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Firefox is about to get much, much faster
Firefox got speedy last year when its Quantum browser rolled out -- now it's set to get even faster. The latest release rolling out today prioritizes its performance management "to-do" list with a set of features that'll load pages up to 40-80 percent quicker. The browser will now suspend idle tabs, delay lesser-used scripts and skip unnecessary work during start-ups.
Mozilla explains why all Firefox add-ons broke at once
Firefox Chief Technology Officer Eric Rescorla has written a detailed blog post explaining exactly how the browser's add-ons came to break all at once last week, how it was fixed, and how the company will avoid another 'armagadd-on' in the future.
Windows 10 update pushes Microsoft closer to a password-free future
With its Windows 10 May 2019 update, Microsoft is getting one step closer to eliminating passwords. The company's Windows Hello has earned its FIDO2 certification -- an industry standard that deems Windows Hello a secure authenticator. Now, users running Windows 10 version 1903 will be able to login to devices, apps and online services using biometrics or PINs, rather than passwords.
Firefox pushes another update to fix its broken add-ons
Staff at Mozilla have issued a comprehensive fix for the Firefox browser after users endured three days without any add-ons, caused by the expiration of a signing certificate. The company has been scrambling to fix the issue since it appeared on Friday, with frustrated users turning to workarounds to try to get their adblockers, password managers and other extensions working again.
Firefox disabled all add-ons because a certificate expired (updated)
Many Firefox users around the world are browsing without their usual set of extensions after they suddenly stopped working earlier this evening. The event occurred as the clock rolled over on UTC (Coordinated Universal Time, aka GMT or Greenwich Mean Time), and impacted users quickly narrowed it down to "expiration of intermediate signing cert" -- as it's described on Mozilla's bug tracker. This same problem almost happened three years ago, but "armagadd-on" 2.0 has torn things up once again. In a statement provided to Engadget, Product Lead Kev Needham said: We're sorry that there is currently an issue where existing and new add-ons are failing to run or be installed on Firefox. We know what the issue is and are working hard to restore add-on functionality to Firefox as soon as possible. We'll continue to provide updates via our Twitter channels. Please bear with us while we get the problem fixed.
Firefox virtual reality web browser comes to SteamVR this summer
Mozilla's Firefox Reality browser has been available through a number of platform-specific VR portals, but it'll soon be available in a relatively neutral form. The developer has revealed that it's working with Valve to bring Firefox Reality to SteamVR sometime this summer. You'll install it through a new web dashboard button and browse pages in a window that floats over "any OpenVR experience." To put it another way, you could check a walkthrough for a VR-capable Steam game while you're playing it, whether you're using an HTC Vive, an Oculus Rift or Valve's own Index headset.
Firefox comes to Snapdragon-powered Windows 10 PCs
Always on, always connected PCs haven't exactly taken the world by storm yet, but app developers and software creators are steadily dialing up their support for these ultra-portable machines. Need proof? Just look at Mozilla: this morning, the company officially announced its first Firefox beta build for Snapdragon-powered Windows 10 PCs.
Firefox will soon protect you against crypto-mining scripts
At a time when every high-profile data breach sheds more light on how web activity is monitored, Firefox is launching anti-tracking tools to protect against fingerprinting and crypto-mining. Mozilla is again teaming up with Disconnect -- a software company that provides no-tracking software and whose ad tracker blocklist Firefox already utlizes for its tracking protections -- on the new tools. Both of the blocking methods are available to Firefox Nightly 68 and Beta 67 testers. Mozilla plans to enable them by default in a future release.
Google users can sign into Firefox and Edge with a security key
Until now, you've had to use Chrome to sign into your Google account with a security key. You won't have to be quite so choosy going forward, though. Google has transitioned to using the new Web Authentication standard for hardware-based sign-ins, making your key useful in Firefox, Edge and other browsers that rely on the format. That could be particularly helpful if you want to check your Gmail on an unfamiliar PC and would rather not install Chrome or punch in a password.
Firefox Lockbox provides access to your passwords on Android
Mozilla's Firefox Lockbox has been helping iOS users keep tabs on their many passwords for a while, and now it's making that tool available on Android. Like its iOS counterpart, the app helps you fetch any password you already have stored in Firefox (and thus synced across your devices). It's not a traditional manager, then -- this is more for ensuring that you can sign into a streaming service on a friend's TV.
Firefox finally takes fuller advantage of your iPad
Your choices for iPad-friendly web browsers just got ever-so-slightly larger. Mozilla has released an arguably overdue version of Firefox that aims to take better advantage of the iPad's extra screen real estate. It supports iOS' built-in split screen and support for keyboard shortcuts, as you might expect, but there are also interface tweaks specific to the tablet version. Firefox now shows all your tabs as easier-to-discern tiles, and private browsing is a single tap away on the main screen.
Firefox silences annoying auto-play videos
As promised, Mozilla is about to make web videos decidedly less annoying. Its newly released Firefox 66 blocks auto-playing videos by default, preventing web ads or video sites from startling you when you're not ready (or willing) to watch. Some sites will still play the video regardless, Mozilla said, but will stay muted until you choose otherwise.
Firefox Send's free encrypted file transfers are now available to all
Mozilla has made privacy Firefox's calling card, while lambasting companies it believes don't meet the bar on security. Its latest update to its web browser, an end-to-end encrypted file transfer service, fits the mold. Firefox Send was introduced in 2017 as part of the now-defunct Firefox Test Pilot, which allowed early adopters to try out experimental features, and is now being graduated. Those with Firefox accounts can now share files up to 2.5GB in size between browsers, while everyone else is limited to 1GB. It's also getting its very own Send Android app in beta.
The web just got an official password-free login standard
Web Authentication (aka WebAuthn) has been a de facto standard for no-password web sign-ins for a while given that many tech giants are already using it, but now it's official. The World Wide Web Consortium and the FIDO Alliance have finalized the Web Authentication format, making it the go-to option for logging into accounts with potentially greater security and convenience than typing in your credentials. If a site supports it, you can get in using biometrics (such as fingerprints or facial recognition), USB security keys, or nearby mobile devices like phones and smartwatches.
Chrome's new cache will speed up your back button
Bouncing around the internet is set to get a whole lot faster in Chrome, thanks to a new feature called bfcache -- back-forward cache. Google is currently working on a system that will store a web page as you navigate to a new page. If you go back to that page, Chrome will then bring up that page rapidly, without having to build it from scratch. The same applies if you then hit forward.
Watch Microsoft's HoloLens 2 event in 13 minutes
If you missed Microsoft's big MWC event yesterday, we've distilled all of the news down to 13-minutes to get you caught up quickly. There's plenty of HoloLens, mixed reality, Kinect and more, so here's a brief rundown of what you might've missed.
Mozilla's mixed reality Firefox browser is coming to HoloLens 2
If you want to surf the web with Microsoft's HoloLens 2, you'll be guaranteed to have a browser optimized for the immersive format -- Mozilla is partnering with Microsoft to make Firefox Reality available for the next-gen headset. While it's unclear exactly how much this will vary from the existing browser (above), the developer hopes to learn more about bringing augmented-reality material to the web. It'll build on work for existing mixed reality headsets like Magic Leap and run on Mozilla's next-generation Servo platform.
Mozilla will mute auto-playing videos in Firefox
Mozilla announced today that its Firefox web browser will start automatically blocking auto-playing video and audio later this year. The feature will appear in the release of Firefox 66 for desktop and an update to Firefox for Android, both of which are scheduled to be released on March 19th.
Mozilla says Facebook isn't transparent enough with political ads
It's not just activist groups complaining that Facebook's browser add-on policies are hurting political ad transparency. Mozilla has sent a letter to the European Commission contending that Facebook's approach is creating a "lack of transparency." The browser developer wants to launch a Firefox Election package for the EU's upcoming parliamentary elections, but Facebook's recent changes will prevent an add-on in that package from identifying ads and showing how they're targeting users. Mozilla further noted that Facebook's political ad archive toolkit is still private and limited to a "small number of privileged researchers."
Firefox offers clearer, more flexible privacy controls
Mozilla has made privacy a focus in Firefox for years, but it knows that only matters if you're actually comfortable using those privacy features. To that end, it's releasing a desktop update that's all about simplifying those controls while simultaneously offering more powerful tools. Firefox 65 includes a reworked Content Blocking section that gives you three options: Standard (blocks known trackers in private sessions), Strict (blocks those trackers in all sessions) and Custom. You can be as hands-off or specific as you like, and you don't have to compromise privacy in the process.
