Firefox 3 Aims for Download Record

Version 3 of the popular Firefox web browser is going on popular release June 17.

With the release, Firefox developer Mozilla is attempting to set a record for the most downloads over 24 hours. "It's a global effort to make history," said Paul Kim, head of marketing at Mozilla.

"There is actually no record for the greatest amount of software downloaded in one day, so for 24 hours from the moment we push the bits live, that's when the countdown starts," he said.

New features in Version 3 include automatic warnings when users stray onto webpages booby-trapped with malicious code.
Also in Version 3 will be "Smart Location Bar" that lets people return to places they have visited even if they have not bookmarked them or cannot remember the full web address.
Firefox 3 will work with Windows 2000, XP and Vista and some non-Windows operating systems including Linux.

Mr Vahed said Firefox was generally popular with more "tech-savvy" web users and they turned to it because using it meant more webpages appeared as their designers intended.
"It's still very much the case that Firefox is way ahead of IE when it comes to standard compliance," he said.
IE's lack of compliance with web standards can make some webpages look very odd, he said.
But, he added, IE7 was better at respecting standards and IE8 is expected to go further.

BBC Firefox aims for download record