Egtverchi
Level 1 (15 points)
Mac OS X

Q: How do I adjust the FONT SIZE on Safari 10?

I'm using OS X 10.11.6, and I just downloaded Safari 10.0. It seems to have replaced the "minimum font size" with a "zoom" function; but there's a big problem: If I make the font size as large as I prefer, the page runs off the screen; if I make the page zoom optimal, the font is too small! So I have to either squint at the text, or keep sliding back and forth to see the whole page. This is annoying and stupid. Isn't there a way to adjust the font size ALONE?

MacBook Air, OS X El Capitan (10.11.6)

Posted on Sep 20, 2016 11:12 AM

by Kaeve,Solvedanswer
Kaeve Kaeve
Level 1 (14 points)
A:

I agree that this is annoying and stupid, especially for Apple, who are usually excellent at providing accessibility features for users. Looking online, I found a solution though. Enter the following into terminal:

 

defaults write com.apple.Safari com.apple.Safari.ContentPageGroupIdentifier.WebKit2MinimumFontSize -int 14

 

Replace the number 14 at the end with whatever you want your minimum font size to be. Then restart safari.

Posted on Sep 21, 2016 11:35 PM

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Egtverchi

Q: How do I adjust the FONT SIZE on Safari 10?

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  • by Harold Holbrook,

    Harold Holbrook Harold Holbrook Sep 21, 2016 9:49 PM in response to AppleMacBrett
    Level 1 (43 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 21, 2016 9:49 PM in response to AppleMacBrett

    I just used what the CSS file came with. It works well. I think it uses "medium" font.

     

    Did you try it? Restart Safari so it picks up the CSS.

     

    If it's still too small, try putting 18 instead of medium.

     

    Like I said, all I'm doing is following the page I linked, and mine works fine.

  • by Kaeve,Solvedanswer

    Kaeve Kaeve Sep 21, 2016 11:35 PM in response to Egtverchi
    Level 1 (14 points)
    Sep 21, 2016 11:35 PM in response to Egtverchi

    I agree that this is annoying and stupid, especially for Apple, who are usually excellent at providing accessibility features for users. Looking online, I found a solution though. Enter the following into terminal:

     

    defaults write com.apple.Safari com.apple.Safari.ContentPageGroupIdentifier.WebKit2MinimumFontSize -int 14

     

    Replace the number 14 at the end with whatever you want your minimum font size to be. Then restart safari.

  • by antfuzz,

    antfuzz antfuzz Sep 22, 2016 8:36 AM in response to Kaeve
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Sep 22, 2016 8:36 AM in response to Kaeve

    Kaeve, I was hoping there'd be a simple and easy solution and this is it. Thank you, it worked perfectly.

  • by poing99,

    poing99 poing99 Sep 22, 2016 10:13 AM in response to Harold Holbrook
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Sep 22, 2016 10:13 AM in response to Harold Holbrook

    That terminal code thing has worked perfectly so thanks for that to everyone who suggested it.

     

    Given that it works using terminal it suggests the functionality is still there but Apple have removed the menu option for some stupid reason.

  • by Egtverchi,

    Egtverchi Egtverchi Sep 22, 2016 10:28 AM in response to Kaeve
    Level 1 (15 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 10:28 AM in response to Kaeve

    "Enter the following into terminal:"

     

    Kaeve: I am knowledgeable about certain fields, but an entry-level amateur in terms of programming. Where and how do I enter that text? Also, is there a measurable risk that unless I do it perfectly (and maybe even if I do) it will crash my MacBook Air? - I hate the new lack of functionality, but better a lousy computer than a dead one.

  • by AppleMacBrett,

    AppleMacBrett AppleMacBrett Sep 22, 2016 10:41 AM in response to Kaeve
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 10:41 AM in response to Kaeve

    Kaeve... Brilliant !!  How can I send you a Starbucks gift card or buy you a drink ?  Thank you times a million.

  • by Harold Holbrook,

    Harold Holbrook Harold Holbrook Sep 22, 2016 10:48 AM in response to Egtverchi
    Level 1 (43 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 10:48 AM in response to Egtverchi

    Select the line posted above. It's all one line.

    Choose Copy from the Edit menu, or command-c

     

    Launch Terminal. It's in Applications/Utilities.

     

    In Terminal a cursor will be blinking. That's where your pasted command will go. You don't have to select a place - it's not possible to.

     

    Paste by one of the following:

    1) command-v

    2) choose Paste from the Edit menu.

     

    Hit Return.

     

    You should get no error message. It will just give you another cursor.

    You can Quit Terminal now if you wish.

     

    Quit and relaunch Safari.

  • by Harold Holbrook,

    Harold Holbrook Harold Holbrook Sep 22, 2016 10:53 AM in response to Harold Holbrook
    Level 1 (43 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 10:53 AM in response to Harold Holbrook

    Oh and look what I hoped on page 1 here:

     

    Harold Holbrook wrote:

     

    I'm hoping there will be a property list setting that we can set in Terminal.

     

    And so there is.

  • by Oirud,

    Oirud Oirud Sep 22, 2016 11:14 AM in response to Kaeve
    Level 1 (19 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 11:14 AM in response to Kaeve

    YES! YES! YES! A thousand times yes!

     

    Worked like a charm and Safari is instantly useable again. I occasionally copy and paste things I've seen suggested to use in Terminal but didn't know enough about Safari prefs to know about this tweak.

     

    Apple still needs to correct their deletion of this setting in Safari. They should give you a $1,000 Apple Gift Card for giving the rest of us this lovely fix, especially if they don't ever bother to put the setting back into their browser preferences. I imagine this tweak will be all over the interwebz now, given the number of forums where I've seen protests about this Safari/Apple goof up.

     

    You rock. THANK YOU!

     

     

  • by Egtverchi,

    Egtverchi Egtverchi Sep 22, 2016 11:49 AM in response to Harold Holbrook
    Level 1 (15 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 11:49 AM in response to Harold Holbrook

    Thank you!!!  It worked perfectly - the cursor wasn't actually blinking, just a grey box, but I entered the text and hoped for the best. Thank you also for your detailed, step-by-step instructions; I actually did know how to copy and paste, but some on this forum (or their relatives) might not, and I didn't know any of the rest. Besides, it's always better to include information people may already know, than to assume they know things which they don't.

     

    Now the only issue is the one posed by poing99: "Given that it works using terminal it suggests the functionality is still there but Apple have removed the menu option for some stupid reason." Why make users open an application, open a utility, copy and paste text, and restart Safari, instead of just clicking on a menu option? If you have a lot of tabs open in Safari, and a mediocre broadband connection, a relaunch can really slow you down. If Safari 10.0, for some reason, is designed not to process a font size change unless you relaunch it, why not just leave the menu option in place, and give you a "Relaunch Safari?" box if you reset the font?

     

    I am hesitant to click on the "This solved my question" box for Kaeve's original message, because (at least in my case) you ought to share the credit. I also worry that Apple, seeing a "solved" flag, will just ignore the whole issue and not even bother working on a fix.

  • by RedMolly250,

    RedMolly250 RedMolly250 Sep 22, 2016 2:28 PM in response to Egtverchi
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Sep 22, 2016 2:28 PM in response to Egtverchi

    Okay. I may have found a simple solution to the small text. Husband is a software engineer. He noticed I was not updated to the latest macOS Sierra. (Just came available.) His computer (always up to date) was not having the same problems. He suggested I update. I grimaced thinking it was surely not that. But... I did. And everything seems to be back to normal. You have to go to the Apple site to download. My computer kept saying there were no updates.

    Suggest you all update, if you haven't already done so.

  • by voffice,

    voffice voffice Sep 22, 2016 4:15 PM in response to Egtverchi
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Sep 22, 2016 4:15 PM in response to Egtverchi

    Spotlight search terminal

     

    open terminal, put in command

     

    defaults write com.apple.Safari com.apple.Safari.ContentPageGroupIdentifier.WebKit2MinimumFontSize -int 14

     

    (where the last number is font size you need: 12, 13, 14 or else. Change this as you wish)

     

    press enter

  • by Egtverchi,

    Egtverchi Egtverchi Sep 22, 2016 4:37 PM in response to RedMolly250
    Level 1 (15 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 4:37 PM in response to RedMolly250

    "Suggest you all update, if you haven't already done so."

     

    . . . except that many of us will be hesitant to install a whole new OS, after our experience with the new browser - what else won't work after the update? In fact, there are quite a few new threads about people's computers misbehaving after they downloaded Sierra. It might work fine, but Kaeve's fix is less risky, albeit more awkward. Your results may vary, though; it's a reasonable gamble (if all your data is backed up and easily retrievable).

     

    It's not one I'll be taking just yet.

  • by Egtverchi,

    Egtverchi Egtverchi Sep 22, 2016 4:42 PM in response to voffice
    Level 1 (15 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 4:42 PM in response to voffice

    Much appreciated. Harold Holbrook's step-by-step instructions (above) were a bit more "Terminal for Dummies" - which was exactly what I needed!

  • by Mike Retondo,

    Mike Retondo Mike Retondo Sep 22, 2016 5:51 PM in response to Egtverchi
    Level 1 (14 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 22, 2016 5:51 PM in response to Egtverchi

    From Terminal app paste the following but change the 14 to the point size you want. Quit and restart safari.


    defaults write com.apple.Safari com.apple.Safari.ContentPageGroupIdentifier.WebKit2MinimumFontSize -int 14

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