Having toolbars in a browser can be both frustrating and convenient. On one hand they can often cram a lot of useful functionality into a small area, but on the other hand they eat up precious space that could be used for viewing websites. After all, we know what your browser can look like when you've installed a few too many toolbars.

Mozilla has decided that in Firefox 3.1 they want users to have a fresh new way to switch between tabs in a browser window. That's why they've come up with a system that resembles Apple's Cover Flow for moving from one tab to another. What if you want a bit more eye candy though?

Back in May 2008 Yahoo! acquired a search add-on called Inquisitor that brought "find as you type" search results to Safari. Since then there hasn't been much news about what's going on behind the scenes, but there didn't seem to be much development... at least not on the Safari front. They've apparently been working on a version of the add-on that also works in Firefox.

Mozilla released Firefox 3.1 Beta 1 the other day, and users playing with version 3.1 for the first time will be able to enjoy some of the enhancements it brings to the table. Things like advanced address bar filtering, better tab switching, and drastically improved JavaScript performance are the main highlights for this release.

Calling all Firefox users! If you're a Firefox user, we are wondering if you stick with the default theme or if you venture out and find a custom theme. There are hundreds of themes out there that appeal to users for various reasons whether it be the colors or something else.

It's taken a few months, but I'm happy to announce that anyone can install our homegrown CyberSearch extension for Firefox without needing a Mozilla account. Just yesterday our extension got pushed out of the sandbox, and a big thanks goes out to all of the CyberSearch users who took the time to leave a review.

Mozilla has been looking at different ways to optimize the user's experience when they open a new tab in Firefox. By default Firefox is set to display a blank page whenever a new tab is opened, and from there the user normally performs a search or navigates to one of their favorite sites.

Mozilla has released a new prototype extension that attempts to bring the command line to the browser. The extension, called Ubiquity, uses a set of predefined commands to do things like map an address the user has highlighted, shoot off an email, and more.

According to Alexa Wikipedia is the 7th most visited site in the world only to follow behind companies like Google and Yahoo. Seeing that they receive millions of visitors each day it should come as no surprise that people would use the tools at hand to make their own customized layouts and designs for the site.

Last week we told you how Mozilla would soon be pushing Firefox 3 onto the Firefox 2 users who have yet to upgrade. Well, that day is today. If you're still running Firefox 2 you should see the update prompt in the next day or so when your browser checks to see if a new version is available.