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Mozilla’s Firefox continues to evolve with several exciting updates, especially for developers and users keen on smooth browsing experiences. The latest release is packed with critical improvements across various features, including tab management, profile management, developer tools, and the all-important Picture-in-Picture (PiP) functionality. This update promises enhanced user control, improved performance, and additional testing capabilities for developers. Let’s dive into some of the most significant changes and additions.
Key Updates
- Tab Groups Updates: The WebExtensions team is speeding up the integration of “tab groups” with the tabs API. These updates have already been rolled out in Nightly 139 and Beta 138 versions. This is a major step toward enhancing how users can manage and organize their tabs.
Picture-in-Picture (PiP) Captions Support: The new update brings PiP captions to several popular sites like iq.com, rte.ie, and joyn.de. This makes it easier for users to enjoy multimedia content with accessibility features.
Profiles Feature in Beta: The Profiles team is excited to report that the new profiles feature is currently in Beta 138 with no open blockers from QA. The cautious rollout will start with a 0.5% release in the 138 version to ensure data integrity, as profiles store sensitive user data.
Developer-Focused Enhancements: A significant change for developers includes a new preference to make it easier to test add-on updates. The
extensions.webextensions.prefer-update-over-install-for-existing-addonpreference simplifies the testing of add-on updates, making the process smoother and more efficient.
Contributions from the Firefox Community
Welcoming New Contributors: Mozilla has introduced several new contributors, including Yakub Abdulrahman Alada, Brian Ouyang, Cruz Hernandez, and many others who have contributed patches to various bugs and features, such as enhancing translation controls and improving accessibility.
Recognizing Volunteers: Special mentions go out to Gautam Panakkal, Jason Jones, and Ricardo Delgado Gomez for their contributions. They have fixed multiple bugs and played a key role in improving Firefox’s performance and user experience.
Noteworthy Project Updates
- Web Extensions API Enhancements: The i18n WebExtensions API now cascades localized strings using locale subtags, improving the translation experience. Additionally, a new text-to-audio task has been added to the trialML API for text-to-speech functionality using the Xenova/speecht5_tts model.
– DevTools Improvements: Several bugs related to
New Tab Page Updates: The New Tab team is preparing for their first “train-hop” experiment next month, bringing a newer version of the New Tab code to the 138 release. Several bugs related to custom wallpapers, text colors, and publisher favicons were also fixed in this release.
Performance Tools: Profiling xpcshell tests locally has been made easier with the new
./mach test <path to xpcshell test> --profilercommand. This helps developers track down performance bottlenecks more efficiently.Profile Management: Mozilla continues to work on making profile management more robust. The recent 139 update focuses on making the cross-profile shared database independent of the profiles feature, paving the way for Nimbus and OMC to store cross-profile data even if the profiles feature is not enabled.
What Undercode Says:
The recent Firefox update represents a significant step forward for both developers and users, with a special emphasis on improving features that directly impact usability and functionality. The addition of “tab groups” is an exciting change for users who often work with many tabs, as it will allow for better organization and control. This will likely make browsing sessions feel more fluid and less cluttered, which is crucial for power users and professionals who rely heavily on multitasking.
The cautious rollout of the Profiles feature also shows Mozilla’s commitment to data integrity and user privacy. Storing user data across profiles can be a double-edged sword. While it offers greater personalization and customization, it also carries the risk of data corruption or leakage. By carefully managing the rollout, Mozilla ensures that any issues are identified and resolved before a wider release.
From a developer’s perspective, the new add-on testing features and API improvements demonstrate Mozilla’s continued focus on creating a robust environment for extension developers. The WebExtensions team’s work on enhancing testing capabilities makes it easier for developers to manage add-ons and ensure updates are seamless, thereby fostering innovation and reducing friction in the development process.
Additionally, the PiP caption support is a welcome accessibility feature, expanding Firefox’s commitment to inclusivity. Making PiP content more accessible, especially for users with hearing impairments, is a key area where Firefox continues to lead the charge in the browser wars.
Fact Checker Results:
- The “tab groups” update is indeed live in Firefox Nightly and Beta 138, confirming Mozilla’s fast-tracking approach.
- PiP captions support has been added for iq.com, rte.ie, and joyn.de, with contributions from external developers as acknowledged.
- The Profiles feature in Beta 138 is progressing with no open blockers, indicating the release is on track for a broader rollout.
References:
Reported By: blog.nightly.mozilla.org
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