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Mozilla forbids Add-on writers from putting it more than 2 major version numbers ahead. This policy worked fine when 2 major version numbers took years... but right now, that's 12 weeks.

Add-ons default to compatible since Firefox 10. See https://wiki.mozilla.org/Features/Add-ons/Add-ons_Default_to_Compatible and http://blog.mozilla.com/addons/2012/01/05/default-compatibility-is-coming-and-your-help-is-needed/.

Chrome uses a similar technique to avoid fucking breaking everything to Firefox. Unfortunately, it appears that in this instance it didn't work - apparently the bug has been in the beta releases since November and no-one noticed it when testing them. (I suspect a lot more Chrome users use the beta releases because Chrome can be quite broken if you don't.)

Good solution as their rolling releases will have bugs pop up from time to time. The tinyMCE issue was a BUG in FF and has been resolved in the nightly build. See the source: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=737784

http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/ It's great really, makes the updates much more like the 3.6 era, when they did things sensibly

No.

You can also look at their servers as they load balance: http://browserquest.mozilla.org/status/

Their status page is located here: http://browserquest.mozilla.org/status/

It shows population, distribution of players.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/pdfjs/
https://github.com/mozilla/pdf.js

Sod off, troll.

--posted from Firefox 12.0 running on a Linux laptop.

We are working on a Java front end for Firefox mobile. Performance on devices that were marginal at running XUL Firefox mobile is much improved. There were a couple design decisions that made Firefox mobile slow to startup. First it was a testbed for Firefox multiprocess work. Secondly shipping as a full NDK app as complex as Firefox could not compete with Java app startup time due to library unpacking. This was exacerbated on phones that had a poor filesystem such as the Galaxy S.

If you want to give the Java native version a try it can be downloaded from http://nightly.mozilla.org/ It will require you to enable installing of non-market apps on your phone.

I sometimes spend time answering questions at the Firefox support forum.
It is one of the easiest ways of contributing to the open source browser without having to dig into its code.
Being a regular user of the browser, I am already familiar with most of its features and options. So, the learning curve is pretty easy.
Even answering fairly "low-hanging fruits" like this one can be a pretty rewarding feeling.
On top of that, you get to closely observe the diverse ways in which real end-users interact with a software application. IMO, this is an invaluable experience and insight for any programmer developing any kind of application.

I sometimes spend time answering questions at the Firefox support forum.
It is one of the easiest ways of contributing to the open source browser without having to dig into its code.
Being a regular user of the browser, I am already familiar with most of its features and options. So, the learning curve is pretty easy.
Even answering fairly "low-hanging fruits" like this one can be a pretty rewarding feeling.
On top of that, you get to closely observe the diverse ways in which real end-users interact with a software application. IMO, this is an invaluable experience and insight for any programmer developing any kind of application.

I wrote large chunks of the Mozilla 1.0 FAQ. You bet I listed it on my CV. This is back when no-one outside open-source circles had heard of it and IE's usage was 96%.

Well, at least you can still download 3.6.x from releases.mozilla.org. Though I hear they will stop updating 3.6 soon...

Windows Operating Systems

• Windows 2000
• Windows XP
• Windows Server 2003
• Windows Vista
• Windows 7

Please note that while the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows Vista and Windows 7 can be used to run Firefox 10, only 32-bit builds of Firefox 10 are supported at this time.

Recommended Hardware

• Pentium 4 or newer processor that supports SSE2
• 512MB of RAM
• 200MB of hard drive space

It says "recommended" on the "requirements" page, so I'm not sure if the SSE2 support is actually required or just provides additional performance. If it is required, you may be able to compile it yourself with different options to support older CPUs. A few years ago, there were a number of people doing custom builds with options tailored to specific CPUs, which disabled legacy support, required higher revs of SSE, etc. Assuming that something in the code doesn't actually require SSE2 for some feature, you should be able to use it even on older systems.

For a reasonable replacement for Aardvark, see HackTheWeb: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/hack-the-web/

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/bneajlpihgbinpbljjcadddjljghilho

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/sudoku-helper/?src=search

Could be another answer. I don't see any mention as to whether it tracked what addons/extensions were in use at the time, but this is something that could easily be gamed.

Rendering changes don't usually happen during point releases.

Except where the rendering change is to fix a security problem, such as the privacy-related neutering of CSS :visited .

Firefox supports Win2k fine. Should just install and work. Can't speak to specific performance on your setup though.

Firefox Requirements

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/hack-the-web/

And listening a bit further

"he was like ssl, yeah I haven't throught about that in a long time. and he was like amazing ..... Oh these certificate authorities whats the deal with them...oh that whole authenticity thing yeah we just threw that in at the end...he was like ssl yeah I mean we were really designing it to prevent passive attacks, the whole man in the middle thing someone told us about that and you know we just kind of threw that thing in at the end, really that whole certificate authority thing it was a bit of a hand wave

So it sounds like they did put CAs in as an attempt to defend against MITM attacks but they didn't really care too much about whether it worked or not.

Which makes far more sense than the GGPs claim that the system was not designed to stop MITM attacks at all. If you aren't trying to defend against MITM attacks at all then there really isn't any point in having CAs in the first place.

Plus the CA system has got weaker over the years, when it was first introduced you had to convince one of a couple of companies that you were either the legitimate owner of the domain or that you are not the legitimate owner of the domain but they should give you the cert anyway. Now you have to convince one of the CAs listed in http://www.mozilla.org/projects/security/certs/included/ or one of the many sub-cas they delegate to that you are either the legitimate owner of the domain or that you are not the legitimate owner of the domain but they should give you the cert anyway.

It's retarded upgrade schedule ...

FF10 is an extended support release. It will have security updates for the next year, which is a very reasonable upgrade cycle for a browser.

confounded by minimalist design trend.

The UI is trivial to customize, and the old features have all been preserved they just aren't default. You can make FF4+ have the same look and feel as FF3.6 if that is what you want.

The FF4 release and the move to rapid releases was a mess at first, but all the problems that people are complaining about have been fixed by now.

Of course, I think I can't upgrade because the latest firefox doesn't support Windows 2000 anymore, and this machine running XP probably won't happen (I don't think XP SP3 works on 512MB anymore).

Fx 10 supports Windows 2000. There was talk of dropping it in some later release, but that hasn't happened yet, and Fx 10 ESR will be supported for a full year.

Of course, on other systems, I play around with profiles a lot, and FF4 got rid of the profile manager. They made it separate trial download, and I'm not sure if they ever re-incorporated profile manager back in.

This simply isn't true. I do development work with Firefox and I don't remember the profile manager ever disappearing during the entire Fx4 beta cycle. It's definitely been there from Fx4 final to Fx10.

Because I want a browser that works. That isn't insanely buggy or more of a memory hog. That doesn't break half the add-ons. Older == better tested. I don't want the beta version and I don't need additional features beyond what is in 3.6.x. At the very least, I prefer to be a version behind the cutting edge because I prefer stability over new features and new bugs. It isn't being a luddite, it's having better things to do with my time than dealing with a crashing, buggy web browser.

On top of that, when recently considering post-3.6.x Firefox versions, they don't exactly make it easy to figure out which version isn't the cutting-edge version, or which one is the "stable" version, if such a thing exists. They always offer the latest-and-greatest, and even finding the older versions on Mozilla's website was a challenge. Their crazy versioning system still doesn't make sense. So I stuck with 3.6.x again and will do so until the security updates stop.

Someone further down the thread found the ESR version of 10. All I can say is "finally". I can get a 10.0.x version with only security updates as the main Firefox continues to update to version 17 or whatever.

Firefox known-vulnerabilities says shows that Firefox 9 has problems with it which should make you want to upgrade to 10.0.2:
Fixed in Firefox 10.0.2
MFSA 2012-11 libpng integer overflow
Fixed in Firefox 10.0.1
MFSA 2012-10 use after free in nsXBLDocumentInfo::ReadPrototypeBindings
Fixed in Firefox 10
MFSA 2012-09 Firefox Recovery Key.html is saved with unsafe permission
MFSA 2012-08 Crash with malformed embedded XSLT stylesheets
MFSA 2012-07 Potential Memory Corruption When Decoding Ogg Vorbis files
MFSA 2012-06 Uninitialized memory appended when encoding icon images may cause information disclosure
MFSA 2012-05 Frame scripts calling into untrusted objects bypass security checks
MFSA 2012-04 Child nodes from nsDOMAttribute still accessible after removal of nodes
MFSA 2012-03 element exposed across domains via name attribute
MFSA 2012-01 Miscellaneous memory safety hazards (rv:10.0/ rv:1.9.2.26)

we've been using 3.6.xx because of stability.. not necessarily the application itself (it isn't any better or worse than newer ones, imho) but in release cycle.

the chrome-like rapid release schedule sucks ass. when 3.6.xx goes EOL, we'll be moving over to firefox ESR so at least we'll be on a stable version for a year at a time...
http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/
http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/all.html

we've been using 3.6.xx because of stability.. not necessarily the application itself (it isn't any better or worse than newer ones, imho) but in release cycle.

the chrome-like rapid release schedule sucks ass. when 3.6.xx goes EOL, we'll be moving over to firefox ESR so at least we'll be on a stable version for a year at a time...
http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/
http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/all.html

Tree Style Tab has that option in an addon.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/tree-style-tab/

You mean like Firefox -P -no-remote ? http://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/Managing-profiles I can understand that end-users with little computer knowledge think it doesn't exist, but you are posting on Slashdot and are supposedly an advanced user that can check his facts, that was the first hit on google for "Firefox profile management". This feature exists since... forever (Mozilla Suite even had it), I have 2 versions of Firefox running happilly at the same time with separate profiles. How do you think that web developpers check their pages in different versions of Firefox ?

Why do you say ESR is more stable? It sounds like it's more for a controlled and long update cycle.

For example, from here:
ESR FAQ

"The ESR will not have the benefit of large scale testing by nightly and beta groups. As a result, the potential for the introduction of bugs which affect ESR users will be greater, and that risk needs to be understood and accepted by groups that deploy it"

I'm in the same boat, I just (two weeks ago) switched from 3.6 to 10. I still have 3.6 installed just in case, but so far I'm adjusting.

In order to have some stability though, try the ESR version, it's what I'm using. http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/all.html And if you want to read the FAQ, go with http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/faq/

So far, there are a few hiccups. There were a few add-ons that didn't make the switch, but they were rarely used, so I haven't noticed their absence yet. The tab size is annoying and I haven't figured out how to fix that yet. The old about:config fix doesn't work, and the userchrome.css fix just screws things up more.

I did need to readjust the default layout, the lack of a refresh and stop button is just annoying, but they're easy to add back. I like having a user interface, so yeah, that.

Noscript and Adblock plus work. I recommend the "status-4-evar" addon to get the status bar back.

Overall, I haven't noticed the slowdown or memory consumption. Of course, everyone's mileage will vary.

One new feature, at least new for me, is that you have FF restore all your tabs after you close your browser, but when you start back up, the tabs won't load unless you click on them. I really like this feature. Back in 3.6, it could take a really long time to restore a browsing session.

Overall though, the shock of switching isn't as bad as you think.

I think I should probably end this post with instructions on doing a side-by-side install. Before installing anything, make a copy of your firefox profile. Then edit the 'profiles.ini' to reflect this, it's up a folder or two from the profiles. In the profiles.ini, make a new name, something like myff10stuff for your profile. Then, get the ESR build and install to a different folder, but do not start FF at the end of the install. Edit the existing FF shortcut or make your own, but put -P on the end. it should read something like
"C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox 10\firefox.exe" -P myff10stuff
All that is because the profile manager doesn't let you copy an existing profile. You can delete, rename, or create a new one, but you can't copy. You'll probably want to do the same thing to the 3.6 copy and use the 3.6 profile.

I'm in the same boat, I just (two weeks ago) switched from 3.6 to 10. I still have 3.6 installed just in case, but so far I'm adjusting.

In order to have some stability though, try the ESR version, it's what I'm using. http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/all.html And if you want to read the FAQ, go with http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/faq/

So far, there are a few hiccups. There were a few add-ons that didn't make the switch, but they were rarely used, so I haven't noticed their absence yet. The tab size is annoying and I haven't figured out how to fix that yet. The old about:config fix doesn't work, and the userchrome.css fix just screws things up more.

I did need to readjust the default layout, the lack of a refresh and stop button is just annoying, but they're easy to add back. I like having a user interface, so yeah, that.

Noscript and Adblock plus work. I recommend the "status-4-evar" addon to get the status bar back.

Overall, I haven't noticed the slowdown or memory consumption. Of course, everyone's mileage will vary.

One new feature, at least new for me, is that you have FF restore all your tabs after you close your browser, but when you start back up, the tabs won't load unless you click on them. I really like this feature. Back in 3.6, it could take a really long time to restore a browsing session.

Overall though, the shock of switching isn't as bad as you think.

I think I should probably end this post with instructions on doing a side-by-side install. Before installing anything, make a copy of your firefox profile. Then edit the 'profiles.ini' to reflect this, it's up a folder or two from the profiles. In the profiles.ini, make a new name, something like myff10stuff for your profile. Then, get the ESR build and install to a different folder, but do not start FF at the end of the install. Edit the existing FF shortcut or make your own, but put -P on the end. it should read something like
"C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox 10\firefox.exe" -P myff10stuff
All that is because the profile manager doesn't let you copy an existing profile. You can delete, rename, or create a new one, but you can't copy. You'll probably want to do the same thing to the 3.6 copy and use the 3.6 profile.

Here you go, now you'll be able to start using all the proper diagnosis tools like about:memory?verbose
Don't forget to follow the Memshrink and Snappy progress.

oh yea, with a little configuration and the status-4-evar add-on you can make it look and act just like the old firefox

give up the F.U.D. and enjoy the FUN!

If you can't stand the constant updates you can always get the ESR (extended support release). If you have javascript enabled then upgrading is absolutely worth it. Firefox 10 also has add-ons set to compatible by default so your add-ons should work unless the developer has opted out, or the add-on uses binary components. Memory usage has also improved leaps and bounds since 4.0 - I dare say it is better then 3.6 since I can now leave it running overnight with no adverse effects when I go back to it

Cool - mod parent "+1 Useful" :-) r.e. Tree Style Tab

Reading Microsoft manuals in their outdated help app is a pain.

Behold, a Firefox extension for reading CHM files. :)

The problem with hypertext manuals IMHO stems from viewing them with what's effectively a single-threaded reader. I run Firefox with the Tree Style Tab extension, which organizes my tabs much like early threaded newsgroup readers a couple decades ago. This is perfect for reading HTML manuals. If I want to delve more deeply into a links on a page, they open up in new tabs all sorted by hierarchy. Reading hyperthreaded Linux manuals in Firefox is a joy. Reading Microsoft manuals in their outdated help app is a pain.

Dude, you need grouped, colored tabs on the side instead of the top. Like the parent, I always have 20+ tabs open, often peaking at 80+ when doing research. (E.g. open children from a search - those tabs now in a collapsible group. repeat.) And yes, I ctrl+tab a lot for switching back and forth between a small subset of tabs.

Use this for 3.6.x : https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/tab-kit/
This for 4.x+ : https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/tabkit-2nd-edition/ (not nearly as feature complete)

[FF10 startup] takes so long that I have time to grab a coffee

I'm sorry if you have that slow of a work desktop. Every advanced user needs at least 2 monitors and a decent box, if they want to be productive on the computer.

My current instance of 3.6 has been running for about 2 weeks. Using 500G resident, while the plugin-container is using 900M resident. I restart FF every few weeks to wipe flash cookies and reduce memory.

Dude, you need grouped, colored tabs on the side instead of the top. Like the parent, I always have 20+ tabs open, often peaking at 80+ when doing research. (E.g. open children from a search - those tabs now in a collapsible group. repeat.) And yes, I ctrl+tab a lot for switching back and forth between a small subset of tabs.

Use this for 3.6.x : https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/tab-kit/
This for 4.x+ : https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/tabkit-2nd-edition/ (not nearly as feature complete)

[FF10 startup] takes so long that I have time to grab a coffee

I'm sorry if you have that slow of a work desktop. Every advanced user needs at least 2 monitors and a decent box, if they want to be productive on the computer.

My current instance of 3.6 has been running for about 2 weeks. Using 500G resident, while the plugin-container is using 900M resident. I restart FF every few weeks to wipe flash cookies and reduce memory.

Device APIs are a key part of the B2G effort. Mozilla is making those APIs and getting them standardized.

Device APIs are a key part of the B2G effort. Mozilla is making those APIs and getting them standardized.

If an application's manifest file is removed from the server, the browser removes all application caches that use that manifest, and sends an "obsoleted" event to the applicationCache object. This sets the application cache's state to OBSOLETE.

Where COM fails is DCOM.

Loading in process has been pretty good in my opinion.

These people seem to agree:

https://developer.mozilla.org/en/XPCOM
https://developer.apple.com/library/mac/#documentation/CoreFoundation/Conceptual/CFPlugIns/Concepts/com.html%23//apple_ref/doc/uid/20001158-CJBEJBHH

I don't trust you. I'd rather trust ghostery.

Also... Hey apk: this is your hour to shine! Tell 'em 'bout host files!

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/trackmenot/

I would also suggest setting your browser to delete all cookies when closing. By installing Cookie Monster for Firefox you can selectively allow some sites to set permanent cookies, that persist over browser sessions (e.g. your Slashdot login).

There is nothing stopping Mozilla from implementing this API. And that's probably what's going to happen. I'd be surprised if there isn't already a team working on it.

Not yet.

On the other hand, given the huge add-on ecosystem around Firefox, a community add-on which adds pepper support to Firefox anytime soon wouldn't surprise me at all. I don't know though if add-ons have access to enough low-level stuff to be able to provide a propper Pepper support.

You're otherwise correct, but the /. summary ends with:

And it appears that Mozilla won't be implementing Pepper anytime soon.

The linked page crudely says "Mozilla is not interested in or working on Pepper at this time." Ah well.

Mozilla/Other browsers?
----> https://wiki.mozilla.org/NPAPI:Pepper

Mozilla is not interested in or working on Pepper at this time. See the Chrome Pepper pages.

Verdict: Google did it.

They've killed Kenny! Bastards!