Get familiar with Apple's Safari

By Sarah Granger

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The Safari browser for the Mac, PC and iPhone boasts ease of use and Apple's sleek design.  It comes standard with all new Macintosh systems and is available free online for Windows and Mac users.  Safari tends to be the favorite among Mac users and its robust design means it is fairly crash-proof and tends to be kept up to date with advances in website design.  It can be used to browse files online or on your computer.

From the Top

Navigating Safari and navigating with Safari is fairly simple, once the basic features are learned.  The top of the browser window contains standard features top left, like the back and forward buttons, noted with the left and right arrows, the reload button, noted with the circular arrow, the cutout button (fun for cropping images or notes to put on the Dashboard), and the bookmarks button, noted with the plus sign - for adding bookmarks to the bookmark list or bar.

The big center text box is, of course, for entering web addresses as URLs or as title names.  For example, if you type in 'biscuit', it will go to http://www.biscuit.com.  Also, Safari caches (saves in short term memory) recent sites used, so when you type in something like 'safari' in the top box, it will automatically bring up the web page where you downloaded Safari, assuming it was recent.  The right text box is for Google searches - it has identical functionality to the box at the center of the page at google.com, only there's no need to go to the Google web page because you can search directly from Safari.

Moving to the next row of the browser, you'll see a tiny book image -- that opens up the Bookmarks page where all bookmarks are stored, organized and accessed.  It works just like iTunes and other Apple software in terms of file formats and is easy to sort.  Adjacent to the bookmarks button lies the bookmark bar where favorite sites can be easily accessed by adding them to the bar.  The Bookmarks menu also works for easy bookmark access.

Navigation

Tabs are one of the best inventions in browser software.  By going to the File menu and selecting "New Tab" or by selecting the open-apple button and hitting T, new tabs open so you can view multiple sites in one browser window, allowing for instantaneous maneuvering between pages, maintaining high speed access and simplifying the browsing process.  To view earlier sites browsed, just go to the History menu and select the earlier site.

Once on a page, the Find tool (from the edit menu or type open-apple/F) can help identify specific text on a page that you may want to find, like if you're looking for a name in an article.  One nice feature is the ability to block pop-up ads: go to the Safari pull-down menu and select the Block Pop-Up Windows option, you can keep ads and other pop-ups off your computer.  From the same menu, you can also reset the browser to its original configuration, wipe the cache memory clean, or search privately, keeping other sites from saving any of your personal information. 

Safari is a great tool for browsing and a favorite for many Mac and Windows users.  There are other options, like Firefox and Opera, outlined in another article.  Just remember to keep your browser up-to-date so that all pages on the web can be read on your computer.  Type 'safari' into the Google window of the browser and you'll be offered the page on the Apple site where the free downloads are found.

Safari home page:
http://www.apple.com/safari/