OmniWeb
Current Version: 5.8 (September 29, 2008)
OmniWeb was the first Web browser for Mac OS X / Mac OS X Server. It's fully-featured, with a gorgeous interface. Recent versions of OmniWeb (4.5 and later) employ Safari's HTML rendering engine for improved rendering performance and functionality.
Version 5.8 adds/changes the following:
- This release is primarily an update to the version of WebKit in use by OmniWeb. OmniWeb is now based off of the same WebKit in use by Safari 3.1. This includes the latest security patches and features included with Safari 3.1.x such as downloadable fonts, CSS Animation, HTML 5 media tags and client side database storage.
- When using Leopard's Spaces, OmniWeb will no longer switch spaces when entering a URL or creating a new workspace.
- Added support for non-POSIX file URLs, improving compatibility with Dreamweaver and other Carbon and Classic apps.
- Polished up the toolbar icons.
- Google Chrome is now included in the list of user agents.
Despite rave reviews in other places, all I can say is: even given all the new features, I find OmniWeb slightly underwhelming. Site-by-site preferences - which may be OmniWeb 5's most useful feature - really demonstrate that serious problems with the Web itself are the larger issue . . . in short, if one site behaves so profoundly differently from other sites that my browser settings need changing, there's no good reason for me to visit that site. Since most of OmniWeb 5's other new features exist in (or are capable of being closely or completely emulated with) other browsers, it is hard to recommend OmniWeb despite the fact that it's an otherwise unobjectionable - and attractive-looking - piece of software.
That aside, if there is one single feature that makes OmniWeb worth its $29.95 price tag, it has to be its genuine (yet still a bit buggy) ability to check web sites for updates, on both a scheduled and manually-instantiated basis. Other software claims to do this, but OmniWeb just does a better job of it, and the bugs in the current implementation - while they are not show stoppers - are actively being addressed.
User Reviews
"I find it to be an excellent browser. It looks better than IE. It is a lot faster than IE. I have not found any problems with CSS support, but then I have not put it [through a] complete test yet. I have noticed a minor problem with Java support and some JavaScript support. But even with these minor problems, I have made it my default browser and haven't had any reason to regret my decision."
—Gardner D. Underhill III
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the Mac OS X 10.4.8+ (Cocoa / Universal) version.Also See . . .
Can't find what you're looking for? Try a search:
Also, if you have an older Mac, be sure to check out the "Classic" applications page for more options.
Finally, take a look at ALEMIA if you think you know that name of an application, but aren't quite sure.
Related Links
Are you looking for an older version of a browser, but can't seem to find it? The evolt.org Browser Archive and Darrel Knutson's Macintosh Web Browser Page are the places to visit!
Also Consider . . .
These are applications that are newer and of potential interest, but which I haven't yet selected for permanent inclusion. Have a look, and let me know if you think they deserve to be part of the permanent collection!