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Safari beta for Windows updates to 3.0.4, fixes most of what was wrong
The list of improvements is pretty remarkable, and it appears that Apple has addressed most of the highest-profile deficiencies that were noted in the initial beta. For example, Windows users balked at the fact that Apple originally chose to have Safari act like a Mac app rather than a Windows app when it comes to basic window interactions like resizing. Many users also found the way that fonts are rendered in Safari to be inconsistent with other Windows applications.
If you find yourself agreeing with either of these complaints, you'll be happy to note that the new version of Safari actually acts like a Windows application, and can be resized from any side. Apple has also added the option of using Windows' standard font-smoothing technology (ClearType) instead of Apple's font-smoothing method. We'll spare you the debate as to which is better, and simply acknowledge that both are valid methods for smoothing fonts on screen, but are certainly different and it's not surprising that people have strong preferences.
You can view the whole list of improvements on a page Apple has up called About the Safari 3 Beta Update 3.0.4 for Windows.
Comments
13
Subscribe to commentsFox318Nov 15th 2007 12:16PM
Is there any reason at all why someone should use this over Opera/Firefox?
JohnNov 15th 2007 1:55PM
Yeah...I fail to see the point of this.
michaelNov 15th 2007 7:26PM
Who would actually use Safari on Windows?
Seriously, Apple software sucks on Windows. iTunes is garbage, QuickTime is garbage, and even Safari is all garbage on Windows.
I'll stick to my IE7, thanks. Nice try, Apple.
Naren HazareesinghNov 15th 2007 7:41PM
I love Apple's font smoothing. It is undeniably the best out there. But, unfortunately, it looks plain weird on a PC! I'll stick w/ClearType on Vista. Unfortunately. Stupid Anti-competitive Mirosorft [sic].
rocketboyNov 15th 2007 9:17PM
If you think that Apple's font smoothing method is "undeniably the best", you do need actually realize how font smoothing looks. Windows tries to match the font with the pixels, which in some ways gives a smoother display at the risk of changing the look of the font. Apple tries to make the pixels fit the font, so although theirs is more 'true' to the font, in many ways it's not smoother.
james 42Nov 15th 2007 10:21PM
I think it is generally agreed the Windows font smoothing is superior to Apples. That has been my experience. But to each his own.
It is nice to hear they are working on it, but do we really need this? If you're not happy with IE7, there's Firefox. Safari is better then Opera in that a lot of web 2.0 stuff works much better in Safari then in Opera. Opera is still not ready for prime time, but it is getting really close. It reminds me of the early Firefox, maybe around .8. I can't recall the exact rev, but there was definitely a tipping point maybe around .9 when Firefox finally hit the mark. Opera is nearly there.
Oh, and to answer my own question, yeah, some of us do need Safari for windows. It means that those of us developing web sites on a Windows platform don't have to have a Mac to test a site in Safari.
And for my last two cents, let me just add that I think it is funny that Apple is making it more 'Windowsy'. One of the reasons for putting Safari on Windows was to give Windows users a taste of OS X and maybe lure them to a Mac. But if they admit that it needs to be more Windowsy, then doesn't that mean OS X needs to more Windowsy too? Only kidding, I love OS X just the way it is (but will continue to use XP).
SkippiNov 15th 2007 11:33PM
One important thing - Gmail is supporting chats in this new Safari build. Maybe just a coincidence but a long awaited update!
BramNov 15th 2007 11:38PM
The biggest problem of safari (ver 3.0.3) in my PC is, safari can't load ajax webmail(gmail/yahoo). Has it change in this newer version (3.04)?
donelyNov 16th 2007 6:29AM
...but unfortunately they haven't fixed the "bug" of not being able to use the trackpoint(with pressed down button above the two mouse-buttons) on a IBM laptop to scroll as you can in Firefox/IE, which leaves me sh*t out of luck of using Safari without changing the way I use browsers...dang!
james 42Nov 16th 2007 10:22AM
@Bram, I had no problem loading Gmail in 3.0.3. I did not test it extensively, but it did work better the Opera. 3.0.4 loads Gmail just fine too and Yahoo Mail too. Live mail seems to work, but not perfectly.
rutgerNov 20th 2007 4:03PM
Just tested the Gmail chat function on 3.0.4, but it doesn't seem to work. On OSX (leopard) it works, but it doesn't on PC. :(
So far, for switching to Safari on pc...
Greg MNov 26th 2007 3:51PM
Could someone tell me WHY someone would EVER want to run Safari in Windows? This browser is lousy and not compatible with a ton of applications and plug-ins. Firefox is by far, hands down, the best browser on the market. Even IE 7 is better than Safari.
Safari_UserDec 7th 2007 2:43AM
This is one of the best browsers on windows, completely better than Firefox, Opera and Google. This is way faster, easy to learn, and easy to install.
I love it.