Comments on: Ch-ch-ch-changes: A visual history of Firefox

Firefox has changed in several key ways over the years. We take you through some of the big interface changes from version 0.8 up to the latest release candidate of 3.5.

[dascha1]

I'm 99.999% correct that the "Ch-Ch-" part of your title comes from the song performed (and written) by UK-based music artist David Bowie. He is married to super-model Iman though status unknown if he is still performing.

I'm sorry Josh, but thought it fair to clarify for your viewers and listeners who may be too young to know this.

[Special(e)]

David Bowie huh? Thanks for clearing that up...i had never heard of him.

[dascha1]

You're welcome, thanks for listening.

[tech_crazy]

What song are you referring to - China Girl?

[lil_ryry7]

Is it the song changes or something like that. Im 15 and I listen to all the music like that. My favorite though are the Beatles

[traxx09]

Seriously? We're having this conversation?

[ColinABQ]

I caught myself singing the song and counting the ch-'s in the article title, as though the number of ch-'s would either qualify or discredit the content. Sad.

I think I preferred the pre-1.x navigation toolbar buttons. Smaller was better.

[Gonzie]

Re: Firefox navigation

oh so the Mac nav bar has always been a waste of space. They should simply use GrApple themes from the start rather than waste their time

[Hunnter2k3]

I hate the navigation toolbars in 3+, too stupid looking and has more emphasis on "cooool" instead of using as little space as possible.
Get flashy graphics to hell, keep it within themes PLEASE.

But who am i kidding? Mozilla have ruined Firefox now. So much for the "modular browser".

[ElArZ]

WOW! So you couldn't just right-click on the toolbar, choose Customize and then check "Use small icons"?

No, i guess not. Whining is a lot easier.

[Endbringer]

Who made Firefox so great in the first place before Mozilla "ruined" it?

lol

[Daguin25]

Yea, there's really not that much on the nav bar there buddy.... nothing wrong with updating the look either. Whining will get you nowhere

[LoudHeart]

I have been using FireFox 3.5 RC since last Monday to test out the new video element in the HTML5. It's beautiful. If Javascript in enabled, the video element comes with default control buttons (ie. play, pause, etc). Fun to program.

[frederico88]

How come no one compares the daily use of RSS feeds between the browsers? It is a most useful tool and yet no comments but speed, buttons, add ons and so on. I would appreciate a comparaison analysis between Fox 3.5, IE8 and Opera 10 presentations and deliveries of RSS feeds.

[MojavePython]

All Firefox has done over the years is emulate Opera's features. The "new" plus button for the tabs is a perfect example. If it wasn't for the vast collection of extensions and add-ons, Firefox would be just as useful as the Big Blue E.

[USAF_22]

I want 1.0 navigation, 3.0 tabs, 3.5 bookmarks, and 3.0 settings. How can I make that happen?

[LoudHeart]

You need to pay $10.50 USD (1.0+3.0+3.5+3.0) for that kind of customization. :)

[Freedomstarfox]

You can try to design your own extensions and themes to fit your needs :)

[Johncuepublic]

I certainly hope you have prior consent from the artist for copying those unmistakable lyrics. <grin>

[srixion]

Firefox 3.5 is a good back up browser, but if you want better performance switch to Google Chrome. I have tried all the new browsers with Windows 7 and Vista and Firefox still hangs all the time. You would be better off with IE 8 instead of firefox.

[FF2009]

Sorry to burst yer bubble but Chrome is plain dull as of this moment...lacks many features of Firefox not to mention the add-ons. Maybe in a few years Chrome might catch up with the major player Browsers...and that's a fact!

[sanjayb]

Better off with IE8 instead of Firefox. Ok. Whatever.

[monster_eater123]

Look here I'm stuck with a 512 kps connection and IE8 is SLOW! Firefox 3 is about the best web browser that I have found all around. I'll admit that Firefox is a power user in terms of resources, but it does take a lot of power to run all those fancy add-ons and things. Don't even get me started on Opera. Opera runs slower on my connection than IE8! And that's sad! The only good thing I can say about Chrome is at least it's faster than IE. Now, I'll admit that I did like what Safari 4 had to offer, but it still has a long way to go. The Interface for Safari 4 is clean-cut and I like that. But, the web browser was slow loading heavy web pages. The good side of Safari 4 is that it did load flash games and videos almost instantaneously, even on my connection speed. Over all I find that Firefox is the best web browser out there it's customizable, stable, and fairly quick.

[griffinme]

"All Firefox has done over the years is emulate Opera's features. The "new" plus button for the tabs is a perfect example. If it wasn't for the vast collection of extensions and add-ons, Firefox would be just as useful as the Big Blue E."

"It is not once nor twice but times without number that the same ideas make their appearance in the world."
Aristotle

Since when is it a bad thing to take a look around and go "Hey, they got that right and over here, that over here looks good too. We should be doing that."? Some might even consider that research. Besides, the computer world is filled with people building off other peoples ideas. Even the guys at Xerox borrowed ideas they had seen else where and expanded off them. Also, extensions, add-ons and themes are some of the main reasons to use FF. It makes the browser amazingly customizable. My FF is nothing like my wife's, yours or the person's down the street and I like it that way. When other browsers build up a similar collection I will think about using them.

[interinc]

Interesting ideas you put out there. I guess its most interesting that you quote Aristotle then forget the evolution of technology itself.

The wheel was first made from stone. Someone borrowed that idea and crafted one out of wood. Someone else borrowed that idea and made it lighter by using timber spokes.......eventually we ended up with tires.

That's just how technology evolves no matter if its the wheel or if its a piece of software. Isn't that what technology is? The evolution of ideas built upon previous ideas, built upon previous idea. I think I made my point. ;)

[sans8812]

@internic:

Just nitpicking, but the first wheel was made out of wood, not stone. The image of cave men carving a wheel out of stone comes from pop culture. The idea for the wheel most likely came from using felled logs as rollers to move heavy pieces of stone.

[BtmnHatesRbn]

Why just use "Firefox"? It's the continuation of Netscape. So why not show everything changing from MOSIAC until now?

This is like people who talk about video game history. They forget there are other systems besides the PlayStation line out there.

[exactlyy]

ie is slow, stupid and unsecure , chrome is naked.. give it sometimes when it gets a lil more features and its performance w'll drop badly , they even needed a year to add FeedBack and its taking them forever to add a master password so noone can see ur saved passwords . its just incomplete browser that can only be used by kids who wanna play yahoo games.

[hawkeyeaz1]

In reference to Google Chrome, they aren't really trying to make a browser by what IE or Firefox or Safari or Opera look(ed) like, they are just getting the technology out there to get it working and tested.

Why?
Because Chrome isn't a 'browser' as much as it is a platform for running NaCL programs as if they were Windows/OSX/Linux/etc pograms installed on the computer. It's VMWare but a lot faster, smaller and more efficient.

[joelFiser]

Firefox crashes daily for me.

I didn't read where they added the ability to crash every day at least twice. That's what's been happening to me for the past couple of months.

I'm slowly switching to Opera. I just need Google Bookmarks and Bye Bye Firefox.

[hawkeyeaz1]

It sounds like one of your plugins has an issue, as I have been using most versions out there for years (on differing platforms) w/o (many) crashes for years. I can run it work weeks at time before a crash occurs, and I keep dozens of tabs open at any given time.

[slumbergod]

i was hoping to see some pics of FF's evolution on Linux.

[abcd9009]

As Josh points out some of the new features to look for in 3.6 "Other features include a way to search through open tabs..."

I am curious to know if there is any browser out there (Chrome, FF, IE, Safari, Opera, ...) which would allow me to search for a text through all open tabs? If not built-in, is there any extension or Add-on which would accomplish this? Thanks

Surprised even Chrome doesn't have this functionality yet!

[setjeff15081947]

Josh Lowensohn, I suggest you go back and play with your Finger-Painting set, because you don't know squat about this Impossible-To-Navigate browser constructed by the "Keystone Kops" at Mozilla. I despise that name ---Mozilla. Internet Explorer, Version 0.0, with its thousands of flaws over the years, is less frustrating than Mozilla's Firefox. If Firefox was paper, I'd use it to wipe my ... .
[Chuckle ... Neither a Mozilla fan here, nor an I.E. advocate; my vote, if you can spring for the price, is Apple's Safari. It's elegant.]
...

[SX10 IS]

Eww... (lol)

[TV James]

All these changes and the settings for what (tabs) to open when the browser starts and/or the user clicks "Home" is still a really poor UI.

[123yik]

Firefox is an awsome browser, its plug-ins and all make it so customizable. But i always get inclined to use Google Chrome. It is something about its easy to use interface and speed which makes it feel like home. Although i have a ton of plugins and themes installed on firefox, they arent something i cant live without. I fact i barely find a use for them all. In Chrome i especially like the new tab page which shows my bookmarks, recent visited. Bcz of my frequent shorts visits on the computer, in the end i prefer speed over features, basically all i want to do is check my mail, gizmodo, cnet, and facebook.

[sural98]

Opera has a small handy button at the bottom to hide/show images.
FF can borrow this feature from Opera.