Mozilla Firefox

Tabbed Browsing

Firefox makes browsing easier than ever before with tabbed browsing. Tabbed browsing changes the way you use the Internet by allowing you to open links on a page in the background "tabs" in the same window and then read them when you're ready. No confusing new windows, no need for context menus, just hold down Ctrl when clicking a link, or use your middle mouse button (if you have one). Tabbed browsing is central to Firefox; you can set your home page to be a group of Tabs. You can open an entire folder of bookmarks in tabs. As you're reading each page, links you have opened in background tabs load, so when you're ready to read them, they've already loaded and you don't need to wait.

Popup Blocking

Firefox stops annoying popup windows dead in their tracks. Experience the web as it was supposed to be: peaceful, convenient, and accessible. Some sites make legitimate use of popup windows. When Firefox blocks a popup window, it displays an icon in the status bar. Clicking this icon shows a breakdown of the popup(s) that Firefox stopped when loading the current page. You can then allow some or all of the popup windows to be shown.

Find Stuff Faster

Much of the time you spend using a web browser is spent looking for things. That's why Firefox has the best search functions of any browser. Ctrl+K takes you to the Google bar. Enter what you're searching for and hit Enter to search Google. Entering a search into the Location bar does an "I'm Feeling Lucky" Google search.

Firefox's collection of Smart Keywords make it easy to look up words in the dictionary, check on stock quotes, etc. Just type the keyword, then the word (be it stock symbol or some other value) in the Location Bar and hit Enter. Firefox comes with default Smart Keywords, but you can also make your own.

Simplified Privacy

Firefox makes it easy to keep track of information that the browser has stored while you've been surfing, such as cookies, files you've downloaded, web page history, and so on. However, you can quickly clear any of these things from Tools -> Options -> Privacy. Not only that, but you can also instantly clear all stored information with a single click.

Annoynance Eliminator

Aside from preventing popup windows, Firefox will also stop a number of other actions that have been annoying web surfers for years, such as animating status bar tickers, and spoofing status bar text that prevents you from seeing where links point to. We've designed Firefox so that the standard settings offer the least annoyance. Controls for these settings can be found in the Tools -> Options -> Web Features.

Better Bookmarks

Firefox makes it easier to organize your bookmark collection with its handy Bookmarks Manager. Create folders to group similar items, and add annotations to describe the bookmark. Firefox also lets you associate a Keyword with any bookmark so you can open it by simply typing its keyword in the Location Bar of the browser.

Both Bookmarks are available as convenient sidebar panels for quick access. Simply hit Ctrl+B for Bookmarks. Links open at the speed of light with a click.

Best Accessibility

Firefox offers the best set of keyboard shortcuts available. Ctrl+L quickly focuses the Location Bar. Ctrl+K focuses the Google Bar. Ctrl+T opens a new tab and Ctrl+S does what it should do—save the current page.

Firefox also features sophisticated Type-Ahead Find for links that make it easier for users with accessibility needs to select links. Simply start typing the name of the link that you want to select and Firefox will shift focus to it. Start typing with a "/" and it automatically searches all text.

Firefox Knows

Firefox remembers what you've filled in web forms, making repeated actions a breeze. Firefox also features a handy Password Manager that automatically fills out user-name/password fields on sites that require you to log in. But, anytime you want to, you can erase this information easily with Firefox's simplified privacy control.

Customize Toolbars

Set up your toolbars ala MacOS X style the way you want them. Have just a thin strip with everything on one bar. Have a set of toolbars with every option available within reach. Firefox's toolbars are fully customizable so you can have it the way you like it. Choose View -> Toolbars -> Customize and simply drag on the items you want. Firefox even lets you create new toolbars. Extensions often add more toolbar items to the Customize Palette as well to further enhance your customizing experience.

Extensibility

Firefox's user interface can be extended by developers using industry standards such as XML, CSS, and JavaScript. Examples of such extensions include everything from relatively simple utilities like a Popup Count extension to advanced tools such as a JavaScript Debugger and Document Inspector (which is now available via Windows installer).

Screen Space

We place a great deal of importance on space for web pages in Firefox. That's why our browser has more space devoted to web pages than Internet Explorer, Opera, or Mozilla. Firefox offers 2% more space to web pages than Mozilla, 4% more than Internet Explorer, and a whopping 10% more than Opera. You can get even more space by rearranging the content of the toolbars. Firefox also offers a Full Screen mode (Press F11 to enter/exit) that devotes even more of the screen to the web page.

* Standard configurations, sidebars closed, and windows maximized at 1600x1200.

Simple User Interface

We've put a lot of thought into making using Firefox easy and obvious. Browsers like Mozilla and Opera seem to be focused more on esoteric features, at the expense of all-round usability. That's why we have created a browser that works in the simplest and most straight-forward way out of the box. Defaults have been carefully chosen so you don't need to spend time setting up the browser. Menus and dialog boxes are kept clean and free of options that only a marginal number of people use. If you need a particular enhancement that's not included, a large number of extensions are available for free.

Industry Leading Standards Support

Firefox has world beating support for W3C standards like CSS and DOM whereas browsers like Internet Explorer may fail on a dynamic page, Firefox usually succeeds. Firefox provides developers with a oasis in a desert of IE rendering bugs and quirks by using the Gecko engine, which constantly remains excellent with web standards.