Can I test Safari without Mac/Windows?

Is there any way to test the Safari browser from a Linux machine without using wine or going through the process of installing either OS virtually? Maybe an online emulator or something?

There used to be an online Safari testing service, but it’s gone now. But there are lots of services for browser testing, both free and commercial, such as:

https://browserlab.adobe.com/
http://www.browsercam.com/
http://browserseal.com/

I’m not keen on services that just provide a screen shot. Another option, of course, is to pop in to your local Apple store now and then and try the page on a display computer. :lol:

Thanks Ralph. Which of those would you personally recommend? I just tried browsershots and it’s OK. Just an above-the-fold screenshot. Their Safari browsers have an error pop-up over the screen too.

If anything, I would use Adobe’s Browserlab. I use a Mac, though, and have virtual machines installed for testing Windows. I prefer that as a solution, so rarely us the other options.

I’m trying Browserlab and I’m having problems clicking on links. Sometimes linked text or images can be clicked and sometimes they aren’t clickable depending on the browser and OS. Have you seen this sort of behavior from Browserlab? Could it just be a Browserlab artifact?

Do you mean links in the screenshots that B’lab generates, or in the B’lab interface itself? It’s a year or two since I used it, but I don’t remember having a problem.

The troublesome links are in the website screenshots that Browserlabs generates within its interface. Has anyone experienced something similar in Browserlab?

It looks like 7% of my visitors use Safari 4.0 and that one isn’t available in Browserlab. Does it generally render similarly to Safari 5.1 (which is in Browserlab)?

Which troublesome browsers should I check my stats for? It looks like .6% of my users use Netscape 5.0 with a 97% bounce rate.

I wouldn’t worry too much about Safari versions. I’m surprised so many have not updated Safari to a later version. But I get the sense that very few people use it at all, so I’d be surprised if you are getting many visitors from that browser.

Thanks Ralph. Are there any browsers I should check my stats for which have a reputation for rendering differently than modern browsers?

About 40% of of visitors at my workplace’s website are using Safari. I was quite surprised to see that–I underestimated the popularity of OSX and iOS devices. After that, 30% were IE, 13% Chrome, 10% Firefox, 0.04% Opera, and the remaining 7% were mobile-specific.

Hm, the monthly browser stats suggest that Safari is not very popular. I guess the average Mac user uses it by default, but that’s a small part of the market.

My website’s stats are more like Force Flow’s with a gigantic portion going to Safari.

Globally, safari isn’t that significant at 8%. http://gs.statcounter.com (which takes stats from billions of page views across millions of sites)
Even in America where mac use is higher, it’s 13%.
A higher percentage would typically indicate content that is primarily consumed by users where mac use is higher e.g the creative industries, or might indicate local users are all on macs.

On my site’s stats, about half the safari usage is mobile, half is desktop/laptop.

The site is probably only relevant to folks within a 50 mile radius.

Just wanted to come back and recommend Browserlab for free or CrossBrowserTesting for stellar paid or free-trial testing