Firefox 4, originally scheduled for a late 2010 release has now been delayed until early 2011. Not great news when the browser most eating into their market share, Chrome, is releasing new stable versions every 6 weeks.
Now, the reason for the delay is so that Firefox 4 can release major improvements, including an entire interface redesign, HTML5 support, multi-touch functionality and more. But, playing catch-up isn’t a great market position. And perhaps that’s why Mozilla is seeking to find their comparative advantage with their announcement of the “Chromeless” project.
This experimental project will allow Web developers to create their own browser interfaces, using HTML, CSS, JavaScript and more. Now, that’s the Mozilla we remember. The one that Web developers embrace, because it gives them more freedom than anyone else. And the ability to customize and create your very own Web browser is the very definition of freedom.