Mozilla Debuts New Australis Interface for Firefox 29 Aurora Browsers

by Sean Michael Kerner

Although early adopters and the curious are likely to want to try out the new Firefox Australis interface, it’s important to remember that it’s still alpha software developed by an open community.

The first thing users will notice in the Firefox 29 Aurora release is a more fluid and cleaner interface than prior iterations of Firefox.

Firefox’s pinned tabs, the tabs that users lock or “pin” to the browser bar are not left out of the interface update and also get a new rounded look in the Australis update.

One of the biggest changes in Firefox Australis is the new menu system, which now resides at the far right of the browser interface. The Firefox Australis menu consolidates multiple functions and options in one location.

Firefox has long supported browser add-ons that extend functionality. In the Australis update, add-ons land in the new menu system and are visible on the main browser interface bar.

Though prior versions have enabled browser users to customize interface elements, Firefox Australis provides a simpler easier-to-use customization interface.

The site bookmarking feature in Firefox Australis is more prominent than prior releases; this enables users to create and access site bookmarks easily.

The Firefox synchronization tool for browser tabs and preferences is also getting a major update with Firefox 29. Users will now be prompted to create a single Firefox account, which is the central point from which multiple Firefox browsers can be synchronized.

In addition to Windows, Mac OS X users will also be able to benefit from the Australis update.

Linux users haven’t always received the same interface upgrades as their proprietary operating system brethren, but that won’t be the case with Australis, which is now available in the Aurora channel for Linux users, too.

Multiple developer tools are also present in the Firefox 29 Aurora update, including a Responsive Design tester that lets developers see sites at different screen resolutions.

As an alpha development release, Mozilla is keen to collect user feedback and information to improve the browser. Users have the choice to opt in or out of that feedback via a Firefox menu option.