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keirius

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Dec 28, 2004
9
0
Hi. I'd like to ask which is a better browser, Safari or Firefox? :)
Besides that, does Spyware, browser hijacking and trojans affects a Mac?

Thanks... ;)
 

risc

macrumors 68030
Jul 23, 2004
2,756
0
Melbourne, Australia
I prefer Camino to Firefox but my favourite browser would have to be OmniWeb. At the moment though I actually use Safari because of an app (written in Apple Script) that allows me to program my EyeTV 400 here in Australia even though El Gato don't support it.

As for the question Safari versus Firefox try them both and see which you like, Camino is a much more Aquafied Gecko based browser.
 

mnkeybsness

macrumors 68030
Jun 25, 2001
2,511
0
Moneyapolis, Minnesota
Speed-wise for most sites, Safari is the fastest browser for me. It also isn't over-populated with features that I don't need, but I am always testing websites in other browsers as a part of my job as a web designer. I also think that most sites look best with the Safari metal interface as opposed to the regular aqua that most other (all?) browsers use.
 

madmaxmedia

macrumors 68030
Dec 17, 2003
2,932
42
Los Angeles, CA
dontmakemehurtu said:
Safari is one I'd stick with. That is, until the official "Mac-optimized" version of Firefox is released by Mozilla. But, even if now it looks like a port of an app originally made for another OS, I use it more often than Safari due to the extensions.

I'm waiting for the Mac-optimized Firefox as well. In the meantime, I'm using Camino which is for all intents and purposes the same thing, but I think based on earlier code version. It also doesn't have firefox plug-in support.

Both Camino and Safari are good IMO, I'd be satisfied with either.
 

aloofman

macrumors 68020
Dec 17, 2002
2,206
3
Socal
I'm kind of split on this. I think Firefox renders more pages correctly than Safari does, probably because of its multi-platform development. But I find the tabs system better on Safari, especially that you can delete them individually. On Firefox, you get one (X) button that you can only use on the active tab. Also, Safari's automatic fill in for various fields and URLs is better overall and so are the bookmarks.

I find myself using Safari most of the time, but Firefox for certain websites that work better with it.
 

eclipse525

macrumors 6502a
Aug 5, 2003
850
0
USA, New York
I hear Camino is the best or at least GOING to be the best browser out there. It simply blows everything away AND it's still Beta(i think).

~e
 

heaven

macrumors 6502a
Jun 20, 2004
553
2
aloofman said:
I'm kind of split on this. I think Firefox renders more pages correctly than Safari does, probably because of its multi-platform development. But I find the tabs system better on Safari, especially that you can delete them individually. On Firefox, you get one (X) button that you can only use on the active tab. Also, Safari's automatic fill in for various fields and URLs is better overall and so are the bookmarks.

I find myself using Safari most of the time, but Firefox for certain websites that work better with it.

Thats exactly the point, why I use Firefox - Safari suffers one some pages. Got to try Camino out sooner or later..

 

sjpetry

macrumors 65816
Oct 28, 2004
1,195
0
Tamarindo, Costa Rica
eclipse525 said:
I hear Camino is the best or at least GOING to be the best browser out there. It simply blows everything away AND it's still Beta(i think).

~e

Camino will be better when it is not beta, right now it is to slow for me. Guess I'm staying on FireFox. :)
 

mcadam

macrumors 6502a
Apr 3, 2004
593
0
københavn
For me firefox really seem to be a bit faster loading pages than safari! And with the skin I've got for it it looks just as stylish. But I use them both... Perhaps I should give camino a go then...

A
 

wrldwzrd89

macrumors G5
Jun 6, 2003
12,110
77
Solon, OH
As far as browsers go, I can't really recommend Camino due to lack of support for Firefox 1.0 extensions.

Here's what's in Firefox's favor:
-secure extension system
-easy for switchers that are used to Firefox for Windows to use

Here's what's in Safari's favor:
-bookmark integration with .Mac
-great 3-tier bookmark manager (bookmarks bar, bookmarks menu, bookmark collections)

What I consider to be even:
-Speed
-Rendering sites well

I'll let you make the final decision.
 

mcarvin

macrumors regular
Oct 26, 2003
218
2
Southern NJ
risc said:
I prefer Camino to Firefox but my favourite browser would have to be OmniWeb. At the moment though I actually use Safari because of an app (written in Apple Script) that allows me to program my EyeTV 400 here in Australia even though El Gato don't support it.

As for the question Safari versus Firefox try them both and see which you like, Camino is a much more Aquafied Gecko based browser.

OmniWeb - and don't get me wrong on this b/c I'm a longtime licensee - needs to be faster. It renders pages beautifully using a modded WebCore engine, but the outstanding featureset just seems to slow it down ridiculously on my 2x2.0 G5.

I tried G5-optimized Firefox for a while and generally liked it except for the fact that some extensions didn't care to be on a 1.0+ browser.

Right now, I'm back to Safari with PithHelmet and AcidSearch tacked on. For me, the biggest things are Mac-like styling (pref. Aqua, not brushed metal) and ad blocking.

If only OW 5.1 was faster!!!!
 

Apple Hobo

macrumors 6502a
Mar 19, 2004
796
0
A series of tubes
I've been using Safari since it came out. I've only experienced a few minor problems after all this time. I also use PithHelmet. PithHelmet would most likely keep me from switching to another browser. Yeah, it's that good. ;) My 2nd choice is Firefox. There's even an ad-blocker for FF. I also think FF has a lot of potential--especially in getting PC users to dump MSIE. Whatever you choose, make sure it's not MSIE!
 

slipper

macrumors 68000
Nov 19, 2003
1,561
44
In my opinion, i prefer FireFox. Quick page rendering and simple interface.

I also like Camino but page rendering sucks. Keep in mind its a beta, i might be switching back when its in regular production.

I dont care for safari, slow page rendering and a hassle to get a new tab.
 

Mechcozmo

macrumors 603
Jul 17, 2004
5,215
2
Safari.... FireFox just doesn't feel right on the Mac.... On Windows, no question. FireFox.
 

BornAgainMac

macrumors 604
Feb 4, 2004
7,275
5,212
Florida Resident
I like the fact that Mac users are willing to try different browsers and choose the best one for them. It keeps the browsers from becoming stale if only provided by one vendor.
 

thequicksilver

macrumors 6502a
Sep 19, 2004
789
17
Birmingham
These days I'm finding myself split between Safari and Camino. I love Firefox on Windows, but the Mac version is desperately lacking. It just feels horrible. (The extensions rule, however, so not all's bad.)

If you get Camino, make sure to get the Camino Extra Prefs add-on for it. I've used it to metallise my browser window and loads of other stuff. Definitely worth doing.

There's also an option to remove the default delay that's there in the browser, so for those of you complaining Camino's slow, try this. You'll be pleasantly surprised I think. :)
 

baby duck monge

macrumors 68000
Feb 16, 2003
1,570
0
Memphis, TN
wrldwzrd89 said:
Here's what's in Safari's favor:
...
-great 3-tier bookmark manager (bookmarks bar, bookmarks menu, bookmark collections)

indeed. you can accomplish the same thing in firefox, but it is a lot harder to do. stupid clunky interface...
 

iJoe

macrumors member
Oct 14, 2004
96
0
Nottingham
I find Camino fastest... There doesn't seem to be a single rule for which browser is best. You really have to try them all and make your own mind up.
 
Perhaps the problem is my system, but Safari has been crashing a LOT on me lately. I'm trying Firefox, but I have no scrollbars on the right! It's just a grey bar with nothing in it.. Is that right? I miss the close tabs X that Safari has. It hasn't crashed on me yet, so that's good.

I used to use Camino, back when it was Chimera, but lost interest..

Omniweb was always the most beautiful when it came to page rendering, but it's slow on oldermachines.

Opera has a nice page scaling feature that scales the entire page, not just the text.

IE... What you go to when there's no other choice...

Uh... just realized my Firefox scrollbar problem was theme related... heh, heh...
 
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