Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Have you tried Firefox version 2?

I've recently begun using the newest upgrade of Firefox, version 2.0.0.1. I like it a lot!

When it first came out, I decided to keep using verion 1.5, and see what happened with other people before using version 2 myself. Now it's been out for a while, it's had a minor upgrade, and it's getting good reviews, so I'm giving it a whirl.

It's been a nice suprise, as it has many small but useful features. Here is a link to a review that goes over some of those features:

PRODUCT REVIEW
Firefox 2.0: Subtle Changes, Big Difference
Most of the new features in Mozilla's Firefox 2.0 aren't readily apparent, even to a seasoned Firefox aficionado. Once a user digs a little deeper, however, the new tools and capabilities become more obvious. Phishing protection automatically investigates suspect e-mail, an enhanced search tool suggests additional terms and Session Restore can save the user after a crash. [...]

As a blogger, I've really gotten into using tabbing. Tabs are so much easier than having multiple windows open, it's been a real time saver. This latest version of Firefox has even managed to make the use of tabs even better!


It used to be that there was one "X" button at the right of the tabs, and you had to use it to close whichever tab was active (or in the forefront). Now each tab has it's own "X" button, and you can close it without having it in the forefront.

If you accidentally close a tab, you can easily bring it back by finding and selecting it under "history".

There are many more useful features. You can download Firefox 2 here:

Firefox 2 - Rediscover the web.

The page this link goes to also has three links on it, labeled "Enjoy a Better Web Experience", "Enjoy a Better Web Experience" and "Personalize Your Browser". Each will tell you a lot more about the features version 2 offers.

Firefox 2 is free to download and use, and is available for Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems. Check it out, I think you'll be glad you did.
     

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Did they fix the problem of everything audio or visual playing at the same time - even if autostart=false is coded?! I've seen nothing but problems with FireFox. I use them both. Like to post music and videos and Firefox is nothing but noise if I used it to travel.

Dionne said...

A friend of mine who is much more computer literate than I put firefox on my computer for me and then did something (I assume put this updated version on) because I now have spellcheck from firefox on everything I write. It is awesome. I like firefox quite a bit more than Internet explorer.

Anonymous said...

Spellcheck is good! What do you do about the overlapping sound?

Chas said...

LMC,

I had noticed the spell-check while using blogger, and thought it might be something blogger was doing. Now I see it's Firefox. Way cool! It works really well. That's gonna come in mighty handy.

Chrys,
I'm not sure what you mean by the overlapping sound. I haven't noticed anything unusual, but I don't deal much with music files, either.

Were you using version 2.0.0.0? The latest is 2.0.0.1. Perhaps the problem's been fixed?

Is there a particular website where you see this problem? If you post the url here, perhaps I could visit there and test it.

Anonymous said...

People would come to my site and tell me they liked the music. The music would be from a video set on "autostart="false" Then when I go to my site where the autostart is marked "false" music I've posted AND videos ALL begin to play?!

You may be on to something. I HOPE they've upgraded this away so I don't have to "hate" FireFux! lol

You might go to pettifog.us in the next day some time and see if Bruce and the Capitol "spray paint" video both start playing. THEN we'll know for sure.
It would be nice to know that it actually works now!

Chas said...

OK, I think I'm clear on the concept now. I visited pettifog.us, your "current music" link on the right sidebar begins playing automatically. It's the only thing I can hear playing. You have a YouTube video at the top of the page now, and it was NOT automatically playing.

I was able to turn the music link off, and then play the Youtube video.

I tried it on another computer with the 1.5 version of Firefox. It was the same, so perhaps the Firefox problem you had with 2.0 is fixed?

On both browsers, the Youtube graphic didn't appear the first time, there was just the empty space; I had to reload the page to see it. But I've noticed that Youtube can be fussy that way, it doesn't always load the first time on my blog either.

If you intended the music to play automatically, then I would guess everything in working as it should.

Anonymous said...

Nope - You now see what I mean. I'm surprised that the You Tube didn't start on it's own also. Maybe they have it partly under control.

I keep the music on "autostart="false" to keep the noise down for people who may not want it.

I've made sure that all my themes work in FireFox out of respect. More than a lot of FireFox people do for the IE people who still consist of most of their viewers.

Just irritated that I either have to quit posting sound or be annoying!

Thanks Chas for taking the time to check and see if the FireFox upgrade works. Very much expected from such a kind gentleman type! ;-)

It's still FireFux to me! BUT Chas is still special! lol

Anonymous said...

Addendum: When you get bored at some point - go back and check the "view source code" function. Search for Bruce - you'll notice a little to the left of "Bruce" - code "autostart='false'" I checked it out so you could see what I mean. ;-)

Used to keep a better list. There are other "things" - - BUT - - spell checking is pretty good.

As bad as I spell - It's just as easy for me to pick up the type when I'm unsure and drop it in a "checker" like Word or something instead of having things jump around.

When they learn to read code - I'll be in a hurry to use it for the "other stuff."

Chas said...

I've had a quick look on google, it seems that Firefox/Mozilla has a history of not recognizing the "autostart=false" code.

One site recommended using "autostart=0" instead, you may want to try that.

Anonymous said...

Yep - Microsoft fought many wars to get where they are. One that comes to mind is the WordPerfect combat. Remember when everyone was using WordPerfect?! Media everywhere. Back in 1986, having been in publishing for years and going through all the word processing stages, I pulled my information together and purchased Microsoft Word. Microsoft is in MANY areas and they have worked very hard over the years to give us all computer freedom.

Firefox/Mozilla wants everyone to change their lives to bow to their one lonely and poorly built product. A product no one would even need if Microsoft didn't hand the world a system everyone could build on.

THANKS Chas for looking into this. I'm just now getting back in the computer.

Guess if you want your music to "autostart" - With the FireFox system you can choose "autostart" - however many times you want it to play?! lol

Anonymous said...

Yet another Addendum: IF you want a good laugh. You might want to go to where I have my music archived!

I'll leave it there for Chas fun!

The "0" worked by the way. Will change ALL my music to "0" so that I can play and not annoy anyone! lol

FireFox is like Democrats to me - They want you to vote for them - BUT - You need to pay more taxes and wish for socialist health care - While others sit home and [purposely] do nothing - Get the same things you've worked for. ;-)

Chas said...

I moved to Firefox because of many problems with Internet explorer. I don't understand the comparison with taxes or socialized medicine.

As for Microsoft giving us freedom... that's a mixed bag at best. They did create a standard platform for developers to use. It was not the best platform, but they marketed it better than anyone else, so it was adopted as an industry standard. The creation of that standard did make things easier for a lot of consumers.

But having only one proprietary standard cuts two ways. Microsoft has also tried to lock users into using only their products. A monopoly like that does not result in the best products. All the Windows versions before XP were terrible.

XP is at least stable, and does have some great features like hibernation mode and system rollback. I'm not a Microsoft basher; I just believe in a competitive marketplace. Competition helps make better software.

Alternative browsers like Firefox and Opera have appeared because Microsoft was too complacent about fixing security problems in Internet Explorer. Now that they have competition, they take the problem more seriously. So the more alternatives we have, creates a win/win situation for us all.

There is a convergence of standards happening right now, especially with multimedia applications, and the code problem you experienced is just one example of it's being sorted out with a universal solution. Open source standards, rather than proprietary formats, will mean more competition and freedom for everyone. And Microsoft will not only still be around, they will be making better competitive products, too.