Apple has just released the latest version of its Safari web browser, version 5.0.1, officially enabling third-party extension support and marking the debut of the Safari Extensions Gallery. The feature actually surfaced early June with the release of Safari 5, but was only partially activated for developers to begin coding their stuff. Based on web technologies like HTML, JavaScript, and CSS, extensions allow developers to bring new features and functionality to Apple's browser.

Competing browsers such as Firefox and Chrome have been supporting extensions for some time now, so Safari is comparatively late to the party. But that doesn't mean Apple isn't planning on giving them a run for their money. The company began soliciting submissions for the Extensions Gallery earlier this month, and already there are a large number of extensions from the likes of Twitter, Amazon, eBay, and a host of smaller developers.

Besides enabling Extensions, Safari 5.0.1 also fixes several stability and security flaws, including one where AutoFill could be called without user interaction giving an attacker your personal information, and another issue where a maliciously-crafted RSS feed could let an attacker copy files from your computer.

Download Safari 5.0.1 for: Windows | Mac OS X