Firefox 29 Launches With Major Redesign, Firefox Account Integration

[george]

Firefox 29 Launches With Major Redesign, Firefox Account Integration

Mozilla is launching its most important release of Firefox in a very long time today. After almost two years of working on its Australis redesign, the company is now finally ready to bring it to its stable release channel.

After loading it for the first time, chances are you’ll be slightly confused. This is Firefox’s most radical redesign since it moved to its rapid release schedule a few years ago. The new version looks significantly more like Chrome than the old Firefox. It features the same three-bar menu on the right and rounded tabs, for example. At the same time, though, it keeps the separate search form — something most other browsers have now done away with.

“The point of the redesign is to adapt the design to how modern users engage with the web,” Mozilla VP for Firefox Johnathan Nightingale told me earlier this month. In total, the team made 1,300 user interface and bug fixes since it first publicly introduced the Australis redesign about a year ago.

Users will likely pick up on the user interface similarities with Chrome, and some of those reactions might not be exactly positive, but Nightingale didn’t seem too worried about this. “Google didn’t invent simplicity,” he told me. “We do lots of things differently.”

The redesign, which touches many more aspects of the browser than just its user interface, is meant to give people the ability to fully customize their browsing experience. “Outside the core stuff, everybody uses the browser differently,” he noted. Some people, for example, never use the back button (which seems weird, but maybe they use keyboard shortcuts).

One of the main aspects of this release was to make the browser more customizable. Firefox always features extensive customization options, but those were always somewhat hidden, especially for mainstream users who may not always dig into the advanced menus of their browsers.

With this redesign, the “Customize” button is now always present in the new Firefox menu. After clicking on that button, the browser switches into the customization mode and you can then move around virtually all of Firefox’s user interface elements and organize the browser according to how they work with it. Customizing is now as easy as dragging and dropping elements to wherever you want them.

Other changes that are meant to adapt the browser to all kinds of types of users include the fact that Firefox now completely de-emphasizes unselected tabs. They basically fade in the background, which allows those of us with lots of open tabs (and maybe lots of app tabs, too), to focus on the ones we are looking at.

Besides these changes, Firefox now also features an improved bookmarking mechanism, which uses an almost un-Firefox-like animation when you star a page (the star then drops into the bookmark list button to show you where you can find it again).

As part of this update, Firefox now also uses Mozilla’s Firefox Accounts for syncing settings and bookmarks between machines. Instead of its rather arcane older syncing system, which mostly avoided using any cloud services for storing your information, the new system relies on Mozilla’s online services. Previously, Nightingale told me, many users didn’t even know Firefox had a built-in syncing feature — and those who did often didn’t use it simply because it wasn’t exactly easy to use. The new Firefox Accounts uses the usual combination of email and password instead of random codes.

Nightingale tells me that the team is already looking at how it can use Firefox Accounts in other parts of the application. The new accounts are obviously already integrated deeply into Firefox OS and it’s coming to Firefox on Android today, too.

Given its fast release cycle, why did it take Mozilla so long to release the redesign? It has been making the rounds in some form or another for about two years now, after all. Nightingale stressed that a lot of the earlier design was hardcoded, and in order to make the customization features work, the team had to rewrite large parts of the interface to make it more flexible. It had to test this, too, and in the end, it wanted to make sure that the new user tour Firefox users will see today worked well.

Mozilla is obviously going through an interesting period in its history. It’s trying to move fast into the mobile space and today’s release is one of its most important. At the same time, much of what it’s trying to do has recently been overshadowed by the discussion around the short CEO tenure of Brendan Eich. Today’s release will likely put the focus back on Mozilla’s main mission and product again, but this is also likely to be a somewhat controversial release.

-- Techcrunch 2014-04-29
http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/29/firefox-29-launches-with-major-redesign-firefox-account-integration/

[sustento]

Does it still consume memory like Pac-man and need rebooting at regular intervals?

[espinoza]

Does it still consume memory like Pac-man and need rebooting at regular intervals?

Yes it does. Opera is the best one !!!

[KittenKong]

Am I the only person who doesn't want to have to sign up for accounts and memberships just to use a browser?

[Crossy]

Am I the only person who doesn't want to have to sign up for accounts and memberships just to use a browser?

No you are not.

[IMHO]

With security vulnerabilities like Heartbleed that rendered SSL ineffective, and Mozilla's history of buggy releases, you'd have the be very brave, very stupid, or not do anything important online (like banking or shopping) before you'd let your passwords be sent up to their cloud...

[NeverSure]

I hate it. I'm set for automatic updates and it automatically gave it to me.

The tabs I'm not using go dark. Why? I have a couple of throw-away Yahoo email accounts and I always keep that tab open. I used to be able to see if the tab was telling me I had mail, but not anymore.

I see no purpose nor can I imagine what they were thinking when they decided I wouldn't want to see all of my tabs clearly.

[Carmine6]

That guy needs some sun. Also probably shouldn't shoot him in HD.

[Pib]

Regarding the syncing of bookmarks as a user of muliple Android devices, Chrome on my Android devices and my PCs makes bookmark syncing sooooo easy and automatic via my google account. ..plus Chrome is as good or better than Firefox and IE. With Chrome the most used browser in the world and continuing to gain market share Firefox and all the other browsers have an uphill battle to fight.

Sent from my Samsung S4

[Tywais]

I just changed from automatic updates to let me decide until I see reports on 29.

[JSixpack]

I hate it. I'm set for automatic updates and it automatically gave it to me.

The tabs I'm not using go dark. Why? I have a couple of throw-away Yahoo email accounts and I always keep that tab open. I used to be able to see if the tab was telling me I had mail, but not anymore.

I see no purpose nor can I imagine what they were thinking when they decided I wouldn't want to see all of my tabs clearly.

Well, go get Classic Theme Restorer: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/classicthemerestorer/.

You can get the add-on toolbar back with it too.

[samuijimmy]

^ me too, set to not update automatically, I am confused enough....I see I am on 27 edition... still...

[schondie]

Does it still consume memory like Pac-man and need rebooting at regular intervals?

Yes it does. Opera is the best one !!!

As far as I know Opera just uses the Chrome underpinnings, still a good browser though. All browsers have their specific uses and FF suits some but not others.

[firefox999uk]

Agree with jsixpack...got updated last night to 29 and hated the look of it,

did a search and found the classic theme restorer add on.

all back to how it looked before...

Hate change for no reason.

[Pib]

Here's how the major browsers "worldwide" market share compare for Mar 13 - Mar 14. Chrome #1 in market share at around 44%, IE second at around 23%, FF third at around 19%, Safari fourth at 10%, and Opera fifth around 1%. Also appears IE continues its slow lost of market share and all remaining browsers gaining just a little or flat-lining.

A person can go to this link and search via area of the world/by country if desired. Link. Like in Europe Chrome is still #1 with around 41% but FF is number #2 with around 25%. When looking at the U.S. Chrome and IE are neck-and-neck, swapping who is in the lead every few months with around a 32% market share with FF around 15%. And in good ol' Thailand Chrome in the lead with 55%, IE second with 19%, FF third with 13%.

Worldwide Market Share Chart

[cooked]

I used Classic theme restorer also, which caused a minor glitch, now fixed. I have so many lovely addons with Firefox which Chrome (just uninstalled it for the umpteenth time after an Avast security update very kindly installed it for me) doesn't have. I also don't like Chrome because after ticking the 'import bookmarks from Firefox' button, I got a little grey square next to all my bookmarks on the bookmarks toolbar, meaning that they ran off the bar altogether. No way of changing this apparently. Why anyone should use IE or Chrome is beyond me.

By the way, I don't have to reboot frequently and my computer is 4 years old, Windows XP

[Pib]

^ me too, set to not update automatically, I am confused enough....I see I am on 27 edition... still...

When a person sets FF not to update automatically does that also prevent any security updates/patches being automatically installed for the version you are on? Or does it just prevent FF from upgrading to the next major release?

[Tywais]

^ me too, set to not update automatically, I am confused enough....I see I am on 27 edition... still...

When a person sets FF not to update automatically does that also prevent any security updates/patches being automatically installed for the version you are on? Or does it just prevent FF from upgrading to the next major release?

As far as I know the security updates only come with the releases and not separately. I just set my update from auto to let me know and decide what to do, not disable completely. Forgot to do that at my office computer and now running 29 so will see how it goes before I allow my home computer to update. Plus now members mentioned an addon to bring back the look so thanks for that info.

[Keesters]

Upgrade (??) to 29 happened to me today. What a horrible look. Took me an hour to find add-ons that made my tabs look and position the same as they were as well as having the add-on bar at the bottom the same as before. Now I got 29 but it looks like 28. So far so good.

[Pib]

^ me too, set to not update automatically, I am confused enough....I see I am on 27 edition... still...

When a person sets FF not to update automatically does that also prevent any security updates/patches being automatically installed for the version you are on? Or does it just prevent FF from upgrading to the next major release?

As far as I know the security updates only come with the releases and not separately. I just set my update from auto to let me know and decide what to do, not disable completely. Forgot to do that at my office computer and now running 29 so will see how it goes before I allow my home computer to update. Plus now members mentioned an addon to bring back the look so thanks for that info.

That different from IE where the security updates will continue to flow whether on IE9, 10, 11, etc. Or at least that the way it use to be and I'm not even sure about that anymore, because I put Win 7 on one of my laptops about a week ago and immediately after the install I was running IE9 I think...but definitely not IE11. But by the time I had completed downloading all the Windows updates I was running IE11. So it upgraded the IE9 I was on right after the Windows OS installed and automatically upgraded me to IE11....but then again as I think about it I probably selected IE11 as one of the Optional updates when doing all the Windows updates, because I selected every Optional update there was....that's probably why it updated IE all the way to IE11.

Anyway, IE11 is now my secondary/backup browser as Chrome is my primary browser. About six months ago I had IE, Chrome and FF on my computers and used each one equally over about a 2 to 3 week period to see which one I liked the best, was the fastest, best features, least hiccups, etc. When the dust settled I started using Chrome as my primary browser and IE as my secondary browser (I had been using IE for years at home and work), and uninstalled FF. Maybe I should give FF another look since its got a new look, hopefully improved, etc. All three browsers are good although each one has its bad and good days like when some vulnerability is discovered and the browser gods scramble to get a patch put out fixing the issue.

Edited April 30, 2014 by Pib

[JSixpack]

That different from IE where the security updates will continue to flow whether on IE9, 10, 11, etc.

<TMI snipped>

Of course. Updates to IE are part of M'soft's updates to Windows as M'soft considers it an integral part of Windows (a point of view it's quietly retained in the face of litigation). As a third-party product, security updates to Firefox come w/ other updates as well and new version numbers--just as do most updates to countless other third-party products.

[Guest]

Regarding the syncing of bookmarks as a user of muliple Android devices, Chrome on my Android devices and my PCs makes bookmark syncing sooooo easy and automatic via my google account. ..plus Chrome is as good or better than Firefox and IE. With Chrome the most used browser in the world and continuing to gain market share Firefox and all the other browsers have an uphill battle to fight.

This is one of the main reasons I have stuck with Chromium/Chrome. The sync includes pretty much all the settings, passwords, add-ons, themes etc.

I recently had to which from Chromium to Chrome as Chromium had yet unresolved issues. After login to the Google account, soon my new Chrome browser had the same setup as Chromium did. This is very handy feature. The same applies if I start using these browsers on another computer or decide to wipe out my computer and do a clean install.

I hope there will be possibilities in the future to sync (not simply export/import) the bookmarks and passwords between Chromium and Firefox and possibly other browsers as well. Then it would be very easy to switch from one browser to another.

[Spoonman]

so this is a whole new release and not update # 786450993021.003 ?

[JSixpack]

This is one of the main reasons I have stuck with Chromium/Chrome. The sync includes pretty much all the settings, passwords, add-ons, themes etc.

http://www.oxhow.com/sync-firefox-bookmarks-profile-data-using-dropbox/

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/xmarks-sync/

https://lastpass.com/

I hope there will be possibilities in the future to sync (not simply export/import) the bookmarks and passwords between Chromium and Firefox and possibly other browsers as well. Then it would be very easy to switch from one browser to another.

https://sites.google.com/a/caldwellschools.org/tech-integration/tech-tips/web-basedbookmarkmanagers

https://lastpass.com/

[transam]

TV seems to be loading quicker today, perhaps nothing to do with the update but...............

[Guest]

Thanks for that. Lastpass & xmarks (acquired by lastpass) seems be able to manage the main tasks.

[phuketrichard]

I am happy with Torch and the tor browser

[ronthai]

NO more auto updates.

Using too many add-ons and such, of which most will need time to adjust.

To be continued in about 3-6 months ...

[BuaBS]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Am I the only person who doesn't want to have to sign up for accounts and memberships just to use a browser?

No you are not.

Most trusted internet company for privacy ? Well keeping your account in the "cloud" certainly is not private. I'm not sharing my bookmarks and other stuff with them.

Used FF 3.5 for ages and was happy with it until the flash plug inn made it impossible to use without crashing. Then I updated to FF 19 ! I'm still with FF 19. Made it look like FF 3, 5 with taps below, not on top. It is a slow cold starter and it uses too much RAM with more than 10 taps open , but it is stable , more than fast enough , speed is more a factor of internet speed (thailand !!) and the server of the requested site than how fast FF can load on my screen.

No security problems . No intentions to update to a newer version , certainly after what I just read about this new one.

Why is everybody so obsessed with updates or newer versions?

New is rarely better.

[2008bangkok]

Well i think its a great improvement love the new UI and tests against Chrome site v site seem to be as fast if not slightly faster on some sites, big thumbs up for me

You dont need to create an account to install firefox as some poster says you just need that to sync which is the same as chrome you need to sign in to google to sync.

If anybody wants to go back just go to filehippo.com and select a previous version.