Articles about Firefox

Mozilla has released Firefox 46.0 FINAL, a relatively minor refresh of its desktop browser for Windows, Linux and Mac with no standout new features.

Also released is Firefox for Android 46.0, which does at least include some noteworthy new features such as the ability to display previously cached pages offline and support for sync via Firefox Accounts.

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The modern internet user is somewhat paradoxical -- looking to be more connected and contactable than ever before, whilst simultaneously seeking privacy. Can the two ideas live side by side? It's a tricky balancing act, but many people turn to VPN tools to increase their security and privacy online.

Opera is the first web browser to bundle a free VPN tool as standard (with unlimited VPN data, no less), and it's hard to imagine that the competition won’t follow suit. Nothing has yet been announced, but the appearance of versions of Chrome or Firefox with integrated VPN would hardly be a surprise -- or would it? And how would you feel about a VPN tool supplied by Google?

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Years ago, personal computing and the internet was a hobby reserved for those with a lot of money. Unlike today where you can buy a Chromebook for under $200, a desktop could cost $3,000 or more -- preventing many from participating. In other words, even in many of the richest countries in the world, many people could not afford to surf the web.

Nowadays, however, the number of people owning internet-connected devices has exploded. Heck, many households have multiple such devices and Wi-Fi is ubiquitous. Sadly, not everyone in the world has internet access, and many folks are computer illiterate -- including oppressed women in some countries. Thankfully, Mozilla is looking to change this by making the internet more inclusive.

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Security has been in the news since Edward Snowden; before actually, just not as prominently. Now, in recent weeks, the headlines have focused on Apple over its iPhone dispute with the FBI, a saga that seems to have come to an end recently.

That is not, however, the only security that needs to be part of our daily lives. Web browsers represent yet another problem and most are working to add layers of protection for customers.

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A growing number of major players in the tech industry are now in support for blocking ads. Apple offers this kind of feature in Safari on iOS, ASUS bundles AdBlock Plus on its mobile devices, while Three, a major UK carrier, blocks ads at the network level. And, as of today, Opera Software is also a member of this group.

Opera Software just announced that its desktop browser -- which is available on Windows, OS X and Linux -- will come with a built-in ad-blocker, which is a first for a major browser. The feature can be tested now in the Developer channel version of Opera and, once it is deemed ready for prime time, it will make its way to the public version of the browser.

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Mozilla has unveiled Firefox 45 FINAL, its desktop browser for Mac, Linux and Windows. The new release focuses its changes on the browser’s use of tabs, and also becomes the base for the new Extended Support Release.

New features include instant tab sharing in Hello and a new Synced Tabs button, but one feature has been removed: Tab Groups.

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Anti-tracking company Ghostery has updated its Firefox add-on to version 6.0 in what the developer is calling "the most significant upgrade to Ghostery since its inception".

The interface has been redesigned, with a new dashboard giving an immediate view of the trackers on a site, revamped menus and alerts, and assorted beginner-friendly usability tweaks ("Whitelist Site" is now "Trust Site").

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You’re browsing the web, find some interesting text, copy and paste it elsewhere… And then realize it’s got all the original formatting, now entirely unnecessary. And maybe an unwanted image, too.

Copy Plain Text is a Firefox add-on which supports copying plain text only, and adds some handy text processing extras as well.

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Have we heard enough about the Internet of Things yet, or is it only just the tip of the iceberg? There are more players in this game all the time, and the latest is Mozilla. Yes, the folks who produce the Firefox web browser, among other things.

The move isn't entirely new, the organization alluded to moving its operating system here already. To date Mozilla has been testing products to bring into the fold, and it is moving forward with its plans.

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Following on from the announcement that Firefox OS would no longer be developed for smartphones, Mozilla has explained the thinking behind the decision (failures on its part) and also revealed that Firefox OS will continue to live on in other devices.

The operating system is already used to power Panasonic SmartTVs, and this is set to continue. This will certainly come as good news to owners of such TVs, but Mozilla says that the OS stack will be used in a range of Connected Devices.

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In mid-July 2011, Mozilla announced that it would speed up the release schedule for Firefox, bringing it down to just six weeks between major versions. Firefox 5 and subsequent releases have been impacted by this decision, bringing new features and changes to users at a faster pace. Fast forward to today, and the organization decides to relax things a bit.

After studying the fixed -- so-called "Train Model" -- release schedule process "carefully" and learning "a lot" from it in the past years, Mozilla has announced that Firefox is now moving to a variable release schedule.

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Mozilla has released Firefox 44 FINAL for Windows, Mac and Linux, with Firefox 44 for Android hot on its heels. Like the previous release, the most visible changes are reserved for the mobile build.

Android users gain support for cloud printing and improved search tools, while desktop users can now watch H.264 video on supported systems. Most other changes are under the hood or aimed at developers.

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It’s been a busy year for security firms everywhere -- cyber-attacks, malware, ransomware and other malicious online behavior reached new heights in 2015.

Those are the results of a report by Bromium, a company which deals in threat isolation in service of data breach prevention. Its report, entitled Endpoint Exploitation Trends 2015 analyzed the security risks of popular websites and software.

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If you have an online porn habit you like to indulge from time to time, you're probably well-acquainted with Chrome's Incognito mode. Like Microsoft Edge's InPrivate browsing, and Firefox's Private browsing, Google's browser includes a mode that can be used to keep your browsing secret. At least that's the idea...

One gamer and unashamed porn consumer found that his X-rated browsing sessions were exposed by Diablo III. Running the game on his Mac, Evan Andersen found that cached images from his Incognito browsing sessions were displayed as the RPG title loaded. He managed to grab screenshots of the bug in action, and even went as far as writing a program to show what's happening.

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In less than a week, Microsoft will only offer support for Internet Explorer 11 and Microsoft Edge. As of Tuesday 12 January, Internet Explorer 8, 9 and 10 will die. The aging browsers will receive one more update, and then will be consigned to the trash.

Tuesday is the day that older versions of IE reach the end of their support cycles, and Microsoft is keen for everyone to move to either Microsoft Edge or -- for the diehards -- Internet Explorer 11. If you have not already made the switch (or jumped to Chrome or Firefox), one more patch, KB3123303, will pester you into upgrading.

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