Firefox 44

Firefox 44 hits stable channel with support for push notifications

Firefox 44, the latest release channel build of Mozilla's web browser, is now available for Windows, Mac, Linux and Android. Notably, Firefox 44 lets users receive push notifications from websites so long as permission is granted (opt-in

Mozilla says the push notification feature is similar to web notifications with the exception that you can now receive notifications from websites even when they aren't open. As you can imagine, this could be incredibly useful for things like e-mail, weather, social networking and shopping – you know, sites and services that you'd otherwise manually check for updates. Push notifications can be managed in the Control Center

Developers that want to implement push notifications on their website can learn more by checking out this Hacks blog post

It's worth noting that Mozilla is simply playing catch-up at this point as it relates to push notifications. Google first introduced push notifications in Chrome nearly three years ago with Apple's Safari following suite a few months later

Elsewhere, Firefox 44 enables H.264 video playback (so long as you have a native decoder), improves warning pages for certificate errors and untrusted connections and enables WebM/VP9 video support on systems that don't support MP4/H.264. The full change log can be viewed on Mozilla's website

Firefox 44 can be downloaded by clicking here

Firefox

Firefox 35 includes streamlined Hello video chat, MP4 support on Mac, easier social network sharing

Version 35 of Mozilla’s Firefox web browser is now available for download. Arriving roughly five weeks after its predecessor, the latest iteration includes a handful of noteworthy features in addition to the usual gamut of minor updates and behind-the-scenes fixes.

Firefox Hello, Mozilla’s WebRTC-based real-time video and audio calling service, has been streamlined a bit. Previously, users had to simply wait idly for the person on the other end to connect to the call. In Firefox 35, a small window opens showing a self view until the invited person joins and in the meantime, the caller can perform other tasks like surfing the web

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It’s a small change but any way to add productivity is welcomed in my book.

Another time-saver is the ability to create multiple conversations and save them for later use which makes it easier to reconnect with people you talk to on a regular basis without having to create a new link each time. All of this can be done without having to create an account or forfeit any user information.

Elsewhere, Firefox 35 enables desktop users to access the Firefox Marketplace, built-in support for MP4 playback on Mac OS X (Snow Leopard and newer) and makes it easier to share web content on social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, LinkedIn and Google+. Mozilla has also fixed nine security-related issues in the new release according to its securities advisories page.

Firefox 35 is available for Windows, Mac and Linux.