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Safari sucks...

B

Brandon263

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 12, 2009
404
37
Beaumont, CA
I tried switching from Firefox to Safari because I do heavy web research and Firefox takes way too much memory. After trying it for a week or so and trying to use some extensions to enhance Safari, I have failed to get essential functionality out of it and I simply give up :

1. It crashes: everything works OK for a while and then after you have over 100 tabs it just starts crashing or showing the spinning beach ball. Unacceptable, especially when you're using a 15" rMBP and the sites you were visiting were subscription-based and you can't recover the exact pages where you were because of having to log in again.

2. It loads pages slower than Firefox: What gives? I thought it was developed for Mac OS X?

3, Extensions don't work: Safari Adblock doesn't block YouTube, Facebook and Google ads, and the same goes for other sites. Adblock works fine on Firefox, though.

4. It doesn't have a built-in clear cache on exit function.

All of this is very frustrating, and though I will miss the Reader and dictionary look up functions, those functions are not worth me stressing myself out every time I use it. Back to Firefox.
 
Mackilroy

Mackilroy

macrumors 68040
Jun 29, 2006
3,920
575
Did you try creating a separate account to see if Safari worked normally under there?

In my experience, Firefox has always been the slowest of the three major browsers.
 
w0lf

w0lf

macrumors 65816
Feb 16, 2013
1,268
109
USA
Okay, go back to Firefox then. I thought everyone already knew Safari was bad for anything beyond the Average Joe 10 minute to 1 hour browsing session.

Firefox, Chrome and Opera all smash Safari in terms of extend-ability (better extension, more extension, more open), durability (fewer crashes), larger environment (windows, osx, linux, phones, tables vs just osx/ios for safari), better developer tools, more secure, etc...
 
chown33

chown33

Moderator
Staff member
Aug 9, 2009
10,740
8,416
A sea of green
Brandon263 said:
I tried switching from Firefox to Safari because I do heavy web research and Firefox takes way too much memory.
...
Back to Firefox.
Click to expand...

You might consider adding memory to your computer. Without knowing what computer or RAM you have now, it's just something to consider.
 
Krazy Bill

Krazy Bill

macrumors 68030
Dec 21, 2011
2,985
3
Not 100 tabs :eek: but I use at least 20-30 at times.

Does Safari suck up memory? Sure, but what else are you using it for? It will release it for other apps. I prefer Safari to FF or chrome. Maybe 1 crash per year and only god knows which site crashes it or why. Adblock and Click2Flash tame it well enough for me.
 
S

SMDBill

macrumors 6502
Apr 12, 2013
255
1
I'm just impressed that you can use 100 tabs open simultaneously and keep track of what's where. Not joking, just impressed because my brain/memory wouldn't allow me to get any realistic use out of that.

If nothing else, rocking 100 tabs at the same time is just something worthy of bragging rights!! :D
 
S

Silvereel

macrumors 6502
Jan 19, 2010
349
1
I just don't get all the hate Safari gets. It seems snappy enough to me, and I regularly have 30-40 tabs open. I have had about 2 crashes in the last 5 months, and both of those were caused by poorly coded websites.

Safari has the huge advantage of being built from the ground up for the Mac, and with features like Reading List and iCloud Tabs, I can't imagine using anything else!
 
fisherking

fisherking

macrumors G4
Jul 16, 2010
11,082
5,430
ny somewhere
i use safari and chrome; both have their strengths (and weaknesses). but safari remains my default browser, runs beautifully (here at least)...
 
B

Brandon263

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 12, 2009
404
37
Beaumont, CA
SMDBill said:
I'm just impressed that you can use 100 tabs open simultaneously and keep track of what's where. Not joking, just impressed because my brain/memory wouldn't allow me to get any realistic use out of that.

If nothing else, rocking 100 tabs at the same time is just something worthy of bragging rights!! :D
Click to expand...

I find that I can get to 100 tabs quite quickly:

1. Open up browser, log into journal database.

2. Input search term, right click to open first 10 relevant articles in new tabs.

3. Quickly scan new articles for relevant info while typing up notes. While reading article, come across interesting claim; look for citation and search for THAT journal article.

4. Find out that that author of that journal article didn't actually do the research that lead to that conclusion. Open up the original article.

5. Come to the sudden realization that Microsoft was supposed to launch new Xbox today. Open up CNet.com in new tab to find out about Xbox One's new features. Halfway down CNet article realize that article doesn't contain any exciting new details. Head to the Verge, while keeping original CNet article open. Verge article interesting but not really. Jump to comments.

6. Wonder what Macrumors commenters have to say about new Xbox and head over to main page. Read first 10 comments, and then stop when I read "It should make Safari snappier."

7. Wonder if there's any new discussion on Haswell and open MacBook Pro sub-forum in new tab.

8. Wonder if there's anything interesting on Google News and open up that page in new tab.

9. Wonder if anyone on Facebook has commented on IRS scandal and open it up in new tab. See interesting link to Buzzfeed. Go to Buzzfeed in new tab. Find interesting link to Reddit on Buzzfeed. Head over there in new tab.

10. Realize I should be summarizing journal articles and head back to the second article I opened at the beginning. Repeat process.
 
Lunfai

Lunfai

macrumors 68000
Nov 21, 2010
1,566
519
Sheffield
My safari is fine, but I've been too used to Chrome that I just can't switch. Although they keep adding redundant features, I'm not looking to switch to any other browser anytime soon.
 
jozeppy26

jozeppy26

macrumors 6502a
Jul 8, 2008
533
77
St. Louis
Lunfai said:
My safari is fine, but I've been too used to Chrome that I just can't switch. Although they keep adding redundant features, I'm not looking to switch to any other browser anytime soon.
Click to expand...

if only chrome could use the iCloud API. I freaking use iCloud tabs all the time.
 
I

in4fun

macrumors regular
Dec 4, 2012
108
0
It's true that Safari sucks but there is another problem with Chrome and Firefox most people are not aware of.

Maybe you've seen a warning message in your browser which states that "this website may contain malware". Most people believe that their browser scans the webpage you want to visit and puts out that warning. This is not correct.

The browser is not scanning anything. Instead Chrome calls back to Google HQ and compares the URL your're about to visit with their own blacklist. That means that any URL you visit will be transmitted to Google HQ. Since this feature seems to work quite nicely Firefox is using the same backlist, hence any page you visit with Firefox is also transmitted to Google.

So, of course most sheeple don't bother about their privacy. I for my part like to control what Google knows about me and my surfing habbits. I'm happy to give them that information if they pay me for it but since I didn't give them any permission and they didn't even ask I'm quite offended by that practice.
 
Ledgem

Ledgem

macrumors 68020
Jan 18, 2008
2,034
924
Hawaii, USA
Brandon263 said:
I find that I can get to 100 tabs quite quickly:

1. Open up browser, log into journal database.

2. Input search term, right click to open first 10 relevant articles in new tabs.
Click to expand...
Depending on the type of research you're doing, you might find Papers to be helpful. I'm no longer in research but I used it extensively during graduate school and it was incredibly useful. I can't imagine trying to organize and keep track of articles in browser tabs; I put up a good effort of managing PDFs on my own, but Papers was far superior.
 
M

mumph

macrumors regular
Apr 18, 2013
115
0
Brandon263 said:
I find that I can get to 100 tabs quite quickly:

1. Open up browser, log into journal database.

2. Input search term, right click to open first 10 relevant articles in new tabs.

3. Quickly scan new articles for relevant info while typing up notes. While reading article, come across interesting claim; look for citation and search for THAT journal article.

4. Find out that that author of that journal article didn't actually do the research that lead to that conclusion. Open up the original article.

5. Come to the sudden realization that Microsoft was supposed to launch new Xbox today. Open up CNet.com in new tab to find out about Xbox One's new features. Halfway down CNet article realize that article doesn't contain any exciting new details. Head to the Verge, while keeping original CNet article open. Verge article interesting but not really. Jump to comments.

6. Wonder what Macrumors commenters have to say about new Xbox and head over to main page. Read first 10 comments, and then stop when I read "It should make Safari snappier."

7. Wonder if there's any new discussion on Haswell and open MacBook Pro sub-forum in new tab.

8. Wonder if there's anything interesting on Google News and open up that page in new tab.

9. Wonder if anyone on Facebook has commented on IRS scandal and open it up in new tab. See interesting link to Buzzfeed. Go to Buzzfeed in new tab. Find interesting link to Reddit on Buzzfeed. Head over there in new tab.

10. Realize I should be summarizing journal articles and head back to the second article I opened at the beginning. Repeat process.
Click to expand...

Instead of all those tabs you may find it better using the 'reading list' that way the sites are downloaded to view later instead of having 100 tabs open using up all your memory and causing crashes. You cant possibly use 100 tabs at once so placing items in the reading list to read later would be best all round in my opinion. Give it a go and see how you get on. Another benefit of the reading list is you get a tiny snippet of info with it to help you identify it instead of tab after tab of one or two word page titles to pick from.

I use Safari, Firefox is simply not up to par and although Chrome is fast its UI is very poor.

As an aside you seem to keep tabs open that you yourself say are irrelevant. Maybe close a few of em down. ;)
 
B

benwiggy

macrumors 68020
Jun 15, 2012
2,382
199
Brandon263 said:
1. It crashes:
2. It loads pages slower than Firefox:
3, Extensions don't work: Safari Adblock doesn't block YouTube, Facebook and Google ads, and the same goes for other sites. Adblock works fine on Firefox, though.
4. It doesn't have a built-in clear cache on exit function.
Click to expand...
1. Very rarely have crashes on Safari: if it happens it's due to Flash. Perhaps some of the Extensions you've installed are not helping?
2. I find Safari very quick. Again, try it without all the add-ons.
3. Talk to the developers of the extensions.
4. Why do you want to clear your cache on exit? If you want privacy, turn on "Private Browsing".
You can clear the history and other things in Reset Browser. If you want to clear page caches for some reason, you can do so with the Developer menu enabled in the preferences.
 
w0lf

w0lf

macrumors 65816
Feb 16, 2013
1,268
109
USA
jozeppy26 said:
if only chrome could use the iCloud API. I freaking use iCloud tabs all the time.
Click to expand...

Why would they need to use the iCloud API? Chrome has had it's own cloud tabs since 2011.

IMO Chrome has the best web environment of any browser. No matter where I go or what kind of machine/device I'm using it can run Chrome and instantly have all my bookmarks, search history, active tabs on other devices, extensions, etc... at my finger tips. No other web browser really provides this.
 
jozeppy26

jozeppy26

macrumors 6502a
Jul 8, 2008
533
77
St. Louis
w0lf said:
Why would they need to use the iCloud API? Chrome has had it's own cloud tabs since 2011.

IMO Chrome has the best web environment of any browser. No matter where I go or what kind of machine/device I'm using it can run Chrome and instantly have all my bookmarks, search history, active tabs on other devices, extensions, etc... at my finger tips. No other web browser really provides this.
Click to expand...

Bc chrome on iOS sucks
 
SnowLeopard2008

SnowLeopard2008

macrumors 604
Jul 4, 2008
6,772
17
Silicon Valley
First off, you can't possibly be actively using 100+ tabs at once. As reference material, sure. But not actively using.

Under what conditions is Safari loading pages slower than Firefox? Normalizing the environmental factors will almost always skew performance in favor of Safari. Firefox's render engine is no match for anything Webkit (including Chrome).

Extensions are indeed a weak point for Safari. But many of the cross-platform extensions generally work the same and with the same feature set.

If you want to clear cache upon exit, use Private Browsing mode?
 
w0lf

w0lf

macrumors 65816
Feb 16, 2013
1,268
109
USA
jozeppy26 said:
Bc chrome on iOS sucks
Click to expand...

I agree only in the case that you aren't jailbroken and really the main reason that's true is because Apple wont let you set it as your default browser.

With jailbreak:
Nitrous
Browser Changer
AdBlocker

However even without a jailbreak Chrome on iOS already has Safari beat in so many aspects, which is pretty sad.
- Infinite tabs
- Swipe left/right to move between tabs
- Voice search
- Instant incognito windows (one of Mobile Safari's worst features)
- Most Visited + Recently Closed tabs
- Better Fullscreen
- Close all tabs simultaneously
- Omnibar
- Better search for text on page
- Better 'cloud' syncing + the ability to sync stuff from windows/linux
- Easily switch from mobile to desktop version of a site

Plus before some person mentions that you can't save offline reading lists, yes actually you can (although Safari does have Chrome beat on this one)...
- Print
- Save to google drive
- View the pdf in google drive
- Save for offline use

:eek:

aPple nErd said:
why the h*ll would you open up 100 tabs? obviously its gonna crash. troll post.
Click to expand...

SnowLeopard2008 said:
First off, you can't possibly be actively using 100+ tabs at once. As reference material, sure. But not actively using.
Click to expand...

Got to agree that there is no good reason to keep that many tabs open and really you're just asking to cause problems by keeping that many tabs open at the same time.
 
jozeppy26

jozeppy26

macrumors 6502a
Jul 8, 2008
533
77
St. Louis
aPple nErd said:
why the h*ll would you open up 100 tabs? obviously its gonna crash. troll post.
Click to expand...

My GF almost does this. She just leaves tabs open, sometimes 40 at a time. Then, she wonders why her late 2009 MacBook Pro crawls.

----------
w0lf said:
I agree only in the case that you aren't jailbroken and really the main reason that's true is because Apple wont let you set it as your default browser.

With jailbreak:
Nitrous
Browser Changer
AdBlocker

However even without a jailbreak Chrome on iOS already has Safari beat in so many aspects, which is pretty sad.
- Infinite tabs
- Swipe left/right to move between tabs
- Voice search
- Instant incognito windows (one of Mobile Safari's worst features)
- Most Visited + Recently Closed tabs
- Better Fullscreen
- Close all tabs simultaneously
- Omnibar
- Better search for text on page
- Better 'cloud' syncing + the ability to sync stuff from windows/linux
- Easily switch from mobile to desktop version of a site

Plus before some person mentions that you can't save offline reading lists, yes actually you can (although Safari does have Chrome beat on this one)...
- Print
- Save to google drive
- View the pdf in google drive
- Save for offline use

:eek:
Click to expand...

Doesn't count as a viable stable alternative if it requires you to jailbreak. I completely agree, Apple should allow us to choose a different default browser with no speed limitations. Then i'd definitely switch to Chrome.
 
Shrink

Shrink

macrumors G3
Feb 26, 2011
8,929
1,727
New England, USA
Brandon263 said:
I tried switching from Firefox to Safari because I do heavy web research and Firefox takes way too much memory. After trying it for a week or so and trying to use some extensions to enhance Safari, I have failed to get essential functionality out of it and I simply give up :

1. It crashes: everything works OK for a while and then after you have over 100 tabs it just starts crashing or showing the spinning beach ball. Unacceptable, especially when you're using a 15" rMBP and the sites you were visiting were subscription-based and you can't recover the exact pages where you were because of having to log in again.

2. It loads pages slower than Firefox: What gives? I thought it was developed for Mac OS X?

3, Extensions don't work: Safari Adblock doesn't block YouTube, Facebook and Google ads, and the same goes for other sites. Adblock works fine on Firefox, though.

4. It doesn't have a built-in clear cache on exit function.

All of this is very frustrating, and though I will miss the Reader and dictionary look up functions, those functions are not worth me stressing myself out every time I use it. Back to Firefox.
Click to expand...

While I don't question your experience...not all of us share that experience.

All the Extensions work perfectly.

Never crashes.

Works fine for me...no complaints.

(Sorry to screwed up the thread:p)
 
Last edited:
jozeppy26

jozeppy26

macrumors 6502a
Jul 8, 2008
533
77
St. Louis
Shrink said:
While I don't question your experience...not all of us share that experience.

All the Extensions work perfectly.

Never crashes.

Works fine for me...no complaints.

(Sorry to screw up the thread:p)
Click to expand...

Extensions for Safari really suck. There are so many more for Chrome that offer expanded features.
 
Shrink

Shrink

macrumors G3
Feb 26, 2011
8,929
1,727
New England, USA
jozeppy26 said:
Extensions for Safari really suck. There are so many more for Chrome that offer expanded features.
Click to expand...

I'm really sorry the Extensions work for me. You're right...they suck. As soon as I finish this post, I'm going to delete them all.

Thanks for setting me right on this...:D
 
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