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PowerFox Classic Web Browser - A brand new browser for PowerPC (Beta)

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@Jazzzny
For your reference
Code: 
// On Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard), NSOpenGLProfileVersion3_2Core is a
    // 10.7+ symbol and is compiled out when targeting the 10.6 SDK. CGL then
    // silently hands back a Legacy (GL <= 2.1) context, but the provider may
    // still have recorded ContextProfile::OpenGLCore based on the requested
    // attributes. OpenGL core profile did not exist prior to GL 3.2, so if
    // the actual version is below 3.2 demote the recorded profile to
    // Compatibility. Otherwise WebGL's AddLegacyFormats_LA8 sees IsCoreProfile()
    // == true, requires ARB_texture_swizzle to emulate L/A/LA formats, and
    // fails with "Failed to create mFormatUsage." / "Exhausted GL driver
    // options." on pre-3.3 GPUs (e.g. GeForce FX, Radeon X1000).
    if (mProfile == ContextProfile::OpenGLCore && version < 320) {
        if (ShouldSpew()) {
            printf_stderr("Demoting GL profile from OpenGLCore to "
                          "OpenGLCompatibility (actual GL version %u < 3.2)\n",
                          version);
        }
        mProfile = ContextProfile::OpenGLCompatibility;
    }
github.com

Demote OpenGLCore profile to Compatibility when actual GL < 3.2 · Jazzzny/platform-uxp@715e117

On Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard), NSOpenGLProfileVersion3_2Core is a 10.7+ symbol and is compiled out when targeting the 10.6 SDK. CGL then silently returns a Legacy (GL <= 2.1) context, but GLCo...
github.com github.com
Plus: set webgl.enable-webgl2 from true to false in about:config.
worth noting that OpenGL 3.2 Core support may be available for certain hardware, but still webgl2 might not be working right away so webgl.enable-webgl2 seems the right toggle.
 
The whole experience feels smoother. Of course, I test this all on slow computers, all the lags and freezes on G3, G4, and even Intel Core Duo are shorter and some vanished. I didn't test yet everything on all of my machines, still the first impressions are pretty good.
 
I have had the opportunity at this point to test PowerFox on a 12" PBG4 (1.5GHz) running both Sorbet Leopard and Tiger. Interestingly, the Tiger build seems to struggle more than the Leopard build. Some random crashes (mostly kern access related) which happen when doing things in Tiger but not on Leopard. Otherwise the browser is quity spiffy. I'm able to access socials, modern webpages, etc. The only hiccup thus far is YouTube playback even with a simple useragent.

Similar tests on a 17" PBG4 (1.67GHz) yielded even more speed boost, although on that machine I only tested the Leopard build running inside of my 10.6.8a install. The random bumps in the process are more easily attributable to running the Snow Leopard alpha rather than a PowerFox issue itself. I have Tiger dual-booting but have yet to try PF on that partition.

I can't wait to fire this up on my DC G5 next month. Can similarly test on other machines such as my new PB Pismo 500MHz, an iBook G4 1.2GHz, and my iMac G4 20". Will happily report back on how it behaves.

Is there a standard sort of test suite I could run on each device to see how performance is beyond mere perception?
 
Smithwick’s said:
I can't wait to fire this up on my DC G5 next month. Can similarly test on other machines such as my new PB Pismo 500MHz, an iBook G4 1.2GHz, and my iMac G4 20". Will happily report back on how it behaves.
Click to expand...

I tried it on my PB Pismo with a 550mhz G4 and 1gb of RAM in Sorebet Leopard. It launches quickly. It struggled with a lot of websites. No chance at using YouTube.

@Dronecatcher mentioned Vorapis V3 which I never heard of until now. I’m curious if that could help.

I really want to use it with my 2005 iBook G4 1.33ghz but I accidentally pulled the connector off the board that connects to the power button. I did it while replacing the HDD with a SSD. I don’t have a soldering iron and I’m not sure if it can be fixed without pulling the logic board out. Which I really have no desire to do.
 
ww2_1943 said:
@Dronecatcher mentioned Vorapis V3 which I never heard of until now. I’m curious if that could help.
Click to expand...
It was absolutely essential on my Dual Core - without it I gave up. With it 360P is a breeze, 720P too although CPUs are around 60%. 1080P is doable but CPUs are under stress.

Tried it on my 800Mhz G4 iMac but that's far too weak to cope.
 
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Dronecatcher said:
It was absolutely essential on my Dual Core - without it I gave up. With it 360P is a breeze, 720P too although CPUs are around 60%. 1080P is doable but CPUs are under stress.

Tried it on my 800Mhz G4 iMac but that's far too weak to cope.
Click to expand...
I wish I still had a dual core G5. I have a dual processor 1.8 G5. I’ve been meaning to dig it out of the closet to try with this browser.
 
OuchMyFaceyHole said:
Finally got around to trying this again with JIT on my G5 quad. 1080p youtube without dropping a frame🤯. Just don't try scrolling or really interacting with it while it plays lol
Click to expand...
I'm so confused about how YouTube works on some machines/installations and not others... on the latest PowerFox (tiger) update with JIT and the one before, YouTube broke on all my machines (and V3 and h.264ify made no difference), the videos and the ads all play for a few seconds then the stream reloads and starts at 0. It does this a few times before it throws a "video can't be played" error... others have mentioned similar things here, is there anything you're doing different here?
 
I have never been able to get PowerFox stable on either my Dual Core G5 or my early 2005 PowerBook. On both systems it crashes shortly after launch. It loads the window but it crashes before I can do anything.
 
AdamBuker said:
I have never been able to get PowerFox stable on either my Dual Core G5 or my early 2005 PowerBook. On both systems it crashes shortly after launch. It loads the window but it crashes before I can do anything.
Click to expand...
Please post the crash log, do note that certain 3rd party software that modify the Mac OS X windowing system are known to break PowerFox.
 
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Hello all, as I prepare for the initial 10.3 Panther release of PowerFox, I would like your thoughts on which builds should be provided.

All possible configurations are:
10.3 G3
10.3 G4 7400
10.3 G4 7450
10.3 G5

However, as much as I would like to ship all 4 builds, this is simply unsustainable, as it bumps the number of PowerFox variants up to 14(!), which puts an immense strain on my ability to test and release the browser in a timely manner.

As such, if you are interested in using the 10.3 build of PowerFox once it is released, please indicate which machine(s) you own (G3/G4 7400/G4 7450/G5) that run 10.3. Thanks!
 
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Jazzzny said:
Hello all, as I prepare for the initial 10.3 Panther release of PowerFox, I would like your thoughts on which builds should be provided.

All possible configurations are:
10.3 G3
10.3 G4 7400
10.3 G4 7450
10.3 G5

However, as much as I would like to ship all 4 builds, this is simply unsustainable, as it bumps the number of PowerFox variants up to 14(!), which puts an immense strain on my ability to test and release the browser in a timely manner.

As such, if you are interested in using the 10.3 build of PowerFox once it is released, please indicate which machine(s) you own (G3/G4 7400/G4 7450/G5) that run 10.3. Thanks!
Click to expand...
pvr@ in Open Firmware for both my B&W G3 and 8600 returns 80010303. That's for PowerPC 7445 or 7455 v3.3 (Apollo 6) 1GHz.
https://68kmla.org/bb/threads/how-to-confirm-my-cpu-type-and-count-in-my-g4.46613/post-521310

So is that closer to 7400 Max (0x000C0x0x) or 7550 Vger (0x80000x0x)? I'm guessing the latter since 0x80010303 is closer to 0x80000x0x than it is to 0x000C0x0x.
 
Jazzzny said:
Please post the crash log, do note that certain 3rd party software that modify the Mac OS X windowing system are known to break PowerFox.
Click to expand...

Are there any specific ones that you know of? I use Nocturne to provide a dark menu bar, but other than that I don't recall installing anything for window customization or themes.

Anyway, I have the crash reports and system configurations copied into text files.
 

Attachments

AdamBuker said:
I have never been able to get PowerFox stable on either my Dual Core G5 or my early 2005 PowerBook. On both systems it crashes shortly after launch. It loads the window but it crashes before I can do anything.
Click to expand...
Have you tried Vorapis - that fixed the crashes for me (on Youtube anyway?)
 
AdamBuker said:
Are there any specific ones that you know of? I use Nocturne to provide a dark menu bar, but other than that I don't recall installing anything for window customization or themes.

Anyway, I have the crash reports and system configurations copied into text files.
Click to expand...
This is the crash indicative of 3rd party windowing software. I do not recall the name, but it provides tiling functionality. Please remove it to use PowerFox.
 
Dronecatcher said:
Have you tried Vorapis - that fixed the crashes for me (on Youtube anyway?)
Click to expand...
Even with this.. nothing plays as of the last 2 versions. And ive NEVER been able to play a video with Vorapis, always an error or endless loading screen. Is it something with the Tiger version of PowerFox? I no longer own a Leopard running Mac so I can't test it on there.
 
Jazzzny said:
Hello all, as I prepare for the initial 10.3 Panther release of PowerFox, I would like your thoughts on which builds should be provided.

All possible configurations are:
10.3 G3
10.3 G4 7400
10.3 G4 7450
10.3 G5

However, as much as I would like to ship all 4 builds, this is simply unsustainable, as it bumps the number of PowerFox variants up to 14(!), which puts an immense strain on my ability to test and release the browser in a timely manner.

As such, if you are interested in using the 10.3 build of PowerFox once it is released, please indicate which machine(s) you own (G3/G4 7400/G4 7450/G5) that run 10.3. Thanks!
Click to expand...
The G3 version with JIT is still completely unusable from my experience, on a 400mhz iMac. Better compatibility overall, but no noticeable difference in speed from the JITless version and constant crashing/script loading. The G4 systems I've tested are night and day difference however, and are a massive improvement. YouTube still doesn't work (even with people suggesting Vorapis which also doesn't work), but hopefully PowerVLC will mean we never have to use the browser site ever again.

I think G4/G4e versions will help the most people, and maybe cutting off G3 support on this Panther version as the weight of the UXP engine/modern browser is too much for them. To make a usable G3 version would be an impossible task, simply due to the G3 itself. And G5 users are better off on Tiger/Leopard.
 
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Dronecatcher said:
I guess depends on the spec of the machine you're using - my 800Mhz G4 iMac is well below the threshold.
Click to expand...
This isn't the issue at all. Whether I'm using a 1.5ghz PBG4 or a 400mhz iMac. It doesn't load it gives an error everytime. Most likely due to it being a much older version that YouTube finally broke. And PowerFox does have underlying issues on its current version of playing YouTube on the native front-end, this is known already. I was curious how the person with the G5 quad managed to get it working (let alone at 1080p).
 
Appleuser201 said:
I'm so confused about how YouTube works on some machines/installations and not others... on the latest PowerFox (tiger) update with JIT and the one before, YouTube broke on all my machines (and V3 and h.264ify made no difference), the videos and the ads all play for a few seconds then the stream reloads and starts at 0. It does this a few times before it throws a "video can't be played" error... others have mentioned similar things here, is there anything you're doing different here?
Click to expand...
Nothing very interesting. Stock 10.5.8 and it just worked. Worked better once I added ublock. I have to let it fully load the page before attempting to interact with it as that sometimes caused such a heavy JS stall that it would take the browser with it. My DLSD G4 could maybe do 360 or higher but it was struggling to even load the page. I have a dual G4 MDD upgraded with 1.42GHz with 2MB L3 per CPU that I'll try next.
 
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