Camino is a web browser optimized for Mac OS X with a Cocoa user interface, and powerful Gecko layout engine. Version 0.8 was released today. Elsewhere, the developers of Mozilla Sunbird, the standalone version of Mozilla Calendar, are looking for a new default theme and are asking the community to build a new one.
I mean, except a little looks.
I’m currently very happy with Firefox, and the new version even looks good (0.8 looked like cr*p).
Is the download worth it?
Well, I myself don’t like those XUL interfaces and Firefox just doesn’t feal like a real MacOS application.
Camino on the other side is a MacOS applicaiton, it’s not just “looks” with a scheme, it uses cocoa widgets for the interface and the geck engine for the page rendering.
So, besides feeling more integrated in the Aqua gui, Camino feels snappier, faster and less resource-hungry than Firefox.
I use it since it was called Chimera and Phoenix was yet little known. So my opinion, yes, it is worth the download.
Another solid open source nugget. Since I use Firefox and Thunderbird, it makes since to use Sunbird.
I wouldn’t call it “solid” just yet. It is on 0.1.1 version and I already had several problems with it (ranging from bugs to slowness). I hope it catches on though, it’s an interesting project.
Will shortly be avalaible in 10 languages thanks to http://caminol10n.mozdev.org.
Ludo
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http://homepage.mac.com/softkid/
I wouldn’t call it “solid” just yet. It is on 0.1.1 version and I already had several problems with it (ranging from bugs to slowness). I hope it catches on though, it’s an interesting project.
I was referencing the Sunbird project has a whole, not the current test status, sorry for the misleading statement.
I have found a couple of small bugs so far, but it runs fast for me on a XP box(2.5ghz p4).
It’s not that is uses Aqua makes it a real OSX browser but its use of Locations… Firefox, IEforMac just cannot get Proxy settings from Locations and this makes it really pain to use them on a notebook (which is why I’m not using them really .
I use Camino because it looks good and I love how it handles tabs. Also it seems faster than Firefox on my system. I guess its a matter of preference.
I’m just curious as to whether Sunbird will be integrated into Thunderbird somewhere down the line? Both Outlook and Evolution retain the calendar/organiser with-in; should I really have to run a third application?
I do btw know that the ‘bird apps are supposed to be stand-alone.
Actually, this is probably more grammatically correct: “Please, Mrs. Martin, may I go out for recess?” since it’s really all a single sentence and “I still go” is a split infinitive.
Have a nice day!
Seems like various Mozilla-based projects have this unholy obsession with default themes. Firefox had a pretty good default (IMHO), and then they just went and made it worse. My advice .. just worry about the functionality and stability rather than themes. IMHO, theming should be done at the OS level anyway.
‘[/i]”I still go” is a split infinitive[i]’
No, it isn’t. “I want to still go.” is a split infinitive. “I still go” is not, nor is “Can I still go?” or “I can still go.”
‘I’m just curious as to whether Sunbird will be integrated into Thunderbird somewhere down the line? Both Outlook and Evolution retain the calendar/organiser with-in; should I really have to run a third application?
I do btw know that the ‘bird apps are supposed to be stand-alone.‘
I really like the splitting up of the e-mail and calendar, following more the Apple Mail/iCal/Address-book model than the Outlook model. It doesn’t seem to me that there is a necessary connection between your e-mail and calendar, except maybe if you’re using a groupware system that allows you to e-mail meeting invitations. In such a case, it’s only necessary that your e-mail application and calendar application can ‘talk’ to each-other well enough to pass the e-mail invitation to the calendar program.
I think the Outlook model is really (at least partially) a function of Microsoft pushing for vendor lock-in. Otherwise, why not develop a standard way of e-mail applications and calendar applications and address-book applications to talk to each-other, so that users can pick-and-choose which apps they want to use for each thing? You know? For example, what if I want to use Outlook for my calendar, Eudora for my e-mail, and mozilla for my address-book. I’m not saying those particular choices make a whole lot of sense, but why not give the users that option?
Because everyone’s gotten used to Microsoft’s vendor lock-in, and are now mimicking their approach.
I really like the splitting up of the e-mail and calendar, following more the Apple Mail/iCal/Address-book model than the Outlook model. It doesn’t seem to me that there is a necessary connection between your e-mail and calendar, except maybe if you’re using a groupware system that allows you to e-mail meeting invitations. In such a case, it’s only necessary that your e-mail application and calendar application can ‘talk’ to each-other well enough to pass the e-mail invitation to the calendar program.
Absolutely. It’s more UNIXey. One application that does one job really well. For the purposes of my home usage, it’s very rare indeed that I use my calander for things like invitations and meetings. It’s usually things like reminders and appointments that I make over the phone. For this type of thing, there’s absolutely no reason to open my email. Actually a few days ago I was thinking about this exact topic and wishing I had a standalone calander to go with Thunderbird, and here it is! Can’t wait ’till it matures.
One thing I do hope it does (haven’t had a chance to try it yet). I hope it does what evolution does and starts up a notification daemon. Nothing’s more irritating than having to keep an app open in order to get reminders about events. That, and integration with the Gnome calander (there’s been all this talk about Gnome/Mozilla integration, well here’s a perfect opportunity). If these two things can be done then you have my dream suite.
I took a few screenshots of camino and the mac version of firefox for mac.
http://www.sizemoresr.com/images/caminoAndFirefox/
http://www.ppcnerds.org/displayarticle122.html has a good review of Camino
“I’m just curious as to whether Sunbird will be integrated into Thunderbird somewhere down the line? Both Outlook and Evolution retain the calendar/organiser with-in; should I really have to run a third application?
I do btw know that the ‘bird apps are supposed to be stand-alone.”
Alistair,
I should remind you that a suite with integrated browser/email/calendar/chat/html-composer is already available in the firefox family. It’s called “Mozilla”, and is the big brother to all this new famous celebrity kids (Firefox, Thunderbird, etc.)
In fact, I even remember having the Calendar integrated into NETSCAPE. That one is, also, still available for download. It’s called Netscape Compact [
http://www.holgermetzger.de/net7comp.html
]. It’s free of all the AOL paraphernalia and just keeps it –well– compact.
The Mozilla version is easily available too.
Remember: Like someone said earlier, the spin of these new kids is to tackle one and only one job at a time. If you still want the all-in-one approach (I myself like it that old approach too), you can always go back to “Ol’ Reliable” Mozilla.
Cheers