Safari logoWhen I got my Mac (a black macbook as I've previously mentioned) one of the first things I did was install Firefox. I was used to Firefox on my Windows box so I figured it was the better choice. As far as the Macintosh platform goes however, I'm not so sure if choosing Firefox over OS X's default browser - Safari - is a wise decision. I originally used Firefox, then tried Camino (a version of Mozilla that's been "Macified") and now I'm back to using plain old Safari.

The reason for my switch to Safari is that comparatively, at least on my Mac, Safari is much faster than Firefox. It loads pages extremely quickly and even launches faster. This probably isn't a huge deal for people running a beefier system than I have, but generally when I use my macbook I want to check something quickly so the faster the better. There is of course a downside to using Safari - many of the Google apps we all know and love still aren't compatible with it. That means that if I want to jump into Google Docs I have to load up Firefox. I don't use Docs all that much though, and Gmail and Google Reader both work in Safari, so that isn't much of a conflict. And, of course, if I do need to use docs I still have Firefox sitting down there in my dock.

Now, just to be clear, I'm not saying that Safari is necessarily faster on the PC side of things. I tested out the Safari 3 Public Beta on Vista and I was unimpressed. It still seemed buggy and I didn't notice a performance increase. Not only that but there are also a lot of documented security holes in Safari for Windows so I don't really see a compelling reason to use it right now. Basically, if you're on a PC stick with Firefox but if you're using a Mac give Safari a shot. It's not as flashy as Firefox and you might miss some of your favorite extensions, but if you're just looking to quickly pop in a check your email I think Safari's the better route to take.

Currently Listening To: Team Sleep - Ever
Currently Playing: Halo 3, Call of Duty 4 Multiplayer Beta