As browser wars continue, Old Faithful fights back by adding some new components to its first beta version of Firefox 3.1, now available for download. The beta is based on the Gecko 1.9.1 rendering system, and new features include Geolocation API, @font-face support, and audio and video tag support. Obviously created with developers and designers in mind, here are some detailed descriptions of the features and why they’re awesome.
Geolocation
With the integration of this JavaScript API, Firefox can now plot maps, give directions, attach location information to pictures, attach a source location to individual blog posts, etc. And although it exposes a single API to web developers, Mozilla reports that it “can potentially be backed by a number of different location sources. Examples include the Skyhook service, which guesses your location based on nearby access points, a GPS device in your mobile computer or hand-setting a fixed location where your desktop lives.” Geolocation Interface
@Font-Face Support
The addition of the CSS @font-face property allows users to specify a true-type font file for rendering specific fonts on Web pages. This means Web designers can say "goodbye" to their Times New Roman and Arial prisons and get really creative. This is also good news for developers of non-English Web sites often dealing with users who don’t have access to high-quality fonts.
Video and Audio
Let’s hear it for the first beta from Mozilla to support and elements! The beta includes support for OGG Theora and OGG Vorbis formats on all platforms. This means easier audio and video embedding. Mozilla says their goal is “to make it as easy to post a video, as it is to post an image.” Can you imagine how wonderful that would be? To get out of what they call a “plug-in prison” and allow videos to interact seamlessly with the rest of a page’s content would be magical.
Other Cool New Features
As if that's not enough already, Firefox 3.1 beta 1 also includes a cool new tab-switching shortcut (just press the Ctrl + Tab on your keyboard and a cool preview of the tabs you have open appears) and improved control over the smart location bar using special characters ( ^ for history, * for book marks, + for tagged pages, @ for only text in a URL and # for title and tags).
Not Without the Controversy
Negative word on the blogosphere is that Firefox may be more susceptible to threats than other browsers due to its frequent updates; followed by that it's kind of lame that because Firefox does not have separate environments for each tab, the one faulty page can bring down the whole house of cards. This is not to mention that their new geolocation feature is as creepy and unsettling as Chrome's strange identifier. Offhandedly, PC World reports that Chrome is taking away more Firefox support than IE. Anyone surprised? Regardless of possible downfalls, Firefox remains an old standby and, after all, this is just a beta version. We're sure the real magic is still to come.
About the Author
Chel·si (chěl'sē) n. Female. Connect with Chelsi Nakano:
