Forefox multi gestures

Developers of Firefox 3.1 Beta are exploring multi-touch gesture functions that might be used in the official release, according to Mozilla blogger Edward Lee. One Bugzilla enhancement has already been resolved which allows three-finger gestures on the MacBook Pro trackpads. Two related bugs designed for implementation on Mac OS are in the process of review and have already received patches.

The browser gestures that have been tried so far include left or right swipe for going backward or forward in history; swipe up or down to navigate instantly to the top or bottom of the page, and pinch together or apart for zoom control. Twist left or right navigates to the previous or next tab, continuing through multiple tabs until the motion is stopped, like a dial.

There is no way to know for sure if the gesture support will end up in the public release of Firefox 3.1, but the functions are progressing on the beta level. Users will need a MacBook Pro from early 2008 or the recent aluminum version, MacBook Air, or aluminum MacBook. Firefox 3.1 Beta 2 "pre" with Multi Touch Gestures - OS X is available for download from build.mozilla.org (login required).

by MacNN Staff