Safari 4 not working on some Web pages? Try changing the user agent.
<p>When a new Web browser version comes out, many times online services and applications will not work with that specific version, even though not much in the underlying code in the browser has changed. This could be from just minor bugs with how JavaScri
When a new Web browser version comes out, many times online services and applications will not work with that specific version, even though not much in the underlying code in the browser has changed. This could be from just minor bugs with how JavaScript or other Web technologies are handled; or more commonly it can be from the server not being updated to properly recognize the new browser.
Browsers send the server a "User Agent" string that tells the server what kind of browser and what version of that browser is being used. In some instances this allows the server to send a browser/platform-specific version of the application code for compatibility reasons. In Safari, you can spoof the user agent, which can hopefully allow broken online applications to work again.
To change the user agent for Safari, go to the preferences and in the "Advanced" section click "Show Develop" menu in menu bar. Then from this menu choose one of the many user agent strings from the "User Agent" submenu. We recommend keeping with "Mac" versions and starting with the Safari options, and then trying Firefox and other options, and finally choosing Windows user agents.
This does not solve all site incompatibilities, but can in many cases trick the site into giving your browser a version of the code that will ultimately work.
If Safari is not working for a page, please send Apple feedback using the little "bug" button (can be added by customizing the toolbar) or by choosing the "Report Bugs to Apple" option in the "Safari" menu.
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