Also, I do not like much the idea of the new tab button becoming a mobile target but hey, with Opera you can change that easily.

It seems more logical to have the tabs along the bottom.

Yes and no. I like having the tab bar along the top (I’ve tried it on the bottom and on the sides) because that’s where the address bar is. That way I can quickly switch between tabs and change addresses all in generally the same spot.

The GUI is already fairly dense up there; the menu, toolbars and the Windows titlebar. I also have the sidebar on the right (OK, you might start thinking I’m weird ) because whenever I toggle the side bar, it shifts the website content a few centimetres forcing me to re-orient. But if the sidebar is on the right, it has much less impact on the site you’re viewing.

Screen shot needed, methinks…

[img339.imageshack.us]

To be fair tabs weren’t exactly invented by Opera, but I think they were the first to really make it a mainstream feature.

Right.. Netcaptor, a browser shell for IE, holds that crown. Thought there was no general agreement on that, but it looks like there is: [adamstiles.com]
Now I’m the one uninformed Still plenty of innovation going on at the Opera Labs though.

Matt wrote:

Opera and Safari never do anything innovative

Are you crazy or just uninformed? They’re one of the most innovative browsers around, especially Opera. You even mentioned one invention in your own post: Speed Dial, an Opera invention. And er.. ever heard of tabs? Opera invention. Lots of innovation going on in the mobile market for both as well. They’re both more standards compliant and faster than any other browser out there too, leading the pack. And more..

To be fair tabs weren’t exactly invented by Opera, but I think they were the first to really make it a mainstream feature.

That’s a really interesting observation. I never really thought of people placing tabs at the bottom of the browser because they became accustomed to it in Excel. You must have/do use Excel a lot.

Personally I would never switch back to the old themes… this one is way better in my opinion.

Wow… that was a quick turn around. Nice to see them taking in the feedback and making changes accordingly.

Anyway, desktop team just released another build with a more polished version of the skin. Do check that out.

After using it for a day I can tell you the close tab button doesn’t feel to small. You adjust quite fast. The classic and standard themes are available within the browsers for those who can’t stomach the new UI Skin.

It scatters parts of the GUI around the window. It’s not a chore to use because I hardly ever use the mouse pointer to navigate tabs – I use either right-click and scroll or the FlipBack/Forward (or the keyboard) gestures to switch to the tab on the left/right.

Opera and Safari never do anything innovative

Are you crazy or just uninformed? They’re one of the most innovative browsers around, especially Opera. You even mentioned one invention in your own post: Speed Dial, an Opera invention. And er.. ever heard of tabs? Opera invention. Lots of innovation going on in the mobile market for both as well. They’re both more standards compliant and faster than any other browser out there too, leading the pack. And more..

Firefox is aimed at becoming a standards compliant mainstream browser, where the “mainstream” limits them in being innovative, as this means some inventions will fail and that doesn’t work well when you want to become mainstream. I think Firefox is a good balance between careful innovation and copying successful innovation from other browsers, bringing it into the mainstream market.

Anyway, I like this theme a lot. Feels more modern than the old theme, though I have to agree with Ryan about the resting state of the refresh button. I see no reason why this button would have to stand out from the rest. I would like it if they would release a version of this skin that fits in Windows Classic