Is Tor still safe to use?

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@isabela & pavel

Another important thing to mention is the longevity of the user connection for such ‘timing’ analysis to be successful. A Tor Browser user that does not maintain its connection for a long time, is less vulnerable to such analyses.

This is a key lesson, I think, but it still leaves me with questions.

For example “connection” is vague. Does that mean a connection to the Tor network? Or does that mean a connection to a site (whether onion or not)? Both?

If I run without JavaScript (which is as often as possible) I’m fairly certain no continuous connections to a site are going to happen. (Barring a page with meta refresh in the head.)

When I leave for lunch and Tor Browser is left running, there is a continuous connection to the Tor network. Should I choose “Work Offline” each time I go away from my computer? I’d rather do that than quit TB altogether. (I use both regular browsing windows and Private windows, the latter keeps the history from becoming cluttered.)

In writing this I think I figured out the answer but will post it anyway so hopefully others can benefit.