Firefox 22, the latest version of the popular web browser, is now available for download.
The updated browser features support for web apps that offer 3D gaming, video calls and file sharing, without the need to install plugins or other third-party software.
According to a
blog post by Mozilla talking about the new update, the browser uses an Emscripten cross-compiler, that can offer asm.js, 'a supercharged subset of JavaScript that enables developers to create high-intensity applications, like 3D games and photo processing, directly on the Web.'
This will allow developers to bring features limited to native applications and games to web apps through the use of technologies like JavaScript, Emscripten and WebGL.
Mozilla has also deployed WebRTC (Web Real-Time Communications), an API through which developers will be able to offer video calls, voice calls and file sharing without the need for additional software or use third-party plugins. The foundation had first demonstrated this feature at the Mobile World Congress. However, the new Firefox for mobile build does not include this feature at the moment.
Mozilla has also developed a 3D game, BananaBread that makes use of all these new technologies, to demonstrate the capabilities of the new Firefox browser.
It's worth mentioning that Google's Chrome browser also offers support for WebRTC features.
It's indeed a welcome move as the WebRTC API doesn't require any additional plugins or software and companies like Google are also planning to
embrace it for its Hangouts communication service.
With Firefox Mobile OS, the Mozilla foundation is focusing on web apps to an extent that they'd replace native apps. So the integration does not come as a surprise.
Change Log for Firefox 22 for Windows, Mac and Linux:- NEW: WebRTC is now enabled by default!
- NEW: Windows: Firefox now follows display scaling options to render text larger on high-res displays
- NEW: Mac OS X: Download progress in Dock application icon
- NEW: HTML5 audio/video playback rate can now be changed
- NEW: Social services management implemented in Add-ons Manager
- NEW: asm.js optimizations (OdinMonkey) enabled for major performance improvements
- CHANGED: Improved WebGL rendering performance through asynchronous canvas updates.
- CHANGED: Plain text files displayed within Firefox will now word-wrap
- CHANGED: For user security, the |Components| object is no longer accessible from web content
- CHANGED: Pointer Lock API can now be used outside of fullscreen
- DEVELOPER: CSS3 Flexbox implemented and enabled by default
- DEVELOPER: New Web Notifications API implemented
- DEVELOPER: Added clipboardData API for JavaScript access to a user's clipboard
- DEVELOPER: New built-in font inspector
- HTML5: New HTML5 <data> and <time> elements
- FIXED: Various security fixes
- FIXED: Scrolling using some high-resolution-scroll aware touchpads feels slow (829952)