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The Netscape heritage Mozilla suite browser will be around for a while yet, with the latest 1.5 version currently in alpha release The Mozilla Application Suite is a complete suite of web related applications, such as a browser, a mail/news client, a chat client and more. But the future of Mozilla is the new, leaner Mozilla Firebird browser, which is a browser application only, with no email client ot html authoring modules. Email tasks are to be handled by Mozilla's new ThunderBird freestanding email client, and html building, chat, etc., will have to be shifted to different applications. 
Mozilla Firebird, formerly known as Phoenix, is a redesign of the Mozilla browser component, similar to Galeon, K-Meleon and Camino, but written using the XUL user interface language and designed to be cross-platform. While Firebird superficially resembles the Mozilla suite browser in appearance, 40,000+ lines of code have already been added or changed from Mozilla.
Firebird features include:
Mozilla Firebird 0.6.1 is a minor bug-fix release fixing a few critical issues in Mozilla Firebird 0.6, as well as some other minor bug fixes and changes, including:
Mozilla Firebird is freeware Mozilla Firebird 0.6.1 is a Technology Preview. While this software works generally well enough to be relied upon as your primary browser, Mozilla makes no guarantees of its performance or stability in its pre-1.0 state and it should not be relied upon for mission-critical tasks. Mozilla notes that Firebird on Mac OS X is new and still very rough around the edges. Expect platform inconsistencies. I've been testing FireBird 0.6.1 for several days, and my impressions concur with that, It's actually not bad at all, and very usable, as well as being wicked fast -- definitely quicker on my dialup connection than Safari. One annoyance is that opening a page in a new tab by holding down the Control key while clicking on a link is apparently not supported. You have to resort to the Control key summoned contextual menu instead, which means a click and drag instead of just a click. I hope they fix this in a later beta or the final release. One of the several tabbed browsing extensions available might address this issue. A couple are available here, and here but I didn't experiment with them. More new features in Mozilla Firebird:
• New default theme
• Redesigned Preferences window
• Improved Privacy Options
• Improved Bookmarks
• Automatic Image Resizing
• Smooth Scrolling
• Access to more preferences
Better Search Features Mozilla Firebird helps you fill out web forms and remembers what you've searched for. One of the most common things to do on the web is searching. This was something the Mozilla Firebird developers realized when designing the browser and the result is a the best search features available in a browser today. Right on the toolbar, there's a Search bar making web searches even more accessible and convenient. Just hit Ctrl+K or click on the search field, enter some things to search for and press Enter. It supports "Find in this Page", Google and dmoz.org but can easily be extended to hundreds of other search engines with the click of a link at mycroft.mozdev.org. • Fast and Convenient Sidebar The sidebar offers many conveniences not seen in other browsers. With the Sidebar offered in Mozilla Firebird, you have access to lots of useful things. By using the Bookmarks Sidebar, you can access and easily organize your bookmarks with your mouse. Just drag a bookmark to a new location and the change will be reflected in the Bookmarks menu as well. Right-click a bookmark to access even more features. The Downloads Sidebar provides easy access to both the files you are currently downloading as well as a list of recent downloads. Right-click a downloaded file and select Show and Mozilla Firebird will take you to the folder where you downloaded the file. Double-click the file to launch it directly. By using the History Sidebar, you can easily navigate back to sites and pages you have previously visited. The links are sorted by the day they were visited which gives you a good overview of them.
• Profile Chrome
The next major release of FireBird will be version 0.7, which is provisionally scheduled for release around the Mozilla 1.5 final release date, and which will include a
Mozilla FireBird is a very nice browser and possibly the fastest currently available. However, Mozilla 1.4 is still more polished, and likely a better choice for compatibility and reliability yet, although I have encountered no problems in that regard with Firebird so far.
For more information, visit:
Safari compatibility Safari Enhancer and the larger issue of Mac web access as it relates to survival of the platform. From Ken Heins I, too, have used Safari Enhancer, and it may be true that in some cases it will get you what you want. But it is not true in the case of one particular INDUSTRY SPECIFIC web site that I must use in my work. And it causes me to speculate that my industry may not be the only one that is affected. THAT causes me to wonder how many Mac users are being blocked out, intentionally or otherwise, from some websites. THAT then causes me to wonder whether Apple can ever break out of the "artsy-craftsy, warm fuzzy entertainment" part of the world and into the "mainstream" of business. There is a much bigger world out there which we could be a part of. I think it is one we must be a part of if we are to survive. My example: Real Estate We are not talking about public sites like Realtor.com. What I am talking about is a site that is contracted by my local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and is only available to licensed Realtors who are members of that board. I can log on to that site using my password. The site loads normally under Safari. In fact, Safari does the best job of all non-Windows browsers. I can even set up the searches which are features of that site. But no data is ever returned. And that is true even if Safari Enhancer is used to make the browser identify itself as Windows MSIE 6.0. It works fine when I run Virtual PC and MSIE Windows 6.0. No problem, except that I only run Virtual PC because I have to, and I don't like it. I have posted about this subject on other Mac discussion groups, and to be honest, have received some very silly, short sighted replies about what to do. The most common reply paraphrased as follows: If the site were properly designed, that won't happen. Talk to the web designer and get it changed! Then there are the others, paraphrased as: As long as I can download Goo Goo Dolls tunes, what's the problem? My reply: what fantasy world to do you live in? The site designer doesn't want to change it because if the site works properly while using Windows MSIE, then as defined by the policies of his company, the site IS properly designed! And how do you argue with that point? In the real world, you don't because you can't, in the same sense that I can talk about philosophy with my cat, but he is not going to get it. Or maybe he gets it, and I don't! If this continues and expands, which I suspect is happening, you may not be able to download Goo Goo Dolls, or whoever. I suspect there are many other industries where this is happening. There are those who have an interest in having Microsoft becoming the sole provider of data, and their answer to all problems is easy: just buy a Wintel box, and run MSIE. Conspiracy: who knows, managing conspiracies is probably like herding cats. But people with common interests do band together even if they are not aware of it, and there definitely are a lot of people and companies who would have a strong interest in a Microsoft data monopoly. It seems to me that the answer is to make a way for Safari to read websites the same way as MSIE does. If not technically possible, find out why, and find out if Microsoft is violating any laws because some parts of the Web are not accessible to all computer platforms. Wasn't the intent of the Web to make information available across the board? I would rather just have someone tell me that there is a neat piece of software that will allow Safari to access data bases that are carried on Microsoft servers. That would be simpler, but .....
Thanks,
Hi Ken;
Thanks for voicing these concerns and observations, and I pretty much agree with you on all points.
Charles
From Jack Russell
Charles
Being a CitiBank card holder too, I am familiar with the problem. Just download the free Safari Enhancer and you'll be able to access CitiBank, by telling Safari to mimic Netscape. Works for me. I haven't found any financial site I cannot access using Safari Enhancer. It can mimic a plethora of browsers and one of them always works. <G>
Just FYI,
Thanks for the report, Jack. I discovered last week that the Nova Scotia online automobile permit renewal site will only work with the dreaded Internet Explorer or Netscape. Even Mozilla wouldn't work, which makes me suspect that it's just an arbitrary block the government has imposed on the advice of some IT "expert." Sigh.
Charles
The OS X Odyssey archives may be accessed here: Note: Letters to Moore's Mailbag may or may not be published at the editor's discretion. Correspondents' email addresses will NOT be published unless the correspondent specifically requests publication. Letters may be edited for length and/or context. Opinions expressed in postings to Moore's MailBag are those of the respective correspondents and not necessarily shared or endorsed by the Editor and/or Applelinks management. If you would prefer that your message not appear in Moore's Mailbag, we would still like to hear from you. Just clearly mark your message "NOT FOR PUBLICATION," and it will not be published. CM
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