[extropy-chat] Firefox 2 [was: The End of Science]

[BillK]

On 10/27/06, Robert Bradbury <robert.bradbury at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> "Firefox 2.0 is just like Firefox 1.5.0.4-7 -- NOT READY FOR PRODUCTION USE!
>  I managed to produce 3 core dumps and file 3 Talkback incidents in the
> first half hour of using it. All you have to do (under Linux) is use "ulimit
> -Sv ###000" to limit the amount of virtual memory to ### MB. Depending upon
> how many extensions you have installed it generally crashes when its memory
> usage hits between 100 and 120 MB of memory. This will crash it quickly. You
> can set your limit to 1.3 GB and push it up into that range of memory
> consumption over several days of normal use (50-100 windows, 300-700 tabs)
> and it will dump at that level as well (of course taking 30+ minutes to
> restore its state when you restart it -- grrrrr...).
>

Now, you're just being a very very naughty boy, Robert.  :)

Seriously, I think you are in a very small minority who are having
problems with Firefox 2. The overwhelming reaction on the net is very
positive.

How can you possibly remember what you've got open in 100 windows / 700 tabs?
Finding the one you want will take longer than closing a tab when
you've finished with it and reopening it again if you find you need it
again.

That's like complaining your car engine breaks when you do 100 mph in
first gear, with twenty passengers hanging on and towing a trailer.

I manage fine with around 10 tabs open. Maybe 20 tabs when I'm doing a
bit of searching. 16 extensions installed. And my pc only has 256MB
memory in total. Firefox 2 has never crashed for me on Linux or
Windows.

I power everything off overnight, so I get a fresh start every
morning. Saves money, electricity, aggravation, no waste heat and the
pc is not left online as a target for hackers. It boots up as I get my
morning coffee, so no precious minutes are wasted  :)

I now use Swiftfox on Linux as it is noticeably faster on an AMD pc.
(Firefox 2 tuned for Linux on AMD processors).
<http://getswiftfox.com/>

>
> So long as they continue to add things (like spelling checkers) which are
> bells and whistles without addressing fundamental issues like being a robust
> and reliable piece of software I will not be singing its praises.
>

Spellcheck is not a frill. Having it built in saves doing a separate
spellcheck pass.
Firefox 2 is a definite improvement over Firefox 1.5.
Not world-shaking, just an improvement.


BillK