# Mac Users: Safari? Or another browser? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 26, 2006, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379 "2006-05-26T22:40:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![shelbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@shelbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shelbo)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2006, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/1 "2006-05-26T22:40:32Z")
New Mac user here - what browser do the Mac pros out there recommend? ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2006, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/2 "2006-05-26T22:47:34Z")
Safari is nice, but sometimes it’s not supported well (for example, google calander). I’ve switched over to Firefox, even though it’s a lot slower. The customization mostly makes it worth it, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2006, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/3 "2006-05-26T22:52:08Z")
I’ve only used Safari on Macs. (And I’m a new Mac user, having used them for only a year.) I like it, but eBay login takes a while when I used dial-up. (I’m on cable now.) ---
**Author:** ![Sparklo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@Sparklo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparklo)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2006, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/4 "2006-05-26T23:20:07Z")
I use Camino with CamiTools (for customization). It’s based on the Firefox rendering engine and has a Mac-specific interface. I find it noticeably faster than Safari at loading pages. ---
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2006, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/5 "2006-05-26T23:29:33Z")
I use Safari mostly. I like the little search box, and I like that it makes it easy to clear its caches with the “Reset Safari” command and so forth. Also its tabs are done well. I use Netscape for a couple sites that don’t work for Safari. Over time it slows down and I have to force-quit it, if I don’t clear the cache and such before it gets too bad. I don’t use Netscape enough to see if it does the same. ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2006, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/6 "2006-05-27T00:26:26Z")
I use Firefox, too, as Safari support is spotty. Like my on-line banking pages don’twork with it and sometimes other pages come out stinky. Other than that I find it and Safari comparable. Under no circumstances use IE, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Strinka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/strinka/32/512_2.png) [@Strinka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strinka)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2006, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/7 "2006-05-27T03:08:08Z")
I use Firefox. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2006, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/8 "2006-05-27T03:47:37Z")
Safari user here. I like it OK, but it does seem as though the larger e-commerce points (banks, airlines) are not keen on acknowledging any such teeny market segments as Mac users with browser problems. They’d surely rather we all just got a life and went back to IE. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/9 "2006-05-28T02:22:24Z")
> [@shelbo](#): > > New Mac user here - what browser do the Mac pros out there recommend? Safari is a great browser. I use Firefox to support the open source model. On rare occasions I have had to switch over to Safari to render a page correctly, but rarely. I have been surprised but I have never had to bring up IE since Safari came out. Either I don’t visit IE only sites, or Safari/Firefox are compatible enough. In any event, I still have the last IE on my machine, but it is ancient and getting pretty dusty. So, Safari works best. Support Open Source by using Firefox. Your choice. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/10 "2006-05-28T02:25:25Z")
> [@Beware of Doug](#): > > Safari user here. I like it OK, but it does seem as though the larger e-commerce points (banks, airlines) are not keen on acknowledging any such teeny market segments as Mac users with browser problems. They’d surely rather we all just got a life and went back to IE. Yeah, but what a sad and dreary life! Every place I have have investigated at least pays lip-service to multiple browsers. The problem typically is that they don’t test their sites very well with anything except IE. But they do seem to want to fix their bugs when the bugs are brought to their attention. ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/11 "2006-05-28T03:51:51Z")
I find Firefox to be much better at blcoking popups. ---
**Author:** ![gardentraveler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gardentraveler/32/3576_2.png) [@gardentraveler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gardentraveler)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/12 "2006-05-28T12:38:50Z")
I use Firefox because I’m addicted to Adblock. It’s always a shock when I’m on a different computer or stuck with IE for some reason and I’m bombarded with ads. GT ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/13 "2006-05-28T16:30:17Z")
I bounce back n forth between Safari and Firefox. I’ve tried Camino and WebKit ([http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/18700](http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/18700)) Web kit was MUCH faster, but also much more buggy than either of the big two. ---
**Author:** ![Majikthise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bb73d2/32.png) [@Majikthise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Majikthise)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/14 "2006-05-28T21:30:25Z")
> [@NurseCarmen](#): > > I find Firefox to be much better at blcoking popups. I use a web proxy server called Privoxy for blocking ads. It works with any web browser that I use on my machine, and is quite flexible. They also have versions of Privoxy for other operating systems (I have used it on Linux as well). > [@rbroome](#): > > Support Open Source by using Firefox. Safari’s html rendering engine, khtml, also happens to be open source. It is the same engine used by the KDE Konqueror web browser, which I use on my Linux machine. Many of Apple’s improvements to khtml have been incorporated back into Konqueror, which is nice to hear. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/15 "2006-05-29T00:38:45Z")
> [@NurseCarmen](#): > > I find Firefox to be much better at blcoking popups. I’ve found the absolute opposite to be true. I’ve been using Safari since the beginning and I’ve only had one popup make it through. I’ve tried Firefox, Camino, and Shiira, and they’re all fine browsers, but none of them quite have the right feel. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/16 "2006-05-29T00:57:49Z")
I use Opera and only rarely have problems with it loading pages. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/17 "2006-05-29T03:29:04Z")
I’m a Shiira user. The same underlying webkit technology as Safari but a nicer GUI and the damn links pop out a contextual menu when you click-and-hold, unlike Safari which requires a genuine right-click or control-click. (That makes a lot of difference if one is on a PowerBook). ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/18 "2006-05-29T03:49:10Z")
> [@Troy McClure SF](#): > > I’ve found the absolute opposite to be true. I’ve been using Safari since the beginning and I’ve only had one popup make it through. Same here. I’ve found Safari better a popup blocking. ---
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/19 "2006-05-29T15:43:12Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > I’m a Shiira user. The same underlying webkit technology as Safari but a nicer GUI and the damn links pop out a contextual menu when you click-and-hold, unlike Safari which requires a genuine right-click or control-click. (That makes a lot of difference if one is on a PowerBook). Can you transfer your Safari bookmarks to Shiira? ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2006, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379/20 "2006-05-30T02:27:49Z")
> [@riker1384](#): > > Can you transfer your Safari bookmarks to Shiira? Not merely transfer: Shiira can utlilize Safari’s bookmarks without importing them (so subsequent additions you make while using Safari will immediately carry over into Shiira, although not vice versa). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-safari-or-another-browser/358379.md?page=2)