02/13, 4:25pm
Mozilla Firefox with Metro support due in 2012
Mozilla, makers of the Firefox Internet browser, will release a version of its signature software that will resemble Microsoft's Metro user interface. A concept version will be out sometime in the spring, according to Mozilla's 2012 strategy, followed by an alpha and beta version later on, in the second half of the year. Metro uses tiles instead of the traditional Start button and menu in Windows, and Mozilla hopes to integrate its new Gecko-based browser with the Metro environment.
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02/01, 6:20pm
As expected, doesn't support flash
Mozilla has released the latest mobile version of its browser for Android devices. Firefox 10 is now available for download (free, Android Market). As expected, the new version offers enhanced HTML5 support, but doesn't support Flash.
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02/01, 9:35am
NetApplications shows gap in mobile share
Android tablets are gaining share of Internet use, but they still present no competition to the iPad online, NetApplications uncovered with its January wrap-up. The combined Samsung Galaxy Tab line had just 0.42 percent of mobile Internet share, while the Kindle Fire's possibly brisk sales still saw just 0.34 percent. Although down from December, the iPad at almost 24 percent was still in no danger from Android tablets, where even Android 3.2 was at 0.77 percent.
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01/31, 10:40am
Firefox 10 with minor updates now available
Mozilla has released finished versions of Firefox 10 for both Windows PCs and Macs this week. Changes, according to the release notes, include a Forward navigation button that doesn't show up until users hit the Back button first, included APIs for viewing web apps in full-screen mode, and anti-aliasing for WebGL graphics. Likewise new is an Extended Support Release that allows enterprises to only download security updates and stay on the same version for seven releases.
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01/28, 1:30pm
Firefox 12 nightly builds show redesign
Versions of the upcoming Firefox 12 in the nightly build phase have shown major changes coming to its interface. New tabs can now open to a hybrid portal page that mixes in features seen in Chrome and Safari. Along with seeing the most frequently visited sites and a search bar, it now has top web apps, the most recently shared apps, and a Google Talk status section to launch directly into chat.
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01/06, 5:35pm
Safari edges out Chrome, Firefox likewise on Win
The team at Tom’s Hardware have run their latest head-to-head test of web browsers. All the leading browsers for the Mac and PC platforms were tested and included Opera, Firefox, Safari, IE 9 and Chrome. Coming out on top for the Mac platform was Apple’s own Safari browser, while Mozilla’s Firefox is currently the fastest browser available on the Windows platform.
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01/01, 12:55pm
NetApplications shows Android loss in December
In spite of its device share, Android is losing ground in terms of actual use online, NetApplications found on New Year's Day. Android slipped to 16.3 percent of mobile web share in December, or the same share it had in September. Unusually, most of the loss came to otherwise shrinking platforms: Java ME bounced back to get just under 21.3 percent, Symbian returned to 5.8 percent, and even the BlackBerry recovered slightly to 3.5 percent.
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12/22, 4:25pm
Google to pay $300m per year in Mozilla deal
When Google and Mozilla renewed their search royalty deal earlier this week, they didn't reveal that Google will pay $300 million per year, AllThingsD learned. For this amount of money, Google will be the default search engine in Mozilla's Firefox browser. The numbers are a sharp increase from the previous arrangement because of the new competition from Yahoo and Microsoft.
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12/21, 10:25pm
Release follows Firefox 9 desktop editions
Just days after Firefox 9 arrived for Mac, Windows and Linux, Mozilla has released the equivalent edition for Android devices. The revamped browser brings significant changes to the user interface for tablets, placing each tab as a thumbnail on the left edge of the screen while the open window is still displayed in full on the right.
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12/20, 2:55pm
Google funds Mozilla with three-year ad deal
Google kept Firefox active after Mozilla said that it was renewing a deal to make Google the default search in Firefox. A "significant and mutually beneficial" deal will keep Google as the default for a minimum of three years. Neither side would reveal what the terms of the deal were.
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12/19, 8:05pm
Type inference brings faster JavaScript
Mozilla has posted the final version of Firefox 9 for Windows, Mac and Linux machines, following five weeks of testing in the beta channel. As expected, the release brings type-inference support that is said to significantly improve JavaScript load time for complex pages, along with expanded support for HTML5 and CSS standards.
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12/06, 4:40pm
Current topics from the forums
Today in Macnn forums one concerned member is having an issue with dragging and dropping images from Firefox to Finder, and is looking for help to find a solution. Another member recently contributed to a long standing forum regarding spilling liquid on Mac Notebooks, and is not sure what to do with the newly damaged computer, click here to read more.
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11/15, 5:30pm
Foursquare tackles iPad with location-aware page
Foursquare picked Tuesday to show a heavily redesigned version of its main website. The page depends on HTML5 and uses it for a fully location-aware map; users can browse nearby areas without having to search for them or use their phones. The interface is also suited to the iPad, although users can't yet check in.
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11/11, 7:45pm
Firefox 9 beta reaches desktop and Android
Mozilla quickly followed on a completed Firefox 8 by posting Firefox 9 in the beta channel for both the desktop and Android. On the desktop, the interface is now designed to blend in with Mac OS X Lion and properly supports two-finger scrolling as well as multiple displays. Speed is also a focus through a faster, inference-supporting JavaScript engine and the ability to break XML web requests into pieces to make a complex web page load faster.
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11/08, 5:00pm
Mozilla outs Firefox 8, updates Android browser
Mozilla on Tuesday revealed two newly updated browsers, the final version of Firefox 8 for Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems, along with an update for Android devices (free, Android Market). Either update is said to make web browsing easier and give developers greater control of customizing the way they interact with the Internet. Firefox 8 for desktops now includes Twitter as a search option.
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11/08, 12:05pm
Kindle Cloud Reader now supports Firefox browser
The HTML5-based web app that is Amazon's Kindle Cloud Reader is now available for Mozilla's Firefox browser. The web app lets users access their Kindle e-books , adding to the already avaialable Chrome and Safari versions. It can now be viewed for all of these supporting browsers, as well as Safari for the iPad.
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11/01, 6:40am
Safari wins mobile browser battle, IE top in PCs
The latest data on mobile and desktop browser use is in and its shows that Apple has extended its lead as the dominant mobile web browsing platform. Safari usage rates increased from 55.6 percent of all mobile web traffic in September to a new high of 62.2 percent in October. Google’s mobile browser leap frogged Opera Mini by taking 18.7 percent of web traffic, while Opera Mini dipped from 18.9 percent to 13.1 percent.
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10/26, 4:30pm
Mozilla intros Bing add-on for Firefox browser
Mozilla has taken its relationship with Microsoft and its Bing search engine up to another level. It is now offering to add Bing to its Firefox browser, with the add-on setting the Microsoft search engine as the default and Bing as the homepage. The add-on for the latest version of Firefox also includes the Awesome Bar, Mozilla's hybrid search and address bar. Older versions of Firefox need to be upgraded, and doing so includes the switchover to Bing as the default search engine.
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10/13, 1:10pm
Beta now available to Chrome and Firefox browsers
Google has incorporated WebGL into Google Maps. The improved app,
Google MapsGL, leverages computer-based hardware 3D graphic acceleration to provide richer visuals and animations. The functionality, availabile as a beta, initially will be supported on Chrome 14+ or Firefox Beta.
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10/10, 7:45pm
Initial release snubs IE compatibility
Google is previewing Dart, a new programming language for building web apps. The language has been designed to be flexible, meeting the needs of a one-person project, without much structure, and scaling up to a large-scale project needing formal types in the code. Initially the code will support at least Chrome, Safari 5, and Firefox 4 browsers, but not Internet Explorer.
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09/27, 12:30pm
Mozilla posts Firefox 7 final to FTP
Mozilla on Tuesday posted the finished versions of Firefox 7 (Linux, Mac OS X, Windows). The new release is still part of Mozilla's fast track schedule and focuses most on running faster and more efficiently than before. Version 7 uses 20 to 50 percent less memory and also now cuts back on memory leaks and waste from Javascript.
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09/07, 9:10am
Motorola Droid Bionic ships September 8 for 299
Nine months after a first showing at CES, Motorola and Verizon confirmed the long-delayed Droid Bionic. The Android 2.3 phone is Verizon's first dual-core phone with LTE-based 4G and is potentially one of the fastest phones on the web. The 1GHz TI OMAP 4430 is fast enough to both record and play 1080p video, including over HDMI out.
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08/30, 12:30pm
Firefox for Android tablets gets side tabs, more
Mozilla's Ian Barlow gave a preview of a long sought after tablet-native version of Firefox for Android. The new version is native to Android 3 and takes advantage of the widescreen OS to change the interface depending on the layout. In portrait, it turns the browser tabs into a menu; in landscape, they unfold in a side strip with visual thumbnails of each page.
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08/30, 9:40am
Dolphin Browser ported to iPhone
One of Android's better-known apps, Dolphin Browser, has been given a long-requested port to the iPhone (free, App Store). The iOS version of MoboTap's software uses Apple's WebKit engine but brings features that have yet to reach Safari. It already has tabbed browsing ahead of iOS 5, a Firefox-style address bar with search results, and gesture-based shortcuts for common tasks.
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08/19, 3:00pm
Mozilla outs Firefox 7 beta for desktops, Android
Mozilla this week released the latest Firefox 7 beta build for Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems. The browser is said to be faster and thus better suited for developers when making Web apps and websites. Memory use has been optimized for better responsiveness, startup and page load time.
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08/13, 2:45pm
Firefox 6 finished, ready to download
Mozilla has preempted its own official launch with finished versions of Firefox 6 on its FTP server (Linux, Mac OS X, released on Tuesday but, as is becoming the case in Firefox releases, is already online to help coordinate the release. The interval between the FTP posting and the public debut may be to catch any last-minute bugs.
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08/12, 7:00pm
Firefox 6 now highlights domain URL name
Mozilla’s Firefox 6 web browser is set to be released on Tuesday. Notes posted on its website show that the release is 'on track with a few bugs still remaining. No concerns for Tuesday." One notable change, in addition to speed and stability improvements, is that the domain name is now highlighted in the address bar. This has been added to help users ensure that they have surfed to the official domain.
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08/10, 8:40am
Kindle Cloud Reader carries offline support
Amazon has quietly provided an end-run around Apple's App Store rules. Kindle Cloud Reader brings a touch-friendly reading app that provides all the settings, highlights, bookmarks and other features of native apps in a device-independent form. The page takes advantage of HTML5 to work entirely offline and thus can keep going even during a flight or another moment where no Internet connection exists.
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08/04, 8:00pm
Google adds Web Intents with Mozilla's help
Google and Mozilla have teamed together on a proposed API to bring an aspect of Android to web apps. Web Intents, like those on the phone, would let a web app signal what it wants to do on a basic level, such as editing or sharing content, and link it to any relevant service without having to either create the service or implement the hooks on a case by case basis. Web apps would just need a handful of code to achieve much more complicated tasks that could pass between sites.
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08/01, 11:45am
Net Applications shows Mac at new high
Apple hit new highs for market share of the web in July, Net Applications found on Monday. The Mac saw a sharp uptick and hit 5.59 percent of OS traffic online. iOS saw its own boost and reached 2.98 percent, almost triple what it had a year ago.
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07/29, 12:30pm
12 groups tell MPEG-LA Google VP8 copies tech
The MPEG-LA video group's attempts to find patent violations in WebM proved successful as the company late Thursday claimed that 12 companies and organizations had their technology infringed. The so far unnamed dozen said the VP8 video codec underlying Google's format copied technology used in H.264, the standard MPEG-LA supports. The collective was considering forming a patent pool to demand licenses, and MPEG-LA was "facilitating that discussion," CNET was told.
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06/30, 1:25pm
Non-Apple browsers being blocked
The web versions of Apple's WWDC 2011 session videos are being blocked for browsers outside of Safari, according to complaints. Both the stable and Canary versions of Chrome, for instance, are unable to access the videos. Similarly, neither Firefox nor Opera will work, regardless of whether the browsers are running on a Mac or Windows system.
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06/28, 6:50pm
New multi-platform mail client posted by Mozilla
Mozilla has put the final release of Thunderbird 5.0, its email client software, up on its servers for downloading. 5.0 represents the app's first major release in about 18 months. The free app (Windows, Mac OS X, Linux) has faster startup, tabs that can be reordered and dragged to different windows, attachment sizes are displayed along with the corresponding attachments, and support for Mac 32/64 bit Universal builds. The latter means that, unlike earlier releases, Thunderbird 5.0 will not run on PowerPC-based Macs.
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06/24, 9:40pm
Opera founder exits over board dispute
Opera's creator Jon S. von Tetzchner surprised the industry on Friday with word he was leaving the company. The web browser developer is due to leave June 30 and will do so on friendly terms. He has made no public mention of why he will be leaving but currently has "ideas about new projects" that are being kept secret.
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06/22, 8:55pm
Mobile browser offers under-the-hood tweaks
Mozilla has launched an update to its mobile Firefox browser for Android-based devices. Version 5 brings a number of performance tweaks, along with the same do-not-track feature that was recently added to the desktop variant. Like the desktop feature, however, the tracking opt-out option is only supported by a limited number of websites.
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06/18, 3:00pm
Firefox 5 goes final ahead of schedule
Mozilla in a low key move has posted the finished version of Firefox 5 (direct links: Mac, Linux 32-bit, Linux 64-bit, Windows). The new version is the first of a now Chrome-like fast schedule and focuses mostly on minor improvements over Firefox 4. It now recognizes CSS transitions, has better support for HTML5 and its Canvas mode, and is tackling privacy with a more prominent Do Not Track option.
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05/26, 11:20am
YouTube now streams content to NVIDIA 3D Vision
NVIDIA has partnered with YouTube to offer streaming videos from the popular sharing service in stereoscopic 3D on computers equipped with NVIDIA's 3D Vision hardware. Users need to have the latest version of the Firefox web browser installed before they can do so, however. YouTube has added HTML5 and WebM support to the 3D videos available to make the leap possible.
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05/23, 11:05am
Company switches to accelerated development
Mozilla has posted the first official beta release of Firefox 5, its next browser upgrade. Changes from Mozilla's experimental Aurora channel were merged and tested over the weekend. The update marks a switch to an accelerated development schedule, closer to that of Google's Chrome, which has a major update every several weeks and is already in its 11th stable version and 12th beta.
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05/20, 7:10pm
Browsers seek to streamline viewing
Viewable space is always at a premium for users with smaller screened laptops or tablets. Chrome and Firefox developers have created experimental versions of these popular browsers which streamline viewing so that even the traditional navigation bar showing the URL disappears until needed. Then, either by mousing over or clicking a tab, the bar temporarily becomes visible again.
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05/10, 3:25pm
Standard blasted by security researchers
Security research firm Context has issued a report criticizing WebGL, the 3D graphics standard used in popular browsers such as Firefox, Chrome and Safari. The report points to several serious vulnerabilities that are said to leave systems open to attacks. Experimental exploits reportedly used malicious code to gain access to a computer's core operating system.
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05/01, 10:50am
NetApplications shows Mac, iOS, IE9 gains in April
Apple made one of its best strides in recent memory for market share on the web last month, NetApplications determined on Sunday. The Mac reached a new adjusted high of 5.4 percent market share, but its gains were small relative to iOS. Led mostly by the iPhone, Apple's combined mobile platform jumped 16.5 percent and staked out 2.24 percent of all web traffic.
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04/27, 2:35pm
Microsoft no longer under antitrust watch May 12
Microsoft will be out of the eye of special antitrust terms in less than a month, District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said in the last hearing ever in the case. Oversight of the company's actions, including direct access to its computers and records, would no longer be mandatory after May 12. The watch had been originally limited to five years after a 2002 settlement but had been extended multiple times after technical problems and other issues that needed to be taken care of, including some running past the deadline.
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04/25, 2:45pm
WebM Community Cross-License guards video patents
The WebM Project took a defensive measure on Monday with the creation of the WebM Community Cross-License. The approach will see 17 companies and groups give licenses to any WebM-related patents they have to other CCL members. Google, Matroska, and Xiph.org form the core but are joined by AMD, Cisco, Huawei, LG, Logitech, MIPS, Mozilla, Opera, Pantech, Quanta, Samsung, STMicro, TI, and Verisilicon.
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04/19, 6:10pm
YouTube starts streaming new videos in WebM
YouTube in an update Tuesday afternoon said it was now encoding all new videos in its in-house WebM standard. The format would let viewers using new versions of Chrome as well as Firefox and Opera see video in HTML5 using the open format. Videos would still be playable in the H.264 format and the original Flash containers.
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04/01, 9:40pm
NetApplications March share shows IE9 growing fast
Internet Explorer 9's launch was enough to see it carve out a significant piece of the Windows web in its first two weeks. New data from NetApplications for March showed IE9 getting 3.56 percent of Microsoft's web traffic. While small, it was enough to outpace Firefox 4's 2.8 percent.
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03/29, 10:30pm
Browsers compared based on power consumption
Microsoft has staked an interesting claim regarding Internet Explorer 9, essentially labeling it the greenest browser. In an IEBlog post, the company graphed results from power consumption tests using IE9, Chrome 10, Firefox 4, Opera 11 and Safari 5. The first three browsers showed close numbers on an idle system, however IE9 achieved the lowest wattage when visiting a news site and running HTML5 applications.
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03/29, 7:00pm
Now official for web, Android devices
[Update: Sony, other media companies upset by early announcement] Amazon in the night unveiled its rumored media locker and beat Apple and Google in the process. Cloud Drive gives users a way to store a minimum of 5GB of files on the web and access them from any Mac or PC. The company has a unique tie-in with Amazon MP3: any songs bought through the music store are saved to the Cloud Drive and available either for backup or for remote streaming without counting towards the quota.
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03/29, 12:20pm
Firefox 4 Mobile final hits Android
Mozilla on Tuesday posted the final version of Firefox 4 for Android (free, Market) and Nokia's Maemo. The app uses much of the desktop engine and has a JavaScript engine that promises triple the speed of Google's own stock browser. Many of the interface elements are borrowed from the desktop as well, including the Awesome Bar for hybrid search and URLs, Firefox Sync to share bookmarks with the desktop, add-ons, and tabs.
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03/23, 2:05pm
Firefox 4 Release Candidate for handhelds out
Mozilla has now released the Firefox 4 Release Candidate for portable devices running on Android or Maemo operating systems. There software is available in more than 10 languages and brings with it many improvements, most of which are mentioned in the video below.
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03/23, 9:35am
Firefox 4 nears seven million downloads in a day
Since its official release yesterday, Mozilla's Firefox 4 web browser is at nearly seven million downloads and counting, according to a live counter. This accounts for nearly two percent of the worldwide Internet browser market, said StatCounter, and handily beats out Microsoft Internet Explorer 9's 2.3 million downloads over the course of 24 hours.
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