Since its debut less than a week ago, Apple's Safari Web browser has been subject to vigorous user testing. To date, a number of bugs, conflicts and compatibility issues have been identified, and in some cases these problems have been resolved by Apple, or third-party developers. Additionally, developers have already begun releasing enhancements for Safari to expand its functionality, and in some cases, unlock "hidden" features.

Below are descriptions and solutions for common Safari problems:

Saving cookies from non-.com domains

The problem:

Safari is having trouble saving cookies that are created for domains . For example, cookies that apply to Apple.com would function as expected, while those belonging to Apple.co.uk would not. "After a lot of research I found out that although Safari is not able to save the proper Cookies it's looking for them nonetheless in case one loads the Web site," explains an OCParadise article.

Solution:

It is possible to add cookies manually, using a utility called SafariCookieCutter, and the OmniWeb browser software. OmniWeb is used to determine the proper names and values for the new cookie, while SafariCookieCutter is used to generate the cookie. Apple is expected to update Safari shortly, but international users may find the OCParadise tutorial especially helpful.

Anomalous home directory deletion

The problem:

Users of Apple's online discussion forums late last week began noting the unexpected deletion of home directories from computers running Safari.

Solution:

Apple quickly updated the browser following these reports, presumably to correct the problem. If you have experienced data loss as a result of the original Safari beta, it is imperative that you run a data recovery utility to recover lost information, before using the affected computer again.

JavaScript bug identified

The problem:

A MacNN reader and Web design guru reports that the "window.print()" JavaScript function is ignored by Safari. Netscape and Internet Explorer for both Mac OS X and Windows XP recognize this code.

Solution:

There is no patch available to address this issue. Concerned developers have contacted Apple, and the apparent omission will likely be addressed in an upcoming release.

Noteworthy patches and enhaancements

Today, we published a list of helpful Safari enhancements, which collectively: address Hebrew language support (see problem description); allow users to use the whole screen more effectively; enable or disable the 'brushed metal' appearance; use keyboard and mouse shortcuts; edit browser identification; specify a minimum font size and; import bookmarks from countless other browsers.

Safari "flash" refreshing

One MacNN reader observes that Safari tends to "flash refresh" recently-loaded pages, as opposed to completely reloading them. This behavior is common to Windows browsers, and is sometimes exhibited by Mac browsers as well. When refreshing Orbitz, for example, Safari re-renders only the changed portions of the site.

by MacNN Staff