14 DAY TRIAL // Firefox 3 has been out for over a year now and Firefox 3.5 is closing in in two months, yet a lot of people are still using the old Firefox 2. Mozilla set out to find what is keeping these users from upgrading and the results were surprising, though very legitimate. The main reason why users hold on to their old browser is the new history and bookmark search in the address bar that would sometimes reveal certain “private” sites that they might want to keep hidden.
“When we expanded the capabilities of the location bar to search against all history and bookmarks in Firefox 3, a lot of people contacted us to say that they had certain bookmarks they didn’t really want to have displayed,” Alex Faaborg, Firefox’s lead designer, explained. “Having something from your previous browsing displayed to someone else who is using your computer (or even worse) to a large audience of people as you are giving a presentation, is really one of the most embarrassing things that Firefox can do to you.”
Before Firefox 3.5 was released Mozilla started a bigger campaign to get those still using Firefox 2, about 10 percent at the time, to upgrade. Those who still chose to keep their older version were served with a small survey asking them to detail the reasons why they wouldn't upgrade. With 5,000 users providing feedback, the biggest reason for 25 percent of them was the new “awesome bar.”
Having the latest version of an application is generally a good idea. Most of the time it provides new or improved features and better performance and users should upgrade just for the security fixes alone. So, in order to get everyone to upgrade, Mozilla has made some changes based on this and previous feedback. One of the changes implemented in Firefox 3.5 is a new option that allows users to customize what sections the awesome bar searches and the possibility to disable it altogether. Another feature that might entice certain users is the much touted “Private Browsing” mode, which clears the history, cookies and any other trace once the browsing session is finished.
And, just in case you haven't made the jump, the latest Firefox 3.5 can be downloaded here.