The history of Safari for Windows and Mac operating systems

• Safari browser a child of talent and conspiracy
• The history behind the seven seals
• Safari for Windows: first appearance on the market
• Safari for Windows: advantages and disadvantages
• End of Safari promotion on Windows
• What is Safari browser look like today
• Safari for Windows: Frequently Asked Questions

Safari is a free Apple web browser. The software product provides users with all the necessary tools for web surfing on the network, very fast and secure. There were days when Safari for Windows was one of the most popular web browsers running on this operating system. What went wrong? Is Safari available for Windows users? Why has Apple decided to stop supporting it? How to install Safari for Windows on your computer?, etc. Read the article to figure it all out.

Safari browser a child of talent and conspiracy

Perhaps there would have never been a Safari browser for Windows or Apple history if Apple had not taken a tougher stance against Microsoft in 2003. The first half of the Noughties is just the time when the guys from Cupertino felt that it was not long before the total market conquest, and therefore any dependence on strong competitors was fatal. It is for this reason people from Apple decided not to renew their contract for using Microsoft Internet Explorer for macOS and create their own browser with bookmarks and icons.

It is obvious that creating your own browser is always difficult, and if the envious eyes of competitors are constantly aimed at you, then the work completely turns into an intricate spy novel. About how serious was the approach of Apple concerning the creation of its own browser as well as Safari for Windows, you will find the information below.

The history behind the seven seals

The fact that something interesting is being developed within the walls of Apple, some analysts suggested long back in 2002, when Dave Hut the legendary identity among browser developers was invited to the company. It was he who at one time turned Mozilla Firefox into a candy. Naturally, when a developer of this level moves to another IT company, it is clear to everyone that they are not inviting him there as a security guard or locksmith. And yet, we should repeat, conversations about the development of a new product were conducted at the level of gossip and speculation. There was no direct evidence, and it couldn’t be, because the secrecy of the project was simply surpassing.

As Don Melton, one of those who led the Safari team at that time, recalls, ordinary employees, namely those who were not involved in the development had no chance to find out any details. The Safari team was nearly locked up in the room and the strictest non-disclosure agreement was taken from each employee. It got to the point that the browser was launched only behind closed doors, and all the logs were immediately erased, IP addresses were hidden. In a word, everything was more than serious.

Why such a conspiracy, you may ask? The fact is that Steve Jobs was going to detonate another bomb of public interest and therefore insisted on strict observance of secrecy. And the bomb exploded! The beta version of Safari for macOS was revealed in 2003 by Jobs at a Macworld conference and in 2007 already download Safari for Windows operating system. The public accepted Safari well, as it was immediately clear that this new product would easily give a head start to the old Internet Explorer. And the very fact that the browser was made on the basis of the open WebKit engine also was great news.

It is curious that the name Safari for the browser was not immediately approved. The draft name of the project was Alexander, and under this name, it went through all stages of development and testing. Then there was the idea to name the browser Freedom. Alas, the idea fell on face due to the fact that in the USA this name was associated with a popular series of feminine hygiene products. A little brainstorming and the name Safari was born, which was subsequently approved by Jobs himself.

This browser was created as an alternative to Internet Explorer, hereinafter IE, the most used web browser of that time. Explorer did not meet Apple's requirements, that is why Steve Jobs and his team began to develop their own browser to abandon IE. The first Safari options were incomplete, although they allowed you to browse sites on the Internet. The first trial versions were not stable. The third version with WebKit engine appeared in 2007. This engine is still used in many browsers such as Google Chrome,Yahoo, etc. The development was so successful that it allowed Safari to take 4th place among the popular web browsers. The fourth version of Safari was created on the Nitro engine, which was characterized by the high speed of opening pages, stability, and traffic optimization. In all versions of Safari, there are visual effects that all the software developed by Apple has. And what about Safari for Windows operating system? How to download Safari for Windows and similar questions are highlighted below in this article.

Safari for Windows: first appearance on the market

Let's be honest: the owners of devices from Apple perform a sectб just get me right, it is absolutely without any offensive notes. This is a large sect that worships Apple devices and brings the company a greater share of profit. This situation was also understood by Jobs, who once came with the idea that the local success of Safari was not enough anymore. Yes, some products with macOS were originally bundled with this browser. Yes, everyone who owned the Apple gadgets has long loved Safari. That's right, but a sect needs new followers and, accordingly, new buyers. Internal resources were depleted, and therefore it was necessary to look for fresh reserves.

Guided by this very idea, Steve Jobs in 2007 announced Safari browser for Windows XP and Windows Vista. New segments on the market are always good, especially when this is a bottomless Windows market, then the company opens up attractive prospects for fabulous earnings. It is also worth mentioning that the public accepted Safari for Windows with joy. A year later, the Cupertino browser pushed out the original inhabitants of this operating system Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox, taking 6% of the total browser market. Let’s admit that for a beginner it was a great indicator. Moreover, in addition to direct advertising, psychological recruitment also took place: Safari elements were made in the same macOS style. The appearance of the program was very different from the usual type of programs in Windows: the interface elements, such as buttons, scrollbars, input fields, drop-down menus, checkboxes, and others were made in the style of macOS, namely Aqua interface. Also, version 3.x for Windows used its own font smoothing system, whereas in versions 4.x, 5.x for Windows, you could choose between a font smoothing system from Apple or Microsoft. In the latest versions 4.0, the program interface has been redone to become more familiar to Windows users, and the design color has also changed to a lighter one.

So, as we already know, the Safari for Windows version was first released on June 11, 2007 and has been supported since the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2 in all later OS versions. However, support for this Windows browser has been discontinued. So if you still wonder “Is Safari available for Windows?” or “Where to download Safari for Windows?”, please continue reading the article.

Version Safari 5.1.7, released on May 9, 2012, was the last available for Windows. For this reason, version 5.0 has become the most famous and widely used application.

Safari for Windows: advantages and disadvantages

Version 5.0 of the Apple Safari browser for Windows included a new feature for reading news, quick settings for JavaScript and URL search, an improved address bar, and many other useful, but not at all outstanding improvements. Its most significant update, namely support for custom extensions, made it a browser close to Firefox. However, Safari for Windows version 5 installs quickly and with less effort. Providing e-mail for receiving messages and registration are optional. In order to test the new reading function, just go to your favorite news site and click on "History".

In addition, Safari for Windows also supports emailing or printing history. Apple officials also claim that the Nitro JavaScript engine in this browser is about a third faster than Safari 4. It is on par with Google Chrome and was twice as fast as Firefox 3.6. PCWorld speed tests in Safari browser for Windows have proven a clear advantage over Firefox, but Chrome is generally much faster.

By making a search in the address bar of Safari 5 among the history of visited pages and bookmarks, you instantly get all the information in the drop-down list below. This panel, first was introduced in Firefox 3 and provides the user with a great advantage in being able to quickly get to the place they want to find. Other changes include the addition of HTML5 support, the ability to set Bing as the default search option, and the expected security patches. But the biggest changes Safari has proposed for Windows XP are providing new support for installing browser extensions and plugins a la Firefox.

Supported add-ons can block ads, synchronize bookmarks and passwords. However, the choice of such plugins is very limited. In other words, if you are looking for an alternative browser for Windows, Safari does not offer great advantages and does not differ in any special features. Given that its support is currently discontinued, it’s best to choose between Chrome or Firefox. At least the last two browsers are regularly updated and supported by developers, and their functionality is in no way inferior, and in some ways even surpasses Safari. We can safely say that today users do not need to endure any restrictions and inconveniences, since the choice of applications for work is growing every day.

Alas and alack, the history of the Safari browser for Windows will remain just history. Having collected quite a few flattering reviews and awards over the 4 years of its existence on Windows platforms, Safari in 2011 nevertheless left a welcoming place. July 26, 2012, Apple officially notified all browser users that version 5.1.7 will be the latest release for Windows. Today, the development of new versions is completely discontinued, Safari finally migrated towards Apple products. By the way, Apple did not bother to make Safari for Linux or Android. The Windows platform has become the only one that the developers have descended to.

End of Safari promotion on Windows

At first glance, this title of the part sounds strange: why would someone refuse developing a program that does not require ongoing technical support? But the reality is tougher than it sounds. Apple has really stopped supporting the Windows version of its Internet browser. Silently and with all the ensuing consequences. After the release of the long-awaited OS X Mountain Lion, all references to the PC version of this browser as well as the ability to download Safari browser for Windows disappeared from the Apple website. You will not find any information about Microsoft OS support on any of the pages on the official portal. It's not entirely clear what made Apple completely abandon Safari support on PC. The most common version is the following, namely the browser did not get the level of popularity that Apple expected. Or perhaps the plan to lure users to macOS failed. The trend looks threatening: who knows, what if Windows users are soon denied using iCloud? However, iTunes is unlikely to ever leave the open spaces of the "enemy" OS.

Despite the fact that Apple did not succeed with Safari browser for Windows, although the focus was made on speed and privacy, additional features such as SnapBack and variable text fields did not impress users. The problem was that Safari just wasn't as good as many other browsers. Apple was not the only company that tried to promote its browser to a mass audience. The following year, Google introduced its free Chrome web browser, which was available on Mac, Windows, and Linux, along with mobile options. Today, Chrome is the world's most popular web browser.

Users complained about the inability to accept plugins and the inability to remember which tabs were opened after they were closed, as well as errors that lead to application crashes.

Ultimately, Safari continued to run on Windows until May 2012. With the release of OS X Mountain Lion, Apple also released Safari 6.0 for Mac. The Windows version did not receive an update and the browser quietly disappeared. And yet there is something sad about it. Rest in Peace, Safari for Windows.

What is Safari browser look like today

Application developers confidently claim that Safari is the leader among other well-known web browsers such as Opera and Google in terms of site loading speed. Safari provides reliable protection of the system against malicious Internet pages, will block pop-ups and suspicious files, synchronize files between different devices and much more. There is support for a variety of plugins that extend the functionality of the software. Users who are already using Safari have the opportunity to take advantage of the rich functionality of web browsers:

• Get access to frequently visited web pages, as the application tracks the sites you visit the most and adds them to a list that you can edit. The list can contain no more than 24 web pages.
• Work with a smart string. You can enter both specific addresses and search queries.
• Manage bookmarks.
• View your visit history. Safari stores not only the addresses of sites, but also web content.
• Use navigation.
• Enable private browsing. All information about your presence (visit history, cache, passwords) will be destroyed.
• Add sites to a special list for viewing in the future.
• Sync files between different devices.
• Use several browsing modes: "text-only", full-screen or normal.
• Automatically fill out online forms.
• RSS feeds.
• Download Manager and more.

Despite the popularity of Safari, this browser has its drawbacks. For example, it unpredictably opens sites optimized for Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer. In addition, Safari does not always fully retain page content. That is why when you deal with cross browser testing it is very important to be sure that all the things are correctly displayed in all the browsers on different operating systems. Wondering how? With Comparium you will not need to have a Mac computer or even bother with trying to find Safari for Windows download file in order to check cross browser compatibility. The service provides you with the screenshots of your site within a couple of minutes. You just need to enter the url and choose browser and operating system combination and later on examine taken shots for any visual bugs.