Firefox3
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Camino 1.6.3 released
Camino, the best Gecko-based browser NOT named Firefox 3, has just been updated to version 1.6.3. This update, which seems to have rolled in 1.6.2 along with it (at least I never got the 1.6.2 notification, and I use Camino pretty frequently), sports the latest update to the Gecko 1.8.1 branch, including several critical stability and security fixes with better ad-blocking. Plus, it no longer crashes if a pop-up is displayed while dragging a bookmark.Even though Firefox 3 is now a largely native Cocoa application, I still appreciate Camino's interface and speed. If nothing else, it's great to use as a Firefox 2/Gecko 1.8.1 testing agent when developing websites for compatibility.You can download Camino here; optimized builds aren't available as of this writing, but check this site over the next few days for updates.
Firefox 3 Download Day a huge success
The graphic above says it all -- Firefox 3 Download Day was a success, with 8,002,530 downloads in 24 hours. Amazingly, this happened despite all of the initial download glitches that happened on Download Day. The Mozilla team is reporting that 29,116,621 copies of Firefox 3 have been downloaded as of 1:13 PM ET today.If you signed up for Download Day notifications, you'll receive this email as well and you can get your own cheesy certificate, suitable for framing (or not). Since I downloaded Firefox 3, I've been enjoying some of the plugins that are now residing at the bottom of my browser (Twitterfox and the Accuweather Forecastfox plugin). Firefox 3 seems faster to me, and I like the way it displays sites that are using certificates by putting a wide, clickable banner in the address bar. What are your opinions about Firefox 3?
Take back your iWeb galleries in Firefox 3
Just as Firefox users were upgrading to version 3 last week, many people started to miss their iWeb-created galleries as they just disappeared. Well, one iWeb user has been doing extra work to fix Apple's? (erm... Mozilla's?) problem. Joshua Ochs has posted an in-depth article on his site describing exactly what is going on -- he also provides a fix in the form of a script to patch iWeb. Joshua says that the problem is neither with Apple nor Mozilla, but with a JavaScript library called "Prototype" which is used by iWeb. Right now there are two ways to fix the problem (neither of which are supported by Apple): you can use the information on Apple's Discussion Board, or you can download Joshua's script -- both seem to work and are free.[via ArsTechnica]
Optimized Firefox 3 builds available
Neil Lee has updated his optimized Firefox builds for Firefox 3. The architecture-specific versions of Firefox 2 had been dubbed BonEcho, but Firefox 3 brings a new moniker: Minefield. I'm unsure as to the intended implications of the name (it sounds like the perfect way to refer to an alpha release), but I've been running the Intel version with great results. If you were a user of BonEcho, you were used to the icon being visibly different than the standard Firefox icon. The icon for Minefield, designed by Adam Betts, is a slight variation on the standard icon and not immediately discernible as a deviation from the original. This has confused a few people, but it's definitely a less jarring transition. You still get the title "Minefield" wherever Firefox would have shown up in the interface, so you know what you're running. As far as performance, I haven't run any solid benchmarks but have noticed what seems like a significant decrease in initial load time and and improvement in general responsiveness when comparing clean installations (no addons) of Minefield to the standard Firefox 3 build. When I went to grab Minefield, I also discovered a link to the GrApple theme. It's designed to look like Safari and, being a Safari fan, I've fallen in love with it. If you're not overly attached to the default Firefox 3 look (which I didn't mind to begin with), there are great screenshots of the multiple versions available. Minefield is currently available in G5 and Intel flavors. Neil is also working on a set of instructions for building your own optimized Firefox builds at home for the DIY speed enthusiast. Clarification: As pointed out in the comments, the name "Minefield" has been used for Mozilla builds for a while. These optimized builds use the codenames so as not to infringe on any Firefox trademarks.
Firefox 3 vs. Safari 3: typography showdown
Ralf Herrmann recently took a look at the new typography features found in Firefox 3, pitting them against what's been available in Safari 3 for a while. The results show some major advances, and some major problems. The current OpenType or Apple Advanced Typography features in Firefox 3 include promising features like basic ligatures, which is exciting to those who live and breathe typography, but it fails in some non-English languages. Overall, it seems there are a lot of would-be nice new features that don't quite provide enough detail to be universally helpful. But it's a step in the right direction. Check out the post at Ralf Herrmann's Typography Weblog for a very complete overview and comparison.
MultiFireFox 2.0
Given the fact that lots of folks are downloading FireFox 3 as of late, I thought this might be a good time to highlight MultiFireFox 2.0. MultiFireFox 2.0 lets you run up to 5 versions of FireFox side by side.Why would you want to do this? If you're a web developer you probably want to check your work in FireFox 2 as well as 3. MultiFireFox also lets those of you who don't want to jump into the new version of FireFox get your feet wet with the new hotness (or should that be the 'new wetness?'), but keep FF2 close at hand.MultiFireFox 2 is free, so you can't beat the price and runs on OS X 10.4 and above.
Despite a rough start, Firefox 3 Download Day a success
As reported earlier here on TUAW, Firefox 3 Download Day began with a whimper instead of a bang. Starting shortly after the official launch, TUAW received a number of tips from readers who tried downloading the vulpine browser and got...nothing.It appears that things cleared up fairly quickly. Several TUAW bloggers were able to successfully download the new browser about 90 minutes after the 10 AM PDT launch. The Mozilla Blog has a message from Paul Kim, Mozilla's VP of marketing, talking about the early difficulties and the subsequent download trend:"Our systems were quite busy earlier this morning so individual requests may not have gotten through - but they are all up now and serving a tremendous amount of traffic and downloads. We are currently serving almost 9,000 downloads a minute, which puts us on track to achieve 5-7 million downloads our first day of general availability."More highlights and records are outlined on the blog. Be sure to download your very own customized Thank You! Certificate, available here.[via the Mozilla Blog]
Mozilla struggles with Firefox 3 release
Promised at 10 a.m. Pacific time (1 p.m. Eastern), Mozilla was eager to set a one-day world-record for the release of Firefox 3. With most of the day already gone for much of the world, and nary an update to be seen, it's looking bad for June 17. Getfirefox.com alternates between being entirely down and cheerfully offering up the latest and greatest version of Firefox 2. "Check for Updates" inside of Firefox (eventually) returns a "AUS: Update XML File Malformed (200)" error reading the XML file that would normally contain information about Firefox updates. When will we see an update? "Shortly," according to the Mozilla Blog. They are also careful to point out that the "official" 24 hours of record-breaking will commence the moment the software is released, and not from their original 10 a.m. estimate. Thanks everyone who sent this in! Update: 3:05 p.m.: We did it! TUAW single-handedly provided the schadenfreude necessary to get the server running, and getfirefox.com is serving up Firefox 3.
Get your Firefox on: Firefox Download Day
Just a reminder, as Robert hinted half an hour ago today is "Download Day" for Firefox 3. If you haven't yet downloaded the official 3.0 release, be sure to do it today! Firefox is trying to set a Guinness World Record for the most software downloads in 24 hours. At 10 AM PDT (1:00 PM EDT) head over here to get your official download. Note: Only downloads from Mozilla's official site count towards the record.It's not all about Mozilla's pride, really! Firefox 3 will bring many changes for all Mac users (mostly good), as this is the first release of Firefox that is built primarily using Cocoa for the underlying Gecko 1.9 engine (a project that's been in the works for years). Along with better redraw speed (CoreGraphics vs. the older QuickDraw API) and improved memory handling, the new engine provides the groundwork for a pure-Cocoa, 64-bit clean version of Firefox in the future. Firefox 3's UI is more Maclike now, with Aqua-style widgets improving the view. You can read more about the architectural changes to Firefox 3 and Gecko 1.9 at developer Josh Aas' blog.So head on over to Spread Firefox, we're sure you can't go wrong! If you're in the mood to party with the Firefox launch day crowd, check Mozilla's party site for activities near you.
Firefox 3 Download Day is June 17th
As we noted a few weeks ago, the Mozilla team has set up a pledge program to remind Firefox users to download the Firefox 3 browser within 24 hours of its release in order to nab a Guinness World Record. Well, the day is getting close - Firefox Download Day 2008 is scheduled for June 17th around the world. As of 11 AM MDT on June 14th, 2008, 1,221,679 people had pledged to get their copy of the new Firefox release on Download Day. It's not too late to take the pledge and help Mozilla spread browser goodness throughout the planet.
