What is Firefox?
Firefox is the free, award winning preview of Mozilla's next generation browser. Firefox empowers you to browse faster, more safely and efficiently than with any other browser. Firefox is a free, open-source web browser for Windows, Linux and MacOS X and is based on the Mozilla codebase. It is small, fast and easy to use, and offers many advantages over Internet Explorer, such as the ability to block pop-up windows, block unrequested software from being installed, and total control of every everything from themes to hundreds of settings of the browser.
Features
- Tabbed Browsing - View more than one web page in a single window with this time saving feature. Makes surfing the web faster.
- Pop-Up Blocking - Stop annoying popup ads in their tracks with Firefox's built in popup blocker. No more annoying pop-up advertisements!
- Smart Update - Firefox becomes the first browser to have the feature to keep itself up-to-date.
- Information bar - If a popup or XPI install is blocked, then the information bar appears, telling the user what has happened. No more pop-ups or unrequested software being installed on your computer.
- Plug-in Manager - If you are browsing a page that requires a Plug-in that is not installed on your system, Firefox can automatically detect this and ask you if you would like to install the paticular plug-in so that you can view the media.
- Find toolbar - This appears at the bottom of the browser window (above the status bar) when you press ’ (for link text) or / (for all text) outside of a text area, and works like Find As You Type did, except it’s a bit more intuitive.
- Livemarks - If a page has an RSS feed, a red 'RSS' icon appears in the status bar, clicking on it lets you choose a Livemark to add to your bookmarks.
- Customizable Toolbars - The toolbars are completely customizable, allowing you to add and remove by drag and dropping items (buttons, search field, bookmarks, etc.) to the toolbars as well as create new toolbars.
- Extension Management - Extensions are very small programs (or plug-ins) that add new functionality to Firefox. Some examples are: Calculator, spell checker, and an Advertisement blocker.
- Personalize with Themes - A theme can change anything from just the toolbar buttons to the whole browser appearance. You can download and install themes with just a few clicks.
- Smarter Search - Google Search is built right into the toolbar, and there are a plethora of other search tools including Keywords (type "dict <word>" in the Location Bar).
- Modern Download Manager - A user has complete control over the active and inactive downloads.
- Fast and Convenient Sidebar - History and Bookmark sidebar for fast and easy access to the history or your bookmarks.
- Seamless Migration - Seamless importing of your data and bookmarks from other major browsers to Firefox.
- Privacy and Security - Built with your Security in mind, Firefox keeps your computer safe from malicious spyware by not loading harmful ActiveX controls and installing of unrequested software. Firefox also connects to Secure servers with 256-bit encryption (Internet Explorer only uses 128-bit encryption). A comprehensive set of privacy tools keep your online activity your business.
- Setup's a Snap - At only 4.5MB (Windows), Firefox only takes minutes to download over a fast connection. The installer gets you set up quickly, and the new Easy Transition system imports all of your settings - Favorites, passwords and other data from Internet Explorer and other browsers - so you can start surfing right away.
- Fits Like a Glove - Simple and intuitive, yet fully featured, Firefox has all the functions you're used to - Bookmarks, History, Full Screen, Text Zooming to make pages with small text easier to read, etc.
- S M L XL XXL XXXL - Firefox is the most customizable browser on the planet. Customize your toolbars to add additional buttons, install new Extensions that add new features, add new Themes to browse with style, and use the adaptive search system to allow you to search an infinite number of engines. Firefox is as big or small as you want.
- A Developer's Best Friend - Firefox comes with a standard set of developer tools including a powerful JavaScript and CSS error/warning console, and an optional Document Inspector that gives unheard of insight into how your pages work.
- Firefox is Free - Not a feautre but still worth mentioning. Firefox is completely 100% free! No banners, ads, spyware, pop-up windows...nothing!!!
System Requirements
Before installing, make sure your computer meets the system requirements:
- Windows 98 and higher
- Mac OS X and higher
- Red Hat Linux 7.0 and higher
Links
Homepage: http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/
Download: http://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/fir...releases/1.0.1/
Themes: http://update.mozilla.org/themes/?application=firefox
Extensions: http://update.mozilla.org/extensions/?application=firefox
Nightly Builds: http://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/fir...y/latest-trunk/
Nightly builds are recommended for experienced users. These builds are the least stable but the most up-to-date. Normally, new builds are released on a daily basis. If you download a build and it doesn't work, try the one from the day before or the day after. Remember, this isn't a finished product.
Installation
There are two ways for Windows users to install Firefox: Using an Installer or compressed (zipped) file.
- Installer: Very straight forward installation.
- Compressed (zipped) file: Once you have downloaded the compressed (zipped) file, use Winzip or gzip to uncompress Firefox to an empty folder. Navigate to the folder you placed the files in. If you're running Windows, start the firefox.exe file.
What's the difference between Firefox and Mozilla?
Mozilla is a complete suite of web related applications, such as a browser, a mail/news client, a chat client and much more. Firefox is just a browser, which makes it a better choice if you already have a mail client for example. Also, since Firefox is smaller than the whole Mozilla suite, it's faster and easier to use.
Note, though, that Firefox is not just the standalone Mozilla browser. The user interface in Firefox differs from Mozilla in many ways. For example, Firefox has customizable toolbars.
Why should I use Firefox instead of other browsers?
- Ben Goodger (Primary Engineer on the Mozilla Firebird browser project) has written an excellent document covering the main reasons why you should use Firefox instead of other browsers on the market.
- U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT) issued a warning saying that users shouldn't use Internet Explorer, so why not try Firefox?
- MSN Slate Magazine: "Firefox trumps Internet Explorer"
Yes, Firefox and all other Mozilla-based products are more secure. Why? Here is a list of the most important reasons:
- It is not integrated with Windows, which helps prevent viruses and hackers from causing damage if they somehow manage to compromise Firefox.
- There is no support for VBScript and ActiveX, two technologies which are the reasons for many IE security holes.
- If you’re connected to a secure site, then the address bar will have a padlock by the arrow on the right and the background will turn yellow. The padlock also appears on the status bar as normal. Therefore, if the address bar isn’t yellow, then it’s not safe to give over credit card details. Incidently, I was connected to Paypal.com with 256-bit encryption - IE can only manage 128-bit, so your data is even safer.
- No spyware/adware software can automatically install in Firefox just by visiting a web site.
- Firefox doesn't use Microsoft's Java VM, which has a history of more flaws than other Java VMs.
- You have complete control over cookies.
Yes! Firefox is open source software, meaning that anyone have the right download and use the browser for free, and view and modify the source code under the terms of the license.
What are themes?
Themes are skins for Firefox, they allow you to change the look and feel of the browser and personalize it to your tastes. A theme can simply change the colors of Firefox or it can change every piece of the browser appearance. (Download Themes Here)
Some of the more popluar themes are:
- Qute 3 - The original and most popular theme (Screenshot)
- Noia Extreme 2.79 - Theme is based on the Noia2.0 icon set by Carlitus (Screenshot)
- Firefox Modern 1.0.3 - Mozilla Suite theme clone for Firefox (Screenshot)
Firefox Extensions is the name for various enhancements to the browsing experience in Firefox. They can be thought of as small programs (or add-ons) that add new functionality to Firefox. The great thing about extensions is that they allow Firefox to stay small and unbloated. Anyone who require more features can download the appropriate extension. (Download Extensions Here)
Some of the more popluar extensions are:
- Adblock - Once installed, it's a snap to filter elements at their source-address. Just right-click: Adblock: done. Filters use either the wildcard character (*) or full Regular Expression syntax. Hit the status-element and see what has or hasn't been blocked.
- Tabbrowser Preference - Add-on package for extending operations of tabbed browsing, for example tabs become reorderable by drag and drop.
- All-in-One Gestures - This extension allows you to execute common commands using mouse gestures, rocker navigation, scroll wheel navigation and page scrolling.
- Reload Every - Reloads webpages every so many seconds or minutes.
- User Agent Switcher - If a site doesnt allow the user to view the page in firefox you can easily make the site think that you're using IE or Opera, etc.
There are a few ways to backup your profile. The easiest way, I think, is to download and run this small program called MozBackup. MozBackup is a freeware utility for creating backups of Mozilla, Firefox, Thunderbird and Netscape profiles. It allows you to backup mail, favorites, contacts, etc. (Download Installer or Zip)
Other Useful Links:
Official Firefox FAQ
Keyboard Shortcuts
Mouse Shortcuts
Explains what every option does in the options menu
Firefox Forums
Current Know bugs and the status of them (Great for reporting bugs, getting patches for them or just users explaining how to fix your problem)
Report A Bug
Firefox Speed Tweaks
Neoufo51 of the Neowin and also Laszlo and Cusser from the Mozillazine forums have put together 3 different user.js files that are optimized for Dial-up, DSL, and Cable. I'd recommend giving these a try. And don't forget to read. the readme first. (Download Here)
For the more advanced users (but don't be scared to try though)
Run Firefox from a USB memory stick
1. Copy the Firefox application folder and your profile folder to the removable media. In this example we will use R:\Firefox for the application folder and R:\FFProfile as the profile folder, assuming the drive letter for the removable media is R:.
2. Create a simple batch file called R:\Firefox.bat with the following line:
CODE
start \Firefox\firefox.exe -profile \FFProfile
3. Optionally, disable the disk cache to reduce the amounts of file writes to the removable storage by entering about:config in the address field of Firefox and set browser.cache.disk.enable to false.
A little more detail to on how to run off a USB memory stick
MozUpdate
MozUpdate automates the process of downloading, installing, and uninstalling Windows builds of various Mozilla products. (Great for Firefox nightly testers) (Screenshot)
Features:
- Capable of downloading, installing, upgrading, and uninstalling the latest stable and nightly builds of the Mozilla Application Suite, Mozilla Firefox, and Mozilla Thunderbird.
- Performs clean upgrades while retaining custom plugins and settings (perfect for users who frequently install nightly builds).
- Optionally creates Start Menu, Desktop, and Quick Launch bar shortcuts.
- Keeps itself up to date automatically. Mozilla build information and download URLs are retrieved from the MozUpdate website, and MozUpdate will give you the option of automatically upgrading if a newer version of itself is available.
- Install/uninstall one build at a time or multiple builds at once.
- Simple, easy to use GUI interface.
- 100% free open source software.
userChrome.css
You can use these hacks to change the appearance of Firefox by hiding menus, hiding the separator bars, removing menus or even move the tabbar to the bottom. (Link to the userchrome.css guide)
User.js
User.js is a file that the user has to create. Basically it is for the more advanced user to edit behind the scenes settings of Firefox. I have wrote a little guide to creating and editing the user.js file and included about 60 different settings that you can apply. (Link to the user.js guide)
UserContent.css
The UserContent.css file sets the display rules for web content.. (Link to the UserContent.css guide)
This guide is no where near complete. There are a load more things to add to this guide. I will be editing it from time to time when I get more time on my hands.
firefox b00bs?!?!?!?!
