Mozilla to release Firefox 1.5 Tuesday

Macworld ^ | 11/29/2005 | Elizabeth Montalbano

[Panerai]

After a host of test releases and one false start, a new version of the Firefox browser will be ready on Tuesday, according to a media alert issued by the Mozilla Foundation on Monday.

Firefox 1.5 will be available for free on Tuesday afternoon, U.S. Pacific Standard Time, at www.getfirefox.com and www.mozilla.com, according to the open-source group. A complete press release outlining the new features in Firefox 1.5, as well as some additional Mozilla news, will be issued at the time the new version is available.

New features in Firefox 1.5 include a better system for updating software, faster navigation using the “Back” and “Forward” tabs, and a redesigned Options/Preferences window that increases the number of category icons and moves them from the left side of the window to the top.

Firefox 1.5 also includes new support for Web standards, adding support for Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), JavaScript 1.6 and new versions of CSS (Cascading Style Sheets). SVG is a language based on XML (Extensible Markup Language) for writing sophisticated two-dimensional graphics, and JavaScript 1.6 is the latest version of the scripting language. CSS is a W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) standard for adding style elements, such as fonts, colors and spacing, to Web documents

In addition, the Firefox update adds better pop-up blocking and a host of security enhancements, according to Mozilla. Other new features include the addition of Answers.com to Firefox’s list of search engines and a Clear Private Data function that allows users to quickly remove personal data through a menu item or keyboard shortcut.

Firefox, which celebrated its one-year anniversary Nov. 9, has become a popular alternative to Microsoft Corp.’s Internet Explorer browser. Last month, downloads of Firefox topped 100 million.

[TommyDale]

I hope it works better with PDF files and Acrobat.

[Vaquero]

Never heard of Mazilla or Firefox before last month when the company installed it in all the computers here at work....

.....I miss I.E. ....but then I am no computer geek, nor do I play one on TV.

[ShadowAce]

[Zuben Elgenubi]

I just checked my Help/About Mozilla pull down menu and it states I've got version 1.5

[USS Alaska]

I'm no confuser geek, but have been using Firefox since January and one thing I like about is you can change font sizes by using the "control key" with the + or -, keys, which is very useful when jumping between online stories and replies on FR etc.

[ShadowAce]

That's the release candidate. I've got the same thing. The final is due out today. (~5 hours from now)

[markedmannerf]

If you want a simple PDF reader that doesnt take 500 years to load like Acrobat get foxit. It works great opens pdf files very fast. I have yet to find something better. Works great with firefox.

[savedbygrace]

placemarker

[Red Badger]

You poor thing! Stuck on .....uh,.....IE.............

[Red Badger]

I just checked my Help/About Mozilla pull down menu and it states I've got version 1.5

You've got a virus infected copy! Delete and re-format your hard drive immediately or we'll all be infected!!!!!!!!!!!!(just kidding)...........

[markedmannerf]

I must say your company was very wise to make this move. Considering Firefox only has 3 security holes.
http://secunia.com/advisories/15601/

And IE has 21 security holes!!
http://secunia.com/product/11/

You tell me which one is more secure!

[antiRepublicrat]

I hope it works better with PDF files and Acrobat.

You may be using Acrobat 6. That was buggy.

[markedmannerf]

you probably have the beta verison of 1.5

[4rcane]

You forget Opera 8.5. It has no security holes

[Bosco]

I got RC1 and just yesterday it automatically updated to the full release.

[TommyDale]

It's a hassle to load yet another program to read Adobe files, since I am required to actually make Adobe files with Acrobat for business purposes. Firefox should work better with the PDF downloads.

[TomGuy]

I've used Speed Up Adobe Reader for a couple of years. It really works to speed up Reader loading time, even in browser plug-ins.

http://www.tnk-bootblock.co.uk/prods/misc/index.php

First item on above web link

[TommyDale]

"You may be using Acrobat 6. That was buggy."

So am I expected to spend several hundred dollars MORE to get Adobe to work with Firefox? Why can't the bugs get fixed?

[Panerai]

It's not Firefox that's the problem, it's Adobe Acrobat that's slow.