Firefox 3

[Lemur]

The new Fox is out today. Linky. seems the team is trying to set an all-time record for number of downloads in a single day. Why not give 'em a boost?

-edit-

Here's a review of the new Fox.

On top of the interface tweaks are a whole raft of new and improved features. There’s an easier to use password manager, a download manager that is a pleasure to use (which supports resumable downloads), better find system, and a totally revamped and very intuitive address bar. [...]

Then there are the beefed up security systems. Firefox 3.0 tries its best to keep the user away from bad sites by giving them the information they need to come to an informed decision about the validity of a website.

Added to this is the ability to integrate with antivirus software and parental controls so grown ups can reign control over little Johnny’s browsing.

Under the hood the Mozilla dev team have worked hard to improve the speed, memory usage and reliability of the browser. Firefox 3.0 is not only the fastest browser available, its memory footprint has been dramatically reduced.

Even if you have superfast Internet connection, you’ll notice a huge difference if you compare say, accessing your GMail account using Firefox 3.0 and Internet Explorer 7. Firefox 3.0 isn’t just faster, it’s noticeably faster.

[TevashSzat]

What are the changes to the download manager? I must say that is probably the sole reason that I am currently using Opera instead of Firefox. I don't know why, but I just hate that download manager terribly and can't stand to use it

[Lemur]

Hmm, yeah, I had problems downloading some mods with FireFox, it kept conking out (server side problems) and was too stupid to resume the download. After several frustrated attempts to download the Fallout Civ3 Mod, I picked up this: DownThemAll. Actually, here's their main site, that was a review.

Check it out and see if it answers for your DL problems ...

[Martok]

I want to get FF3 eventually, but will probably be holding off for a while at least, as some of the forums I visit have stated it'll be a while yet before they're fully compatible with the newest version. Still looking forward to it, though.

[caravel]

I'm on it now, looking good so far. I am getting sick of having google pushed down my throat with every new release however, but that's easily take care of.

[Lemur]

Okay, this may not be life-changing for you, but it's sweeter than powdered kittens to me: Set Firefox 3 to Launch Gmail for mailto Links. This hack makes me way happier than it ought to.

[CountArach]

Just downloaded it - it looks more slick and professional. I like.

[Xiahou]

I'm still pretty happy with FF2. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure I'll move to FF3 before too long- but there's no need to rush imo.

[Husar]

I agree with Xiahou.

And in other news, the new Opera 9.50 is out since a few days and looks pretty nice as well, comes with some improvements as well but I forgot which.

Now that I think about it, when will they bring the image scaling of firefox to Opera's level and where's the "fit to width" button? Those are two things which are infinitely better in Opera, scaled pictures can look very bad in FF and being able to nicely fit everything to the width of my browser window was a feature I missed sometimes as well(Recommendations of appropriate addons will be accepted as well ).

Also, how does the new FF handle the old addons and bookmarks? Can you just upgrade and keep everything or does it require a reinstall of the whole browser?

[Omanes Alexandrapolites]

I've been using Firefox 3 since BETA 2 back around January time and I've generally liked what I saw in terms of features. I've had a few reservations about the theme, particularly the blueness on Vista, but I'm warming to it now and I'm beginning to get used to it.

Also, how does the new FF handle the old addons and bookmarks? Can you just upgrade and keep everything or does it require a reinstall of the whole browser?

Upgrades with Firefox are fast and simple - all add-ons and bookmarks are saved in a single folder which is read by all versions of Firefox. Architectural changes may cause add-ons to stop functioning until a compatible version appears though - originally, in the early BETAs this was quite bad, but most add-on developers have worked on updating their extensions for the latest versions.

[CountArach]

Also, how does the new FF handle the old addons and bookmarks? Can you just upgrade and keep everything or does it require a reinstall of the whole browser?

All of mine work perfectly fine.

[Pannonian]

Just upgraded, and I like it better than 2.0.0.6. Had to find a few alternative add-ons though, such as firegestures instead of all-in-one, but I really miss tab groups. Does anyone know of any equivalent of tab groups that works with 3.0?

[InsaneApache]

Is Clint Eastwood still in it?

[discovery1]

Is Clint Eastwood still in it?

Oh man....

still on FF2 here. thinking about upgrading since I was unhappy with something, cant remember what.

[naut]

Ad-Block doesn't have a compatible version yet. Otherwise it looks very slick and is very fast.

[Praxil]

One thing I don't get is the theme in those FF3 previews, is it Vista exclusive or something like that? Because I'm using the default 3.0 theme and it's nothing like the one in the screenshots.

[CountArach]

Ad-Block doesn't have a compatible version yet. Otherwise it looks very slick and is very fast.

Its out now.

[Xiahou]

I decided to run it off of my PortableApps drive as a test. Looks nice, works nice- I'll probably "deploy" it on my home network soon.

[Omanes Alexandrapolites]

One thing I don't get is the theme in those FF3 previews, is it Vista exclusive or something like that? Because I'm using the default 3.0 theme and it's nothing like the one in the screenshots.

It varies from OS to OS, looking different on each operating system. It's all part of an attempt to ensure maximum platform integration. You can read more on the new themes and their development here.

[Praxil]

It varies from OS to OS, looking different on each operating system. It's all part of an attempt to ensure maximum platform integration. You can read more on the new themes and their development here.

Yeah, like I thought. I think they made nice looking default theme for Vista...

[Husar]

It's about time people get Vista (x64) anyway. Well, if Xiahou says it's fine, maybe I should try it now.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Also I wanted to mention Opera again.

edit: I've done it, it's horrible, 3 addons that do not work, two are not that important, the custom theme, well the new standard theme isn't ugly anymore so that 's okay, the real player video recording plugin, not missed.

But my OPERA-style sidebar..........!
I don't know how long they have before I snap and it won't be pretty, it just won't be pretty if I have to use outdated, complicated methods to get to my bookmarked sites for long.

edit two: My good friend Elite Ferret just informed me about Ctrl+B, that should do for a while. May he be praised. I wonder why I didn't find that when searching through all the options...

[Adrian II]

edit two: My good friend Elite Ferret just informed me about Ctrl+B, that should do for a while.

Yup, and [Ctrl + Shift + B] allows you to organize your bookmarks as well.

I have installed FF3 yesterday and it seems fine, the Vista look is acceptable to me. And it's fast!

Howver, I have trouble tweaking my Outlook Web Access in FF3. It looks horrible, and I can't find half the functions. Does anyone know how to tweak it?

[Omanes Alexandrapolites]

That's a problem with the web access function. A while ago I started taking Firefox portable to work with me and I observed that the functionality of the online program was fairly limited on the browser. This is the case with a lot of company applications which run within a web browser.

The only solution, sadly, is to use IE's "Trident" engine for the application. You can make this possible in Firefox through this add-on though which may be of interest to you.

[Adrian II]

The only solution, sadly, is to use IE's "Trident" engine for the application. You can make this possible in Firefox through this add-on though which may be of interest to you.

Tanx, bubba. I'ma try that.

I did a comparative speed test today and Opera 9.5 came first, FF3 a remote second and EI third. Opera is still way faster than anything else. It is also way smaller after install, even though it has most of the functions that FF3 has.

I'll let the mail issue decide between Opera and FF; whichever handles my Outlook Web Access best gets my undivided loyalty.

EDIT
The IE tab in FF3 works terrifically! Thank you for the tip, Omanes Alexandrapolites.

It's FF3 for me.