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Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

mozilla.com

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Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#21

Post by jonathansizz »

joshz wrote: post #13
afhof wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If I wanted Chrome features, I'd download Chrome. The reason I use FF is /because/ I don't want to use Chrome. If FF just copies from other browsers, why have FF at all?

It's about faster release cycles not copying features.

That doesn't explain why we have Firefox 5 rather than 4.1. It must be that the Mozilla marketers were worried that the major version numbers were too low compared to Chrome and IE, so by bumping them up every few months they can catch up! I'm so impressed!

Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#22

Post by cemerick »

m_eiman wrote: post #18
randallsquared wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On OS X, there's possibly the best PDF viewer ever, in Preview. I'm curious why you'd want so strongly to avoid using it?

I prefer opening a PDF in a tab until I've had a chance to see if it's something I want to keep. With download-and-open-in-Preview I'm filling up my Downloaded Files folder with a lot of PDFs that I don't want to keep, and I'll have to delete them manually.

Indeed, I'm surprised this had to be said.

Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#23

Post by robryan »

afhof wrote: post #11
robin_reala wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Firefox is moving to a more Chrome-style of version numbering, to try and get enhancements out to the web quicker.

If I wanted Chrome features, I'd download Chrome. The reason I use FF is /because/ I don't want to use Chrome. If FF just copies from other browsers, why have FF at all?

You could also turn that around and say why have chrome at all. Chrome may be implementing some things first now but for most of the time it has been the other way around.

Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#25

Post by cfinke »

When a new version of Firefox comes out, I always like to find the oldest bug that it fixes. It looks like the winner this time is a 12-year-old bug affecting MathML: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=21479

Also fixed is this 7-year-old bug that has annoyed me for years: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=254714 (When you open a link in a new tab, the new page's URL doesn't appear in the Location Bar until the page loads.)

Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#26

Post by dpcan »

sapper2 wrote: post #24

Unless they have the quick, silent updates of Chrome AND the (so far) perfect quality control of Chrome, these quick releases do more harm then good.

I JUST downloaded FF4 and now I see 5 is coming out.

Version-less updates of browsers makes sense, and they should be seamlessly, silently, updated in the back-ground. This is getting crazy.

I install Firefox for friends and family who I want off IE, and this actually embarrasses me a little. If I have to keep telling them to update, they will quit - or end up using REALLY OLD versions of Firefox and we'll have an IE6 situation all over again soon but with Firefox.

I'm starting to install Chrome now. At least I can say that their browser will always update, and they have nothing to worry about.

Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#27

Post by ggchappell »

cemerick wrote: post #12

The state of PDF support in Firefox on OS X has me stuck at FF 3.6, and it doesn't look like that'll be changing for a while (unless I want to experiment with random xpi's and running FF 4+ in 32-bit mode, etc). Until that's resolved, all the fancy CSS tweaks in the world won't mean a hoot.

Could you explain the problem you're referring to (or point me to a page that does)?

I'm currently running FF 3.6 on OS X. Getting regular announcements of 4.0, and thinking I'll install it sometime soon. I don't usually pay much attention to what features/problems the new version might have. So, what's up with this?

Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#28

Post by jokermatt999 »

wisty wrote: post #8
freakwit wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The list of bugfixes is hardly nothing: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/5.0beta/releasenotes/bu...

Still, there's no reason to break bugfixes. Heck, a lot of them still work, if you flag some "developer mode", but you don't need to do that in Chrome. Who care's if Mozilla has more extensions? They cause too much trouble when you upgrade.

Who care's if Mozilla has more extensions? They cause too much trouble when you upgrade.

I do. TreeStyleTab and Pentadactyl essentially change Firefox into a different browser that I much prefer. There's nothing like that on Chrome, and until they get better capabilities for extension writing, there won't be. The day when they have working full replacements (not Vimium and the mediocre sidetabs option), I'll happily switch to Chrome, but until then I'll take having my nice customized browser.

Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#29

Post by nothis »

ujjvala wrote: post #2

Use it if you want break all the working addons for nothing.

This was with FF3, I think, but I once managed to over-write all my bookmarks with the temp ones from doing a separate install for a beta. Probably "my fault" on some level, but it still sucked. I have an aversion to trying out betas since then.

Re: Firefox 5 Beta is available for download

#30

Post by timtadh »

cemerick wrote: post #22
m_eiman wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I prefer opening a PDF in a tab until I've had a chance to see if it's something I want to keep. With download-and-open-in-Preview I'm filling up my Downloaded Files folder with a lot of PDFs that I don't want to keep, and I'll have to delete them manually.

Indeed, I'm surprised this had to be said.

As a linux user I am surprised. When I download to open in my reader the pdfs go into /tmp. This is fine, because since /tmp is a ramfs it just goes away when I turn off my computer. If I want it I just save it to a permanent location.
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