Firefox 7.0 Released
by Andrew Cunningham on September 27, 2011 2:00 PM ESTHas it already been six weeks since Firefox 6.0 was released? Apparently so, since Firefox 7.0 has just been made available for Windows, OS X, and Linux users to download.
Firefox 7.0 is the first stable release to benefit from Mozilla's "MemShrink" initiative, which aims to improve the browser's speed and resource usage by reducing memory requirements and addressing memory leaks that can bog down the browser over long sessions, or for users with many tabs open simultaneously.
Other new additions include a new version of "Canvas," a Direct2D acceleration feature for HTML5 games and animations; support for the W3C navigation timing API, which can help developers measure page load time under a variety of different circumstances; and Telemetry, which can send anonymous information about your browsing sessions to Mozilla to aid in the identification of performance issues. Upon installing Firefox 7.0, you'll be given the opportunity to opt-in or opt-out of Telemetry.
The full Firefox 7.0 release notes can be found here, for those interested in technical details. The update should be available to current FIrefox users now, and you can always get the latest version manually at getfirefox.com.
Source: Mozilla
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frumpsnake - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - link
...is that fonts don't look like ass anymore.bwave - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link
THIS is one of the biggest reasons I've always hated Firefox, it just looks plain ugly! I also don't like the order in which it renders the pages.I generally just use IE9, though I'd admit that Opera is the "best" browswer, and Chrome is the "fastest". (Safari's look doesn't impress me much, but still better than FF, plus I let it slide because it looks like the Mac version)
Souka - Thursday, September 29, 2011 - link
I use IE9 mostly also.At work, IE 8/9 is only allowed.
At home, I very rarely have problems with IE9, but ocassionaly have problems with FF and Chrome, especially when dealing with government websites
I like them all.... I don't like them all.... depends on what I'm doing.
Kamen75 - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - link
I've been using 7.0 for a few hours now and it does seem a bit snappier. ABP and my few other add-ons work fine.KeithP - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - link
What does everyone think? Should I upgrade to 7 now, wait till Friday to upgrade to 8, or maybe wait another couple weeks and upgrade to 9 or 10?Decisions, decisions.
-KeithP
yankeeDDL - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link
With 6 weeks release cycle, the upgrades are fairly seamless. Some add-on might not work, just because the version number needs to be updated, so if you use tonds of add-ons, and/or if you absolutely rely on some of them to work, you may want to double check that first.Otherwise I would just go ahead and upgrade. The mainstream/most-common add on are always up to date (e.g.: No Script, Adblock ...) so that's not a concern.
tipoo - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - link
1) If they are going to update as often as Chrome, make the updates as painless as Chrome. I shouldn't have to click stuff, basically. I'm lazy ;)2) They really have been picking things up lately, but I still feel bogged down by FF7 vs Chrome. Every UI interaction feels so instantaneous on Chrome, even if Firefox can keep up in benchmarks its the feel of them that gets me.
Targon - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - link
It is as painless as that. It checks every week or so by default, and offers you the new version. You have the option to do it manually, but you don't HAVE to.tipoo - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link
I know, its just not as smooth as Chrome though. With Chrome, I've had times where I check the version number and realize I'm three ahead of where I was and never even noticed a slowdown or update page. WIth Firefox, each update is noticeable, you get the firefox updated page, checking for new extensions, etc. Its just not as seamless. If they want to copy Chrome with the fast new version releases, copy it right. Also, Chrome updates seem to break my extensions far more rarely than Firefox ones.e_sandrs - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link
Sometimes there is such a thing as too smooth. I recently checked my Chrome version and found out I was 4 versions *behind* where I was supposed to be! The seamless auto update failed, so I wasn't getting any updates at all until I manually updated to the current version.Sometimes prompts are good...