Firefox 7

[Albert Wiersch]

It may be hard to believe, but I was surprised that Firefox 7 is out now. Talk about the "rapid release" schedule... I'm not sure if I like it... I don't think I do, but I do like the improvements.

Promised performance improvements in Firefox 7 include: faster at opening new tabs, clicking on menu items and buttons on websites. Heavy Internet users will also supposedly enjoy "enhanced performance when lots of tabs are open and during long web browsing sessions that last hours or even days."

It sounds like I should upgrade as I do keep a lot of tabs open for long browsing sessions.

[MikeGale]

I'm not sure what to do about Firefox.

It effectively kicks out extensions which are marked with the compatible version.

I already regressed FF to an earlier version to avoid this. (I now have a setup that may overcome the version checking. Trouble is I don't have the time to test it, it may need another uninstall, and I don't know what happens in a few days when the next version comes out.) I hope these guys haven't shot themselves in the foot. I use several browsers on a regular basis, the winner here, for me, is Chrome. I'm using it more often!

I have found that portable versions of Firefox can be installed, but I don't think the latest versions come out that way anymore.

Firefox has also abandoned something called JavaScriptShell (jssh) which used to give a way to automate the browser. Makes me wonder what their plans are.

Anybody here got a solid solution to the problem? (Not just today but going forward too!)

[Albert Wiersch]

I also wonder about those people who rely on a lot of extensions. The extensions I mostly use don't seem to be an issue.

I wonder what happens when they discover security issues in older versions like 4, 5, & 6? Do they release new updates for those versions or tell you to upgrade - which is probably fine for those who don't have extension issues, but what about those who need to stay with the older versions?

On the plus side, the 7 upgrade was quick and easy and the interface is the same. I imagine it would be even worse if they changed stuff around every month or 2.

[MikeGale]

I too am astonished by many of the extensions out there.

I only have a few, but they are important. I notice that most (if not all) of them are currently marked incompatible but still work, maybe because I have something called "Add-On Compatibility Reporter" installed. (The name is a bit odd, but the intention is to disable the silly system that stops add-ons working in the current 6 weeks per version nonsense.)

The focus is on developer tools. Debugging proxy, Firebug, tools for remote controlling Firefox (for testing) etc.

The guys who make these things are really good developers. They don't have the time for the current Firefox nonsense. Without them some Firefox developers are just going to walk away. (I wonder if that is a hidden agenda, somebody just wants to kill off extensions entirely!)

If there was a decent development environment (for the programming systems of my choice) and a guarantee that the interfaces would work basically for a decade or more, I would do a lot more. I'd put in ways to more easily make the browser a real part of my life instead of some separate entity with poor functionality (for what I do) and an apparently random development philosophy. (My take on the removal of jssh from FF is they deliberately want to stop people making the browser their own. They instead have in mind a very limiting idea of the consumer. That is a non participant spectator who'll take whatever you put out. So I currently have zero hope that FF will become really useful to me!)

[Albert Wiersch]

Looks like Firefox 7.0.1 is out! This would be a real pain if they didn't make it so easy to update.

[Albert Wiersch]

Well, it continues... already talk of Firefox 9!

Firefox 9 (Aurora) With Type Inference Now for Download

Interesting quote:

Firefox has not been good for a lot of positive headlines lately, especially since it seems to be surrendering market share to Chrome faster than the arctic its ice cover.

[Martin]

This update scheme of FF is getting ridiculous. Just a few months ago I updates to version 5 and now we are talking version 8? I don't understand this need to update to new versions. Why not just move the extra number up one at a time 7.1/7.2/7.3/7.4

I noticed that half way this year there were software creators that even named/numbered their software 2012 even when it is still 2011. If they keep that up by the time it really is 2018 they are on versionnumber/year 2035

[Albert Wiersch]

I noticed that half way this year there were software creators that even named/numbered their software 2012 even when it is still 2011. If they keep that up by the time it really is 2018 they are on versionnumber/year 2035

Yep... sounds like car manufacturers. I once bought a 2007 model vehicle when it was still June 2006.

[MikeGale]

Yep there was a time that software was a sensible game. Now it's becoming mostly about consumers and advertising. (Unwisely ignoring developers.) A level of flakiness comes with that! One impact is that people who have work to do find that their tools go away. (In the case of Firefox, add-ons stop working and the programmatic interface to control the browser is discontinued.)

There is one glimmer of light. I gave Firefox a last chance as a useable tool, yesterday. I installed the latest version. (I'd previously rolled my non-testing install backwards to get stuff back.) I found that I could still use enough add-ons that matter to maybe make it worth using. Time will tell. (I think the return of the add-ons was caused by "Add-on compatibility reporter". Although the add-ons are marked as "This add-on no longer works", they function again.)

I wonder if the Firefox team is trying to reverse their loss in share. If they are their approach will, I suspect, have the opposite effect. It will be unfortunate if they succeed in killing it off. (Chrome is gaining some bloat but it has things it can't do, so isn't a substitute, except for consumers.)

[Martin]

Yeah the Add-on compatibility reporter is a huge help. I have been always a big fan of the Google search bar tool but it never worked after FF5 but now I got it to work again with the help of this addon:-).

So far most of my add-ons still work but then again I don't use many.

Firebug
Firesizer
Read it Later
Amazon Wish List button (which only today came back to life)
Add-on compatibility reporter
Google Toolbar for Firefox
Java Console

I am however sure that if they keep this version update stuff up, they will finally kill FF and people will move over to another browsers. As far as speed goes I loved Safari for Windows but it's interface is something of the 80's really ugly. As far as interface is concearned nothing beats Opera. Beautifull!!!

[MikeGale]

You're right Opera has it's pluses. For me though, the big minus is that too many sites break in it.

[Albert Wiersch]

Firefox 8 is now out, as many probably already know... so what's new in Firefox 8? The '8'.

At least it was another easy upgrade and for the most part, everything looks the same.

I did like that it asked me to confirm the add-ons I wanted to use/enable. I disabled some that I hadn't used in awhile or rarely use.

[Martin]

Not much changed indeed. What I hate about these updates is that some add ons don't work with a new version. Really annoying and what for? Nothing really has changed.

This is getting totally out of hand.

[Albert Wiersch]

Firefox 9 is out! Looks like Firefox went from 3.6 to 9.0 in 2011.

I have a friend who used to use Firefox, but tried Chrome, and so far he seems to be pretty happy with it. I'm still happy enough with Firefox... but I do wonder if I tried Chrome for any real length of time if I would be happier with it.

[Martin]

As far as I can tell we're still on FF8. Where did your 9 come from?