Firefox 1.5 Beta 1: a first look
Published: 13 Sep 2005
They said it couldn't be done, but during the first few months of 2005, the Mozilla Organization's Firefox browser carved a sizable dent in Microsoft Internet Explorer's domination over the desktop Internet browser market, and this new release (still in beta) should bring even more converts. Now courting roughly 10 percent of the browser market and running on Windows, Mac and Linux platforms, Firefox continues to make usability and features a cornerstone of its success. Unlike Internet Explorer 6, Firefox currently offers tabbed browsing and a built-in RSS reader. The new features we see in Firefox 1.5 Beta 1 easily outdo the features expected in the upcoming release of Internet Explorer 7.
The first thing we noticed after installing Firefox 1.5 Beta 1 was its speed -- even complex pages, with plenty of Flash and Shockwave content, loaded much faster. New caching technology means hitting the Back button will return previously viewed pages almost instantly. We also liked the way you can reorder tabs by simply dragging and dropping them in the order you'd prefer.
Then there's the search box feature; new to this release is the inclusion of Answers.com in the search bar by default (you can always add other search engines), plus the ability to highlight a word of text within a page and simply drag and drop it into the search box for an instant search. Hidden beneath the surface are automated updates, improvements to pop-up blocking and better support for Mac OS X.
If you're attached to your current Firefox extensions (plug-ins that provide Firefox with additional use), you may want to wait for a later version of the beta before installing. Some extensions written for the current Firefox do not work with the beta we tested, although Mozilla says it's working to tweak these into shape.
Also, as Firefox continues to grow as the default alternative to Internet Explorer, we can expect more flaws to be reported. Even so, far fewer of the Firefox flaws announced so far have been critical ones compared to Internet Explorer; also, Mozilla has generally been quick to issues patches, while Microsoft has waited up to three months at times.
We expect Firefox 1.5 to build on Firefox's current success. Given that Microsoft has announced that Internet Explorer 7 will be available to those running Windows XP SP2 only, Firefox 1.5, when it is released in November or December 2005, stands to add millions of Windows users who are not currently running Windows XP SP2. Also, Firefox 1.5 is expected to continue its rapid adoption by both the Mac OS and Linux communities.
Check back for our full review of the released product. In the meantime, here's our latest roundup of alternatives to Internet Explorer.
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