Overclock3D.Net :: Print Page :: Mozilla prepares to release Firefox 3

Mozilla has confirmed that the 17th June will be the official release date for Firefox 3. Mozilla will also be trying to set a world record for the most software downloaded in 24 hours. The total number of unique downloads that take place on release day will be submitted for potential inclusion in the Guinness World Records.

In the past many Firefox users have waited to update to the latest release of Firefox until their favourite add-ons were supported. This time around it appears that some add-ons will be discontinued, but there may be some alternatives that you can use:

Mozilla Product Manager Alex Polvi has written a brief overview that explains the current status of the most popular add-ons. Some of my favorites, like Greasemonkey, Firebug, and Stylish are now all compatible with Firefox 3.

Unfortunately, Google Browser Sync is being discontinued and will no longer be supported. Google recommends that users adopt Mozilla Weave or Foxmarks.

Mozilla's add-on team has been hard at work getting a new version of the add-on web site ready in time for the release. The new site includes a theme browser that displays thumbnails and a new advanced search system, as well as numerous improvements for developers.

Furthermore, rumour has it that planning is already underway for Firefox 3.1 (codenamed Shiretoko) and that we may see an alpha release as early as July.

Prominent user interface features planned for the 3.1 release include tab previews and tag auto-completion. Developers also plan to add several new features to Firefox's Gecko rendering engine such as the HTML 5 video element and CSS text shadows.