The Apple Products revolution and its consequences have been a disaster for the Horace Students. Specifically, the adoption of (most of) Apple’s automatically downloaded applications have made certain tasks, such as research, considerably more difficult. Safari, Apple’s default browser, is a far inferior app than the one, the only, Google Chrome.
Chrome extensions are great. I understand some hesitation on the part of administrators to allow students unfettered access to extensions, however the main appeal comes from ad-blockers and study tools. Mark Up is an extension that allows users to highlight and take notes on webpages while reading, keeping all notes localized on the page. It also uses an account system meaning that notes on other pages are accessible anywhere on any device. Ad blockers are also a necessity for students – YouTube video lessons and studying are often characterized by glitchy and time-wasting ads that are infuriating. In the case of youtube ads, depending on the length of the video, ads can double the amount of time it takes to learn. They also interrupt the flow of work and can be distracting. Although Safari has recently adopted some extensions, they are not accessible on our iPads and have far fewer options due to the recency of the addition.
Chrome is an organizational improvement. Safari is available on iPhone, iPad, or Mac devices. They have only recently adopted any type of profile system that is not available on our iPads. Chrome is available on all devices and at any point in time if signed into the same account, one can continue browsing on any tab opened elsewhere. This is helpful for students like me that do a large portion of work on a personal device. Additionally, Chrome uses Tab Groups which is infinitely helpful for studying multiple topics or organizing sources. The tab groups can be named and color organized, and multiple groups can be opened and/or compacted at any time. This is superior to Safari’s tab groups because it allows a user to open multiple at a time and is easier to move tabs around in. It is also easier to visually organize than the Safari tab groups due to the color coding and uniform line-up at the top of the screen. If you favor the Safari version, there is still the option to open up a new blank window – Chrome is satisfactory for all students.
Chrome is by far the most popular and well-developed browser that does it better than Apple can. Free yourself from the outdated Apple software for the superior-Google Chrome