Yes, I know Apple took a quite good HTML widget (KDE’s khtml) and turned it into a first class HTML engine, the open source Webkit. And yes, it’s fast, very standards compliant and looks gorgeous. What I’m not sure about is if Apple realise that’s only the first step in building a browser users want to use.
When you start Safari, you get a lovely looking very minimal interface. Unfortunately minimal also seems to mean missing pretty much most of the features I need.
- No session management. When the severely brain damaged excuse for a browser known as Microsoft’s Internet Explorer can even support session management, even if in a barely useable and utterly crippled half arsed approach, then it’s time to question just what exactly we need to do to get Apple to support session management. And let’s not forget, this is a company that can code most of it’s applications to remember where their last windows were positioned, so remembering the last tabs and windows that were open is a simple task. I bet a couple of days is all it would take a Safari developer to create this.
- Speaking of remembering tabs and windows, how about an undo close button. Really, it’s almost 2010 and Safari users don’t get to have an undo button ???? And before you say it, yes I do occasionally close the wrong tab that I want to reopen without having to go to the history menu. And so do you so stop moaning.
- The missing tab preference “open new windows as new tab”. It really bugs me that when I click on a Digg link it opens a new window. I know, I can just press the command button, but I don’t have to do that in Firefox, why do I have to do that in Safari ?
- No Ad block. Before you jump on the whole “sites deserve the their ad revenue” bandwagon, let me say two things. Firstly, lots of sites go out of their way to ruin my whole browsing experience by putting the most obnoxious and annoying adverts all over the page, or in so many cases, making me have to wade through pages that do nothing but load an advert before I get to the content. Secondly, any half way decent ad blocker can let you see the adverts on sites you really feel deserve the advertising revenue (I leave Ads on most of my indie tech sites I visit, but then those sites usually go for unobtrusive advertising anyway).
- Following on from the Ad blocker issue, extensions. What ? Don’t think people want extensions for Safari, then check out pimpmysafari.com. People want extensions, and there are extensions, but go read the hoops the extension developers have to go through to not only get their extension to work in Safari, but to get it to keep working when Safari gets a patch or even a new major release.
Maybe this just isn’t something a software company can do. After all, these are all features you get with every open-source driven web browser out there, but other than Opera (which I just can’t abide, sorry Opera users but I just can’t) no vendor created browser seems to implement these features (or not well anyway, yes, I’m looking at you IE, hang your head in shame).
But as a major proponent of all things Apple, I’m disappointed to see Apple think that doing the same as other vendors is OK. Unfortunately I don’t even know if Apple believes these are real issues. Apple may be happy with how Safari is. After all, Safari is probably fine for the average user. But if there is anything my gut tells me, it’s that the power users are the ones you have to convince to help you gain market share. And we’re not happy with Safari the way it is.
And shame on me, I forgot about the cool, original and snazzy show top sites button Apple developed.
That’s because I don’t use it. Good one Apple.
