I got the Safari "update" last week and tried it out of curiosity. I wasn't impressed. Default fonts were huge. I'll look at it again, but it's unlikely to turn me off Firefox.

Superior to IE maybe, but not Mozilla.

The check box should not have been checked by default. Instead Apple could have outlined the advantages of Safari over Explorer, yes there are many, but just the highlights would suffice.

Explain that they can use multiple browsers and even compare them side by side, that they do have choices.

Explain that they can easily adjust the type size and reset it to normal.

Then explain that a user can easily remove Safari if they are not happy with it.

Even PC Magazine recently said that Safari is a worthy browser. At the very least Safari complies with web standards, something that seriously lacking in Explorer.

Is it "Dick man" or "Dike man"?

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Guest wrote:
Superior to IE maybe, but not Mozilla.

On Windows. On OSX Mozilla is an also-ran. I tried the new 3.0 beta of FF specifically for OSX and was incredibly unimpressed.

As a Mac user this blasted Safari does not operate 100% on a G4 so staying with Firefox 3.0b4.

There's a checkbox, and in Software Update on the Mac all updates are checked by default, so that's just the standard behavior of the tool. On the Mac I've never been offered any new software, and I think if Apple started doing that on the Mac, they would have to place it in a separate place. Software Update's role on the Mac is sacrosanct as it is.

Even as a total Mac devotee and deep admirer of Apple's technical and design skills, I have to take sides with annoyed Windows users on this one. If the tool is promoted as an updater, it simply shouldn't offer anything other than updates to existing software.

I feel Apple decided to give in to temptation here and spend some of their good will credits to get Safari in front of more Windows users. Well I hope it all comes out good in the end!

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Bosco wrote:
Is it "Dick man" or "Dike man"?

Aren't those the same thing?

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As a Mac user this blasted Safari does not operate 100% on a G4 so staying with Firefox 3.0b4

As a G4 Mac user, this Safari ver. 3.1 works great--no problems at all.

I would have to agree with Sir Harry Flashman. Having it unchecked by default would have been a stealthier way of introducing this without attracting as much attention, but on the other hand, the penetration of Safari would suffer since many users (Mac and Windows) just accept the defaults.

Apple is getting more aggressive (and confident) in the Windows world, and it is starting to show.

Another point: someone once said that any PR/news is good PR/news. By stirring up a little controversy with the default set to checked and with Mozilla rising to the bait and blogging about it, Apple is getting tons of free press over what would normally be a non-issue.

People are now looking at Safari, if for no other reason than people are talking about this update. It raises awareness and that's exactly what Apple wants. The fact that this is the first really usable version of the browser on Windows makes it a perfect time to attract attention to it. Doing so during the beta stage would have been a disaster, as the software was not ready for prime time.

Obviously, Apple feels that this is the time to push. Let's see what happens to the browser market stats over the next three months to see what effect it has on the Window's market share.

Peace.

. . . and Microsoft has the overwhelming advantage.

There's no check box at all for Internet Explorer, let alone one defaulted to "yes". Apple points out - by having a checkbox - that you have a choice, and reminds - by having it pre-checked, that not making a choice is also a choice.

It's a very mild imposition on people who are, by definition, active users of free software provided by Apple (iTunes, Quicktime).

Many people spend over 90% of their computer time in the browser, using it for email too. If Apple can get Safari in front of PC owners, switching to Mac will be a decision they can easily make on the spot in the Apple Store, next time they are replacing their PC.

Apple seems to be doing more and more things like Microsoft. "Tricking" users into installing something they might not have wanted is not the Apple of old. (I know it is not a trick but since most users just click through the screens, a checkbox on by default is maybe not so nice.) Even the Apple software is becoming more and more non-intuitive, a la Microsoft stuff. Maybe a bunch of programmers not good enough for MS have migrated to the Infinite Loop. Or maybe it is planned sneaky sabotage of Apple by those Redmond dudes. Provokes me to wonder, it does.

Dave