Home Forums Networks & Cross-Platform Networking Recommended Safari version G4 OSX 10.4.10 machine

My wife has been complaining recently - - that Safari seems to be misbehaving more than usual lately. When I checked the version it is "Version 2.0.4 (419.3)", so I was wondering whether to upgrade to Safari 3 or go the whole hog, if possible, to Safari 4.
Can you kind people help me, for the first time under the new identity, by suggesting which version is likely to be most suitable for her G4 Tower 400 MHz 672(?) MB OSX 10.4.10 machine.
Regards. Mike

Mike,

Not an answer per-se, but if a bit of feedback will help…

My wife is running Safari 4.0.3 on her DP 800/10.4.11 and so far, no problems with the new Safari.

But your wife’s machine is different and it is likely her plugins and what not are also different.

So with that said, a few thoughts…

When your wife’s machine misbehaves, what symptoms does she experience? I only ask in that other issues, such as her plugins may be at play.

If you have a backup, then you can try Safari 3.x and see what happens. If no joy, you can then try moving on the Safari 4.0 or reverting back to v.2.x.

I’m sorry my help is not much, but as I recall, Safari 3.x had not been a problem with 10.4.11.

I suspect your best bet with regard to Safari is the latest version you can run under Tiger, but before going into that it would help if you could specify your wife's Mac 'misbehaving' symptoms in a bit more detail, as that is likely to affect the best approach to tackle any problem(s).

Meanwhile, please let us know if you have tried resetting Safari, used another browser, or did anything else (like general maintenance) to address the situation, and if so exactly what. Likewise, is there any reason you haven't upgraded to the final Tiger version 10.4.11? With some answers to these questions we'll take it from there.

Safari 4 runs nicely on Tiger and although Safari 3 may still be available for download it is no longer actively supported by Apple. Safari 4 is unquestionably the fastest browser out there and offers support for next generation web services that in many cases are just being considered for deployment.

If you couldn't tell I like Safari 4, but my opinion is not universal. There have been complaints by some, mostly because of changes in the feature set and GUI or that it "broke" some Safari modifiers that had to be updated for 4. There are still others who do not like any iteration of Safari preferring the Mozilla browsers Firefox or Camino.

The misbehavior your wife is encountering may be due to factors other than the browser or version. The internet is progressing and new technology and features are constantly being folded in. In Safari go to Help > Installed Plug-ins and check the version of the various plug-ins to be sure they are up to date as well, VersionTracker or Mac Update can be very helpful in determining the current version for any software including plug-ins. Even Quicktime can get involved.

Pendragon, Alternaut
Thanks for your swift replies. Yes, very remiss of me not to elaborate on symptoms - I must try harder in this new environment.
From what I remember, certain "movies" were playing with sound only, some not loading at all, whereas on my G4 Laptop 800 MHz 768 MB OSX 10.4.10 most, if not all played. Also some previously used sites not loading anymore! Ironically, have just checked my Safari version and it is the same as hers.
Just another thought, she is sometimes "told" to update Shockwave Player to latest version, but she already has this.
Alternaut, re Tiger version, I have sort of left well alone as we both seem to be getting on fine with 10.4.10, well, with the exception of wife's Safari problems.
Suddenly (late as usual), I'm wondering given ALL the information I've "dragged" out of my brain, could it be down to difference between 400 MHz machine and 800 MHz machine, in which case would Safari 3 or 4 make much difference?
Could help me though???
Hope this gives you "a bit more to go on".
Regards. Mike

Not playing movies shifts the focus from Safari to the Safari Plug-Ins and Quicktime and its plug-ins. My wife recently had a spate of similar problems on her 2.26GHz MacMini Core 2 Duo running OS X 10.5.x with both Safari 3 and Safari 4. It seemed almost random and I was never able to pinpoint the culprit. so in desperation I chose the "shotgun" approach...

• deleted and then re-installed all the Internet Plug-Ins including Flash and Shockwave
• Uninstalled all the Quicktime "helper" apps including Flip4Mac and Perian then re-downloaded and re-installed each of them
• Uninstalled and re-downloaded and re-installed RealPlayer (my personal prime suspect based on no evidence whatsoever)
• Re-Installed Quicktime 7.6.2 which also re-installed the Quicktime internet plug-in

Thanks to my impatience, or rather my eagerness to get my wife off my back I will never know specifically what "cured" her problem, but it is gone now so we will likely make it to our 50th in October.

Hi Joe
Thanks for your response/s. Sorry I didn't acknowledge you along with Pendragon and alternaut, somehow I've only just noticed it.
Anyway, I will check out some(maybe even all ) of your "suggestions" and see what happens. Will report back if anything eventful happens, but probably not before "our 37th on 28 August".
I assume you were referring to wedding anniversary.
Regards. Mike

Happy Anniversary to MikeS and joemikeb! January 28 marks 42 years for myself and my beloved.

Mike,

At the risk of being a nag, when doing your updating, it may be necessary to note not just whether the update is for Leopard or Tiger, but additionally whether the update is for a PPC or Intel machine.

(I thought you would rather hear that from me, rather than having your wife remind you. )

I was referring to our anniversary and congratulations on your upcoming 37th. FWIW it just keeps getting better and better.

Hi Harv
Yes, I definitely appreciate your reminder/s. No disrespect to BH of course.
Regards. Mike