In addition to new features such as support for HTML 5, geo-location, and a noticeably faster engine, Firefox 3.5 added a new CSS rule that makes Web typography much more attractive.
@font-face is a CSS rule that allows Web designers to reference fonts not installed on end-user machines. Just as you would have a pointer to a server-based stylesheet or JavaScript file in your Web page code, you can now make reference to a hosted typeface.
You'll note that news sites such as CNET News and NYTimes.com are optimized to make Web type more readable and as stylish as possible, but there are many design possibilities via additional downloadable typefaces. (As with any linked asset, there is some level of security risk if a hacker gets their hands on the font file.)
Mozilla's John Daggett explains: Within a stylesheet, each @font-face rule defines a family name to be used, the font resource to be loaded, and the style characteristics of a given face such as whether it's bold or italic. Firefox 3.5 only downloads the fonts as needed, so a stylesheet can list a whole set of fonts of which only a select few will actually be used.
This function is something I would have expected to be commonplace by now (Safari began supporting it in Version 3.1 and Opera in Version 10) but neither have the market share to drive usage the way Firefox and Internet Explorer do. (Note: this function doesn't work in IE.)
Generally speaking, the Web browser has done a terrible job with type. We've been stuck with old standbys such as Helvetica or Times New Roman, and don't forget the oft-loathed Comic-Sans and other delightful Microsoft fonts that are often easy to read but lack any real style (Verdana, for example.)
... Read moreBespin is a Mozilla Labs experiment that "proposes an open, extensible Web-based framework for code editing that aims to increase developer productivity, enable compelling user experiences, and promote the use of open standards."
What does that mean? Well, the short answer is that Bespin gives developers the ability to edit local or remote code via a Web browser. The current release is written in JavaScript, and it supports editing of HTML and JavaScript files, but no compiled languages such as Java yet.
While still a Mozilla Labs project, Bespin looks like an excellent representation of what I've called a "cloud editor," wherein developers can manipulate code directly, and the platform is aware of what to do, once the code is changed.
There are a number of browser-based editors already, but check out the video, and you'll see why Bespin is interesting.
Via Cote
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Mozilla Firefox usage share has topped 20% during two separate weeks in October while Internet Explorer has dropped to 71% of browser usage according to data from Net Applications.
Net Applications started reporting on Firefox in June 2008 and the browser has been consistently 18% and above. The 20 percent metric is an important milestone provided Firefox can continue to grow. And considering that IE hasn't been very interesting for quite some time it would seem that Mozilla should be able to keep taking market share away from Microsoft.
Besides the fun of ruining Microsoft's day, the Mozilla team is going for a world record. You can learn more about it here.
Mozilla Labs launched a new online service called Weave yesterday. The idea behind Weave is that all your personal information such as bookmarks, passwords and are synced to your Mozilla account via Firefox.
As Mozilla Labs GM Chris Beard describes in this post, the goals of Weave are to:
- provide a basic set of optional Mozilla-hosted online services
- ensure that it is easy for people to set up their own services with freely available open standards-based tools
- provide users with the ability to fully control and customize their online experience, including whether and how their data should be shared with their family, their friends, and third-parties
- respect individual privacy (e.g. client-side encryption by default with the ability to delegate access rights)
- leverage existing open standards and propose new ones as needed
- build a extensible architecture like Firefox
While it's interesting to see Mozilla moving into services, I am not sure if this matters yet.
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