This Hidden Safari Feature Makes Web Browsing Much Faster
Using your computer will be much faster if you become a keyboard shortcut ninja instead of doing everything with a mouse or trackpad. Problem: Web browsing is entirely mouse-centric. Safari’s hidden option can help.
Open Safari preferences , go to the Advanced tab and check the Click tab to highlight every element on a web page . You can now use the tab key on your keyboard to highlight the top link on the current page – you’ll see a blue border around the link. Continue pressing Tab to switch between links, then press Enter to open the current link. It’s fast, provided there aren’t too many links on the page. You can also press CMD+Enter to open the current link in a new tab in the background.
I like to use this while reading the news. I open the publication’s home page, use Tab to switch between articles, and open the ones that look interesting in a new background tab. I can then use the keyboard shortcut CMD+W to go to that tab and move on to the next one. This way, I can read any article on the site that interests me without touching the mouse.
There are now dedicated apps for this, including Shortcat , which offers more options for controlling the Internet (and other apps) with just keyboard shortcuts. This app is especially good if you want to jump straight to a specific link, rather than having to press Tab multiple times to get to it. It’s worth noting, but you might not need it: the Safari feature works well enough for me and doesn’t require me to install anything, which is nice.
Try this feature if you’re looking for ways to use your mouse less often—I already feel like a faster internet user.