Mozilla has released new beta versions of Firefox for Android and the desktop. On the desktop side of things, users can expect “Click to Play Plugins” to be enabled by default, which disables most plugins (Flash being the exception) until you click on them and a new Firefox OS app manager. Android users get a new start screen, which Mozilla calls “Home.” The new Home page will allow users quick access to things like bookmarks, browsing history, favorites, and their Reading List.
Click to Play Plugins is being implemented because of the security risk of auto-enabled plugins. Now most plugins will have to be enabled by the user, reducing the risk of running older, more vulnerable plugins. The new App Manager is a tool for developers to experiment with HTML5 applications that run inside the Firefox Browser. This will help Firefox developers create applications that work for the desktop and for Firefox OS. Google Chrome currently has browser-based applications as well.
For more information about the Firefox 26 beta, check out the source links below.
Download Firefox 26 beta for Android, Mac, and Windows.
