Mozilla’s own Jono DiCarlo has just made some very interesting comments regarding Firefox. In a very long blog post, DiCarlo talked about how the rapid release cycle for Firefox updates has been killing Firefox itself, something which has become an issue with many users ever since Firefox started to compete with Chrome.
DiCarlo argues that by releasing so many updates so quickly, it not only made Firefox the worse browser, but also did exactly what they were trying to prevent, drive users to Chrome. Dicarlo gave three basic reasons why the updates “suck.” First, the download/restart takes a long time and interrupts what you are currently doing with intrusive dialog boxes. Second, the update could remove features that you enjoyed before because only a small percentage of users actually used them. Third, a new UI decreases productivity since you have to take the time and learn how everything works.
DiCarlo made sure to mention that companies should never not issue updates as some are good updates that fix bugs and security issues, but the rapid release that Firefox was doing was just too much. Some updates wouldn’t serve much of a purpose and would change the UI too much. He also mentioned that the good updates were ruined by the intrusive dialog boxes.
DiCarlo’s comments on the situation bring up a good point: Copying another company’s strategy because it’s working for them doesn’t necessarily mean that it will work for you. Mozilla is currently in the process of addressing some of these problems and plans on making the update process less intrusive. Have you switched from Firefox to Chrome? If so was it because of the update process? Let us know in the comments section below.
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