Tag Archives: browsers

Apple patches Safari web browser

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Apple has posted Safari 5.1.2 – its web browser for Mac and Windows operating systems.

The update plugs various security holes, plus:

  • Improves stability
  • Addresses issues that could cause hangs and excessive memory usage
  • Addresses issues that could cause webpages to flash white
  • Allows PDFs to be displayed within web content

Apple Safari 5.1.2 requires Mac OS X Lion 10.7.2 or Snow Leopard 10.6.8 and can be applied via Software Update.

Safari 5.0.4 for Windows requires Windows 7, Vista, or XP SP2; a minimum of 256 Mb of memory; and a system with at least a 500 MHz Intel Pentium processor (using Top Sites and Cover Flow features require a compatible DirectX 9.0 video card with 64MB of video RAM).

Firefox 3.0 Released

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Firefox 3 contains many features to help you determine whether a particular website is secure.Mozilla has released its Firefox 3.0 web browser for Macintosh, Windows, and Linux operating systems. The much awaited upgrade is based on the Gecko 1.9 rendering engine which includes over 15,000 unique changes.

The result is a browser that renders pages up to three times faster than Firefox 2, is much more secure, is more “in tune” design-wise with its respective OS, and offers a more personal and intuitive experience.

Among the numerous changes and new features, some of the highlights are:

  • Much faster pageloads.
  • More efficient memory usage.
  • Improved “Smart” Location/Address Bar – nicknamed “The Awesome Bar” by many – just start typing (not even a formal URL) – Firefox is tied in directly to your bookmarks and history – you’ll get what you are looking for a lot faster.
  • Star button (in the Location Bar) quickly adds bookmarks with a single click; a second click lets you file and tag them – a “solid” star indicates the URL is already in your bookmarks (You can even add bookmark Tags for better searching).
  • One-click site info: Click a website’s favicon in the location bar to see who owns the site and to check if your connection is protected from eavesdropping (see image). Identity verification is prominently displayed and easier to understand. When a site uses Extended Validation (EV) SSL certificates, the site favicon button will turn green and show the name of the company you’ve connected to
  • Malware Protection warns you of websites which are known to harbor viruses, spyware, trojans or other malware.
  • Web Forgery Protection (Anti-Phishing feature) will not display the content of pages suspected as web forgeries.
  • Easier password management information bar replaces the old password dialog so you can now save passwords after a successful login.
  • Smart Bookmark Folders gives you fast access your most visited bookmarks from the toolbar, or recently bookmarked and tagged pages from the bookmark menu. Create your own Smart Bookmark Folders by saving a search query in the new Firefox Library.
  • Improved Download Manager – including resumable downloads.

For a complete list of all the improvements, click here for the Release Notes.

NOTE: Firefox 3 is a whole new browser. If you are currently using Firefox 2 and have installed any Firefox Extenstions (Add-ons or Themes), you may need to check to see if an update is needed or available.

Free Advice – After months of testing the Firefox 3 Betas and Release Candidates, Firefox 3 has become my primary Macintosh browser – although I still use Safari for certain tasks (mostly out of habit). Using a second (or sometimes even third) browser is actually a good thing to do – and comes in very handy when … for whatever reason … a particular website isn’t behaving properly or displaying awkwardly.