iPad: The Missing Manual, 5th Edition

Chapter 5. Surf the Web

You’ll learn to:

• Use the new features in the Safari browser

• Read clutter-free web pages, or save pages to read offline

• Sync bookmarks and browser tabs across devices

• Tweet, iMessage, or post favorite pages to Facebook

• Use alternate Web browsers

SURE, YOU CAN SURF the Web on a smartphone, but odds are you’ll strain your neck and squint your eyes to read its tiny screen, even when you zoom in for a closer look. For most people, microbrowsing is fine on a train or waiting in line at the cineplex, but who wants to do that in a coffee shop, campus library, or on the couch?

Browsing the Web on an iPad eliminates the old strain ‘n’ squint. Even on the smaller iPad Mini’s 8-inch screen, you see pretty much a whole web page at once. And forget mouse-clicking—the iPad uses a touch-sensitive version of Apple’s Safari browser, so your fingers do the walking around the Web. You jump from link to link with a tap, and zoom in on pages with a two-finger spread.

The latest version of mobile Safari, the one that arrived in September 2012, is the most facile and versatile yet. In iOS 6 and later, it displays web pages more quickly than ever. It also brings tabbed browsing, iCloud-synced page tabs, ad-free pages, and a save-it-to-read-later feature to the tablet.

From the basics of tablet-style browsing to tips on web security, this chapter gives you the grand tour of Safari on the iPad, ...