How to properly download Firefox. Security Message I'm getting.

[blairh]

This is such a newbie question, I know.

How do you properly download applications to your mac? I just downloaded firefox. I got this strange box (after it was added to my desktop with an icon) that looked like the firefox symbol, an arrow, and then a folder with an "a". So clueless as to what to do next, I just dragged that firefox icon on the left hand side into my dock. Where it now sits. Was this correct? Everytime I boot up my mac, and click the firefox icon, the same icon appears on my harddrive with the firefox symbol yet again.

Also, I'm getting the following message. When entering items in a yahoo searchbar, among other places in firefox:

The information you have entered is to be sent over an unencrypted connection and could easily be read by a third party. Are you sure you want to continue sending this information? (Then a box with a "yes" or "no" option.

Followed by a box that is checked off and the following: alert me whenever I submit info that is not encrypted.

I'm using a secured WPA N Network, so that can't be the issue. So what gives? Can my info really be seen by others? My friend, a mac users, says to just click "no" for the reminder, that I'm mine, but I just want to make sure.

 

[John.B]

Its the Firefox-for-OSX team's way of giving you installation instructions.

Grab that big Firefox icon, drag (that's the arrow) it to your Applications folder in Finder (the "A" is the Applications folder logo in Finder). Then run Firefox from the icon in Finder (in the Applications folder). As it is running, it will temporarily display its icon in the dock -- until you quit Firefox (Command-Q).

If you want to keep the Firefox icon in the dock permanently you can right mouse click on the dock icon when Firefox is running and tell it to keep it in the dock, or you can drag the Firefox icon from the application folder to the dock (anytime).

Have fun! My favorite add-ins for Firefox are Flashblock and Adblock Plus (with the EasyList+EasyElement subscription plus the ABP Tracking Filter). If you are running Firefox 3 Beta 4 on OS X, be sure to check out the GrApple themes which are much more Mac-like than anything yet from the Mozilla team.

Edit: Just because your network is secured doesn't mean your http traffic to and from the webserver is encrypted (as it passes through other servers across the Internet on the way to its destination, packet sniffers can capture the data in transit). Its telling you that you shouldn't be entering your SSN or credit card number or other sensitive information. Its OK to click "don't bother me again", just be aware that http is never really secure as the TCP packets travel across servers. For secure connections you always want to use an https connection.

 

[mackindergarten]

Hi,

there are multiple ways an application can be installed in Mac OS X.

In Mac OS X, a lot of applications come as application packages (or bundles). This means that everything the application needs is inside this package, unlike in Windows, everything you need to do is to drag this one "icon" to the Applications folder on your hard disk and it's installed. Easy as that.

For an overview of how to install an application, please read this post over at Mac Kindergarten.

/Rupert