Mozilla Firefox is the world’s leading open source web browser. It is the world’s second most popular browser–not because the leader–Internet explorer is better but because it has Microsoft’s marketing muscle to back it. Firefox is much stable and more feature-rich when compared to IE. Mozilla is constantly trying to improve the user interface, engine and features of Firefox.
Now Mozilla has turned to a surprising source for inspiration–Microsoft. It is now switching to Microsoft’s “Ribbon UI”. A note in the developers’ wiki at Mozilla.org reads, “Starting with Vista, and continuing with Windows 7, the menubar has been systematically removed from Windows applications built by Microsoft and other vendors. It has been replaced with alternatives like the Windows Explorer contextual strip or the Ribbon found in Office 2007. The Ribbon UI is now also used in Paint and Wordpad for Windows 7.”
Mozilla is not making the switch to the Ribbon Interface. However, it will adopt a similar approach to clean up and improvise its existing menu. The new interface will provide the user more space which will be beneficial especially for netbook users. The new interface will integrate the Windows Aero Glass effect to the entire controls strip. Currently, this feature works only in the frame.
Currently, Firefox is not as polished as Mozilla expects it to be. In its development notes, Mozilla states that, “Firefox feels dated and behind on Windows. Issues include the absence of Glass, anemic purple toolbar color on Vista, tall and bulky UI footprint, element overload, inconsistent toolbar icon usage/style, lack of a tactile look and feel and perhaps too great of a divergence between the look on XP and Vista/7.”
The new menu bar will be available in Firefox 3.7 which will be released in March 2010. Users who prefer the present version can switch to it by pressing the ALT key inside the Firefox frame.
Mozilla is not yet fully committed to the switch. It is open to suggestions. Mozilla states that “this direction is at the team proposal stage, to be approved by drivers and subject for constructive community feedback.”