Firefox - web browser

[freakazoid]

I'm still on v91.12.0 here -- and have an older v8x.x elsewhere...

There are no more security updates for v91 ESR after this month, so beware. You could try using SeaMonkey or Waterfox if you value an older Firefox UI interface, but they are usually even slower to backport security fixes. For example, SeaMonkey just backported fixes from v91.11 ESR, which is older than v91.12.

Firefox was using an unbelievable 5GB+

I've found that current versions of Firefox are quite good with memory management. I've got 130 tabs open at the moment (I'm a tab hoarder) and it's using less than 750MB RAM right now. (I'm also using the Auto Tab Discard addon, which helps a bit). You might want to debug your Firefox profile and disable unneeded addons or start a fresh profile. A fresh profile usually does wonders.

Quick example (that ESR doesn't solve): current versions don't allow me to manually change print settings from inches to metric or print date alone (not date/time) in headers/footers...

For inches to metric, see https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/quest ... wer-870648.

For date, maybe try altering some printer about:config values. See https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1117290. For date alone, this is the closest you can get: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1128476

[Midas]

Thank you for all these tips, I'll check them ASAP -- currently out of home.

[webfork]

Just by way of transparency, I've removed mention of the WinPenPack version of Firefox from the main entry.

Alternatively, X-Firefox is also available.

I don't wish to marginalize the WinPenPack team, but web browser security is huge right now and I'm not comfortable pointing to sites that host modern web browser software over 6 months old. I say "modern" because there are some text-based browsers like Links2 with a slow-release cycle that I'm not worried about.

[Midas]

Topic update: current main (desktop) Firefox is v121.0, released 2023-12-19 (all release notes at https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/releases/; see also https://mzl.la/3p9AkD7).

Firefox ESR (Enterprise?) is currently v115.6.0, released on the same date (notes at https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/organizations/notes/; see also https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/products/firefox-enterprise/whats-new-firefox-enterprise).

FYI, the PortableApps.com Firefox version present in TPFC's database is in synch with the official release.

BTW, some of the glitches I reported earlier are no more on account of development fixes. Memory footprint has improved greatly, but I still find it overblown. OTOH, some fixes implemented via 'user.js' have ceased working (hamburger menu on the left, anyone? [Edit & note-to-self: check viewtopic.php?p=103327#p103327 and following again...]).

Why trust Firefox?

Because we put people first. In fact, we’re backed by a non-profit. From day one, it’s been our mission to protect the internet and everyone on it.

@ https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/privacy/

But here's something to keep any Firefox diehard user worried:

The Mozilla Foundation has released their latest annual report -- covering the time up through December of 2022 (Mozilla's reporting always lags by one year) -- and something peculiar leaps out of the data:

• The compensation of the Mozilla CEO has skyrocketed (by millions)

• While the Mozilla revenue drops

@ https://lunduke.locals.com/post/5053290/
mozilla-2023-annual-report-ceo-pay-skyrockets-while-firefox-marketshare-nosedives

[vevy]

@JohnTHaller

There was a problem with Firefox PAF. When you double-clicked an HTML file or launched a URL from the system, it gave this message:

Firefox is already running, but is not responding. The old Firefox process must be closed to open a new window.

This problem has been fixed for many months now, but it regressed in the past couple of weeks (I am not sure which version exactly).

It is worth noting that I have multiple copies of Firefox PAF and occasionally, more than one will be running at the same time. But this problem persists even when only one copy is running.

[JohnTHaller]

The ability to do a secondary launch passing in a file or URL when using AllowMultipleInstances was removed some time ago from the Firefox Portable launcher. Firefox has been changing the way profiles work for a while and it was a choice between breaking multiple instances for many users or disabling the feature. It will likely be back at some point.