Webmonkey.com reports that Mozilla developers are currently working towards new privacy features for Firefox 3.1, the latest version of the Firefox browser due for a late 2008.
Private browsing, also known as ‘porn mode’, restricts the information that is saved when you visit websites, according to Webmoney. In this mode, cookies are rejected, URLs are kept out of the browser history, and forms are not auto-filled, according to the article.
The article reports that most believes that the major use for private browsing is porn, it can also be used on public computers, when users don’t want confidential information saved such as passwords or banking info.
The idea of private browsers was first developed by Apple’s Safari browser nearly three years ago, according to Webmonkey. The article also reports that the Internet Explorer development team will also feature an ‘InPrivate’ mode, and Google’s new Chrome web browser has an ‘Incognito’ mode.
Nintendo – Reports from Nihon Keizai Shimbun say that Nintendo will release its next generation console, Revolution, sometime in 2006, months after the launch of XBox 360, Microsoft’s next generation console.
Firefox – The Mozilla Foundation has released Firefox 1.0.4, fixing several serious flaws that could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code. The update is available from http://www.getfirefox.com.
iPod a Fad – Bill Gates is saying that Apple’s iPod MP3 player will be a thing of the past once cell phones are equipped with MP3 players. Gates told a German newspaper that although Apple is leading the way at this time with music players, it once did the same thing with personal computers.
“You can make parallels with computers: Apple was very strong in this field before, with its Macintosh and its graphics user interface–like the iPod today–and then lost its position,” Gates expressed to the German newspaper. “As good as Apple may be, I don’t believe the success of the iPod is sustainable in the long run.”
We’ll let the public decide on this one folks.
Two new flaws discovered in Firefox this past week have been labeled as critical flaws that could allow an attacker to view private information, which may include passwords and/or bank information.
This is Firefox’s fourth major flaw in nearly three months, hampering the Internet Explorer alternative’s motive for a safer web surfing experience.
In the meantime, Mozilla is recommending that users turn off “Allow web sites to install software”, which can be done by selecting the ‘Options’ under the ‘Tools’ menu and then choosing ‘Web Features’.
More information regarding the security flaws and how to work around them is available at http://www.mozilla.org/security/announce/mfsa2005-42.html.
Firefox recently topped 50 million downloads and continues to gain ground on Microsoft’s Internet Explorer browser.
