Mozilla has officially released Firefox 1.5.0.2 today and it is actually quite exciting. I have been using this build for a little over a month (since it was a Tinderbox build) and the memory leaks seem to be minimal compared to Firefox 1.5.0.1! With having a constant 8 or so tabs open I normally max out at 60-70MB, and this is the case on multiple computers! Yay Firefox!
There are some other things that I follow to help minimize Firefox’s memory usage, such as the list of extensions with memory leaks or a tweak to save some RAM when you minimize Firefox. I currently only use the Tab Mix Plus extension because that seems to solve all my needs and the additional RAM usage is minimal (even with the built-in SessionSaver features).
For those of you that didn’t look at the build date on Firefox 1.5.0.2 you will notice that it is March 8, 2006 which is just one day after I posted my article on the ‘release’ of 1.5.0.2! At that time it was just a Tinderbox build, but often times these builds do not get changed much just like in this case. Here is the list of changes for this build:
Firefox 1.5.0.2 provides native support for Macintosh with Intel Core processors, and stability and security enhancements that are part of our ongoing program to provide a safer Internet experience for our users. We recommend that all Firefox users upgrade to this latest version.
Here’s what’s new in Firefox 1.5.0.2:
- Universal Binary support for Mac OS X which provides native support for Macintosh with Intel Core processors. Firefox supports the enhancements to performance introduced by the new MacIntel chipsets.
- Improvements to product stability.
- Several security fixes.
There are many links listed below. You can download the regular Firefox 1.5.0.2 or there is also a portable version that I put together for this build. There is also release notes if you want to see the nitty gritty on the new build.
For those people that want the portable verison, all you have to do is download the Portable Firefox 1.5.0.2 file below. Then you unzip the file and browse for the file PortableFirefox.exe. Just execute that file and you will be running Portable Firefox 1.5.0.2! It may be more convenient if you make a shortcut to PortableFirefox.exe and place it on your Desktop or in your Start Menu.
I hope everyone enjoys this release because it appears that Mozilla did a really good job on it. I can’t wait for Firefox 2.0 Alpha 2 on May 9th!
Official Firefox Download Page
Firefox 1.5.0.2 Release Notes
Official Portable Firefox 1.5.0.2 Download
Portable Firefox 2.0 Alpha 1 Download
Portable Firefox 1.5 Homepage
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Tags: Firefox, Newly Released, Software
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I just downloaded FF 1.5.0.2 and my memory usage is down dramatically. With the previous version, it was aobut 120mb maximized and 60mb minimized. I did that tweak that reduces memory usage with FF minimized and now I have this new version, and while maximized, the memory used is about 43mb and minimized 7-9mb.
I’m always reluctant to run upgrades that replace old versions. In this case, I have v.1.5 running with a number of extensions, quick links, and bookmarks. And I have Deer Park Alpha 2 running also (but not simultaneously).
With the beta, I get a chance to test drive and tweak, even though there are major hiccups that often crash out Deer Park. Nonetheless it’s fun for volatile browsing! For more serious work, it’s back to v.1.5 vanilla. Did I mention that both are portable installs?
I’d be quite happy to somehow turn off the annoying popup notices about upgrade available when running v.1.5 vanilla. Does anyone know how?
As for v.1.5.0.2 … there must be a way to install it as a new instance that doesn’t wipe out my old v.1.5 tailoring. Perhaps, I can copy the whole portable install from another machine?
The fact is that I mostly quit using v.1.5 at work since I can’t copy a webpage table “cell for cell” into an excel spreadsheet (*). My work place version should be a good candidate to upgrade — even if I have to rebuild all the toolbar quick links. (* — each record is copied into a single cell, sigh!)
Perhaps Firefox should follow a leap-frog approach where two instances can be set-up up on the same system (existing and upgrade). For business, it’s a matter of risk vs. benefit. Minor upgrades are often just not worth the risk.
hiscity,
First, to get rid of the splash screen, copy the PortableFirefox.ini from the PortableFirefoxCode folder into the main PortableFirefox directory where the PortableFirefox.exe is located. Open the PortableFirefox.ini and change DisableSplashScreen=false to DisableSplashScreen=true. Now it will not show the splash screen on startup.
Next, if you want to run multiple instances of different versions of Portable Firefox then in that same PortableFirefox.ini file change the value AllowMultipleInstances=false to AllowMultipleInstances=true. That way you can run different versions side-by-side.
Lastly, if you want to upgrade to a new version of Portable Firefox and want all of your settings the same still, all you have to do is copy the Profile folder over from your current Portable Firefox and overwrite the Profile folder in the new Portable Firefox. All of your extensions, bookmarks, passwords, etc… will all be copied over.
I think that answered most of your questions, let me know if you have any more.
-Ryan
Thanks much! Ryan
The ini file changes worked fine in Deerpark, which allows me to run both 1.5 and Deerpark simultaneously. That helps!
I tried the same changes first with the v.1.5 install. No joy. Nor am I sure why it didn’t work there, but no matter.
Will try the profile subdirectory copy and v.1.5.0.2 side-by-side install later. The ini reconfiguration goes a long way toward helping me get my feet wet before taking the plunge.
Looking forward to it!!
hiscity,
No problem, I am actually in the process of writing up a short tutorial on making these changes.
-Ryan
Note: There is no Deer Park Alpha labelled builds anymore. The unstable developmental Trunk nightlies (that only hardcore testers and developers should only use if they expect stable builds with few problems), that was wrongly labelled Deer Park Alpha for almost a year because of the early 1.5 Alpha builds (May and July 2005) was off the Trunk before it branched later to what it mozilla_1_8_0 branch and the Trunk label was not changed until days ago finally.
The Trunk has been given the label of Minefield and a new generic About graphic since April.11 about. Just try a recent Trunk build and you will see what I mean.
You may want to update your outdated info in your other recent article.
I have noticed the change in the Alpha build but other than a branding there has been much changed. Not enough yet for another article. Thanks for the information.
-Ryan
Hey Ryan,
I’m up on v.1.5.0.2 and with full profile, bookmarks, and extensions from 1.5 vanilla. Thank You kindly!
The last thing I added was a live bookmark to Cybernet Technology news
It’s easy just to download the portable, extract, copy over the profile, and drop a shortcut on the desktop — so that I can have multiple profiles or versions.
I’ll be retiring the pseudo-Deer Park.
When you can sometime, give us a “laymans” introduction to the “alphas” and “nightlies.” “Minefield” sounds interesting. No worries test driving, when there’s no problem blowing up your working versions.
Thanks again!
Hiscity,
Glad everything is working so well for you. Thanks for the idea for a ‘tutorial’ with the alphas and nightlies. I will have to put that together soon.
-Ryan