Firefox 3.0 will end up completely taking Firefox 2.0 out of the equation because it is simply the natural order of things. As Mozilla's open source browser evolves, users will keep up to date and will upgrade to the latest edition. However, the migration process, as a general rule, takes time and the swap of Firefox 2.0 for Firefox 3.0 will make no exception to this rule. In this context, Mozilla is prepared to act as a catalyst and smooth out the transition by pushing a major update down the throats of Firefox users. According to Mike Beltzner, User Experience Lead, Firefox 3.0.1 could be the browser to signal the beginning of the end for Firefox 2.0.

Traditionally, Mozilla does not support a previous version of Firefox for a long time after the availability of a more recent release. Under a year since the launch of Firefox 2.0, Mozilla pulled the plug on Firefox 1.5, discontinuing all security and stability updates and effectively forcing users to move to version 2.0 or be left out hanging. In contrast, Microsoft offers years after years of support for Internet Explorer versions, as its proprietary browser is intimately connected with the Windows operating system.

"Product drivers met on Friday to discuss the schedule for Firefox 3.0.1, and after taking into consideration the other requirements on the Build and QA teams we've decided to set a target of next Wednesday, July 3rd as the start date for generating builds, with code freeze set for Monday, June 30th at 11:59pm PDT," Beltzner stated.

The Firefox Major Update Rollout that effectively killed Firefox 1.5.0.12 only came at the end of June 2007, with the availability of version 2.0.0.4. It looks like with Firefox 3.0 things are moving along a tad faster. Firefox 3.0.1 is the first security and stability update for version 3.0 up for grabs since June 17, and it could very well be the variant that Mozilla will ship as a major update rollout.

"If we can fix all the bugs marked [MU+] in the whiteboard on this same schedule, then we will be able to also use Firefox 3.0.1 as a candidate for a major update offer to all users on the Firefox 2.0," Beltzner added.

Firefox 3.0 is available for download here.