HOME

See the most recent Mac Tips

Log in to Basics4Mac

Why would I want to log in?

All of the content of Basics4Mac is available without logging in, but there are two advantages to logging in:

When you post comments, you can choose to be notified by email if your comment receives a reply.
Most advertising does not show.

Quickly Select the Address line in Safari

Wednesday, December 15 2010 by chrisb Safari

Get there faster

The Favicon <br>Click to see a larger image

The Favicon
Click to see a larger image

In Safari, when you want to go to a new site, you either select a bookmark or type in a new web address into the Address line. If you are typing in new address, you need to clear out the old address first.

I've seen people try to clear out the Address line by clicking in the line to get the blinking cursor and then holding down the Delete key to remove the address. If you are removing a web address this way, you are taking the long route for a very short trip.

Recent Tips from Basics4Mac:

Welcome to the new Basics4Mac

"Protecting Your Digital Life" Video Conference by Tidbits

Quick Access to Common System Preferences Panes

Changing Notification Types in Notification Center

Working with Notification Center

In Safari there is a much faster and easier way to clear the Address line:

Just to the left of the web address is an icon, called a favicon. Sometimes the favicon is just a blue orb and sometimes it is an icon that represents the site. (ie, on Apple.com, the favicon is the Apple logo.) Click once on the favicon and the entire address will become selected (turn light blue). You can just start typing your new address. The first key you kit will clear out the old address so you can enter the new one.

If you prefer keyboard shortcuts, doing a Command-L does the same thing as clicking the favicon.

As a reminder, it is not necessary to enter the "http://www." part of a web address. Just type in the main part of the address, ie "apple.com" and you will be taken directly there, Related Items: Safari

Show more Safari tips

Was this tip helpful to you? Consider a small donation as a token of your appreciation. Donate $1

$1 Donation via PayPal or Credit Card

Donate any amount via PayPal or Credit Card

Your donations help Basics4Mac provide high-quality content with minimal advertizing.

Learn more...

Is your Mac backed up?

See a Preview of the book

The Backup Plan is available exclusively on Amazon in Kindle format. A Kindle device is not required to read the ebook. Kindle apps are available for Macs, PCs and mobile devices. Members of Amazon Prime with a Kindle device can borrow this ebook for free.

Comments

Quickly Select the Address line in Safari | 3 comments

The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.

Quickly Select the Address line in Safari

Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, December 15 2010

I knew about clicking on the favicon (though I learned what it is called) and also didn't know about control-L. Thanks Chris!

Reply to This | #

Quickly Select the Address line in Safari

Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, December 15 2010

Thanks Chris-- this used to work in Firefox too, but now it doesn't function that way. It is very frustrating after being used to using it that way for so long. I didn't know about Command +L, but even that is one step too long-- any ideas for Firefox?

Reply to This | #

Quickly Select the Address line in Safari

Authored by: chrisb on Wednesday, December 15 2010

You can select then entire address in Firefox but it is more complicated than it needs to be

Click the web address in the address field ONLY IF the cursor isn't already in the field.

Reply to This | #

Help Support Basics4Mac

Why should I donate?

The hints, tips, advice and links on Basics4Mac.com are free to all users.

There are certain costs involved in running the site including site hosting and all the coffee I drink while writing the tips. Your donations help cover these costs.

This is not a site run by a company with deep pockets to keep it going. I'm just one guy who loves Macs and wants to help others to learn how to best use their Macs. I create the content on the site in my spare time. more...

Basics4Mac EXTRAS

Articles at the intersection of computers and life

What's this?

As I comb through the Mac news of the day, I often come across articles that aren't tip material but that I think would be interesting to Basics4Mac readers. The links below go directly to the website that hosts the article.

Basics4Mac EXTRAS are also posted to @basics4mac on Twitter and the Basics4Mac Facebook page. You can subscribe to an email list that send out all of the Basics4Mac EXTRAS from the past week here.

(Hover over the titles to see the article's intro)

MACWORLD: Why the iTunes Store succeeded - 4/28/13

MACWORLD: Why the iTunes Store succeeded - 4/28/13
The history of music retailing goes something like this. Throughout the 1950s, ’60s, and ’70s the LP (Long Play album) was the long-form audio format du jour. If you wanted to purchase just a single song, you bought a 45-rpm disc, a smaller record that featured a hit song on side A and a lesser-known song on the B side. As tape players began to show up in homes and cars, 8-track tapes and cassettes became popular. You could purchase cassette singles, though they weren’t terribly popular.

Read more...

ARS TECHNICA: Five ways Congress should improve the copyright system - 4/28/13

ARS TECHNICA: Five ways Congress should improve the copyright system - 4/28/13
In a Wednesday speech, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) announced plans for a "comprehensive review" of copyright law. The announcement is significant because Goodlatte chairs the House Judiciary Committee, which has jurisdiction over copyright issues. "I am announcing today that the House Judiciary Committee will hold a comprehensive series of hearings on US copyright law in the months ahead," Goodlatte said. "The goal of these hearings will be to determine whether the laws are still working in the digital age. I welcome all interested parties to submit their views and concerns to the Committee."

Read more...

ARS TECHNICA: 78-minute Steve Jobs comedy film iSteve now online - 4/28/13

ARS TECHNICA: 78-minute Steve Jobs comedy film iSteve now online - 4/28/13
Comedy site FunnyorDie has released its comedic Steve Jobs film, iSteve, on its website, the first of a handful of Jobs films planned for release this year. The 78-minute film was slated for release on April 15, but FunnyorDie delayed it for two days following the Boston Marathon bombing on Monday. It's now available in its full glory on FunnyorDie's website, starring "Get a Mac" actor Justin Long as Steve Jobs.

Read more...

ARS TECHNICA: Where’s my Knight Rider 2000? A MyFord Touch owner’s lament - 3/18/13

ARS TECHNICA: Where’s my Knight Rider 2000? A MyFord Touch owner’s lament - 3/18/13
In early February, I bought a 2013 Ford Escape equipped with MyFord Touch. In many ways, the system, which was developed jointly by Ford and Microsoft, is a driver's best friend. But best friends can be idiosyncratic sometimes, and they occasionally drive you nuts—especially when they argue with your other best friends (like your smart phone). These friends occasionally stop talking to each other, and one might even interrupt calls to your mom because they've decided it's time to perform "routine maintenance."

Read more...

TidBITS: Thoughts on — and of — a Computer Science Major - 3/6/13

TidBITS: Thoughts on — and of — a Computer Science Major - 3/6/13
Like many others, I entered college from a high school where students were rewarded with good grades for memorizing and regurgitating the correct answers. I was great at that and always received above-average grades. I learned what was required from textbooks and was tested on it. There was no guessing as to what resources or subject matter to study. Alas, while my grades may have helped me get into college, high school otherwise didn’t do much to prepare me for the University of Virginia.

Read more...

More EXTRAS...

Shop Amazon.com and support Basics4Mac

Shopping online? You can help support Basics4Mac by making your Amazon purchases through this website. Any purchases you make at Amazon by going through this site will give me a small commission. It does not affect the price of the items you buy.

Click the link below to get started.

Go to Amazon.com