- This topic is empty.
-
Posts
-
Update #1:
I cannot stand the location of the right-click new tab/new window location. It is the same way as it is in Chrome. I'm used to 'New Window' being the first option, and 'New Tab' the second. I'm finding myself, through habit, now opening new windows instead of new tabs. Since I figure this is going to be the new setup, I guess I'll have to get used to it, although I really do not like that change.
I loaded it on Monday and so far, I can see lots of sites that arent compatible with it. As far as the look and feel, it does feel a lot like Chrome. One of the things I was hoping for (and maybe just because I havent looked hard enough yet) is to be able to pin websites on the Windows 7 taskbar. This would be valuable for me to use Logmein, since its a site I go to every day at work, and would like to have in a separate window.
Typically, when Im opening new tabs, I just use Ctrl + T but thats mostly just because I try to use certain keyboard shortcuts to make things a little faster. I use the Windows + D a lot to clear my desktop on a frequent basis. But I can see your frustration with the menu changes.
Ive not yet tried firefox sync. I was using Google Bookmarks prior to FF4 and found an extension that would let me see those bookmarks on the toolbar. Now that the menu bar is gone (you can turn it back on in the options), I may have to find a different approach.
Havent noticed any speed improvements myself. I thought there was some talk about tabs running in processes, similar to Chrome. I may have to look into that further. If Logmein had support for Chrome, I would actually give up on Firefox completely. I realize that Firefox is extendable, and I love that about Firefox. However, I feel like Firefox has just become bloated and slow. Even after the upgrade, only being logged into a few websites, I noticed that my memory usage was still up in the 150 mb range, and I wasnt even on youtube or anything like that (which I know chews up more RAM).
Yeah, I use ctrl+t a lot to open new tabs, but my real gripe is when right-clicking a link to open it in a new tab, so I can come back to it after I'm done with the current page. Years of being the way it was has created a muscle memory for me, and I didn't even have to think about it. Now, I'm going to have to stop for a few seconds before I click, just to make sure I have the right one.
The first site I found that was not working with FF4 was LogMeIn, but I found if you go to http://beta.logmein.com, the plugin will install. I'll have to use this until they release the proper plugin.
I use Chrome sometimes, but I still use Firefox because some of the pages I go to in Chrome don't render quite right (not Chrome's fault, just bad coding on the other end), and I like Firefox's ability to save your pages and tabs when you close, so you can open them another time. If that feature is in Chrome, I haven't found it yet.
As for memory usage, Firefox did give about 100MB for me, but it wasn't much past that, even after visiting a lot of sites, and being logged into LogMeIn. Now, I know Firefox has always had an issue with memory leaks, and although that fix was promised since before 3.0, I have a feeling that problem is still there (as I have seen previous versions of Firefox chew up almost 1GB of RAM after a long period of use).
So, I'll keep updating as I discover new things about the browser.
I primarily use Firefox under a private browsing mode, because all of the regular websites I go to, I know the address for them. Even if Im browsing at something and I lose it,I'll find it again. I'd rather not have the traces of all of the garbage that comes in. Nor do I save any passwords of any kind. Sometimes its a struggle to remember, but for the most part, I make it a point to try to secure my browser so that no garbage is getting through that thing and putting myself at risk.
Now, with that being said, one thing I absolutely do not like about FF4 is the fact that when you're running in Private Browsing mode, and you move forward on a site, that you no longer have the ability to go back! I understand the concept here, but its a huge pain in the ass.
I found that with Logmein, even if I didnt install the plugin, I was still able to view my PC's by simply skipping the installation for now. I didnt notice any difference in the performance of the logmein connection. I did notice that they updated the task bar for a session (probably unrelated).
Chrome has the same issue that all browsers have, they all render sites a bit differently. I wouldnt completely abandon FF, anymore than Ive completely abandoned IE. They all have their place. I use IE primarily for anything from Microsoft, although this is becoming less and less frequent. I use Chrome for Netflix, but with Netflix you have to make sure you have private browsing turned off, because Netflix is apparently trying to store some kind of cookie or something on your system. I use Firefox for everything else.
Looks like you can turn the old menu bar back on by going to the Firefox Menu button (big orange button at the top left of the screen) and selecting Options, then Toolbars, then Menu Bar. The Firefox Menu button will disappear and your menu bar will re-appear. Since I have all of my bookmarks linked to Google, the Gbookmarks extension places an item in the menu bar, which doesnt appear when using the Firefox Menu button. I may look at Firefox sync though, just to see how good it is.
So, I just downloaded Firefox 4.0 (final) today on my computer at work. Going to give a try before I completely move over.
So far, doesn't seem too bad. I like the new interface, which really reminds me of Google Chrome. As for speed, I haven't noticed anything yet, but I plan on installing FF4 to an older PC I have, so see if actually runs a little faster (hard to tell on these modern, fast machines anyway).
I don't know all the new features yet, but if the Firefox Sync function lets me sync all my bookmarks across different computers, I am going to be super happy.
Anyway, further impressions as the days go on, and anyone else that reads this post, feel free to give your input!
“Input!! Megabytes of input!”
– Johnny 5, “Short Circuit”
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.