Safest browser for older Mac?

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28 Mar 2016, 2:50 pm

Chrome is no longer supported on older Macs - meaning it still works, but won't get security updates. I'm wondering how risky it is to keep using it? Would switching to Safari or Firefox be significantly safer?

This is regarding my mom's computer. She has EXTREME* trouble learning new things, and REALLY* doesn't want to switch browsers. So if the truth is that Chrome is no more risky than anything else, I'd rather have her stick with that.

*Sorry if this is a stupid question - I've written, deleted, and rewritten this post a dozen times over the past week, because I figure if my mom isn't willing to take the time to learn Safari, why should I waste other people's time over it? But she has strong autistic tendencies as well, and if even one little button looks different on her computer screen, it's catastrophically traumatizing to her. So I do apologize, and would appreciate any advice on this issue!

alex
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28 Mar 2016, 3:04 pm

Most browsers have similar layouts. I doubt she'd have much trouble switching.

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Ashariel
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28 Mar 2016, 3:29 pm

Thank you Alex - I'm going to just go change that for her right now. She will just have to deal. We've known this change was coming for months, and she's tried to learn Safari, but gets massively upset... But there comes a point where if you want the privilege of enjoying a computer, you have to accept the reality that technology changes over time. Or you have to accept that your disability precludes you from using a computer altogether. (I'll let her decide which it will be!)

Sorry for bothering people with this - no need for further responses, I'll deal with it!

Fogman
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01 Apr 2016, 4:48 am

Perhaps Qupzilla, which is a QT implimentation of WebKit. How old is the Mac? --If it's an old G4 or G5 RISC system, there will most likely be issues finding a browser, period.

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dcj123
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01 Apr 2016, 6:16 pm

Fogman wrote:

Perhaps Qupzilla, which is a QT implimentation of WebKit. How old is the Mac? --If it's an old G4 or G5 RISC system, there will most likely be issues finding a browser, period.

I thought RISC was ARM architecture? Isn't PowerPC different? I have a G5 and its PowerPC not RISC. Did old PowerPC processors use RISC?

But wait, if its G5 use PowerPC Debian and use Firefox, thats what I do and I still get updates on my G5. Debian runs great on G4 and G5 computers, I run mate but you could probably run xfce.

Fogman
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02 Apr 2016, 5:05 pm

dcj123 wrote:

Fogman wrote:

Perhaps Qupzilla, which is a QT implimentation of WebKit. How old is the Mac? --If it's an old G4 or G5 RISC system, there will most likely be issues finding a browser, period.

RISC is Reduced Instruction Set Computing. A RISC processor processess several smaller instructions (that say, an x86 instruction) simultaneously. Not only is ARM a a RISC processor, but so were DEC Alpha, MIPS, and SPARC and PPC processors. I think that PPC and ARM are the only extant RISC cpus still in wide use. EPIC (Explicity Paralell Instruction Computing) has largely supplante RISC, and is what is now used in some Clustered systems, as well as some gaming systems and a lot of GPU's.

XFCE should not be a problem on a G4 or G5 system. If there's a version of Debian available for it, or you could also possibly download the SC and dependancies for it and compile yourself.

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mr_bigmouth_502
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22 Apr 2016, 9:48 pm

dcj123 wrote:

Fogman wrote:

Perhaps Qupzilla, which is a QT implimentation of WebKit. How old is the Mac? --If it's an old G4 or G5 RISC system, there will most likely be issues finding a browser, period.

ARM is RISC, but RISC isn't ARM.

RISC is short for "reduced instruction set computing"; a CPU design paradigm that originally gained popularity in the 80s as a method of designing CPUs with smaller, more efficient instruction sets than CISC or "complete instruction set computing" CPUs.

ARM, MIPS, SPARC, and Alpha are all examples of RISC architectures, whereas x86, z80, and 68000 are all CISC. IIRC, PowerPC is basically a RISC/CISC hybrid. Modern x86 CPUs made since AMD's K5 are pretty much all RISC designs at their core however, with an embedded translation unit designed to interpret the x86 instruction set.

Interestingly, it has been argued that the 6502, dating back to 1976, is an example of an early RISC chip, since it had a more streamlined, efficeient architecture than its closest competitor, the z80. Unfortunately, the z80 had an edge since it could easily be dialed up to higher clock speeds than the 6502, negating the 6502's advantage. The z80 also had a more flexible architecture overall.

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naturalplastic
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28 Apr 2016, 8:09 am

Its both old, and its a Mac?

Wouldnt even worry about "safety".

When driving the information superhighway the most reckless driver of an old Mac is safer than the most cautious driver of a new late model Windows computer.

An old computer cant do as much desirable stuff on the web as a new one, but it also cant get infected as easily as a new one either.

And every IT person Ive taken computers to to fix tells me that "the bad guys dont bother with making malware for apples because they are such a small market share".

My experience confirms that. On my two old macs I used to venture into the worst parts of internet town and never get into any trouble. Would explore the most sleazy porn sites (for example) and never get viruses or spyware.

But with my new Dell I constantly get the McAfee warnings to "LEAVE this site!! !!".- and thats from clicking links on the CNN news startup page of my browser!

I dont even hafta venture into the bad part of the internet town now! I just step out of my virtual front door and I get mugged !

mr_bigmouth_502
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28 Apr 2016, 5:45 pm

naturalplastic wrote:

Its both old, and its a Mac?

Wouldnt even worry about "safety".

When driving the information superhighway the most reckless driver of an old Mac is safer than the most cautious driver of a new late model Windows computer.

An old computer cant do as much desirable stuff on the web as a new one, but it also cant get infected as easily as a new one either.

And every IT person Ive taken computers to to fix tells me that "the bad guys dont bother with making malware for apples because they are such a small market share".

My experience confirms that. On my two old macs I used to venture into the worst parts of internet town and never get into any trouble. Would explore the most sleazy porn sites (for example) and never get viruses or spyware.

But with my new Dell I constantly get the McAfee warnings to "LEAVE this site!! ! !".- and thats from clicking links on the CNN news startup page of my browser!

I dont even hafta venture into the bad part of the internet town now! I just step out of my virtual front door and I get mugged !

Umm, wasn't there recently a piece of malware going around specifically targetting PowerPC Macs because of the lack of support they have? Whatever the case, "security by obscurity" isn't always the best policy.

EDIT: Hey, this is post 5150 for me. That's the model number of the original IBM PC, as well as the California penal code for involuntarily confining someone who is presenting a threat to themselves or others due to a mental condition.

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