Opera released v6.02 for the Mac, while promises version 7 soon. Opera Software also released version 7.11 for Linux recently. In other browser news, Gecko-based Epiphany, released version 0.6.1.
Opera 6.02 for Mac Released
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Eugenia Loli
Ex-programmer, ex-editor in chief at OSNews.com, now a visual artist/filmmaker.
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More browsers is of course good if they provide competition. But I am not seeing much point, there isn’t much of a battle to be won. The rendering engine in my experience hasn’t been very good on any os I have ran it on.
One of the things that helped me make the jump to Linux from W2K was knowing the alt browsers were up to scratch – I had already stopped using IE in favour of Mozilla 1.3.x and Opera
Both had features that to me made them not just equal but better.
The rendering engine in my experience hasn’t been very good on any os I have ran it on.
Contrary to my experience, where it renders pages almost exactly to IE, unless those pages are written using some dodgy HTML or using something OPera doesnt support.
It’s also a very secure feeling browsing without IE’s flaws, or the popups
I’m not sure if Opera really has a speed or rendering quality advantage over other browsers. But Opera has some really unique and useful UI features that I find it hard to live without.
Saved window sessions are probably the biggest advantage as I tend to browse with a large number of windows open. But there are also loads of nice little touches in Opera, such as the links panel, fast-forward/rewind, keyboard navigation, mouse gestures, etc.
I’m very pleased to see that the latest version will come to Mac OS.
Opera’s not as god as safari or Chimera on the Mac or Firebird on the PC.
The rendering engine is pretty good, but the interface is awful.
Why pay $x.xx for a second or third rate browser?
But it is a little late to be released 6.02 on the Mac, especially when you consider the competition.
The rendering engine is pretty good, but the interface is awful.
Then skin it. http://my/opera.com/customize/skins
Opera amazes me (not the browser tho). They’re getting screwed by M$ with msn rendering problems, and then fighting back saying they will never support windows on mobile devices….and at the same time they’re pissing off mac users by neglecting them, and then getting upset when apple makes a browser (which is no diff from Linux/Windows coming with their own browsers).
It’s good to be agressive (i especially appreciate the way they won’t take sh*t from M$), but they could be alienating too many people.
they’re pissing off mac users by neglecting them, and then getting upset when apple makes a browser
IIRC opera decided to reduce mac efforts after apple released safari
IIRC opera decided to reduce mac efforts after apple released safari
Its not like their Mac efforts were stellar before Safari was released. Its just an excuse.
I remember when I first tried opera back in about 1999. The os would fit on a floppy and was noticeably faster than ie or netscape. Now I try it and it is good but I dont see really any speed increase anymore and it doesnt fit on a floppy anymore. Firebird is the only os I notice a speed increase anymore.
I don’t use Opera regularly, but have used v7 and it is lightening. Also it is considerably smaller in size than v6.
Actually, opera 7 was already out for windoze b4 Safari showed up – with mac users still on Opera 6.
L.
Actually, opera 7 was already out for windoze b4 Safari showed up – with mac users still on Opera 6.
No, were on the beta version of Opera 6 when 7 came out for Windows.
JK:
I’m not sure if Opera really has a speed or rendering quality advantage over other browsers.
It may not win when it comes to raw speed of the rendering engine, but it certainly has the most responsive UI.
“I don’t use Opera regularly, but have used v7 and it is lightening. Also it is considerably smaller in size than v6. ”
ON my home system (W2K, K6-2+ 550 mHz, 448 MB RAM) Opera 7 renders slower than Opera 6. I uninstalled 7 and went back to 6.
I like most of the changes in Opera 7, but the performance loss in my case wasn’t worth it.
I remember when I first tried opera back in about 1999. The os would fit on a floppy and was noticeably faster than ie or netscape. Now I try it and it is good but I dont see really any speed increase anymore and it doesnt fit on a floppy anymore. Firebird is the only os I notice a speed increase anymore.
Last I checked, neither Opera nor Firebird were considered to be an OS…they are web browsers. They are not operating systems.
There are so many great Browsers to choose from.
Although rapidly diminishing, concerns about Exchange
and doc formats being hurdles to Linux deployment have at least some basis in reality.
But Browsers?! LOL.
The might beast that was IE has been defanged for a long time. It is the last reason anyone needs to stick with
MS.
I don’t use IE often, but I do still encounter web pages that don’t work in anything else. IE is a POS browser IME, it’s slow, unstable and has a horrible UI. But there are times when I’m very glad to have it available. I tend to use it when buying from an online store or doing online banking, I sometimes find they have problems in other browsers.
Time to feed the troll…
Opera’s not as god as safari or Chimera on the Mac or Firebird on the PC.
Okay, there’s an unsubstantiated comment. Safari is nice, but KHTML’s rendering engine is quite inferior to Opera 7’s. The only information I can find for quantitatively comparing the standards compliance of various rendering engines shows that Opera 7’s engine is also superior to Gecko, which is used by Camino (Chimera).
The rendering engine is pretty good, but the interface is awful.
I find it absolutely amazing how Mozilla/Firebird users get so excited about tabbed browsing then proceed to rip on Opera’s interface. Tabbed browsing was a feature stolen from Opera, and furthermore the functionality provided by tabs is a mere fraction of what is provided by Opera’s MDI. Child windows can act as tabs, and are fully integrated with the gesture system. I don’t use tabs on browsers that don’t support gestures, like Safari, simply because using them is too cumbersome.
Opera’s interface allows the user to complete eliminate the need for toolbars through the use of gestures.
Why pay $x.xx for a second or third rate browser?
Opera seems to be the source of all innovation in browser development. MDI/tabs and the gesture system all got their start in Opera. I wouldn’t be surprised if Mozilla and others pick up fast forward/rewind as well.
I have been using Opera since the 5.x days and it was teh best around even then. I will not use a different browser. I am so grateful that Opera is cross-platform. If there were no Opera for Linux, I would not use linux.
Didn’t Opera decide to discontinue their browser on Mac sometime ago and then retract this decision? That was when Safari came up.
Anyway I don’t think any browser can compete with Opera in terms of speed and lightweight. I’m pretty happy with its interface. Yes, the interface is ugly and full of unneccesary stuff after the default installation. But with its beautiful skins like Odyssey and Cocoa and customizability it looks and feels much nicer than anything else.
If you’re not familiar with gestures you can compare Opera to something else, but once you get used to it nothing comes close. The OptiMoz did not support my favorite gestures when I checked it out last time. And Opera is blazingly fast. Especially Opera 7 never failed on me on any site so far, renders beautifully, and unbelievably fast.
I love the “Find in page search” that searches as I type!
Opera is the best browser money can buy. In fact, it’s one of the few reasons I still use (sporadically) Window$ at home.
This is the same opera where the free version has banner ads? hahahahaha. A commercial browser is such an alien concept when there’s an abundance of better free browsers out there.
Camino (formerly known as Chimera) is fast and free on the MAC end of things and works faster and looks better than Safari. Both are free, and I’d pay for opera WHY?
Mozilla Firebird works passibly on linux, it would be near perfect if Java actually worked as it was intended to on linux. Again Firebird is free. Linux is free, and I’m going to PAY for Opera WHY?
about the only time I ever used opera was for the brief period of time it was the only https enabeled browser for beos before mozilla builds for BeOS were issued.
Opera is a joke
Opera’s UI is probably the most skinable of all browsers I have used. You probably can’t do much when you have a banner stuck on top, but that’s why you need to buy it. Get Opera, skin it to the way you like it, and arrange things the way you like it, And viola – the UI isn’t all that “awful”.
This is the same Hayabusa where the OSNEWS version has stupid post? hahahahaha. A OSNews troll is such an alien concept when there’s an abundance of better Slashdot trolls out there.
Heh.
Please tell me, if there is any browser that has all the features that Opera has. So far, I couldn’t find any. Stuff like proper mouse gestures, flexible MDI/tabs/ simple mail client, and the likes is good enough for me. Good enough for $40.
Meanwhile, Camino is largely unstable and takes ages to load up on the Mac. In addition of not being able to run on most Macs that still uses OS 9. As for looks, how themable is Camino is? Heh.
Firebird is positively the most unstable Mozilla-based browser I have ever used, expect maybe pre-1.0 Mozilla. Sure it is nice, but bare on features in comparison with Opera. Don’t use thos features? Try them. Again and again. You get used to it, you have no choice but to hate using other browsers from then on.
And wonders of wonders, besides Konqueror, Opera is the only other browser where Java actually works literary out of the rpm. Mozilla? Nope. Firebird? There is no installation routine the last I tried.
And speaking of Mozilla on BeOS, yeah while I realize Opera 3.x isn’t the most stable thing on earth, but Mozilla for BeOS (BeZilla) was and probably still is the most unstable browser on earth.
Hayabusa is a joke.