Chicago (IL) – Google’s Chrome and Mozilla’s Firefox captured the browser headlines this week, igniting a new discussion about performance increases and possible new features that are likely to drive a new round of innovations. Here is our list of the ten features - five for Chrome, five for Firefox - which we would like to see in the next versions.    


Chrome

1. Browser add-ons: No browser is perfect, particularly Chrome. We want compatibility with Firefox add-ons in Chrome. Better yet, connect Google gadgets to Chrome and you have an instant add-on-galore and a powerful open-source add-on platform that extends beyond the iGoogle home page.

2. Themes: We would want o see an SDK to enable the development of themes that will make it easy to change the UI. Allow users to connect themes with custom add-ons (see previous bullet) and make it easy to apply themes with a single click and you have a winner.

3. Online repository: What about an App Store for Chrome? What about an online content repository for all things Chrome: Themes, add-ons, plugins, etc. Integrate it neatly into Chrome UI, like Apple did with the iTunes Store for the iPhone. Such a feature could also extend to saving user settings, bookmarks and history in the cloud - like Weave for Firefox.

4. Security and privacy: No need to re-invent the wheel here. Google should just copy Firefox 3's options against malware and phishing and IE8's excellent privacy settings and we won't complain. We wouldn’t mind to get highly granular security and privacy settings and on a per-site basis make provide clear warnings when malware is encountered.

5. Put Chrome in Android: Chrome is based on the WebKit rendering engine, which is easily deployed across various form-factors, so it shouldn't be difficult to get Chrome into Android. Chrome and Android sounds like a winning combination to us.


Firefox

1. Code overhaul: We know, every application gets heavier with each revision, but Mozilla seriously needs to think about overhauling its base code. Take Chrome's kernel, especially the memory and process management and make it oversee everything that's happening. Isolate each tab in its own process, protect tabs from affecting each other and assign UI high priority so that it's always responsive.

2. Email client: Can we get a lightweight Thunderbird as part of the package? Think Opera, which comes with an integrated email client. And what about an option during the install to choose between browser only or browser + email client integration?

3. Omnibar: No need for a separate address and search bars anymore, those days are gone. We would like to see Chrome's Omnibar feature and control over what is sent to the chose search provider - we don't want the browser to become a keylogger for search engines.
   
4. Firefox for mobile phones: Why is this taking so long? 20% of online users bothered to replace their default browser with Firefox, but we're not using our desktop all the time. Can we get Firefox for Windows Mobile, the iPhone, Android and BlackBerry?

5. Re-think tabs: Microsoft had a fantastic idea when it decided to group tabs, Firefox should get this feature as well. Give each tab a thumbnail and make them fluid like in Chrome. Multi-thread the tabs provide an option to create a special page when a new tab is opened – which could include page thumbnails, search engine fields, quick access to the browsing history and downloads.
 

 

Chrome cannot read these comments!

Sep 12, 2008 20:46     

I am in Chrome right now and cannot see the comments. It said there were comments on the main page but on click through, nothing. Wonder if this comment goes through?
Elijah report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -23

>We want compatibility with Firefox add-ons in Chro...

Sep 12, 2008 20:55     

>We want compatibility with Firefox add-ons in Chrome. And I want a 747, my own island, and a pony, but guess what? It ain't happening! Google would have to implement XUL in Webkit, and then emulate/create various gecko-specific APIs. >Code overhaul: We know, every application gets heavier >with each revision, but Mozilla seriously needs to think >about overhauling its base code. Mozilla *is* overhauling it's code. Did you ever look at the changelog for gecko 1.9? Have you looked at the plans for Mozilla/Gecko 2.0? >Take Chrome's kernel, you mean the rendering engine? >especially the memory and process management taking just those might be harder than swapping Gecko for Webkit >and make it oversee everything that's happening. Isolate >each tab in its own process, protect tabs from affecting >each other and assign UI high priority so that it's >always responsive. There are darn good reasons why Mozilla hasn't done this. A multiprocess browser is really, really hard to do right. Please take the time to check Planet Mozilla, you will see some blog posts explaining why Mozilla has made the choices it has. >2. Email client: Can we get a lightweight Thunderbird as >part of the package? Ok, I know this is hard but try to think back to the 1998-2002 era. Remember the Mozilla Suite? Firefox was created specifically to get away from a monolithic suite. Anyway, if you want a mail app to go with firefox, just install thunderbird. They integrate very well with each other. And if you want a monolithic app that much, use SeaMonkey. It is the original Mozilla Suite, renamed. SeaMonkey 1.1.x is the current stable release, and is based on Gecko 1.8.1 (FF 2). The SeaMonkey 2.0 pre-alpha is actually rather stable, and very usable (posting with it right now). When 2.0 is done it should be based on gecko 1.9.1 (FF 3.1), have very good FF extension compatibility (it has some compatibly now, eg noscript and adblock plus), and it should have the FF3 awesomebar. >3. Omnibar: SeaMonkey has it, FF may get it >4. Firefox for mobile phones: Why is this taking so long? Because programming is hard and all things Mozilla were not originally designed for constrained resources. >5. Re-think tabs: That kind of stuff belongs in extensions, until and unless it becomes overwhelmingly popular.

Kelly report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +26

testing comment system...

Sep 12, 2008 21:10     

testing comment system
Kelly report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -5

Omnibar?

Sep 12, 2008 22:06     

ok, I can't install beta software on my work computer, so I haven't tried the Omnibar, yet. But I for one like the separate search field in Firefox. CTRL K brings the cursor right up there, you start to type and boom result on the desired search engine. Can you create/install you custom search engine plugins in Chrome - like you can in Firefox? I created my own search engine plugins, namely wikipedia in 2 languages, the IMDb different languages and searches like "IMDb Names", "IMDb Titles", "IMDb TV Episode", etc. I've also installed several dictionary and translator search plugins. Is that possible with Chrome's Omnibar?

StudyMaster report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +10

Email Client?

Sep 12, 2008 23:11     

Why would I want an email client in my browser? So it can take up more resources and slow down my browsing? No thanks.
anonymous report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +25

Firefox for mobile phones?

Sep 13, 2008 03:49     

Opera Mini is already available free for most mobile devices and works fantastically well. (Ahead of the game, as usual).
NickElliott report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

Opera...

Sep 13, 2008 04:33     

What you ask for in Firefox sounds a bit like Opera...
Alexko report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +5

Opera

Sep 13, 2008 05:10     

Chrome: 1. Already done in Opera. 2. Has been done in Opera for quite a while. 3. Opera already does a large portion of this. 4. Opera already has some of the best privacy and security settings out there as well as most flexible. 5. I'm not entirely sure yet, but I would bet it wouldn't be too hard to make Opera Mini work on Android, if it doesn't already. FireFox: 1. I do believe there is some code overhaul in plans already for Opera. 2. As you mentioned, basic Email client is already in place. 3. I actually find Opera's implementation of custom searches from within the address bar preferable to Chrome's, and obviously FireFox's. I'd much rather have control over which site's search I use. I find it simple enough to use "g texttofind" syntax. 4. Opera Mini. 5. While I agree that tab groups would be a nice feather, Opera already does "thumbnails" on hovering over each tab, ala Vista. As for the "special page when a new tab is opened" -- It's sad that it took another browser to make Opera's innovative feature more known and accepted. Then again, same happened with tabs, long time ago. So, instead of waiting for Chrome and FireFox to implement all these features, why not just use browser that already HAS most of them?

Toly report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +11

Re: Omnibar?

Sep 13, 2008 09:41     

I agree with StudyMaster. Many things simply can't be done with only one bar. There is some OpenSearch integration in Chrome, but you have to make up and remember a keyword for each search plugin (this can be done in Firefox as well). As soon as you have more than just a few search plugins, it is extemely helpful to have a dropdown list. Also, some more advanced browser extensions heavily rely on the search box (f.i. 'Inquisitor' for Safari, or 'Lookpicking' for Firefox). I guess it would probably be ok to have an option to hide the search bar, but it shouldn't be removed completely. As to the privacy concerns, a separate search box is also probably the most intuitive way to control what gets sent to the search provider, especially for those estimated 95 percent of the users who don't touch the default settings.

PhilBilly report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

@Elijah

Sep 13, 2008 11:30     

that happens in firefox too they're just unapproved/undenied comments TGD's fault
lolz report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

Re: Ommibar

Sep 13, 2008 12:25     

Personally I did not like Omnibar in Chrome. Amazingly Google does not shove Google search down your throat they ask you up front which search engine you you want as default. You just can't quickly switch between multiple ones easily. When I wanted to search Wikipedia instead of Ask I had to go into settings and reconfigure which search engine to use as default. But you can customize your search entries adding ones that are not included by default. Omnibar often mistakes mistyped entries for searches, very annoying.

tomt report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

@ Firefox 2.

Sep 13, 2008 18:57     

You mean like the simplemail extension, https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/5593
atomic1fire report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Mobile Phones

Sep 13, 2008 19:02     

I agree, but it can't be on the iPhone. Apple's SDK and licensing stuff don't allow for another browser.
Simpleuser report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

Mr. Reality

Sep 13, 2008 19:38     

CRHOME is OPEN SOURCE. get off your lazy assez and DO IT Yourself. wow what a concept!!!
Mr. Reality report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

FireFox Options 1 and 2

Sep 13, 2008 19:43     

It seems to me that options 1 and 2 might be mutually exclusive. You want less bloat and faster response then ask to have them add an email client directly afterward? I seem to remember that Firefox was a stripped down revamped Mozilla (as in no email client), so I don't think the demand for this is there. If it is there are other browsers that handle this, let's not add bloat and complexity to Firefox with an integrated email client. Not to get too long on this comment either, but I think that email clients will soon go the way of the dodo as web clients replace them. I do think perhaps Gecko in Firefox needs a revamp, I think the FF devs generally don't agree with the each tab is a process philosophy and the ram overhead in that, but I do think they need to work on stability so a crashed tab won't kill the whole browser. Oh yeah and Chrome is already helping push Firefox to innovate, just as Firefox pushed IE to innovate.

joe Joe report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +3

Omnibar

Sep 13, 2008 19:47     

I really like firefox's "are you feeling lucky" feature. If I want to go straight to a page without searching but don't know the address, stick it in the address bar and see if it works. Otherwise, it shows you the seach results anyway. And if you want to search for something, just put it in the search bar.
Jonathan report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

Chrome can see these comments

Sep 13, 2008 19:57     

I'm using chrome now and I'm having no problems.
Kieran report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

about the omnibar

Sep 13, 2008 20:19     

#3, under firefox.. typing in a search query in the address bar in firefox is equivalent to typing a query in google and hitting the 'i'm feeling lucky' button. switching that to a standard google search instead will replicate the omnibar and negate the need for the search box.
lowell report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Responses to Firefox features

Sep 13, 2008 20:35     

1. This is already going on. The problem is that FF extensions can interact with content, which is not an easy situation to ameliorate. And IPC sucks. 2. Ever heard of SeaMonkey? 3. I can't say here. 4. The project's called Fennec. And it's being done as we speak. 5. I can't say either, but I don't particularly want this feature.
Joshua Cranmer report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Why email?

Sep 13, 2008 20:55     

Firefox was a fork of Mozilla specifically to remove email from the browser. It would be completely against Firefox' purpose to include email.
Dan report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +3

Complete lack of research done here

Sep 13, 2008 21:12     

Just demonstrates the author's lack of connection with the technical world. I've sent a point-by-point analysis to your managing editor.
Jed Smith report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Wow

Sep 13, 2008 22:41     

I am impressed. I suspect Firefox plugins will show up for this shortly. JIff www.anonymize.us.tc
Jiffy Dolittle report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

RE: Omnibar

Sep 13, 2008 22:42     

several other browsers will default try to search the web if your address is mangled. Even when they have the address bar and search bar entirely separate.
web developer report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Firefox has a better omnibar already

Sep 13, 2008 22:55     

Firefox already has an omnibar. It default searches google if you don't type in a webpage and automatically goes through your bookmarks. The added search bar lets you easily access the likes of wikipedia, imdb, youtube, amazon, and many other websites without having to first visit their mainsites.
Zach report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +3

Stupid AwesomeBar in Firefox3

Sep 14, 2008 02:21     

Firefox3 new AwesomeBar is stupid and ruins the whole usage experiense compared to Firefox2. You think an Omnibar mixing both address and search is a good idea, give it as an OPTION, dont force it on users. many of the fancy new "advances" will be rejected by users as an unrequested unwanted bloatware ruining something that was working perfectly fine.
Dan report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

Opera Mobile

Sep 14, 2008 03:49     

Meh. I've used it and it has its strong points, but at the end of the day, I still use NetFront most of the time. My second would probably be Skyfire for the flash goodness, but its refresh under our craptastic 3G service is appalling.
PacoBell report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Firefox suggestions...

Sep 14, 2008 08:57     

Here's my thoughts. Chrome is based on an Apple product, so I'll never use it. Do what you like to it. Firefox on the other hand, is good. 1) I don't think it needs as much of an overhaul as some people think. Unless your are a programmer and have gone through the source code of Firefox, I don't think you can say that. 2) No. I do not want my email and web browser part of each other. I love Firefox, I love Thunderbird. I love them separate. 3) Those days are still here. I've tried Chrome, I don't like the all in one bar. It might be nice for some people's "minimalist" wants, but I don't like it. When I want to go somewhere, I want a bar for that. When I want to search, I'll go somewhere else. 4) Yes. I don't have a mobile that would work. But part of the reason I haven't invested in a mobile/service that can browse the web, is because I know Firefox won't be on it or an option... right now. 5) Maybe a few improvements to TABS. Really though, tabs in Firefox are great. I don't think they need much tweaking at all. 6) My own thoughts. I like the idea of how Chrome is multi process. Each tab being a process. Letting you kill one tab without the whole browser. Letting the OS choose what core a given tab can load/render using while another tab is rendering using another core, that's a great way to multithread an app.

Beanpod report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Omnibar search feature in Firefox

Sep 14, 2008 11:26     

People who think that Firefox needs an Omnibar are in my opinion wrong; Firefox partly already supports this under the name "smart keywords". With smart keywords, you are able to define your own searches that can be started from the address bar using a pre-defined keyword. Read on: http://www.mozilla.org/product...words.html And for Chrome's omnibar: Are you aware that Chrome sends everything that you enter into the address bar back home to Google? This is so Chrome can neatly suggest keywords you could be looking for. Nice feature. Not nice if I'm typing an address. None of Google's business. They probably don't store it anyways. But still, it's being sent out there. And yes, Firefox does the same trick, but only if the cursor is in the search box. So please please please keep the search box in Firefox.

Paul report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Ditch Firefox!

Sep 14, 2008 22:42     

If Firefox implements any of the 'features' the author has listed, I'll be the first to ditch Firefox. Are you trying to help or deter Firefox???
ditch firefox report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +2

Do you at least use every day any of browsers you taka about??

Sep 14, 2008 23:01     

Quote: "...and assign UI high priority so that it's always responsive. " Do you really know that would help a lot to end-user? I think not. Thta "Stop script" that helps ff from crashing on crappy coded javascripts is a good thing but when it occurs and with your recommended high priority process it would make the whole system freeze for a long time (longer than 5s is an eons for me) so that improving the whole "messy script" recognition engine more rapid catching fishy scripts would be a certainly better thing to do Quote: "Microsoft had a fantastic idea when it decided to group tabs, Firefox should get this feature as well" MegaBloat create same stupid thing default for windows xp open windows tabs. But thank god they let us that this stupidity can be disabled. And since ff2.0 we hawe all tabs list available at the right end of tabs space, did you notice it? Hm. One question do U at all use firefox for your's everyday browsing, or you just make up some well paid marketing stories. FF is not the best thing on the planet but at least doesnt suck like ie7/8/whatever

agendaFX report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

Put IE feature in Firefox, this on that.

Sep 15, 2008 12:12     

If u guys like to put feature in IE to Firefox or this to that.. that to this.. why dont just built a browser that has all feature from all browsers on earth...
me report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

SeaMonkey an Fennec

Sep 15, 2008 14:32     

Ever heard of them? http://www.seamonkey-project.org/ https://wiki.mozilla.org/Fennec
...___ ....___ report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Opera Mini on Android

Sep 16, 2008 02:27     

@toly: Here's the link to Opera Mini for Android (and article explaining the development effort): http://labs.opera.com/news/2008/04/10/
Erik Dahlström report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

yubnub

Sep 16, 2008 10:38     

the better omnibar is called yubnub, pretty much like the opera search shortcuts but acts as a standard cross browser search engine in your search bar. Chrome can also use it, but has poor support for anything not-google you put as a search engine.
gonchuki report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Defect in both Chrome and Firefox

Sep 18, 2008 04:06     

When you click on a link and get a new webpage, it may open in the same tab, or in a new one. The user may not notice what happens, and should not have to. Clicking Back if a new tab had been opened, results in no response. Very frustrating. It should be obvious that the tab should be closed and the previous page displayed. Unbelievable that no browser understands this!
OlavN report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Just get Opera..

Sep 18, 2008 14:03     

It does all of these things already, and has done so for quite some time. I laugh when people only now discover Chromes great new features, they are Opera's established features....
Mark report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

but i was thinking that...

Sep 18, 2008 14:11     

//quote provide an option to create a special page when a new tab is opened – which could include page thumbnails, search engine fields, quick access to the browsing history and downloads. //unquote this is not really that smart feature. when most of the times esp. in homes the computer is shared and chrome for example stores a thumbnail of the screen once a user is logged in, which I would not prefer at all.

Diabolic Preacher report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Google Chrome Theme Directory

Sep 18, 2008 17:58     

Dont forget to visit http://chromeguru.info for Google Chrome Themes. Over 60 themes added to the filebase.
Lee report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

i can see the cooments on chrome

Oct 16, 2008 23:10     

yes they can be seen in chrome
lol im on chrome report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0