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My Turn is Low End Mac's column for reader-submitted
articles. It's your turn to share your thoughts on all things
Mac (or iPhone, iPod, etc.) and write for the Mac web. Email your
submission to Dan Knight
.
It's interesting how things work when one wants to access
something with no problems, quirks, or annoyances. This is
particularly true if your hardware is older and quirky. Most of the
time those who own older Macs (like me) end up having to "make do"
with second- or third-class applications and very slow Internet
browsing.
This is not the case with iCab
2.6.1 on my Apple Workgroup Server
6150 (a.k.a. Power Mac 6100/60) running Mac OS 8.5 and using a
dial-up 33.6 Internet connection (along with the extremely reliable
ISP, Blazenet.com).
Users with DSL connections and faster Macs might find it hard to
believe that using my setup could conceivably be satisfying.
Unbelievable as it may sound, this is the case, and I can access
99% of all websites, make secure 128-bit encrypted transactions, do
all the research on my various interests (including secure pages in
medical journals), find time to write, and still have time for my
family and grandchildren.
I've been using the Internet for only three years. I have tried
four different ISPs and a few different Browser/ISP/Mac combinations
(mostly Centris 610s and 6100
PPCs).
For these computers, iCab 2.6.1 is an agile, sleek, fast (images
turned off make it fastest), responsive browser, which rarely
crashes.
There are other browsers out there, and some of them are even
faster than iCab, (Lynx, for example, a text-only browser, is faster
than iCab). However, when it comes to day-to-day Internet activities
(including 128-bit secure shopping), iCab cannot be beat.
Though quite sold on iCab, I'm not against trying new things when
they come along, particularly because there do exist certain sites
that will not allow one in without Netscape's or Microsoft's newest,
most bloated browsers.
CVS.com is one of many
examples. It won't even allow me to "fool" it by using iCab's
"Preferences" setting of "Mozilla 4.5," pretending to be Netscape
Navigator. CVS.com demands the real thing. Guess there will come a
time when I'll have to break down - but that's another article.
UPDATE: You can access cvs.com - open Preferences, choose
Inscript, and change the Identity/Settings to Microsoft Internet
Explorer 5.0. We still think it's rude of CVS to block Opera,
OmniWeb, iCab, and anything besides Internet Explorer and
Netscape.
Never mind that! I can still use iCab for 99% of my Internet
usage!
I do realize that there are those who won't consider switching,
but hear me out.
This past summer, my 16-year-old son suggested I try Opera,
and he downloaded it for me. As soon as 5.0 was available, I
downloaded it, too, to make sure my previous impressions weren't
biased. Since he's a computer nut (Windows only), and I respect his
opinions, I acceded; I told him he could download it and keep it on
the hard drive.
Throughout the time he was here, he did use Opera nearly
exclusively. Not me!
Following a frustrating two-day test drive, I decided to go back
to iCab 2.5.3 (now at 2.6.1).
I found Opera's claims to be "the fastest Internet browser"
far-fetched at best. Opera was wanting, particularly in speed - even
with images turned off. It was slow, lethargic, unresponsive. In
fact, it felt as if I was driving a Porsche, equipped with a 1982
Toyota sedan engine.
When it comes to hard drive real estate, Opera and iCab are
similarly equipped, and both are much, much smaller than the two
behemoths that Netscape and Explorer are. In fact, iCab Preview 2.5.3
used a lean 3.2 megs. iCab 2.6.1, at 3.8 megs, is still a lean
application. Opera 5.0 PPC uses 3.5 megs.
My own personal (and very biased) opinion is that for an older PPC
Mac with a 33.6 dial-up Internet connection nothing (HTML-based)
beats iCab.
iCab is currently freeware, but it will soon cost US$29 to
purchase the Pro version. They will still offer iCab free, if you
don't mind having its email and kiosk mode unavailable to you. (I've
never missed them, as they'd defeat the purpose of having a lean,
agile application.)
Share your perspective on the Mac by emailing with "My Turn" as your subject.
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