Firefox 4 tabs on top explained
Posted by Percy Cabello on June 25th, 2010 • Tags: ,
ShareThis

As you may know, Firefox 4 will have the tab bar placed on top of the navigation bar by default, significantly changing the way it looks and, to some degree, behaves for long time Firefox users.

As Alex Faaborg emphasizes in this video, this is all about the default layout. Reversing to tabs below the navigation bar is a matter of right clicking on the toolbars and unchecking this option.

Comments
David Guillaume said on June 25, 2010, 10:35 am:

Any news on when the beta of Firefox 4 will start? the last i heard was late June?

Thanks

Fede777 said on June 25, 2010, 12:36 pm:

Awesome!!!! I want it now

bert said on June 25, 2010, 2:21 pm:

A less verbose version: “We find Chrome really cool!”

Ken Saunders said on June 25, 2010, 5:29 pm:

It isn’t just mouse distance that I have an issue with, it’s also about having to visually scan higher up and past things to read tab titles.
Unlike (apparently) many others, I use the bookmarks toolbar and menu bar with them placed in the order of (using -moz-box-ordinal-group:),
Bookmarks toolbar
Menu/navigation bar
Location bar
Tabs bar
It’s what works for me and as long as I can continue to customize Firefox the way that I want, I’ll be happy.

I’m not happy at all about Mozilla planning on removing the status bar though. I sure hope that will be optional too.

Seriously, if I want more content space, F11 works fine and so does unchecking toolbars.
I want control and instant, one click access.

Robert Hurst said on June 28, 2010, 8:59 pm:

Did you watch the whole video. I think your comment very much belittles the presentation. There are many reasons given in the presentation that have nothing to do with chrome like features, but new features that the Firefox team have created on they’re own. Your comment implies that Firefox is adopting the “tabs on the top” because Google did it first with chrome. The video explains that the team feel “the tabs on top” UI is much better because it properly groups UI elements, it fits with the new notification system, it allows the team to better integrate the preferences and addons UI into the browser, and it allows for integrating prism with Firefox in the form of app tabs.

bert said on July 4, 2010, 11:01 pm:

Robert, I’m pretty sure if Chrome doesn’t not exist, “tab on top” would remain as “one more exotic UI created by Opera” and no one would be talking about it.

Alberto said on August 20, 2010, 1:53 pm:

I agree with you, Ken, but about F11, works fine EXCEPT it’s “troublesome” the up&down page when you change the tab.. i’d like an other options to leave JUST the tabs on top visible..
if anyone know an application able to do this i’ll really apprecitate!
thanks in advance!

Jack said on November 11, 2010, 7:24 am:

Totally agree with Ken.
I don’t like tabs on top simply because are distant from the page. I have bookmarks toolbar too and tabs would be too distant with navigation toolbar and bookmarks toolbar enabled.

Jon said on April 16, 2011, 1:41 am:

A 7-minute video on how to right-click and select?