[Macworld]

Post your comments for Google gives Safari a kick in the pants here

[kbradnam]

As I spend a lot of time working at the screen of my MacBook, I appreciate the small increase in screen real estate that the new tab bar provides.
However, I now have to be much more careful when I click on the top of the window to move it. A stray click will now close a tab or drag one off of the main window.

[mrmaddog]

I agree. Already I keep dragging the window when I mean to switch tabs.
For others who use unofficial addons: Safari Stand works for me still (with no re-downloading or re-install), but my Inquisitor addon is no where to be found. I don't miss it that much now that there is good search auto completion.

[jamus]

Odd feel to it. The tab-at-top GUI did not go over well with me for Chrome and I don't really like it for Safari, but like the above poster said, you do get a bit more real estate out of the deal.

[macademianut]

I think they should go back to the previous tab.
1. The fact that the tabs are not constant spaced is a bit serious issue. You cannot click on the same spot to close consecutive tabs.
2. Previous implementation had more space to click on the tab and drag out to appear as new window. Current one has too small a place.
3. The new implementation doesn't really give full view of the title of the page, even with a reasonable number of tabs opened.
4. The UI is butt ugly on the top with tabs (particularly with shading, and the + bar etc.).

[natmusak]

kbradnam said:

>However, I now have to be much more careful when I click on the top of the window to move it. A stray click will now close a tab....

How is that different from Safari 3? The close button on tabs haven't changed (except cosmetically).

I do agree with the article, I think the new tabs were at least partially inspired by Chrome's, though I must say, Safari 4 looks far more futuristic and slick. Chrome is interesting, but it always looked childish to me - blue theme, angular folder-like tabs. I understand a bit better why there is a small margin above Chrome's tabs, rather than them coming up to the top border as Safari 4's do: it allows you to drag tabs without having to click and drag a target on said tabs. At the same time, that waste's space and contributes to Chromes odd look.

One thing I'm missing now that has me questioning if it's something to do with my system: what happened to the visual loading in the address bar? Now it's just a little loading circle (like Firefox). Safari on iPhone still has this, doesn't it? I'm running Tiger, so is it different for anyone running Leopard? Am I not seeing a setting I need to turn on? o.0 I just don't see the point in removing it if that's what has happened.

[Rhywun]

I will try to reserve judgment until I get a chance to try it out, but at first glance I am horrified at the thought of Apple throwing its consistent user interface out the window in favor of gimmicks like this. If I see a pulsing orb in the corner, I'm just going to give up and go back to Windows.
PS. The one UI change I really want is the ability to click once on the bookmarks toolbar and mouse back and forth across it to see the menus without having to click each menu.
BTW, Opera has had the same deal with the tabs over the address bar for years.

[UeliZino]

yes i'm using opera. and i'm telling you how it is. we all know mac os x stands above windows - right? but almost everyone is using windows. everyone is using safari, IE or firefox.... very few the 'above standing' oprea. i have all of them installed on my mac. i only use opera. it is the most inovative browser. use it and you'll be using freatures the other guys will be using in 3 years... oh, did i mention it's the safest out there? but who cares ( good luck
-u-

[moonbuggy]

The thing is that had apple come up with Chrome first and called it Safari, apple fans would have had an absolute conniption if Google came out with what looks like Safari 4 today and it was simply called Chrome. And they'd be running around saying that Google ripped off apple. But when apple makes the move 2nd, no one yells at them. And had microsoft done it, it would have gotten twice the attention. The point being that your article was pretty cautious in backing your self up by saying apple hadn't ripped off chrome in order to avoid an angry mob and conflict, LOL. But it's all so true. Safari 4 is a direct reaction to either Chrome or opera. The opera mention since it's now pointed out about the tabs. And that yellow (golden) favorites star is looking a LOT like the one from IE. So it appears they have gotten a lot of ideas from other browsers. Not that there is something wrong with that, but it's just amusing when some tend to think it all originated from safari. Very interesting at any rate.

[moonbuggy]

Oh, and to think Chrome was available to windows first, making safari 3 con in comparison in a way. So the more I think about it, apple must have been thinking, "Wow, we better do something fast! Time to update safari". And now safari 4 is out to change that... for at least a month or two .. .

[Hurley42]

I must be getting old. I did use Netscape way back in version 1.0, but I really like the interface for Safari 3.x and just don't want to adapt to yet another "innovative" interface. It works great for me as it is - I might try to hang onto 3.x as long as I can. If it's not broke don't fix it....but I know, developers are always trying to find some way to do something with an old program that is new, cool, or better. Yawn!

Now where is my cane? I need to go yell at the neighbor kids...

[natmusak]

moonbuggy said:

Oh, and to think Chrome was available to windows first, making safari 3 con in comparison in a way. So the more I think about it, apple must have been thinking, "Wow, we better do something fast! Time to update safari". And now safari 4 is out to change that... for at least a month or two...

Nope, Safari 3 came out June 11th, 2007 for Mac OS X and Windows. Chrome came out over a year later, on September 2nd, 2008 for Windows only.

[moonbuggy]

UeliZino says: "we all know mac os x stands above windows - right?"
I honestly think it's more than people have been conditioned to think osx stands above windows. windows has had a few rough times here and there, but to say osx stands above it is a stretch. Pretty much every point I've seen made to say it's better is quickly shown to be hype. Now I do believe each os has it's strengths, but any more these days, with the newest releases, neither is far superior than the other. But I do see a disadvantage with going with a more expensive platform with fewer choices in hardware/software. That said, mac is a fine computer, but sometimes the attitude (mostly fueled by i'm a mac) leades to exaggeration.

[moonbuggy]

"Nope, Safari 3 came out
June 11th, 2007 for Mac OS X and Windows. Chrome came out over a year
later, on September 2nd, 2008 for Windows only. "


I wasn't comparing Safari 3 to Chrome, since Chrome is an improvement. I meant that since Chrome came out before Safari 4 (which is apples answer go chrome) on XP, that gave windows users chrome, a better brower, before safari users would get safari 4. Not that it's that important though...



@Hurley42. - LOL. You make a great point. I was thinking the same thing but in a different way. How much better can all these browsers really get? I mean, I know that there are important integrated technolgies which must be imporved upon, but as long as an older browers works well, It's not like I have some huge need to have a new interface with the button positions tweaked. Or that I'm so confused with my old browser I need a newer "easier" layout, lol. . And that goes for all browsers on all platforms.