Odysseys
Encyclopedia
Odysseys is a WebKit
based web browser developed by Forgotten Software Inc., based on the work of Tominated Software. The browser claims to be faster than other browsers because of its streamlined, simple interface, and is aimed towards legacy computers with minimal hardware resources as well as public settings, as it does not publicly store history, and does not log usernames or password. Odysseys is similar to Apple Computer
's Safari, as they are both based on WebKit and have similar user interfaces.
Odysseys uses Apple's WebKit
for rendering web pages and running JavaScript
. WebKit consists of WebCore
, which is based on Konqueror
's KHTML
engine, and JavaScriptCore
, which is based on KDE's JavaScript engine KJS. Like KHTML and KJS, WebCore and JavaScriptCore are free software
that are released under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License
.
The first two versions of Odysseys were alpha releases and not available to the public. The first public version was 0.3b. a beta version with many bugs and very little functionality. 0.4b was released, with many bug fixes and an improved user interface.
Odysseys 1.0 was leaked to a few people late in December 2007. The version never went officially public, as the browser was discontinued after 0.3b for Radon Web Browser.
WebKit
WebKit is a layout engine designed to allow web browsers to render web pages. WebKit powers Google Chrome and Apple Safari and by October 2011 held over 33% of the browser market share between them. It is also used as the basis for the experimental browser included with the Amazon Kindle ebook...
based web browser developed by Forgotten Software Inc., based on the work of Tominated Software. The browser claims to be faster than other browsers because of its streamlined, simple interface, and is aimed towards legacy computers with minimal hardware resources as well as public settings, as it does not publicly store history, and does not log usernames or password. Odysseys is similar to Apple Computer
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad...
's Safari, as they are both based on WebKit and have similar user interfaces.
History and development
Odysseys' development started in early 2007. The developer had an older Mac and wanted a faster web experience.Odysseys uses Apple's WebKit
WebKit
WebKit is a layout engine designed to allow web browsers to render web pages. WebKit powers Google Chrome and Apple Safari and by October 2011 held over 33% of the browser market share between them. It is also used as the basis for the experimental browser included with the Amazon Kindle ebook...
for rendering web pages and running JavaScript
JavaScript
JavaScript is a prototype-based scripting language that is dynamic, weakly typed and has first-class functions. It is a multi-paradigm language, supporting object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles....
. WebKit consists of WebCore
WebKit
WebKit is a layout engine designed to allow web browsers to render web pages. WebKit powers Google Chrome and Apple Safari and by October 2011 held over 33% of the browser market share between them. It is also used as the basis for the experimental browser included with the Amazon Kindle ebook...
, which is based on Konqueror
Konqueror
Not to be confused with the Conqueror web browser.Konqueror is a web browser and file manager that provides file-viewer functionality for file systems such as local files, files on a remote ftp server and files in a disk image. It is a core part of the KDE desktop environment...
's KHTML
KHTML
KHTML is the HTML layout engine developed by the KDE project. It is the engine used by the Konqueror web browser. A forked version of KHTML called WebKit is used by several web browsers, among them Safari and Google Chrome...
engine, and JavaScriptCore
WebKit
WebKit is a layout engine designed to allow web browsers to render web pages. WebKit powers Google Chrome and Apple Safari and by October 2011 held over 33% of the browser market share between them. It is also used as the basis for the experimental browser included with the Amazon Kindle ebook...
, which is based on KDE's JavaScript engine KJS. Like KHTML and KJS, WebCore and JavaScriptCore are free software
Free software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
that are released under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License
GNU Lesser General Public License
The GNU Lesser General Public License or LGPL is a free software license published by the Free Software Foundation . It was designed as a compromise between the strong-copyleft GNU General Public License or GPL and permissive licenses such as the BSD licenses and the MIT License...
.
The first two versions of Odysseys were alpha releases and not available to the public. The first public version was 0.3b. a beta version with many bugs and very little functionality. 0.4b was released, with many bug fixes and an improved user interface.
Odysseys 1.0 was leaked to a few people late in December 2007. The version never went officially public, as the browser was discontinued after 0.3b for Radon Web Browser.