Firefox 4 Windows mockup provides 5 UI hints of things to come

Want a hint as to where Firefox will go next? As a product visual designer at Mozilla, Stephen Horlander is the kind of guy who can make things happen -- so when he shares updates and mockups on Firefox 4's user interface, we tend to pay attention. He outlines five portions of a screenshot teaser that'll get a much cleaner, more streamlined facelift. Our favorite takeaway is the singular app button for menu navigation. Several variations are shown, but if you ask us, we're currently fond of the setup above. As Horlander notes, the design's in constant flux, but what we're seeing is certainly promising.

[WhiteShadow Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:13AM]

Chrome KIRF :P

[Arkv2 Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:38AM]

@WhiteShadow
They didn't even try to hide it; almost as shameless as the Kindle KIRF

[blland Posted Dec 23rd 2009 2:07AM]

@WhiteShadow look at the opera 10.5 pre-alpha. It looks as if every single company is on a race to be chrome...

[brrip Posted Dec 23rd 2009 2:17AM]

wow, this feels like we're talking about the iphone all over again

[yyandrew Posted Dec 23rd 2009 2:26AM]

@WhiteShadow was going to mention something about Chrome ...glad you did first :P

[shockr Posted Dec 23rd 2009 2:39AM]

@WhiteShadow Yeah, my first thought.

If they're gonna copy the Chrome UI, they should at least get the title bar right. I still hate having to mouse over tabs to see the full title (as per text in the TITLE tag) of a web page when I have my browser open.

[fatbencher Posted Dec 23rd 2009 3:36AM]

@WhiteShadow
Better a good KIRF than a bad invention. Actually FF's piss-poor, screen hogging UI is the reason I uninstalled it yesterday morning. If this UI becomes reality then I will certainly try it out again.

Provided of course that the engine itself is sped up, because that was another reason to ditch it.

[justinisyoung Posted Dec 23rd 2009 3:47AM]

@WhiteShadow
google chrome?
seems more like Opera to me...

[oswa Posted Dec 23rd 2009 3:55AM]

@WhiteShadow I can't call this KIRF because the day chrome out google announced "we took the best features from the browsers and we hope they took ours as well".

[sunnysuffy Posted Dec 23rd 2009 4:11AM]

@WhiteShadow FireFox Amazing New Site:
http://www.theallybox.com

[poached Posted Dec 23rd 2009 4:48AM]

@fatbencher you should check out littlefox

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/307

it's a really really minimal theme for FF. It was a big bummer for a while when the author didn't update it for FF3 but now it's fully compatible with FF 3+. I use it along with small icons and I am very happy.

[joshl Posted Dec 23rd 2009 6:50AM]

@blland True. Look at this:

http://labs.opera.com/news/2009/12/22/win7_new_addressbar.jpg

[Serryl Posted Dec 23rd 2009 7:11AM]

@fatbencher
The beauty of Firefox is in the ability for a user to heavily customize it's appearance. Chrome allows for "themes," but Firefox can be configured to look how you want. Yes, the default UI takes up too much space, but look at the UI when you have a couple extensions.

http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/8174/firefoxscreencap.jpg

You'll notice that most of what appears by default is hidden. That's how I like to browse, but Google Chrome isn't flexible enough to let me have it my way.

[C4rlos Posted Dec 23rd 2009 11:29AM]

@WhiteShadow

Google copied MS IE7/8 features too.
address highligth, no menu bar, back and forward buttons only on left. Those features were highly questioned when MS did it for IE7 in 2007 now google adds tab on top and every body likes it.

FF is my favorite browser but if google copies other browsers features including browsing the web is ok for the other to take something back from google.

[fatbencher Posted Dec 24th 2009 9:57AM]

@poached
Thanks for the heads-up, I'll give it a go this weekend!

[THizzle7XU Posted Dec 24th 2009 1:23PM]

@Arkv2

You realize that Chrome is built on the Firefox engine. Google copied Firefox first, and it's all a moot point anyways given that it's open source. This is one case where "share the wealth" actually works.

[Flix C Posted Dec 24th 2009 2:16PM]

@WhiteShadow
OPENSOURCE BABY !
I quote google : "We took the best of the other browsers and we expect them to do as well".

Plus what's chromesque ? I mean : tabs ? WoW that's new !

[bdav Posted Dec 24th 2009 6:49PM]

@THizzle7XU Pretty sure Chrome is WebKit not Mozilla....;

[superstar Posted Dec 24th 2009 9:11PM]

@fatbencher I have several firefox add-ons that make the UI much more compact. Personal Menu which allows you to hide the menu bar in favor of a single customizable menu, Omnibar integrates the search box and URL box, and Fission integrates the progress bar into the URL bar. Also I use All Glass Firefox to make it fit in with Aero.

[DKyleF Posted Dec 24th 2009 10:33PM]

@Serryl If you press F11 in Chrome, it goes into full screen mode, hiding everything, including the title bar. Just an FYI.

[Serryl Posted Dec 25th 2009 2:57AM]

@DKyleF

Yeah, I'm aware of fullscreen mode, but I find it less flexible than having the browser open in a window. Sometimes I have to have the browser open in a small window due to other work and I just want to maximize that space that's available.

[santaklause Posted Dec 25th 2009 3:53PM]

@brrip One of the features clamored by the netizens is having the new firefox cope up with the speed offered by the google chrome. Hopefully, the firefox geeks have a remedy for that. What to expect the Firefox? http://bit.ly/firefox-4-point-0-best-worst

[pankomputerek Posted Jan 4th 2010 1:13PM]

@WhiteShadow Chrome is open source so you can do what you want with it. They could edit it and rename HOWEVER they would need to keep it open source.

[va jj Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:15AM]

looks like ie8 and firefox collided.

[hoyoli Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:15AM]

*cough* google chrome *cough*

[biggben Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:19AM]

@hoyoli Too funny! I couldn't agree more.

[joeskooo Posted Dec 23rd 2009 9:37AM]

@hoyoli

Totally. Except it fails to copy one of the most useful things about Google Chrome. The amazing feature that is the address bar is also the search bar. Something so simple, yet so perfectly efficient. I can't imagine using any other browser until they convert to that design.

[celebbbb Posted Dec 23rd 2009 10:41AM]

@joeskooo
Actually, that's how its always been with Firefox, seeing as how the address bar is a big "I'm feeling lucky!" search bar (Google) as well, the Google bar on the right is a normal Google search bar.
You can also use a plug in to get the same effect.

The advantage to Chrome is its weight.

[C4rlos Posted Dec 23rd 2009 11:30AM]

@hoyoli

Its called competition.

Google copied MS IE7/8 features too.
address highligth, no menu bar, back and forward buttons only on left. Those features were highly questioned when MS did it for IE7 in 2007 now google adds tab on top and every body likes it.

FF is my favorite browser but if google copies other browsers features including browsing the web is ok for the other to take something back from google.

[pk Posted Dec 24th 2009 12:24PM]

@joeskooo

Firefox's Awesomebar >>>>>>>>>>> Chrome's Omnibar

Omnibar puts too much emphasis on search (suggestions, etc). Also, I just use the search engine keyword feature thing on the awesomebar. So fucking awesome. (Removes the need of the search bar entirely and is much quicker) You should try it.

[iFargle Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:15AM]

Looks nice... Too bad you can already get transparency like IE or Chrome through FF3 right now, lol

[Wwhat Posted Dec 23rd 2009 10:25AM]

@iFargle
Nany FF updates are basically them taking some addons and integrating them so they become universal.

[Wwhat Posted Dec 23rd 2009 10:26AM]

Many*

[duntuk Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:16AM]

yeah... i remember seeing something like this a couple of years ago...

Looks good, but hope it's not another concept that won't see the light of day.

[Shady Gambino Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:21AM]

Yeah, looks like it's trying to be like Chrome.

[Zinger314 Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:25AM]

If you like the mockups, I strongly recommend you try the Strata40 theme, as it's a very, very good implementation of the 4.0 theme.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/14284

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 23rd 2009 6:24AM]

@Zinger314 wow, that's really nice. i'll give it a try! thx

[byran Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:27AM]

Yeah, the consensus seems to be that most like the singular app button for navigation—it makes the window seem less aggravated and busy... like the way browsers show up on my Mac. Just sayin'.

[exotuner Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:28AM]

First safari 4 copied chrome, then opera 10.5 and now firefox 4?
looks like ie will follow

[Vendettx Posted Dec 23rd 2009 4:48AM]

@exotuner agree

[aubreyq Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:34AM]

Looks like Mr. Horlander's blog has just been "Engadgeted." I can't access it.

[njsrikar Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:52AM]

@aubreyq e'ggad'ly!

[iPaul Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:38AM]

please FIREFOX OS!!!!

[IvanP91 Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:41AM]

@(Unverified) No Need. Firefox is an Open-Source browser.

Want an open-source (FOSS) OS that has FF.

ubuntu http://www.ubuntu.com/

I personally stick with Windows, because I find Linux to be not-so-user-friendly. But if there is one that comes extremely close its Ubuntu.

[B3astofthe3ast Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:43AM]

FF, your not going convert me from chrome just by looking a little more like it.

[Alexicov Posted Dec 23rd 2009 2:53AM]

@B3astofthe3ast

Can opera convert you from chrome by being faster than it?

[fatbencher Posted Dec 23rd 2009 3:40AM]

@Alexicov
I always wonder when I hear this. On both my systems (full corporate desktop and netbook with new SSD and 2 GB RAM) Opera is slow. Much slower than Chrome and nearly as slow as FF 3.5. Is Opera only faster on very new hardware?

[Alexicov Posted Dec 23rd 2009 6:56AM]

@fatbencher

Oh I'm talking the 10.5 alpha.
10.1 isn't chrome material, but to be honest to me all major browsers seem equally fast, until you actually run benchmarks and see the different numbers. the new alpha actually beats chrome at sunspider though. Of course that's just a benchmark, but even so it's likely to heat up the competition either way

[tamosius Posted Dec 23rd 2009 11:38PM]

@B3astofthe3ast true.. I stopped using Firefox and made Chrome as my default browser because I couldn't stand anymore how slow firefox is on my all machines I use. Chrome though appears almost right away after being launched, while it took 60secs for firefox to finally appear on my screen.

[Quikboy Posted Dec 23rd 2009 1:44AM]

Don't like how the 'back' and 'forward' buttons aren't consistent.