Good news for Google Chrome users - the long-anticipated password syncing functionality has just popped up in the Developer version of the Google Chrome Web browser, which means similar support for users of the beta and stable versions of Chrome is likely to be just around the corner.
We were able to test the new syncing functionality this morning between multiple computers and encountered no errors or obstacles. Password syncing appears to be a go!
When the Federal Trade Commission announced late last year that it was investigating ways to protect consumers' privacy, it suggested a "Do Not Track" option for every browser. This would give users the ability to opt out of online advertising - an effort akin to the "Do Not Call" registry, from that bygone era where solicitations came via the phone rather than pop-up ads.
In response, both Mozilla and Google have announced changes to their respective browsers todays, with the addition of "Do Not Track" features for Firefox and Chrome.
Word hit the Web this week, via a Mozilla executive posting on a developer list, that Firefox 4 was finally on its way next month. The only thing standing in the way? About 160 "hard blockers", or significant bugs, that needed to be addressed.
A big part of fixing bugs is testing and today Mozilla announced the next major version of Firefox 4 Beta for users to help test. The latest version includes increased performance, start-up time, bookmarking and graphics capabilities. Read on for the details.
Get ready, Firefox fans, because Firefox 4 is on the way. PCWorld writes that the next version of the second most popular browser worldwide is "nearly ready for release" and should be available starting next month.
Mozilla's senior director Damon Sicore wrote on a developer mailing list that "Firefox 4 is gonna kick ass," but that, until the launch "we need *everyone* to help in testing."
Skyfire, the proxy browser that specializes in bringing Adobe Flash functionality to platforms it cannot live in naturally, has submitted its newest browser to the iTunes app store. I got to test it this morning and while it's not perfect, I like it a lot already. If the company can continue to improve its handling of Flash, I can imagine using Skyfire instead of Safari on the iPad. I can almost imagine doing that now. The app's release date is of course unknown, that will depend on when and if Apple approves it. Update: Skyfire says they just received approval and should appear in the App Store tonight.
Skyfire sits on your iPad like any other app, but mimics many of the Safari interface elements. In addition to allowing you to watch Flash videos and listen to some Flash audio players, Skyfire adds some really cool social elements to the browser chrome. It does things that the ostensibly Facebook-centric browser RockMelt ought to do. Read on for screenshots and our initial review.
Yesterday, we also had a chance to interview Mozilla's chairperson Mitchell Baker at LeWeb in Paris. During this discussion, we talked about Mozilla's plans for the coming year, which involve a renewed focus on speed, app stores for the Web and open audio and video in the browser. We also touched upon Mozilla's vision for giving users the ability to control their online identity in the browser. Baker was also interviewed by Robert Scoble on stage at LeWeb today.
Just over a year ago, Google announced that it was working on its own operating system, named "Google Chrome OS". Today, the company is finally unveiling its much-discussed OS alongside the Chrome Web Store, a marketplace for Web apps and browser extensions.
The announcement is being live streamed as we speak via Google's own YouTube service. You can watch it along with us after the jump and share your thoughts as we curate the best tidbits via #rwwchrome.
In case there was any doubt that today's Google Chrome event would include the reveal of Google's new notebook computers running its Web-based computer operating system, Google itself has begun advertising Chrome notebooks within its Chrome Web browser.
At the top of the "new tab" page in Chrome, Google asks Web surfers "Would you like to test drive a Chrome notebook?" Users could either click "Apply Now" or "Close" to dismiss the message.
This appears to be accidental, and the message is no longer showing.
What do you do if you start to feel that you're losing a bit of ground in the browser market? Do you ply the Web geeks with Open standards? Or do you run benchmark tests and pitch bloggers with shiny infographics?
If you're Mozilla, the nonprofit behind the number two browser in the world, you adopt two cute little "firefoxes" (they're red pandas, really), point a Web cam at them, and promise to buy them a jungle gym if enough people download Firefox.
HTML5, the next major revision of the markup language that the web is written in, presents exciting new possibilities for developers across many platforms and for user experience as well. Determining exactly what HTML5 ends up being, however, is not proving to be an entirely straightforward process. There's a lot of active debate going on in the technical trenches.
Enter Mozilla, everyone's favorite consumer and web friendly technical standards advocacy organization. They also make a very popular browser called Firefox. What's Mozilla's relationship with HTML5? That's about to become a lot more clear, now that the Foundation has hired former Yahoo UK Standards Evangelist Christian Heilmann. Heilmann today became Mozilla's principal Developer Evangelist with an emphasis on HTML5. He sent us the following statement, which I believe will prove helpful for anyone interested in the future of the web.
