Mozilla slows pace of Firefox 9 upgrades
Mozilla dramatically slowed the update pace of Firefox 9, the browser it shipped late last month.
The company also said it may repeat the slow-down in the future.
Firefox 9, which Mozilla released Dec. 20, has yet to be completely "unthrottled," or offered as an update to all users, according to notes from a company meeting last week.
Like other software vendors, including Microsoft and Apple, Mozilla can offer upgrades to a fraction of its users rather than to everyone at once. The practice is designed to ensure that download servers aren't overwhelmed, and to prevent bugs -- if there are any in the update -- from reaching all users.
Firefox 8, the edition that launched Nov. 8, 2011, accounted for 40% of all versions of Mozilla's browser five days after its release, and broke the 50% mark 18 days after it shipped, according to usage statistics from Irish metrics firm StatCounter. Meanwhile, Firefox 9 accounted for just 7% of all editions of Firefox five days after its debut and required 24 days to reach 50%. Read more...
Mozilla persuades Firefox 3.6 users to dump old browser
Mozilla's upgrade call last month pushed more Firefox 3.6 users to grab a newer edition than any month since June 2011, a Web metrics company said over the weekend.
According to Net Applications, Firefox 3.6's share of all browsers used in December fell by nearly a full percentage point, ending the month with an average of 4.4%, down from November's 5.3%.
Mozilla began urging Firefox 3.6 users to upgrade in early December after twice postponing the offer. The upgrade pitch prompted users to move to Firefox 8, the most recent "rapid release" edition at the time. Since then, Mozilla has launched Firefox 9. Read more...