Anyone use Opera?

[xsphat]

I have followed it for years but never liked it enough to be my main browser. On a whim I downloaded the current version and I think it's come a long way since the last time I tried it. I like the full screen mode and the speed dial and the fact the Opt+tab cycles through open tabs like command+tab does applications. I think I'm going to give this a try for a bit.

So are there any hardcore fans out there? What are the drawbacks? Any tips?

[karlito]

my roommate is a die hard opera fan.  only drawbacks I had w/ it were some pages don't render correctly and most importantly it didn't have the hot keys I'm used to from Firefox... but they recently added them.  Until the latest opera Google maps and other JavaScript intensive sites didn't work but again this was fixed in the latest incarnation.

All in all i think it's right up there w/ firefox. opera quick search using / is miles ahead of firefox but basically I didnt bother switching since Firefox 3 improved performance so much that opera is side by side faster but not fast enough that it's noticable in every day browsing.

[xsphat]

Thanks. I like the keyboard shortcuts, are there similar ones for FF?

[iMav]

I like . . . the speed dial

Speed dial is awesome.  I use the speed dial plugin for FireFox and love it.  No need to change browsers.

[bigpook]

cool, I didn't know about speed dial for firefox.
I did something similar though; I would bookmark a page, then modifiy the keyword of the bookmark. For instance, geekhack.org would have a keyword of l4. To access it I would hit Ctrl l, l4.  Maybe not as clean, but I have all of my favorite sites flagged with a simple keyword.

Firefox 3 is working out really well for me, btw.

[D-EJ915]

Opera has miles-better key binding and shortcutting than any other browser does.  I've been using it since Firefox became crappy around 2005 or so.  One of the main things I like is how easy it is to find where stuff is in the configuration, in mozilla stuff is in non-sensical places and firefox just doesn't let you change them.  The transfers thing is miles better than that crap firefox has as well, that always pissed me off about firefox was how terrible the "download manager" is, seriously that thing sucks beyond belief.  Plus opera checks my email for me, lol.

[iMav]

If Opera wants to be taken seriously, it needs to fully support web proxy auto-discovery (WPAD).  Same goes with Safari.

Additionally, there is no excuse for the nasty versions of Opera and Safari to not support integrated authentication.

Firefox does both...and that is why it is the only alternative browser to be embraced by corporate America.

[ashort]

I tried Opera earlier in the year, I really liked the speed dial functionality but it was never a deal breaker for me.  Until MS (or...the developers who put IE specific crap in their interfaces) pulls their head out of their rear, I'll always have to run IE for something.  Firefox is a great first browser and the incredible availability of plug-ins make it a slam dunk choice for a first browser.  I don't bother with Opera because I don't need a third browser that brings essentially nothing new to the table.  

It is a nice, fast, extensible browser, no doubt.  With a user community like Firefox's, I have no doubt that Opera could have been just as big.

[bhtooefr]

I prefer Opera's caching behavior to Firefox's. Also, on Windows and Linux, Opera's tab handling is vastly superior - it uses MDI for tab handling. (On OS X, it doesn't, unfortunately, because OS X has no MDI facilities. )

I probably don't even use half of the features that Opera has, though.

JavaScript support has always been weak, though - Google changed something with Google Maps, and now it doesn't work with Opera any more. So, I use Safari for that.

[iMav]

(On OS X, it doesn't, unfortunately, because OS X has no MDI facilities. )

Having tabs IS an example of a MDI...regardless of how it is implemented programatically.  

You'll need to go into more detail.  As I don't understand the point you are trying to make.

[bhtooefr]

I'm speaking of MDI in the MS Windows sense of the word.

In an MDI interface, a window has many windows inside of it, which are all resizable independent of each other. Opera on Windows and Linux (although I think this is technically no longer a default setting) uses MDI - each "tab" is a window within the main Opera window, resizable however you want, and the tab bar is merely a taskbar for that window (which is something MS should've done when they released Windows 95, they could've easily implemented it as part of the standard controls, and MDI would've been more successful.)

In "SDI" tabbed interfaces, tabs within a window are fixed to the size of that window. This is how Opera on OS X is, and how Firefox is - if you want a resizable tab, you have to break it out into its own window.

[Eclairz]

opera has so many useful features on windows that never got converted to macs for a few obvious reasons.
I use Opera on and off, mainly due to speed. Firefox late in version two was becoming very slow. Opera dialer is cool and saves time. But you can use opera as its very own OS as it allows tiling, cascading, moving windows within the browser, neither ie or firefox can do this.

Another really neat features is that right click on any search bar and you can use that search text box like a search text box in the now usual top right corner search box. you can even use geekhack's own search tool and search directly without needing to click search all the time one of the all time great functionality.

Opera seems to be on and off when it comes to displaying websites but the same can be said of the other two browsers but this more due to each of these browsers having quirks. And alot more people code for firefox and ie than opera. Opera seems to be innovaters of browsers but the copy cats of ie and firefox always steal ideas or they come up in plug ins.
To be honest I am starting to use all four browsers opera, safari, firefox and ie, using them based mainly on speed then features. I think I might go back to opera again the main issue I have with it is speed and sometimes stability but it is still a worthy browser, just that it hasn't been hit by the trend followers yet and may never be but they still have features which are undeniably useful

[iMav]

In an MDI interface . .

Reminds me of the Windows 2000 splash screen, "Built on NT technology"  ("NT" was an acronym for "New Technology"... so "built on New Technology Technology")    

"In a Multiple Document Interface interface".


(don't mind me...I'm just in one of "those moods" tonight)


Anyways, different sized tabs aside, the supposed main advantage of MDI in windows (and linux) is to cut down on the duplicate menu toolbars when you have multiple documents within one application open.  OS X is application-centric (as opposed to windows-centric), so you already HAVE the consolidated menu toolbar at the top with every application...so, in essence, the entire GUI is a MD, uhhh, Interface.  

[bhtooefr]

Well, also, Windows doesn't have a good way to switch between SDI windows in the same application (Ctrl-Tab is for MDI windows,) whereas (yes, I know, it's technically a form of MDI) OS X has Command-` to switch windows within a program (and Opera respects Option-Tab for switching tabs.)

[Xuan]

Hi!, I'm a new one here. First let me tell you, this forum is great, keyboards are like a new obsession to me so I enjoy reading about them a lot.
I've being using opera since I left Netscape (cant recall if firefox existed then) and now I cannot use anything else. In my job I need to use firefox (iceweasel actually) for some things mostly with one of the systems that does not work in opera and firebug. I hate it! is slow and heavy, one of the things I dislike the most it that all those basic features I'm used to come in the way of plugins. Opera comes full of cool features already available and is lighter than others.
An important thing are the key shortcuts, for example, holding shift and using arrows let us navigate the site really fast, and as this a lot more. The M2 mail client is great, very lightweight and simple.
The only disturbing issue imo is flash under linux, there is no plugin for opera so it uses firefox one, but it's very unstable and resource hungry, specially when opening flash sites in several tabs.

Other than that is the perfect browser I can imagine, I would recomend every keylover to give a try.

Cheers!

[Bodibo]

I keep wanting to use Opera, but it lacks tow very important features for me that Firefox has, namely an in-line spell checker and a GMail checker plugin. If I could those for Opera, I would try it again and maybe even switch permanently.

[Xuan]

Check this widget: http://widgets.opera.com/widget/9141/ it might be useful.
I like to use gmail through Imap and is very comfortable for me.
For spell check, you need to have aspell installed: http://www.opera.com/support/tutorials/opera/spellcheck/ is not the sale as in firefox but works

[CaptCarrot]

I use it and love it.

I have used FF, and do when a page won't render properly in Opera.  I also use IE occasionally, mainly for windows update.

just upgraded to 9.6 btw

[Bodibo]

Check this widget: http://widgets.opera.com/widget/9141/ it might be useful.
I like to use gmail through Imap and is very comfortable for me.
For spell check, you need to have aspell installed: http://www.opera.com/support/tutorials/opera/spellcheck/ is not the sale as in firefox but works

Thanks for the gmail link; they must have updated it since the last time I looked. As for the spell checker, I must be lazy, because I don't want to have to choose to start the spell checker, it should do it automatically, as I type, like in Firefox.

[bhtooefr]

The only disturbing issue imo is flash under linux, there is no plugin for opera so it uses firefox one, but it's very unstable and resource hungry, specially when opening flash sites in several tabs.

Actually, Opera doesn't have a plugin standard that is specific to it - it just uses Netscape-style plugins.

But, that's not a complaint against Opera so much as a complaint about the Linux Flash player - the only version of Flash player that isn't a total resource hog is the ActiveX version - read: the one that works with Internet Explorer on Windows.