July 15 is World Firefox Day
Did you know the web browser, Mozilla Firefox, has a day of celebration?
Did you know the web browser, Mozilla Firefox, has a day of celebration? The World Firefox Day was first celebrated 11 years ago on July 15 2006 to mark the anniversary of the founding of the Mozilla Foundation – a not-for-profit fuelling the movement for an open internet, focused around privacy and security, open innovation, decentralisation, web literacy and digital inclusion.
A quick history of Mozilla Firefox
Firefox, or Phoenix as it was known as back then, was first released in September 2002. It was created by Dave Hyatt and Blake Ross in response to the software bloat of the Mozilla Suite, which integrated features such as IRC, mail and news, and “what you see is what you get” HTML editing into a single internet suite.
The name was not to last, with another company called Phoenix Technologies creating their own open source browser which they had trademarked. Firefox then became Firebird for its first release to Mac OS X, unfortunately they encounters another same-name fiasco and were forced to change their name (for the final time) to Firefox, named after the red panda, in 2004.
Firefox has achieved many milestones in their short internet history. As of the 21 February 2008, Firefox reached 500 million downloads and in June 2008, they set a Guinness World Record for the largest software downloads (over 8 million) in a 24 hour period.
Since its inception, Firefox has released 54 versions of their browser. The latest release included simplifying the download features, added support for multiple content processes, the ability to create and save custom devices in Responsive Design Mode and improved audio and video playback when using the browser.
Firefox in the market
Firefox follows Chrome and Safari in terms of browser market share in Australia over the past year, with 5.66% of Australian web users choosing Firefox and their preferred browser. Globally, Firefox is the fourth most used browser, taking up 5.94% of the market share.
Top trusted company for privacy
In both 2012 and 2015, Mozilla Firefox was ranked as the top internet company for privacy in a survey of 100,000 people conduction by the Ponemon Institute. It’s a massive distinction, especially with an increasing number of users distrusting the ecosystem of ecommerce websites and application providers.
How we plan to celebrate World Firefox Day
When we’re not testing ecommerce website design or developing applications for multiple platforms, the digital team at iFactory Brisbane predominately use Chrome as a default browser. On July 15, we’ll be make sure to upgrade to the latest version of Firefox to honour the browser which once gave us a great alternative to Internet Explorer. If you’re a devout Firefox user, we encourage you to tell just one person who doesn’t use Firefox why you think they should, with the reasons why you do.
iFactory is a Brisbane-based digital and creative agency. We specialise in responsive website design, digital strategy, ecommerce websites, application development, digital marketing and website support. Get in contact with us today to discuss a digital solution that combines the needs of your business and your target market.
