Firefox 3 RC2 released

Author: Gareth Halfacree
Published: 5th June 2008
Comments (10) Stumble
Firefox 3 Release Candidate 2 may well be the last testing version before the popular browser sees an official release.

Firefox 3 Release Candidate 2 may well be the last testing version before the popular browser sees an official release.

If you're waiting patiently for Firefox 3 to hit the digital shelves, then it looks like you might be waiting a little longer: Mozilla has released a second Release Candidate for testing.

According to BetaNews the second RC for the popular browser appeared on Mozilla's FTP site late Monday night. Firefox 3 RC 2, as the download likes to be called, isn't due for official release until some time today after a code freeze order was issued on May 28th – a decision reached last week by the Mozilla Firefox 3 team due to a raft of issues highlighted in the first release candidate version.

Although an official list of changes between the two versions isn't yet available, Mozilla has confirmed that several major issues that raised their ugly heads with the first release client have been fixed in this version, and that this should be the last RC to be released before the official Release to Manufacturing (RTM) version of Firefox 3.

With the beta versions of Firefox 3 being installed by default within many popular Linux distros – including Ubuntu and variants – users will be hoping that the official release comes sooner, rather than later. Although the beta builds – and RC1 – are surprisingly stable for pre-release software, there's something rather unsettling about running unfinished software on a production machine, as many users of cutting-edge Linux builds are finding out.

Even with this decision to delay the release of Firefox 3 long enough for another round of testing, it's highly likely that the finished version will hit download mirrors worldwide significantly before Microsoft has finished with its rival browser Internet Explorer 8.

Any Release Candidate 1 testers here looking forward to trying the new build, or has it been fairly plain sailing since the early alphas? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
Quote proxess 5th June 2008, 08:32
i find it very stable. only instability sometimes is flash, but thats normal for me everywhere.
Quote p3n 5th June 2008, 08:55
I lub my addons too much, sowy 'ozilla
Quote Cthippo 5th June 2008, 09:16
Typo in the third para...

the first release client have bee fixed in this version...

I'm glad to see the FF project remains vibrant, but I'm quite happy with Opera, thank you.
Quote oasked 5th June 2008, 09:26
Working a charm here. All of the plugins that I want to use work fine (Ablock Plus, Glasser and No Menubar). (Don't worry, I still see all of Bit-Tech's lovely ads ;) ).
Quote r4tch3t 5th June 2008, 09:29
Same here, the add ons I use are here. I had a few issues in the Betas with JavaScript. But since RC1 I haven't had any issues.
Quote Firehed 5th June 2008, 14:19
Cheater!

Anyways, memory usage seems to be much more in control, especially when you start dealing with Flash stuff. Still a lot, but it doesn't seem to spiral out of control as time goes on and 5-10% of my RAM for a program that takes 40-50% of my time is fine by me.
Quote Gareth Halfacree 5th June 2008, 15:26
Quote:
Originally Posted by Firehed
Cheater!.
You do realise I write all my articles the night before, right? :p
Quote quack 9th June 2008, 12:23
The good thing about Firefox RCs is that when they decide to make one RTM you don't need to redownload it, so not such a big deal if RC2 becomes the RTM.
Quote netgal2008 17th June 2008, 13:13
Are you guys going to download it later today???

Im still on the fence, since FF2 gave me so many problems when I downloaded it... much more than the IE btw...

I created a poll to find out how many ppl are planning to Download it today:
http://www.pollsb.com/polls/poll/15930/will-you-download-firefox-3-today
Quote quack 17th June 2008, 13:49
I'll download it, but I won't install it until (most of) my addons have been updated. :)
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