The first problem for Safari 3.1, Apple's new Web browser for Windows, was how it arrived on people's computers. Last week millions who were only marginally connected to Apple -- because they'd downloaded iTunes -- were prompted to "update" to Safari, even though they'd never expressed an interest in the thing.
Apple's competitors in the browser market were naturally not happy with that move, which smacked of Microsoftian bundling. (Microsoft used its operating system monopoly to push browser software; now Apple is using its dominance in music to push browser software.)
But the outcry sparked by that move was just the start. Soon there was word of a snafu in Apple's end-user license for the Windows Safari -- the fine print granted people the right to use the app only on "Apple-labeled" computers. Right: Safari for Windows was, by its own terms, illegal. (Apple has since updated the license.)
There are also some reports of the thing crashing, and now there are security flaws, too. The tech security firm Secunia says it has found two "highly critical" holes in Safari for Windows that allow untrusted Web sites to gain access to a user's system.
There are no known fixes for the holes yet, other than Secunia's advisory to refrain from browsing "untrusted Web sites" with Safari.
Not that other browsers don't suffer the same flaws, of course. But this was supposed to be the best browser in the world.
The world in the iPod
The microchip that runs Apple's popular music player is made in India, Taiwan, China and Silicon Valley. Is this an example of how globalization works to everyone's benefit -- or a sign that the world economy is about to roll over America?
By Andrew Leonard, Salon
iLove it or iHate it
Is Apple's new blue bombshell a hit or a dud?
By Janelle Brown and Scott Rosenberg, Salon
An end to the Apple turnover
Steve Jobs accepts the inevitable -- and embraces the CEO title.
By Lydia Lee, Salon
Steve Jobs' iTunes dance
Now the Apple CEO says he would gladly sell songs without digital restrictions, if the record companies let him. That's hardly a brave defiance, and besides, I don't believe him.
By Cory Doctorow, Salon
Apple's iTunes sells 5 billion songs, but you don't own them
Why DRM means your music isn't really yours.
By Farhad Manjoo, Salon
Steve Jobs’ 2009 letter to the community about his health.
Terse and obfuscatory, this thing is Jobs all over.
Apple's obsession with secrecy grows stronger
Apple’s decision to limit communication with the media, shareholders and the public is at odds with the approach of other companies, which are embracing online outlets like blogs and Twitter.
By Brad Stone and Ashlee Vance, The New York Times
The Untold Story: How the iPhone blew Up the wireless industry
This 4.8-ounce sliver of glass and aluminum is an explosive device that has forever changed the mobile-phone business.
By Fred Vogelstein, Wired
A list of Steve Jobs' best quotes
An example: "The cure for Apple is not cost-cutting. The cure for Apple is to innovate its way out of its current predicament."
By Owen Linzmayer, Wired
The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs
Fake Steve Jobs tells all in this hilarious and often informative act of fraudulent auto-blography.
Apple Announces New iPhone OS 3.1 at Keynote
Good Vibrations Sold Everywhere
