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Firefox 4

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Mozilla Firefox 4
Original author(s)Mozilla Corporation
Developer(s)Mozilla Corporation
Mozilla Foundation
Repository
Written inC++, JavaScript,[1] CSS,[2][3] XUL, XBL
EngineGecko
Operating systemCross-platform
PlatformWindows
Mac OS X
Linux
BSD
Solaris
OpenSolaris
GNU
AmigaOS 4
Available in24 languages
TypeWeb browser
FTP client
LicenseMPL/GNU GPL/GNU LGPL[4]
Websitewww.firefox.com/beta/
Related articles
Origins and lineage
Category

Mozilla Firefox 4 is the upcoming version of the Mozilla Firefox web browser. The first beta was released on July 6, 2010, and the full release is tentatively scheduled for release in November 2010.

Firefox 4 will bring a new, "faster" user interface.[5] Developments slated for Firefox 4 include a new Account Manager,[6] improved notifications, application tabs, and a redesigned extension manager.[7] Additionally, Firefox 4 will add support for WebM, WebGL, multitouch displays,[8] and will be the first time 64-bit builds are made for Firefox.[9] It will also come with improved HTML5[10] and CSS3 support, and a new JavaScript engine called JägerMonkey.[11]

Firefox 4 is the first version of Firefox to drop native support of the Gopher protocol, however, continued support is available through the OverbiteFF add-on.[12] Firefox 4 will also include native 64-bit support, making Firefox the first among its browser competitors to have a 64-bit release. [13] A 64-bit version of the Adobe Flash plugin, "Square", allows users to experience Flash in Firefox 4. [14]

Features

Mozilla Firefox 4 includes many changes new to Firefox since version 3.6.[15] Many changes were made to the user interface. By default, tabs are now on the top of the window.[16] The "stop", "go", and "refresh" options will be combined into a single button which dynamically changes based on the current state.[17] On Windows Vista and Windows 7, the menu bar will be hidden by default and the most common actions will be moved to a new "Firefox" button in the upper left hand corner of the browser (similar to the menu button found in Opera).

Users will be able to create "app tabs". There will also be a similar tab called the "home tab", which can contain either the users homepage or a built-in page.[18]

The preferences and add-ons manager windows will also be redesigned. "Door hanger" notifications will replace the current "bar" notifications, which can easily be spoofed by a web page.

JägerMonkey engine

Main article: JägerMonkey

The JägerMonkey engine provides an improvement for non-traceable JavaScript, compared to the TraceMonkey engine it replaces.[11] TraceMonkey in the Firefox 3.x era was lagging behind other contemporary JavaScript engines, and performance dropped when code was not traceable. The new engine improves on the existing interpreter by compiling all JavaScript into machine code.[19]

Hardware acceleration

Since Firefox 4.0 Beta 5, hardware acceleration is enabled by default on Windows Vista and Windows 7 machines using Direct2D.[20] Using hardware acceleration allows the browser to tap into the computer's graphics processing unit, lifting the burden from the CPU while allowing pages to be rendered much faster.

Development

Nightly builds were marked as 4.0a1pre between February and June of 2008,[21][22] but were renamed to 3.1a1pre afterward.

Firefox 3.7 (Gecko 1.9.3) Alpha 1 was released on February 10, 2010.[23][24] Alpha 2 was released on March 1, 2010, Alpha 3 was released on March 17, Alpha 4 was released on April 12, 2010, and Alpha 5 was released on June 16. The version number was changed to 4.0 (and Gecko's was changed to 2.0) starting with the first beta, released on July 6. The second beta was released on July 27. The third beta was released on August 11. The fourth beta was released on August 24. The fifth beta was released on September 7. The sixth beta was released on September 14. The seventh beta is tentatively scheduled for the second half of September.[25] The official release of Firefox 4 is tentatively scheduled for November 2010.

The Gecko layout engine will be improved to support more HTML5 and CSS3 features. As well as this, the Firefox Sync project will be integrated into the browser to allow users to sync things such as bookmarks and history with the cloud. A new type of tab, called an application tab, can be placed in the tab bar. It is similar to the Mozilla Prism project, which allows web pages (such as Gmail) to become applications.

References

  1. ^ "Firefox's addons are written in JavaScript". Rietta.com. Retrieved 2009-12-19.
  2. ^ "Firefox uses an "html.css" stylesheet for default rendering styles". Davidwalsh.name. Retrieved 2009-12-19.
  3. ^ "The Firefox addon, Stylish takes advantage of Firefox's CSS rendering to change the appearance of Firefox". Userstyles.org. Retrieved 2009-12-19.
  4. ^ http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/legal/eula/
  5. ^ "Mozilla spills plan for, yes, Firefox 4". The Register. 2010-05-10. Retrieved 2010-05-10.
  6. ^ Dan Mills (2010-04-27). "Account Manager coming to Firefox". Retrieved 2010-05-28.
  7. ^ Stephen Shankland (2010-05-11). "Firefox 4 release plan: The need for speed". cnet. Retrieved 2010-05-28.
  8. ^ Stephen Shankland (2010-05-28). "Mozilla prepares coders for Firefox 4 features". cnet. Retrieved 2010-05-28.
  9. ^ Beltzner, Mike (2010-05-10). "Firefox 4: fast, powerful, and empowering". Retrieved 2010-05-10.
  10. ^ Henri Sivonen (2010-05-11). "Firefox 4 HTML 5 parser". Retrieved 2010-05-11.
  11. ^ a b David Mandelin (2010-02-26). "Starting JägerMonkey".
  12. ^ "Firefox 4 for Developers - MDC". 2010-08-25.
  13. ^ "What to Expect from Firefox 4". 2010-05-11.
  14. ^ "Flash Player "Square" Preview Release". 2010-09-15.
  15. ^ "Firefox 4.0 beta 1 release notes". Retrieved 2010-07-07.
  16. ^ [1]
  17. ^ "Firefox/4.0 Windows Theme Mockups - MozillaWiki". Mozilla. 2009-07-27. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
  18. ^ "Firefox Home Tab". Mozilla.
  19. ^ "Early work on Firefox's new Javascript engine nets big speed gains". 2010-02-27.
  20. ^ "Firefox 4: hardware acceleration". Mozilla. 2010-09-07.
  21. ^ FTP.Mozilla.org
  22. ^ FTP.Mozilla.org
  23. ^ "Platform/2010-02-02 - Mozilla Wiki". Mozilla. 2010-02-02. Retrieved 2010-02-06.
  24. ^ http://www.mozilla.org/projects/firefox/3.7a1/releasenotes/
  25. ^ https://wiki.mozilla.org/Releases/

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Firefox_4&oldid=386043096"