We’re almost there! First of all - check why you shoud upgrade Firefox as soon as possible. When you are already convinced, continue reading.
When can I get Firefox 3?
Download Day has already started. In order to get the new Firefox, you just have to wait for 10:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time (PDT). This is when it’s going to be available for download for all of us.
It’s 10:00 AM for the west coast, 11:00 AM for the mountain zone and 1:00 PM in the eastern time.
Where do I take it from?
Check for the download at http://releases.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/….
For the news, go to http://wiki.mozilla.org/Releases/Firefox_3.0.
Old extensions
Be aware, that when you update Firefox, some of your extensions may stop working. There is, however, a way to use them even if they are not updated yet.
When you start Firefox after update, you’ll get a list of the extensions, which are no longer compatible with your browser. Write them down and choose one of three solutions to make them work.
1) about:config extensions.checkCompatibility fix
You can make Firefox load extensions without checking if they are compatible. Even though it is the easiest way, it is a risky one.
Something may go wrong. First of all, the add-ons may not start or behave as they are not supposed to. But you can also cause Firefox not to start or even break your computer. If you are aware of it and still want to use it, follow the steps below:
(i) Type “about:config” in the location bar
(ii) Select “I’ll be careful, I promise” to skip the warning message
(iii) Right click anywhere in the window and select New > Boolean
(iv) Enter extensions.checkCompatibility as the preference name, set the value to false
(v) Make another new boolean extensions.checkUpdateSecurity and set the value to false
(vi) Restart Firefox
2) Nightly Tester Tools extension
Download the extension.
Right-click on an incompatible extension and chose “Make compatible” from the menu.
Obviously, it is not going to work for all the extensions. Unfortunately, just like the other two solutions.
3) Change the code of the extensions
Firefox extensions, although they are .xpi files, are in fact zip archives. You can download add-on (right-click on the link to it and choose Save), change its extension to .zip, unzip the file and change what it includes.
In the unzipped folder find install.rdf file, open it in a text editor (like Notepad) and change the maxVersion.
Change the appropriate line to <em:maxVersion>3.0.*</em:maxVersion>
Save the file, create a zip archive from the folder and change the extension of the file from .zip to .xpi. Double click it and install the add on.
Actually, you can also change the maxVersion attribute of the add-ons, which you have already installed. You just have to find the appropriate folder with the extension in your profile folder.
For more, go to textgoeshere.org.uk.
History of Firefox
You may be also interested in what have been changing in Firefox through the years. If so, go to The History of Firefox 1.0 to 3.0 in Screenshots.