Mozilla Releases Firefox 4 Beta For Android, Maemo 128
An anonymous reader writes "Mozilla has released the first beta of its Firefox 4 for Android and Maemo. The browser is based on the Firefox 4 core and should be released in the same time frame as the big brother. The mobile browser includes Firefox Sync, a cloud feature that enables users to sync browsing history, passwords, form-fill data and bookmarks, as well as open tabs." Android news site Androinica also mentions the release, and provides a small tutorial on installing beta apps for Android.
Browsers? (Score:1, Interesting)
Don't really care about browsers supported by giant corporations. It's Firefox forever for me
As to the whole notion that somehow the browser writer sees my bookmarks - I have big problems with that.
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Firefox Sync encrypts everything locally using your passphrase before sending to their server.
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Opera innovates (tab browsing, remembering open tabs when shutting down, Opera Turbo, Opera Link/sync)
Firefox Sync copies.
I'm surprised the folks at Opera don't just decide to give up, out of frustration that people keep copying their ideas. (shrug) I wonder if Mozilla seaMonkey will also get a sync function.
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Tabbed browsing wasn't invented by Opera. NetCaptor had it years before. Opera copied, and rightfully so.
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Most of Mozilla's funding comes from Google (a giant corporation).
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Good thing they can't, then, since all Sync data is very strongly encrypted, and only you get a copy of the encryption key.
Install it on your own server (Score:2, Informative)
You can install Firefox Sync on your own server (like I have), and then Mozilla won't even see your encrypted data.
http://tobyelliott.wordpress.com/2009/09/11/weave-minimal-server/
Firefox 8 (Score:1)
Re:Firefox 8 (Score:4, Funny)
They should just go to 9 and reflect the fact that they're ahead.
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They would still be behind opera 10.
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They could go to Firefox Googol and get king-hell buzz while they get sued for infringement...
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Not impressed (Score:5, Informative)
Ugly font rendering and kinda jerky on my G2. Also uses a fuckload of ram and storage. I'm not impresses.
Re:Not impressed (Score:5, Informative)
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That doesn't make it alright. This thing used about 30MB on my Desire, and I'm running Apps2SD with an EXT3 partition, meaning those 30MB probably all landed on /data/. You ARE aware that most Android devices currently out there have far less than 200MB of storage space, right?
Nevertheless, I installed it, and was severely disappointed. The performance is in NO way that of a typical Firefox beta, the menu button seems to be without function (seriously, wtf?), Sync asks me for a key of some sort (my memory i
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It is normal for sync to ask for a password/key. Otherwise anybody could grab your private data.
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Yes, username and password are normal... but there's also a field called "key" which stops Sync from working if left blank. Any idea what that is?
Firefox sync key is new (Score:2)
I installed Firefox Sync twice recently. The first time it asked for a password and also a "secret passsphrase". A week later, the second time I created a new account for a different set of computers, it generated a twenty-letter key (like "xaedr-gterw-sfdfs-hryns" or something). I guess there was a change in between. If they did not generate a key for you, then the sync key is your passphrase. Apparently it's used to actually encrypt your data (as opposed to the password, which seems to be just for au
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Are you sure? Because for the life of me I can't find any place to enter a key on my desktop Firefox installs... or do I need to completely remove my Sync account for it to ask for my key?
In which case, this would seriously fuck with my life, because I don't remember any keys for Firefox Sync. Username, check. Password, check. But a key?
Passphrase (Score:2)
When you first run Weave/Sync on a given machine, it asks you for a passphrase. It's going to be a problem if you don't remember it, since you'll need this passphrase to be able to read the data elsewhere.
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Holy crap, you're right. I just installed Firefox Sync in my Android-stuff Ubuntu VM and it asked me for a passphrase. Luckily the passphrase was my WiFi network key :p
Thanks for clearing that up.
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Wildfire: doesn't even start (Score:2)
Ugly font rendering and kinda jerky on my G2. Also uses a fuckload of ram and storage. I'm not impresses.
I've just installed it on my HTC Wildfire, but cannot start it. It crashes after several seconds, without error message.
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First impressions on my N900 - slow and unresponsive. The zooming action is not rendered smoothly and it takes a good few seconds to repaint the zoomed-in area at the new zoom level, in the meantime you're left with pixellated text from where the previous image has been scaled up.
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Scrolling kind of sucks. At the top of the page it jumps around a lot. Font rendering on a fresh page load hurts my eyes, but if you drag to the right til you can see the "tabs" and then drag back it seems to fix it. I'll stick with the google browser for now.
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Hands up who's surprised by that revelation.
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... its a web browser. It shouldn't require a high end processor or a ton of memory. If it does, its not that useful.
Really?
You may not have noticed, but over the last decade or so web browsers have become platforms... the critical point for application delivery. HTML5 will include support for offline web applications, and pieces of that infrastructure (e.g., web storage) are already shipping on desktop browsers.
I suspect that a browser centric application model will become even more important over the next few years, especially to enterprise app developers. Maybe precise parity with desktop browsers is not such a grea
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There's also the fact that it hammers the network connection incessantly, which absolutely kills the battery. I have a Galaxy S (T-Mobile Vibrant) and Firefox made the top three in the list of energy users after about ten minutes. This phone doesn't have an especially stellar battery to begin with. I don't need my web browser adding to the strain unnecessarily.
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There's also the fact that it hammers the network connection incessantly, which absolutely kills the battery
Network access is actually not the main reason it uses more battery power than you'd expect (although that might also be a factor depending on the website). The main reasons are timers and various miscellaneous inefficiencies. But the good news is that a large portion of that work has recently been finished, and consequently the current nightly builds will use much less power than the just-released beta. So by the next beta things should be much improved, and by the final release they should be even better,
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The old Fennec ran like a fat dude up stairs on my N900 as well, but between MicroB for speedy browsing and desktop Iceweasel for slow but full-featured browsing, I haven't had any use for Fennec which has the slowness and clumsiness of Iceweasel and the minimal features of MicroB.
terrible (Score:2, Informative)
I just tried it and couldn't post here it was so aweful.
Font and/or font rendering was aweful (had to be much larger than either dolphin or default to be readable)
Double tap did not zoom enough (about 85 characters, I think it's keeping the pixel count true, but when I zoom I expect my characters to have at least one pixel between them, and many don't).
Slow, but I expected that as it's a beta.
The start page looks nice.
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Re:terrible (Score:5, Informative)
it wasn't because of firefox you couldn't post. it's mobile slashdot that suck donkey ass.
i tried at least 3 diferent mobile browsers and gave up.
on mobile space, slashdot is just like microsoft. they just don't get it
Re:terrible (Score:4, Informative)
it wasn't because of firefox you couldn't post. it's mobile slashdot that suck donkey ass.
i tried at least 3 diferent mobile browsers and gave up.
on mobile space, slashdot is just like microsoft. they just don't get it
Try the classic comments mode. I have it set to that, and I no longer have problems reading /. from my HTC Legend.
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Classic is better on iPhone at least but commenting is still a little tedious. The async response lags quite a bit.
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considering I pasted it from my phone using the default browser I disagree.
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considering I pasted it from my phone using the default browser I disagree.
You misunderstand me, I never made an assumption about the used browser. In fact I too use the default browser, so your point is moot.
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Maemo's MicroB does the full Web2.0tastic Slashdot, although slowly.
Doesn't work... (Score:1)
Supported hardware list (Score:2)
Better, but... (Score:4, Insightful)
I installed it on my Nexus One and tried posting this from there, but it's still way too unstable to do that (it didn't crash, but it kept scrolling/resizing in weird ways).
It's much improved over the Alpha, but one thing still bugs me.
Sync won't let you use your own server.
Firefox Sync is /the/ killer-app for me. It's really the only reason I'd want to use a different browser (barring EXTREME speed improvements), and they've neutered it to the point where it's, well, pointless. I've seen people request this feature ever since the pre-alpha days, to no avail.
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Heh, that is a bit overcomplicated, but I'll give it a shot later.
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Eeexcept that about:config brings up a blank page ): Looks like that bug report is for a previous version. Might be something for the current one, though. I'll look around.
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Cool. I've had weird problems with Fennec on my N1 with cyanogen for a while. Maybe rebooting a bunch of times will help!
Ugh (Score:4, Informative)
First big issue for me: the sync credentials page use some non-Android text box, so I can't copy my username/password from my password keeper and paste them in. I use large ugly generated passwords for stuff like that and I REALLY don't want to have to type them.
Waze does this crap too; why program *AROUND* the interface provided!? Seriously, your text boxes aren't precious snowflakes that are so special as to not use what the OS gives you (and supports).
Horrible, but better Java Script (Score:2)
Firefox on Android is a painful experience. The zooming is jerky. The fonts are ugly. It's not very responsive to clicks. Absolutely a horrible experience. That said, there are sites that just plain didn't work with the default browser that do work correctly with Firefox on Android, so I'll keep it around for that.
If you haven't had any sites fail with the default browser, skip this for now. If you have, try them with Firefox. You'll probably keep Firefox installed just for those sites.
This Just In (Score:1)
Not ready for prime time yet (Score:1)
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Especially for a mobile browser, that's a slow start as it is more likely to be started multiple times per day,rather than burn the batteries by being on or in the background.
Furthermore I had to throw out a lot of applications to make room for the apk file. It's huge, and it needs to slim down considerably.
Conclusion, although I'm a Firefox fan, is
Doesn't work on Pandigital Novel, nor on N800 (Score:2)
The install file for Maemo won't install on an N800 (evidently, only the newer N900 - that is one thing I don't like about Nokia; when the newer version comes out, kiss support for the older versions goodbye).
The Android file might "work" on Android 2.0 or later, but it doesn't work on a Pandigital Novel - it looks like it wasn't built for ARM5.
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The install file for Maemo won't install on an N800 (evidently, only the newer N900 - that is one thing I don't like about Nokia; when the newer version comes out, kiss support for the older versions goodbye).
That is exactly why NOKIA bought mozilla. It is part of their evil plan of dropping support for older... wait a minute!
On another note the install file for maemo installs fennec 1.1 and not 4beta
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yes. And since we don't have good drivers for the gps, mer is not an option for me...
I would love a more stable/customizable OS for my n810, but I don't think it will happen.
Dolphin is the closest Firefox (Score:1)
The only difference is the lack of Add-ons, the rest is pristine.
bad first impression (Score:2)
I downloaded this tonight for my droidx and my first impression is not good. In about and hour of use i had to force close twice, the phone was horribly slow while it was running, and pages looked terrible. Maybe the next release ill give it another go.
Android Firefox == Muffet? (Score:1)
If it's an Android Firefox maybe they should have name it Muffet, assuming a firefox is like a daggit.
others (Score:2)
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11+ MB? (Score:3, Informative)
I hope the RCs and the finale releases will be slimmer.
And I hope it will get its way to the market.
And I hope Google will release Chrome for Android as well, a main missing app there.
Welcome the the mobile browser wars.
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11? Try 45+. OK, 30 if you move to SD.
I thought Google Earth was bad - still 15mb on internal storage after you move to SD - but something like that seems like it should use a lot of space, whereas a browser doesn't.
Yes I saw the comment earlier from someone linking to an explanation of the size. Still pretty outrageous - I've never seen an android app anywhere close to that big.
Sync Key (Score:1)
Uuh, no FF4 for Maemo. (Score:2)
Just (re)installed what I thought was the Firefox-4 beta linked in TFA on my N900.
Error message "Fennec already installed".
Uninstalled the original Firefox for Maemo that I had, installed the linked version, and hussah!
Version information confirms the Maemo-Firefox is Fennec-3.6, not a beta of 4.0
So old news on the part of Maemo.
Tried it and uninstalled it less than 5 min after (Score:2, Informative)
Boot time (initial start of FF when not returning to it, but used a task killer) is as slow as booting my Ubuntu 10.04 desktop 64bit system with 8Gb RAM - not good.
Firefox does render a page nicely, without much difference from the desktop version, but renders it in fullscreen (entire page
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Click an Ajax link that updates a
and the browser returns to the top of the page - not optimal, but it didn't reset the zoom...
Should be:
Click an Ajax link that updates a <div> tag and the browser returns to the top of the page - not optimal, but it didn't reset the zoom...
Doesn't work on Samsung Moment (Score:2, Informative)
I love Firefox, but... (Score:2)
Re:Nice changes (Score:5, Informative)
I've tried the portable version and it does have issues, but I haven't seen any evidence of leaks yet. Although admittedly since I've been using daily builds, I haven't been using it very much.
Re:Nice changes (Score:5, Informative)
It uses 50MB RAM on boot, that's alot, but the app has worked pretty well for me so far. It's not bad, and the potential shines through. Sync works nicely, but there are some bugs with form data (saved data doesn't show up some times). Doesn't seem to like swype much, and forgets to bring up the software keyboard half the time. Page load times are a few seconds slower than stock android 2.2
Tested on my Samsung Galaxy S GT-i9000 running froyo XXJPK
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Kind of ironic in a article about Firefox 4 beta coming to Maemo.
The N900 has a gig of ram after all. 50mb ram isnt so much even for (some) mobile devices.
Re:Nice changes (Score:4, Informative)
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Technically yes, but thats 768 megs of accessible ram that most Android devices dont have.
It does actually work exceptionally well. I've had 16 browser windows and a few chat windows open at the same time and its incredibly smooth.
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Holy crap, and to think, I almost bought one of those instead of my Desire. Why the hell only 256MB? I mean, swap is fine and all, but it's not like 512MB or even 768MB would've bumped up the price much... the device was already expensive.
Glad I went with a Desire...
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Ah crap, ignore that comment please... my threshold.was too low and missed the post about the N900, making it look like you were talking about the Galaxy S... I was beginning to question my sanity.
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Two reasons. First, the N900 uses the TI OMAP with the package-on-package configuration. The RAM connects directly to the top of the SoC, meaning that you don't need any motherboard traces or extra board real estate for the RAM chip. This helps keep the device small. I think you can get 512MB PoP modules now, but they are still very new.
The second reason is power consumption. It is very difficult to turn off part of the RAM, and because it's volatile it needs to be powered all of the time. Doubling
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Actually Maemo 5 is set for maximum swappiness from the factory, and 256 isn't really a lot - mine has no apps running now (apart from desktop widgets and other background stuff) and it only has 99MB free, and about 87MB of swap space is in use (out of the nearly 1500MB I have with a swap partition on the microSD). Having enough RAM to make use of the swap file unnecessary would have been really nice, if you close a big app it really bogs down while it de-pages stuff.
But hey, it's either this or a phone wit
There should be a spellcheck for meme infringement (Score:4, Insightful)
Really every application leaks memory. I use Firefox and will continue to use Firefox regardless of it leaking on my desktop. Sure the portable version leaked early in Alpha stage a bit more than preferred from what I hear, but what I said was meant as a joke not an insult towards the device. My comment...
More ways to leak memory!
...also was completely ambiguous in relation to the four bullet points above I have no idea why people rated it as a troll, until I read your comment:
Sigh, I wish that meme would die a horrible death.
hedwards, I really am only halfway in tune with the latest memes it seems and I can see how my comment could have been annoying if everyone keeps on saying that memory leaks memory leaks (sorry Slashdot, oops)
There is a little red line that tells me when I am an idiot and cannot spell. I need a blue line or some different color to tell me where potential meme infringement may occur...
cheers
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Really every application leaks memory.
Unless you and I have very different definitions of "leaks memory" this simply is not true.
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Your right, smaller well formed applications and languages that include automatic garbage collection (eg Java) may completely avoid this issue. You are right in saying that it isn't every application but many applications do leak small amounts (tolerable) of memory, like Firefox on my computer. I should not have used a universal qualifier there...
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I never thought Mozilla's standards could such that bad. Their beta 6 software is not even an Alpha quality software. Crashes, hang ups, GUI malfunctions etc. are all over the place.
Last night finally I exploded with anger and yelled myself: why are you doing this to yourself?!!!
If this low quality tradition continues, I wil
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Don't complain when incomplete software isn't complete.
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Crashes, hang-ups and GUI malfunctions? That was pretty much the main feature of Netscape 4.x, which was not only stable software, but also the dominant browser platform. And you never used it?
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Everything is patent encumbered, if we worried about that sort of thing nothing would ever get done.
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Everything is patent encumbered, if we worried about that sort of thing nothing would ever get done.
And if we didn't worry about that sort of thing, nothing would ever get done because your business would be liquidated to pay damages to the plaintiffs who have successfully sued you.
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You sure can! That's how I made this:
http://sites.google.com/site/gameboyrmh/cryingbeaver.jpg [google.com]
(inspired by the somethingawful forums emoticon)
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linux used on various nokia devices, probably something else. deprecated for the horribly named but (i believe) similar meego, which is some sort of partnership with intel, if memory serves.
Re:If only it was usable.... (Score:5, Informative)
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