Bucking the trend of increasingly experimental desktop interfaces, the developers behind the Linux Mint are adopting a simpler desktop for the next version of the open-source Linux distribution.

Linux Mint 13 will feature an entirely new user interface, called Cinnamon. Earlier this week, the Linux Mint developers released a version of the shell. Previous editions of Linux Mint used a standard version of the Gnome environment….”

Source: Computerworld
 Linux Mint 13 gets back to desktop basics

      If you are working with multiple profiles in Firefox you have probably your own ingenious way of launching them. Some Firefox users may use shortcuts to launch their profiles, others the built-in profile manager, the command line or an add-on like Switchy

If you are new to the concept, I suggest you take a look at the following guides that will get you started…”

Source: Ghacks Technology News
 Firefox Profile Switcher Add-on

However, when we decided to rebuild Firefox for Android using a native UI, we recognized that the first release couldn’t ride the trains. The iterative release model that serves us so well with Firefox works best when most changes are incremental and independent. Building a new high-performance front end for Firefox on Android, by contrast, involves many interconnected pieces being rebuilt in tandem.

As a result the move over to the Beta channel may not align with that of the Firefox for desktop (January 31st, 2012) as the developers want to ensure that everything is working and are happy with the quality of performance. In the future, once this process has been successfully completed and working as promised, Firefox for Android release will follow the same release schedule as the desktop builds. If you are wanting to try out the new Native UI, it is on the Firefox 11 Aurora for Android build.

1. Right-click in a text-area
2. Select Languages
3. Select the Dictionary you want to use

After much user outcry (Bug 708585) Mozilla has introduced a (hidden) preference starting with the 01-21-2012 Firefox 12 Nightly Build that will allow users NOT to load pinned tabs on demand. By default, this option is disabled so you will need to enable it:

1. In a new tab type about:config in the URL bar and press enter
2. Filter for browser.sessionstore.restore_pinned_tabs_on_demand
3. Double click on the entry to change it from False to True.
4. Change takes effect next time Firefox starts

A couple important notes:

• This feature will not be available on non-developmental builds until Firefox 12 is released on April 24, 2102.
• rob64rock on the Fireofx Builds forum has reported that this does not work when used with the Tab Mix Plus session manager.

/* Show "List all Tabs" Button */
#alltabs-button {visibility: visible !important;}

     Have you received an invitation to turn your Facebook profile red or black? Maybe pink?
“Ignore it, security experts warn. It is another scam spreading on the social media site…”

Friday, 13 Jan 2012,

Source: MyFoxNY.com
More Scam Offers Pink Facebook Profile Switch

↑Go get it↓

I do think this is a great idea, however I have issues with the ESR process. It does address the concerns raised by Enterprise users. However,  once a year I just don’t think is frequent enough. Keep in mind, there will still be regular stability and security updates throughout the year, but only one major update per year. A couple issues I could see with doing ESR once a year:

• Technology (especially the Internet) changes way too much in a year. ESR users are going to be stuck with older (and possibly obsolete) browser technology and could possibly be shut-out from sites that have adapted newer technologies. This almost seems like a major step backwards. Looking back at the time between past major releases, Firefox 3.5 was released twelve months after Firefox 3.0; Firefox 3.6 was released only six months after Firefox 3.5; However, Firefox 4 was released fourteen months after Firefox 3.6. However, the situation the Firefox 4.0 was a bit unusual and skews these figures a bit. Further, Mozilla made several mistakes during the 14-month development process. These including scrapping the planned Firefox 3.7 release in May 2010; moving to Gecko 2.0 (instead of doing one more release under Gecko 1.9.x) and continuously delaying the final release of Firefox 4 in an attempt to get all the planned features working. However, I suppose Enterprise users may not be that adversely affected by this and some of this could be compensated with add-ons.
• New feature/change overload (much like we saw when Firefox 4 was rolled out last spring). One of the reasons I like rapid release is that there a couple new features rolled out with each release (and release are based on a fixed time schedule not a feature ready schedule). This allows users to get new features/changes sooner instead of having to wait for other planned features in that release to be completed (much as was the case with Firefox 4). Plus, with only a couple per release, this allows the user to get use to these features/changes without it seeming so overwhelming. I am concerned ESR users are going to be in for quite a shock when the next ESR comes out in early 2013.

Again, the first planned ESR is going to be based of the upcoming Firefox 10 release at end of the month. This would be about 10-months after the Firefox 4 release. This is a span of only 6 rapid release releases (a typical year will be around 8 or 9 releases). Now, consider all the changes/features that have happened in the span of these 6 releases (new web developer tools, tab loading, 3rd party add-ons handling, and various adaptations and handling of new web technologies (more so on the backend). Imagine if you had not updated since Firefox 4 and then made the move of Firefox 10…it would be quite a shock, much like moving from Firefox 3.6 to Firefox 4.0 was. This is the way it would be with an annual ESR. This is why I would think semi-annual would work better. There would be two major roll-outs a year instead of one (still would be easier on IT departments than 8 to 9 per year). Plus users would get more of the new changes/features sooner and without being overwhelmed.

I suppose much like Rapid Release there were kinks that needed to be worked out with the ESR process as well. It just seems like it is going to be more difficult with only doing these once a year. This should prove to be quite interesting.