Firefox 7: Faster Performance and Conservative Memory Usage

Performance and improved memory use were the goals of Firefox 7, which arrived on schedule today from Mozilla. Firefox 7 is available to download for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android. 

The new Telemetry feature asks you to opt in before it will collect your data.

(Credit: Mozilla)

The wide-release version of Firefox 7 brings changes to the majority of Firefox users that the beta and Aurora channels have been playing with for some time. These include claims of significant gains in reducing memory use, "often 20 percent to 30 percent less, and sometimes as much as 50 percent less," a company representative wrote in a blog post based on work by Firefox developer Nicholas Nethercote.

These performance gains are the first public results of an internal Mozilla project called MemShrink, which, as the name implies, is about reducing the browser's system impact. Mozilla cited several specific areas of improvement in Firefox 7, including when the browser is kept open for long periods of time, when multiple tabs are open at once, and when the browser is used concurrently with other programs that also use a lot of memory. The company also noted that MemShrink was successful in part because of the rapid-release cycle that a vocal minority of Firefox users have been criticizing.

The spotlight on performance is something that Mozilla clearly plans to keep lit. When you install Firefox 7, you'll be prompted to opt in to a new anonymous-reporting measure that the company is calling Telemetry. Not unlike security suites that use your data anonymously to improve threat detection rates, Mozilla plans to crowd-source its performance data to learn more about how the browser performs in real-world situations.

Unlike the security suites, Telemetry is an opt-in reporting system, so Mozilla won't be collecting data without permission. Lead privacy engineer Sid Stamm addresses security concerns in a blog post, but the short version is that Mozilla is far more open about the data it collects--and why it collects that data--than competitors such as Apple, Google, and Microsoft. Currently, Telemetry looks at four categories: memory usage, CPU core count, cycle collection times, and startup speed. Curious readers can install the about:telemetry add-on to see the personal statistics Firefox is gathering.

If you've enabled Telemetry and would like to disable it, you can go to Options, Advanced, and uncheck the Submit Performance Data box at the bottom of the General tab.

Firefox's Facelift makes it load faster on Android Devices

Mozilla has decided that when it comes to Android devices, performance is more important than the wealth of add-ons that can be used to customize Firefox. 

Yesterday, Mozilla's Director of Firefox Engineering Johnathan Nightingale announced on a mailing list that Firefox will move to Android's native user interface, ditching the XUL technology that has been in use by Mozilla since before there even was a Firefox.

"Firefox on Android is a critical part of supporting the open Web, and this decision puts us in a position to build the best Firefox possible," Nightingale said.

Firefox is widely used on personal computers but a rarity on mobile phones, where--unlike Apple's Safari or the unbranded browser Google builds for Android--it's not installed on any phones by default. Firefox is the chief way Mozilla tries to implement its vision of empowering users of the Web and keeping that Web an open technology.

Firefox with a native Android interface should mean faster start-up, less memory usage, and smoother zooming and panning, Nightingale said. The native UI project page for mobile Firefox, aka Fennec, also listed better battery life as a benefit.

It's not clear when the rebuilt version will arrive, but it won't be for either the beta or Aurora versions currently in testing, Nightingale said.

Firefox Update to Firefox 7.0...Postponed!

 

Mozilla has postponed its plan to prompt Firefox 3.6 users to upgrade to the latest version of the open-source Web browser to make sure its servers are up to snuff.

The organization had planned to flip a switch so that users of Firefox 3.6 would be prompted to get the latest version, Firefox 7.0.1. That change that would get a large fraction of people onto Mozilla's rapid-release process--Firefox 3.6 was the second most widely used version of the browser in September, and Mozilla expects the upgrade prompt to encourage a lot of people to make the move.

But Mozilla chose to delay the move.

"The previously scheduled 3.6-to-7.0.1 advertised update is now postponed while we make sure our server capacity is sufficient for release," said release manager Christian Legnitto in a blog post. "Once the investigation is complete I will communicate a new date well in advance so all stakeholders can plan accordingly."

Running servers for major online services can be tough. Mozilla said yesterday it was having server overload problems for Firefox Sync, a service to keep bookmarks, passwords, tabs, and other settings in step across multiple versions of the browser.

Firefox 7 is one of the new series of rapid-release versions of the browser, with smaller updates now coming every six weeks rather than a dramatically different version coming every year to a year and a half.

Mozilla is working to ease problems with the rapid-release program, though, including making Firefox update notices less obtrusive, moving to a less conservative approach of marking add-ons as compatible by default with new versions of the browser, and proposing a slower-moving Enterprise Support Release of Firefox that has a lifespan of 42 weeks, with new ESR versions arriving every 30 weeks.

Source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-30685_3-20117115-264/mozilla-postpones-firefox-3.6-update-plan/#ixzz1aDOOfhLy

Xtravo Web Browser: Alternative to Firefox, IE and Chrome

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The dominance of Firefox, Chrome and Internet Explorer in the web browser market has meant alternative browsers have really struggled to make any impact. Xtravo Web Browser is often overlooked and ignored.

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The dominance of Firefox, Chrome and Internet Explorer in the web browser market has meant alternative browsers have really struggled to make any impact. Xtravo Web Browser is often overlooked and ignored. Xtravo has continually struggled to excel among such competition. But it certainly has not given up.

The Trident based & Tetrapod Technology based browser, Xtravo was developed by 19 year old Pakistani Imran Sheikh back in 2008. Sheikh evidently went for out and out speed. The lightweight browser became the fastest on the market as soon as it was released. However, after the initial release it was clear that factors such security and stability had been neglected. Nevertheless by October 20th 2009 Xtravo had already reached 2.5 Million Default users.

Xtravo now focuses on three main aspects; speed, security and stability. The browser has been carefully developed to ensure it runs as fast as possible. Ever since it was first released in Beta form Xtravo has prided itself on its speed. It achieves this by ensuring that start-up time and web page loading time are kept to a minimum. It has also further developed the browser to allow complex web applications at ultra-fast speeds. Elsewhere Xtravo offers a safe and stable browsing environment. But then again so will any web browser in today’s online environment.  What’s more in terms of security and stability it still struggles to complete with the big three.

It is not all doom and gloom for Xtravo. The browser still remains packed full of interesting features. The ‘Image Sniffer’ cleverly saves all images in batch process which allows users to save time by not needing to save each image individually. Code Inspector is a useful tool for developers to check the code of a website that they are viewing for developmental purposes. Developers are also able to edit or/and test it real time while the site is running. The RSS Suite lets users add, edit or delete their RSS and obtain a websites RSS whilst browsing. The search suite, which was added in version 4, and new tab function are similar to the likes of Firefox and co. Its simplistic yet sleek design adds to the user experience.

In June 2011 Xtravo 4.5 was launched. It included a silent update feature give users updates instantly as soon as they run the browser, install the update in seconds and run the new version. The transition into the faster pace of development cycle, Xtravo updating pattern will change from Web check downloading to silent upgrading pattern as seen in Google Chrome and Firefox. In July 2011 Jawoco finally launched Xtravo operating software as a beta version. It is a move that shows its intent to compete with the likes of Google Chrome in both browser and operating software fields.  Xtravo 6 is expected on November 12th2011, which also happens to be the anniversary of the browsers launch.

During the last year Xtravo has already successfully reached 38 million users worldwide. In order to increase the user satisfaction, Xtravo will now be upgrading versions with new improvement and also that innovating faster. Continual progress is being made with the Xtravo Web Browser is under full changes with new innovations and also that new era of browsing to be experienced.

Source: http://news.brothersoft.com/xtravo-web-browser-a-serious-alternative-to-firefox-ie-and-chrome-19052.html