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Firefox 23 Arrives With New Logo, Mixed Content Blocker, and Network Monitor
An anonymous reader writes "Mozilla today officially launched Firefox 23 for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android. Improvements include the addition of a share button, mixed content blocker, and network monitor on the desktop side (release notes). The new desktop version was available on the organization's FTP servers last night, but that was just the initial release of the installers. Firefox 23 has now officially been released over on Firefox.com and all existing users should be able to upgrade to it automatically. As always, the Android version is trickling out slowly on Google Play."
We use firefox across our work network, and for obvious reasons, the head of our company has ordered Facebook blocked. The last thing I want is everyone being ordered to use Internet Explorer as a result. Even better if we can install one that doesn't even have those functions.
In SOVIET RUSSIA... erm...NSA AMERICA, the Internet logs onto YOU!
If Facebook is blocked then users will be unable to use any Facebook integration features in Firefox... I don't see a problem here?
<blink>No!!!</blink> They removed the blink tag!
Hate to go all hipster on you guys, but here goes.
I was using Firefox before it was cool. It was called Phoenix when the project started, then later renamed to Firebird. This was circa 2002/2003.
It was a great browser: cross-platform, smaller than Mozilla, fast. Everything I wanted. I used FF for over ten years without problems. I was OK with playing whack-a-mole in the settings each new release, trying to keep my preferences for things consistent. But then the UI people showed up. At some point they completely re-arranged the user interface, breaking over a decade of my visual/muscle memory. Seriously, what the fuck guys? I guess they wanted to make it look more like Chrome. So I switched to Chrome.
The Firefox project needs to get rid of all of the people who don't code but "contribute" by fucking around with the UI. So, FF team, you can take your new logo and jam it up your ass.
The continual removal of configuration options from Firefox is not only insulting, it's pointless. I seriously doubt it reduces the amount of code for the browser by any significant amount.
The day Firefox removes the ability to set client-side font overrides is the day I switch to Chrome. Currently that is the only feature left in Firefox that keeps me using it. For me, it's an invaluable feature, and I'm really annoyed that Firefox seems to be the only browser that supports the concept. After all, the whole point of HTML was that the client is supposed to control rendering, not the server.
I do not fail; I succeed at finding out what does not work.
And it doubles down the devilry with: “Load images automatically” ... removed from preferences and reset to defaults
So they re-enable javascript and image loading on people who actively disabled them. Removing the option from preferences isn't evil but silently re-enabling them is criminal. My apologies to them if they throw up a "we would like to re-enable these features" dialog on upgrade, but it certainly doesn't sound like it.
Frankly I hope some people get their boxes owned as a result, sue mozilla and take them to the cleaners. Even some mobile users could get them for data charges incurred. If I used it, I'd have 50M daily data cap before I went into 2c/M charging on my payg sim, how many "average" tabs would I have to have open by default on launch for the JS+images to chew through my limit (remember _everything_ JS and image related would be uncached at that point)?
“Load images automatically” and Always show the tab bar” checkboxes removed from preferences and reset to defaults.
It looks like they have been afflicted with the same "our way or the highway" disease that is ruining Gnome and Windows.
Yes, there's a way to turn it off. Go to "about:config" and set "social.enabled" to False. This was previously the default.
The biggest thing here is that Firefox doesn't need FB (or any) social integration. So why add it? As an add-on, sure, go for it. But not as part of the core.
The cesspool just got a check and balance.
I just don't understand how could you not see a problem with X integration in a web browser, where X is not directly related to displaying web content.
This social media integration is not unlike bukake integration, sure some users might enjoy convenient access to their vice of choice, but it is unreasonable to assume that everyone wants to partake.
The real reason here is money. Viewing images means you see ads, enabling javascript means you see ads. Mozilla is firmly in the pay of the big web advertisers and want to make sure their buddies are not inconvenienced. As more and more users learn about ways to secure their browsers and protect against malicious advertisements Mozilla will keep removing these loopholes and advertisers will keep rewarding Mozilla with paychecks.
Why not praise them for their amazing work on...
Because a simple option to disable or hide the social integration feature should be included.
In this release, they also REMOVED the checkbox options for: ...AND those options will be reset to the defaults! (ie. if you did set them before, too bad - your settings will NOT be retained, and you'll have go dig through about:config to set them back to how you had already chosen to customize them).
* Enable javascript
* Load images automatically
* Always show the tab bar
IE. There's plenty of room for a new checkbox.
Of course, I'm 99% sure the about:config will include options to control the new social features, so GGP's point is probably moot, or at least not as big a deal, but it certainly should have some way to disable it. IMO, that should be in the easily accessible preferences, but that's being continuously gutted and dumbed down.
I don't get why the social thing isn't simply an add on. It could even be distributed with FF by default, but it makes little sense to include it as part of FF proper.