Firefox 19 for Mac Now Available for Download

[MacRumors]

Firefox 19 is slated to be launched on Tuesday, but as noted by The Next Web, the latest version is already available for*download from Mozilla's servers. The U.S. version of Firefox 19 for the Mac can be found in the aforementioned folder by accessing the Mac directory and then selecting "en-US."

Most notably, this update includes a built-in PDF viewer, making former PDF viewing plug-ins obsolete. The viewer was built using HTML5 and will provide a quicker, more secure way to read PDFs in the browser.

Firefox 19, which comes more than a month after*Firefox 18, also includes remote debugging, bug fixes, and CSS improvements. While the official release notes have yet to be posted, the*beta notes are available:

-Built-in PDF viewer
-Canvas elements can export their content as an image blob using canvas.toBlob()
-Startup performance improvements (bugs 715402 and 756313)
-Debugger now supports pausing on exceptions and hiding non-enumerable properties
-Remote Web Console is available for connecting to Firefox on Android or Firefox OS (experimental, set devtools.debugger.remote-enabled to true)
-There is now a Browser Debugger available for add-on and browser developers (experimental, set devtools.chrome.enabled to true)
-Web Console CSS links now open in the Style Editor
-CSS @page is now supported
-CSS viewport-percentage length units implemented (vh, vw, vmin and vmax)
-CSS text-transform now supports full-width
-Starting Firefox with -private flag incorrectly claims you are not in Private Browsing mode (802274)

The official launch of Firefox 19 will take place tomorrow, on February 19. The updated version of the browser will be*available for download*from the Mozilla website.

Update: The FTP link has been removed. Firefox 19 is now officially available from the Mozilla website.

Article Link: Firefox 19 for Mac Now Available for Download

[viperGTS]

19?!?!?

[OriginalMacRat]

Originally Posted by viperGTS

19?!?!?

You blinked.

Now version 20 is out.

[balwx]

wow

[Rudy69]

Yet somehow they still don't support Lion's scrollbars :/

[MagnusVonMagnum]

Originally Posted by Rudy69

Yet somehow they still don't support Lion's scrollbars :/

If only that were true seeing as in IMO the Lion/Mountain Lion's scroll bars suck. This isn't an iPhone, after all. Apparently we don't "need" up/down buttons for fine adjustments anymore, for example. Oh wait. My NOIA themed Firefox is still missing those buttons so it seems Firefox is forced to behave like OSX after all (save the NOIA bars look like aqua sliders and that's what theming is for, to NOT look like Apple's CLONE looks). In fact, I just tried the default theme for Firefox 19 and the scroll bars are identical to the ones in Safari (oh boy). Maybe you just need Mountain Lion?

Originally Posted by Bill Killer

Firefox has fallen so far behind Chrome and Safari.

In what regard? Personally, I couldn't stand Chrome when I tried it and Safari has dumped support so many times for my machines (first my old PPC machine and then my Macbook Pro as long as it was running Snow Leopard and I didn't upgrade it to Mountain Lion until just recently for stability concerns). Sorry, but I need my browser to last more than a year.... (at the current rate of OS upgrades) before it gets dumped for updates. Besides, it's nowhwere NEAR as customizable as Firefox. I don't know how I'd live without TabMixPlus customizations and Download StatusBar at this point plus AdBlock is infinitely better on Firefox than Safari (where it lets like half the ads through whereas Firefox lets hardly any through).

Yeah, Chrome and Safari pretty much SUCK. I don't personally use the speed of Javascript rendering as my gauge of the capability of a browser. Since when is Javascript the measure of all humanity? Blogging pages that are 200 pages long are the only reasons they felt the need to speed it up as much as they have and blogging seems to be on the way out (I mean seriously, have any bloggers HEARD of using more than ONE web page rather than some 200 page long monstrosity that takes forever to load and even longer to render? What a flipping WASTE of bandwidth. There should be a regulation against such a thing existing since obviously most human beings are far too dense to figure these things out on their own). And I only need try to load a web page with my 1st Gen iPod Touch to see how ridiculous things have gotten with freaking social "buttons" everywhere that load last and other columns and garbage that make reading a simple news article take 1000x longer to load than it does to read it. WTF is wrong with simple TEXT for simple things like NEWS? My god, everything doesn't have to be about eye candy in this world. Imagine how much faster OSX would be on older hardware if it didn't have so many flying windows and rotating screen effects.

I will admit that for running Scrabble on Pogo.com, Firefox (at last test) used a LOT more CPU power than Safari running the same Java applet. That just shouldn't happen and if it weren't a total PITA to report such things to Firefox, I'd probably see about getting it addressed some day, but as it is, I won't report jack squat to Firefox for that reason. I'm not out to spend hours doing their freaking job FOR them. I'm not the one getting paid to do it, after all. Reporting a bug/issue benefits them far more than me. I just run Safari for Scrabble and pretty much nothing else at this point.

Originally Posted by Doc750

Chrome kills everything else out there ... Quick and simple.

I hate google

Isn't that a contradiction seeing Google makes Chrome? Frankly, given Google's "real name" BS on Google+ and them trying to force people to convert at every turn, etc., I'd be afraid Chrome was spying and reporting every single keystroke back to headquarters...if not now, soon. Google is slowly becoming more evil than Microsoft ever was. It's like watching the freaking Galactic Empire being born, only not as boring as the Star Wars Prequels.

[GermanyChris]

nothing google goes on my Mac..

FF is my preferred browser bar none.

Opera is second

[OLDCODGER]

Although I use Omniweb for its ability to set site-by-site preferences, I use Firefox for one site because it allows me to block their insistent Refresh and Auto-Play - which no other browser seems to offer.

If Omniweb could block those two evils, no other browser would be required by me.

[Gallion]

Originally Posted by MagnusVonMagnum

And I only need try to load a web page with my 1st Gen iPod Touch to see how ridiculous things have gotten with freaking social "buttons" everywhere that load last and other columns and garbage that make reading a simple news article take 1000x longer to load than it does to read it. WTF is wrong with simple TEXT for simple things like NEWS?

You know, you have a DAMN GOOD point there. I need to find a way to disable these damn things. I bet there is a FF add-on or greasemonkey script for that.

Edit : Found something! http://superuser.com/questions/45462...ns-in-webpages

[mrsir2009]

Huh...?

It seems like it was yesterday when I was using Firefox 3 - And I'm only 16! When the hell did they rack up 19 releases?

[SandboxGeneral]

You can see their RapidRelease/Calendar here and a blog posting about it too here.

[SilvorX]

Originally Posted by mrsir2009

Huh...?

It seems like it was yesterday when I was using Firefox 3 - And I'm only 16! When the hell did they rack up 19 releases?

I still remember when it was Phoenix and only available on Windows, it was insanely fast at the time (well for me, on dialup with a slow PC). Then I remember when a developer finally ported Firebird to Mac. I kept switching between Firebird/Firefox and Safari every few months until Chrome came around. I'm kind of surprised Firefox is still around, but if it didn't seem so bloaty and slow, I'd be still using it

[X5-599]

Originally Posted by mrsir2009

Huh...?

It seems like it was yesterday when I was using Firefox 3 - And I'm only 16! When the hell did they rack up 19 releases?

I guess they wanted to "keep up" with Chrome and their ridiculously hight version numbers... Same with Microsoft/Playstation namings. It's not a coincidence that it was not called the XBox 2 but XBox 360. Because XBox 2 sounds outdated next to a Playstation 3.

[Gallion]

Originally Posted by mrsir2009

Huh...?

It seems like it was yesterday when I was using Firefox 3 - And I'm only 16! When the hell did they rack up 19 releases?

They changed the way they develop Firefox and in doing so, the frequency of the releases since... Firefox 6 I believe, or maybe a little bit later.

Now (as I remember) there are 3 teams, each of them working on a different upcoming version of Firefox. One works on the Alpha version, another one on the Beta version and another one on the current version. So when a new version comes out, the 2 upcoming versions have already been in the work for months. Frankly, with the pace at which things change in technology, it's really a good idea for them to do it that way, so they can adapt very quickly and also roll out features more quickly.

[szw-mapple fan]

Originally Posted by mrsir2009

Huh...?

It seems like it was yesterday when I was using Firefox 3 - And I'm only 16! When the hell did they rack up 19 releases?

the same thing is happening with chrome.

----------

Originally Posted by mrsir2009

Eh... I use Firefox at school, and IMO it's pretty decent. All the major browsers are good now, for most purposes. I use Chrome personally, but I wouldn't at all mind using FF, Safari, or IE (on Windows) either.

I used to use chrome on windows, but after switching to a mac last month... I found that nothing beats safari with multitouch.

[balwx]

I haven't tried FF in a long time.

[Yvan256]

Originally Posted by balwx

I haven't tried FF in a long time.

I haven't played Final Fantasy in a long time too.

[Bill Killer]

Firefox has fallen so far behind Chrome and Safari.

[Xenomorph]

Originally Posted by Bill Killer

Firefox has fallen so far behind Chrome and Safari.

Really? I still see Firefox as a the better browser, by far.

Tell me, how functional is Chrome & Safari's NoScript extension? How customizable are their interfaces?

I can't think of any reason to use something like Internet Explorer, Opera, Chrome, or Safari.

[blesscheese]

Originally Posted by Xenomorph

Really? I still see Firefox as a the better browser, by far.

Tell me, how functional is Chrome & Safari's NoScript extension? How customizable are their interfaces?

I can't think of any reason to use something like Internet Explorer, Opera, Chrome, or Safari.

Agreed, and it is open source, and serviced by a dedicated community.

I try not to get paranoid about things, but having Google collect and hang on to all my info does get me wondering at times...

[Yamcha]

Originally Posted by Xenomorph

Really? I still see Firefox as a the better browser, by far.

Tell me, how functional is Chrome & Safari's NoScript extension? How customizable are their interfaces?

I can't think of any reason to use something like Internet Explorer, Opera, Chrome, or Safari.

Not sure about Firefox, but on Chrome your bookmarks & settings are synced, so you don't have to export the bookmarks on other computers or on Windows.

Also I don't know of any other browser that has a Web Store, or the ability to play games and run applications right on your browser.

The interface on Chrome can also be customized, but personally I generally find the vast majority of themes for both Firefox and Chrome are dead ugly, which is why I stick with the default theme.

[John.B]

Originally Posted by Yamcha

Not sure about Firefox, but on Chrome your bookmarks & settings are synced, so you don't have to export the bookmarks on other computers or on Windows.

Sorry, not willing to let Google track my bookmarks. But you go right ahead.

Originally Posted by Yamcha

Also I don't know of any other browser that has a Web Store, or the ability to play games and run applications right on your browser.

I'm not familiar with this. Google sells you web "applications" that only run in their Chrome browser? What, sort of like a modern day IE6? But I'm sure it's great for the Google Uber Alles crowd...

[Mackilroy]

Originally Posted by John.B

Sorry, not willing to let Google track my bookmarks. But you go right ahead.

I'm not familiar with this. Google sells you web "applications" that only run in their Chrome browser? What, sort of like a modern day IE6? But I'm sure it's great for the Google Uber Alles crowd...

What proof do you have that Google is tracking your bookmarks?

And no, Google doesn't sell them. At least I've never paid for one, and I have a fair few.

At any rate, I'm using Safari 6 at the moment. Under Mountain Lion I generally only launch Chrome if there's a YouTube video I can't see under Safari.

[ksgant]

Originally Posted by John.B

Sorry, not willing to let Google track my bookmarks. But you go right ahead.

Why not? What's the big deal, seriously? You can turn this feature off if you think big, bad Google is invading your privacy (OMG, I've been screwgled!). Then turn off Safari's feature too that keeps that your bookmark settings in the cloud. Also, Firefox offers this feature.

Oh, and make sure you get an independent email provider that has zero spam filtering...because if any provider protects against spam, they're reading your emails. I mean, that's the way it sees if something is spam. So don't let them do that! (OMG, They're tracking your email along with your bookmarks!!!!).

This whole privacy this is way way WAY overblown.

[Steve121178]

Originally Posted by John.B

Sorry, not willing to let Google track my bookmarks.

They don't track anyone's bookmarks, but even if they did, they are bookmarks to public facing websites! What's the big deal?