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Test out easier syncing and new customizations in the latest Firefox beta
If you've been frustrated with Firefox Sync, this is for you: a new beta release of Mozilla's browser looks to simplify the process of saving settings across multiple devices. Expect an easier-to-navigate setup menu, with fewer steps to create an account. Improving your experience across difference devices is probably the most important feature in Mozilla's latest beta, but a new customization mode is helpful, too. Accessible from the new Menu panel, this mode lets you drag and drop your preferred features, add-ons and tools anywhere in the browser. From the menu, you can also access tools such as copy/paste, print, save and more -- and you'll be able to add Firefox add-ons to the menu area as soon as you download them. Test out the beta for Android, Linux, Mac and Windows via the download link below.
Firefox Beta brings new 'Home' design to Android, desktop version gains Firefox OS app manager
Early adopters know that Firefox likes to put new features through the paces via beta versions of its browser. Accordingly, Firefox today announced some fresh goodies for both mobile and desktop. On the Android side of things, the app has been redesigned with a panel-based layout called "Home," which lets users have easy access to stuff such as browsing history, bookmarks, favorite sites and Reading List. There are also search improvements in tow, including being able to select Bing or Yahoo as the default engine -- the only caveat is that this particular tidbit is limited to folks in the US, Canada and France, at least for the time being. Meanwhile, Firefox Beta added "Click to Play Plugins" on Linux, Mac and Windows, meaning that "most" plugins (Flash is an exception) will no longer be activated on their own. Firefox says providing the option to choose the ones you would like to enable was key, as outdated plugins are a big source of security vulnerabilities. Rounding things up on the desktop is the Firefox OS app manager, a novel tool for developers to test and tinker with those HMTL5 apps straight from the Firefox browser. All that sound good? Then follow the source links below, where you'll find a way to download each variant of the experimental application.
Firefox begins testing Social API with Facebook Messenger, here's how you can take part
You live a fast-paced life, and you don't have time to stop your high-speed internet surfing just to check up on Suzie's latest Facebook update. Mozilla understands your plight, digital denizen, and its "Social API" is here to help -- Firefox browser users can beta test Facebook's Messenger functionality right this minute, should they be able to pause for long enough to get it set up. Thankfully, that setup isn't too strenuous, requiring little more than the latest beta version of the Firefox browser and an opt-in to the Social API program (via Facebook). Mozilla's promising more social service integration as the beta rolls on ("soon"), but for now you can more readily stay in touch with Suzie at least, right?
Firefox 15 beta boasts support for Opus audio format, reduces add-on memory leaks
Can't bear to part with your favorite browser extensions, but can't stand to see them devour your system memory? Maybe you should check out Firefox 15. According to Mozilla's Hacks blog, the browser's latest beta should patch up the majority of memory leaks gushing from Firefox add-ons. Also new, is the beta's support for Opus, a free audio format partially supported by Mozilla. The firm hopes competing browsers will pick up the format as well, calling it "as good or better than basically all existing lossy codecs." The blog makes quite a case for the format, citing tests and bitrate information, going as far as giving instructions on embedding Opus players in web pages. Check out the codec of tomorrow for yourself at the source links below.
Firefox 5 for Android adds CSS animation, support for Do Not Track browsing
The Firefox team is moving as quick as a...well, you get the idea. Nearly two months after releasing its latest browser to the masses, the folks at Mozilla have unleashed Firefox 5 for Android as a beta for willing souls who happen upon it in the Market. The latest rendition will hook you up with support for CSS animations, improved canvas and JavaScript performance, and lower memory usage. You're also going to find Do Not Track included for the first time, which is a privacy setting that prevents other sites from following you around. Otherwise, for a major release, there isn't a ton of meat -- then again, Mozilla's switched things up a bit by popping out updates on a more frequent basis, making few changes to each one, so anyone feeling a bit underwhelmed should know that the team's already hard at work on Firefox 6. Head down to the source links to download the beta and learn what's new.
Firefox 4 beta 5 for mobile released, available on Android, N900, your computer
Tired of using the default browser on your smart phone to browse Engadget? Got a thing for Firefox? Great, 'cause Mozilla just pushed out the fifth beta of Firefox 4 for mobile. You might be familiar with the on-the-go version of Mozilla's creation, but if not, here's your chance to grab the latest (and probably) the most stable build to date. In addition to the Android and Maemo version, the company has released a Fennec build for use on Windows, OS X and Linux. We tinkered with the OS X build of the browser on our Macbook Pro and although pages appear to render quickly, we can't quite figure out how to navigate backwards. You can pinch-to-zoom with the trackpad and scroll with the d-pad, but once you've loaded a page, it seems you need to be on a mobile device do any further navigation. Of course, as you'll see in the gallery below, the beta comes packed with the usual -- preferences, downloads, add-ons, bookmarks and Firefox Sync. If you want to give the software a whirl, hit the source link to grab the build of your choice.%Gallery-117565%
Firefox 1.1 beta for Maemo goes live
The N900 already features one of the best pocket browsing experiences we've ever seen, but it looks to be getting a whole lot better today with the beta release of Firefox 1.1. Major new features include portrait browsing (awesome), form auto-complete, a context menu, volume key zoom, and -- this is pretty neat -- the capability to save pages straight to PDF, so it seems like the kind of thing you'll definitely want to download, even if it's not quite solid enough to earn gold build status. Oh, and if you don't have an N810 or N900 handy and you're amped to play around, you can download the little guy for Windows, Mac OS, or Linux, too.
Feeling lucky? Firefox 3 beta 1 now downloadable
Running beta versions of your primary browser is a little like converting your car to run on cooking oil biodiesel. It's probably going to work OK, but be prepared for a few surprises along the journey. If you're ready for the social, swing by the Mozillaplex and download your copy of Firefox 3.0 beta 1, but note the warning: "We do not recommend that anyone other than developers and testers download the Firefox 3 Beta 1 milestone release." Gotcha.The beta DMG clocks in at 17 MB and new features/improvements include (quoting): Improved security features such as: better presentation of website identity and security, malware protection, stricter SSL error pages, anti-virus integration in the download manager, and version checking for insecure plugins. Improved ease of use through: better password management, easier add-on installation, new download manager with resumable downloading, full page zoom, animated tab strip, and better integration with Windows Vista and Mac OS X. Richer personalization through: one-click bookmarking, smart search bookmark folders, direct typing in location bar searches your history and bookmarks for URLs and page titles, ability to register web applications as protocol handlers, and better customization of download actions for file types. Improved platform features such as: new graphics and font rendering architecture, major changes to the HTML rendering engine to provide better CSS, float-, and table layout support, native web page form controls, colour profile management, and offline application support. Performance improvements such as: better data reliability for user profiles, architectural improvements to speed up page rendering, over 300 memory leak fixes, and a new XPCOM cycle collector to reduce entire classes of leaks. Check out the release notes for more details. Note that Techcrunch's Duncan Riley is not impressed with FF3's memory usage profile (thanks Nik).via Truemors
