Feature – Mozilla is hard at work to develop a mobile version of Firefox, code-named Fennec. It shapes up to become very much stripped down version of the desktop version Firefox, while maintaining key functionality. And as far as we can tell, Fennec will set the standard for mobile browsers: The software will support Mozilla-based extensions and themes, which is a feature no other mobile browser can offer at this time and a feature that we believe will attract lots of users.

The first alpha Fennec release shares much more in common with its desktop counterpart than appears at first sight. Fennec integrates the same core HTML rendering engine called Gecko and will include an optimized TraceMonkey Javascript interpreter (tailored to ARM chips), which is also found in the Firefox 3.1 beta. In fact, Fennec owes much of its efficiency and speed to these two underlying technologies. Since the desktop and mobile Firefox share the same set of core technologies, third-party developers can streamline their development process since there is no need to maintain vastly different code bases, although Fennec in itself is quite a different beast than Firefox.

Mozilla brought Firefox’ plug-in and extensions platform to Fennec, allowing users to share the same set of add-ons in both the desktop and the mobile version of Firefox. As we highlighted in our preview article, most plug-ins in Fennec Alpha 1 are disabled for compatibility and stability reasons, including Flash. But as we approach shipping version, we expect developers to update their code to address the differences between the two browsers.

There will be some tweaking necessary, but since Fennec uses a Mozilla-based plug-in architecture, that tweaking does not require significant code changes. Instead, programmers will have to mostly focus on screen size differences and UI changes, with most of the underlying logic left intact.

Read on the next page: Who needs IE mobile?

Who needs IE mobile and Safari mobile?

The simple availability tons of Mozilla-based plug-ins gives Fennec a critical edge over rivals like Pocket Internet Explorer, Opera Mini and Safari. For instance, the Flash-enabled Fennec will display sites that the mobile version of Safari (comes with the iPhone) can't as Apple does not allow Flash to run on its handset. Although other mobile browsers also support plug-ins, only Mozilla-based products like Firefox, Thunderbird, Fennec, etc benefit from a truckload of extensions. We at TG Daily are convinced that those extensions will play a key role in the browser’s product strategy and will enable Fennec to leapfrog its rivals. It does not take much to see that Fennec may quickly draw significant market share.

Users often cite Firefox extensions as one of key reasons for switching browsers, because they allow them to personalize and customize their browsing experience. Fennec extensions run on an XML user interface language called XUL. This means that developing Fennec extensions shares the same basic principles as building extensions for any Mozilla-based applications, like Firefox, Thunderbird, etc.

Mozilla called on developers to update their extensions, themes and plug-ins and the first applications have already started to appear. The open-source organization recently opened its online add-ons repository at addons.mozilla.org to Fennec, with two Fennec-compatible extensions that serve as the technology showcase. The site can be accessed directly or through a dedicated user interface in Fennec, revealed with left swipe, which allows you to search, browse and install extensions and themes directly from Fennec, just like Firefox's Tools->Add-ons menu item.

AR Tech's Toolkit extension for Fennec is an extensions user interface on steroids. It integrates a new extensions-focused menu with various options that enable greater granularity and scope of extensions management in Fennec, allowing you to install and manage extensions and themes locally. A URL Fixer corrects typos in the address bar so, for example, when you type google.con instead of google.com you will still reach the intended destination.

Both extensions have been available for Firefox for some time. Although their user interfaces are not currently optimized for the smaller screen size in Fennec, these extensions showcase the power of the XUL and XPCOM systems and it is easy to see that extensions will become Fennec's killer feature.

Firefox made special

We can't stress enough the positive impact of the decision to re-use the existing Mozilla-based plug-ins/extensions architecture in Fennec instead of developing a separate technology. The implications are significant: You will no longer be confined with the mobile browsing experience set in stone by the browser maker. Imagine if you could file a bookmark directly to Delicious, view Flickr and Twitter feeds, block ads or skin the appearance of Safari on your iPhone.

Fennec will be available for Windows Mobile and Nokia's N810 Internet Tablet initially, but versions for Android and Linux-based mobile platforms are also expected. The browser is unlikely to appear on the iPhone, given Apple's history of banning third-party applications that compete with its own iPhone software.