Firefox 3.5 Could Upgrade the Whole Web

Firefox, once lauded for “speed, stability, and customizability,” seemed lately to have fallen behind the competition—but with version 3.5, out today, it’s back and better than ever, writes Farhad Manjoo for Slate. The new version “adds a much-needed speed boost” alongside bug fixes. And best of all, its use of updated HTML code could “prompt a re-engineering of the Web itself.”

Firefox’s popularity may push Web designers to do more with HTML 5, which boasts, for example, better video capabilities than the current version of the code. Meanwhile, the new Firefox “launches quickly, fires up complex sites like Gmail and Google Maps without any hiccups, and runs tons of open tabs without crashing,” Manjoo writes. “Firefox, finally, is back.” (More Firefox stories.)