For all the FireFox fans out there, Mozilla has updated their web  browser to official version 3.6, available for download now.

The update isn’t a complete revolution like users saw with 3.5, however it does bring a few anticipated features with it such as the inclusion of HTML 5 and Mozilla boasts that 3.6 has improved browsing speed by 20%!

“Firefox 3.6  is built on Mozilla’s Gecko 1.9.2 web rendering platform, which has been under development since early 2009 and contains many improvements for web developers, add-on developers, and users. This version is also faster and more responsive than previous versions and has been optimized to run on small device operating systems such as Maemo.

Notable Firefox 3.6 features include:

• Available in more than 70 languages – get your local version.
• Support for a new type of theme called Personas, which allow users to change Firefox’s appearance with a single click.
• Protection from out-of-date plugins to keep users safer as they browse.
• Open, native video can now be displayed full screen and supports poster frames.
• Improved JavaScript performance, overall browser responsiveness, and startup time.
• The ability for web developers to indicate that scripts should run asynchronously to speed up page load times.
• Continued support for downloadable web fonts using the new WOFF font format.
• Support for new CSS attributes such as gradients, background sizing, and pointer events.
• Support for new DOM and HTML5 specifications including the Drag & Drop API and the File API, which allow for more interactive web pages.
• Changes to how third-party software can integrate with Firefox in order to prevent crashes.

You can download the update from Mozilla’s website: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/

Things like pop-ups and viruses were accepted facts of life, and the notion of expecting a new browser to challenge the monopolistic IE was the definition of absurd.

We’re all familiar with what happened next, of course, but that doesn’t make it any less incredible or inspirational. It’s a truly amazing story, and I am beyond honored to be even a small part of it.

At the heart of all this – even when you strip away the amazing technological advancements and features that really have changed the way people use the web – is a social movement comprised of people from around the world with the common interest of making things better. That’s a pretty powerful force, and makes me very optimistic about what we’ll accomplish together over the next five years.

Head over to http://www.spreadfirefox.com/5years/en-US/ to get a details on all of the planned festivities.

Source: planet.mozilla.org

Firefox 3.5 has been in development for nearly a year, literally since the release of the revolutionary 3.0, and June 30 appears to be the day Mozilla browser enthusiasts have been waiting for. 

The browser is currently available for download here: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/ 

In the past month, Firefox has released 3 versions of its 3.5 release candidate for Beta testers, and evidently the testing has gone exceptionally well. A Mozilla Spokesperson has stated, “The Mozilla team is mobilizing to ship Firefox 3.5 and it’s looking like Tuesday morning.” 

The new FF 3.5 looks to incorperate the following features amongst many other improvements:

• Improved tools for controlling your private data, including a Private Browsing Mode.
• Better performance and stability with the new TraceMonkey JavaScript engine.
• The ability to provide Location Aware Browsing using web standards for geolocation.
• Support for native JSON, and web worker threads.
• Improvements to the Gecko layout engine, including speculative parsing for faster content rendering.
• Support for new web technologies such as: HTML5 <video> and <audio> elements, downloadable fonts and other new CSS properties, JavaScript query selectors, HTML5 offline data storage for applications, and SVG transforms.

To view more features of the browser’s update,take a look at the video, linked here.

Last year’s release of Firefox 3.0 made the Guinness Book of World Records with an astonishing 8 Million downloads in 24 hours. The browser currently holds a 23% stake in the browser market share, and the Mozilla Corporation is looking to increase those numbers with the many new cutting edge technologies featured in 3.5

Be sure to check out http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/ to download!

Update: Reupped  to Today’s News with download info!