Mozilla unveils Firefox plans for year ahead

 

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By Nicole Kobie

Posted on 13 Feb 2012 at 16:10

Mozilla has laid out its roadmap for Firefox for the next year, touting add-on tweaks and Windows 8 compatibility.

Community manager Asa Dotzler noted that "all browsers do more" these days, stressing that this year Mozilla will focus on making Firefox more stable and responsive.

A new hang detector, as well as improvements to cycle collectors mean "Firefox pauses and hangs will be a thing of the past," he wrote.

This year will also see a Windows 8 Metro beta, more web apps, the roll out of a theme refresh and a host of smaller features.

Firefox pauses and hangs will be a thing of the past

The roadmap contains only vague detail about when features will arrive, but the open source developer has pushed the Firefox browser to a faster release cycle, suggesting that - as with Chrome - the features will arrive when ready.

Windows, web apps and more

Mozilla said it will deliver a proof of concept for Windows 8 in the second quarter. "This is not [an] alpha or beta, but should demonstrate the feasibility of Firefox in Windows 8 Metro," Dotzler said, noting the alpha and beta will arrive in the second half of the year.

This year should also bring more of a push for web apps. By the second quarter, Mozilla plans to include a built-in launcher for its Web Apps Marketplace and start offering app recommendations. Doztler added that advances in HTML, CSS and JavaScript will "enable app-quality experiences and developer productivity that rivals native platforms".

A refresh dubbed Australis is set to arrive by the second half of the year, with Dotzler saying the new look would be "a more inviting and confident experience for users".

Other additions

Arriving a bit sooner, in the first quarter of the year, will be new media players for HTML5 video, as well as the ability to migrate from Google's Chrome browser to Firefox.

Mozilla will also start "assuming" add-ons work after each new Firefox release, and blocking the few that don't with a "disallow" list, rather than having each one checked before being allowed. Users will soon be able to synchronise add-ons between devices, much in the same way as bookmarks.

That will be followed by a tool to refresh an installation of Firefox without losing passwords, history and other settings, as well as embedding the download manager into the main browser window, rather than using a pop up.

By the second half of the year, Mozilla has promised to roll out Firefox Share, a tool that makes it easier to access social media directly from the browser, as well as a login tool allowing users to sign in to sites directly via Firefox.

The browser will also improve cookie management tools, release a Reader mode for longer content, and unveil IonMonkey, its next-gen JavaScript engine.

Click here for the full roadmap.