Firefox Let Loose
9 February 2004 · Last updated: 11 December 2006
So I finally downloaded Firebird 0.7. Then they rename it Firefox, and bring out a new version, 0.8! This, the browser that was once called Phoenix... I wish we just had the one product "Mozilla". Besides, I thought they were stopping Mozilla to concentrate on Firebir.. er, I mean Firefox? That version 1.6 was the last? And how come Firefox is only 0.8? It's easily good enough to be a version 1.0 browser. (Glad to see they've included the DOM Inspector anyway - my main reason for sticking with Mozilla. (Yeah I know, you could get it as an extension before.) I think I prefer this version - you can open it to the full screen width, to see the code details in the left pane much easier. In Mozilla, it's squashed in the sidebar.)
Comments (10)
Comments are locked on this topic. Thanks to everyone who posted a comment.
- flump:
the reason i like firebird/fox over mozilla is that it didnt seem as bloaty. Mozilla just seems to have too many features that are in-your-face. I like the way firefox is simplistic, and i can see more of the screen.
Posted on 9 February 2004 at 9:45 pm ¶ - dusoft:
I definitely agree. I've been using Mozilla for a long time, but it's generally slower and heavier. It takes too much memory and it's too "overhelming" - you know what I mean?
When I switched to Firebird, it became so easy and I mean it really easy to browse the web. With AdBlock, TabBrowser Extensions, User Agent Switcher, Install Manager and more extensions, it's really browser of my choice.
Posted on 10 February 2004 at 9:45 am ¶ - Chris Hester:
I don't see much difference myself, but then I'm on a reasonably fast PC. Extensions are cool but the ones I use are built in to Mozilla anyway, save for a few I've only just discovered.
Firefox seems to have some bad areas where Mozilla gets it right. For instance, why load tabs in the background by default? If I open a page in a tab, I want the tab to come to the front. You have to untick the box in the Preferences to make Firefox act like Mozilla.
And where are the sizes for font-scaling? I like to test pages at set sizes, such as 150% then 200%, not keep pressing keys to enlarge text (though it works well that way too). Can you set custom text zoom sizes in Firefox?
Flump - I don't know what you mean by seeing more of the screen - Mozilla and Firefox on my PC seem to use a very similar amount of space for the top bars. (I'm using large icons in Firefox but the address bar is on the top row.)
One area where Firefox is better though, and the main reason I tried it (!), is the Home button is on the same row as the other buttons. Why oh why Mozilla decided to include it on the Bookmarks toolbar, I don't know. That means I can't turn that bar off.
I've grown used to the feature-packed menus in Moz, so it's hard at first to do without certain commands in the stripped-down Firefox. But I like the overall 'feel' of the browser, which seems to be clearly aimed at an IE-replacement. Users of IE will have no problem changing over.
Can't wait for version 1.0 to be released! Then everyone can start converting people to use it (while Microsoft sleep). Well, we can try!
Posted on 10 February 2004 at 8:27 pm ¶ - flump:
when i tried mozilla, there was a lot of junk (too many too bars etc) and they were pretty large. Not as much junk as opera though :)
I prefer the minimalist look, and i find firebird better all round (suits my needs better).
My pc is only an 800mhz amd, but then i deal with crap computers at college all day, so i dont notice how bad my computer is. Until i get a job and use decent computers, i doubt ill upgrade it :)
When i first converted to firebird i found it much quicker than IE, the only thing which is slightly annoying (only slightly) is the initial load time for windows.
Personally i dont use tab browsing, just like i dont use the start menu, i prefer to keep all my stuff on the desktop.
each and everyone to their own. Its just something ive gotten used to, and i like it.
What ever you prefer, you'll have your reasons.
btw, about opera, its a nice browser and has some really great features, its just....
i dont know, just doesnt appeal to me that much.
Posted on 10 February 2004 at 9:38 pm ¶ - Chris Hester:
Awesome! I just discovered Firefox remembers form fields so when you start to type your name, email or website address in, a drop-down menu appears, ready for you to click on to complete the form! That's good enough to make this a serious contender for my No.1 browser.
Posted on 11 February 2004 at 9:29 pm ¶ - dodo:
yup i really like the remember form field feature. it's done gracefully.
Posted on 15 February 2004 at 11:40 pm ¶ - Chris Hester:
It doesn't always seem to work? Does it only work on sites you've been on before?
Posted on 16 February 2004 at 8:57 pm ¶ - Lyman Tsang:
When I first tried Firebird 0.7 it didn't save cookies properly for some reason. Sites that had cookies wouldn't remember me after just a couple of days. I went back to IE for a while, but really missed the tab browsing. When Firefox came out I thought they might have fixed the cookie saving thing. But it didn't. It's weird because when I go to the cookie manager, some of the cookies say they'll expire in 2007, but I still have to log in.
Well, even with that problem I really love Firefox. It just gets annoying when I have to visit forums and log in.
Posted on 20 February 2004 at 11:32 pm ¶ - Kathy:
Can anybody tell me whether Firefox is suitable for windows 95?
thanks
Posted on 26 June 2004 at 10:15 pm ¶ - Chris Hester:
Not according to this page:
http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/system-requirements.html
Posted on 26 June 2004 at 10:48 pm ¶
