan' updates (using the term very loosely) I would have thought it only needs be done once (especially with the Genuine Software version) but they seem to offer it every month! Crazy.