David Flynn30 July 2009, 5:14 PM
Official mockups of Firefox 4 reveal hints of a streamlined UI similar to Google’s Chrome browser in what Mozilla calls a ‘Tabs-on-Top’ design concept.
Firefox 4.0 could be as far as two years away, but Mozilla’s browser boffins are already brewing up ideas to improve the UI.
A set of
mockup screenshots posted this week showcase two broad directions for the fourth-gen browser, along with a set of smaller usability tweaks – all of which are intended to simplify and streamline the interface.
Such moves are considered paramount as the browser becomes an increasingly central part of the PC experience in accessing not just Web pages but online apps and other Web 2.0 services.
The first concept follows the current design, with page tabs ranked below the title bar and address bar. This is similar to a mockup released earlier this month for
Firefox 3.7, although the more observant will notice a few changes.
The bookmark button and bookmark bar of the 3.7 mockup have been integrated into a single drop-down control which the Firefox developers call a ‘Bookmarks widget’ – this is now shown as sitting separately to the Tools button, sitting to the right of the address bar.
The address bar also contains a multipurpose context-sensitive ‘combo’ button which changes action and colour based on the browser’s current operation.
When you start typing an address it becomes a green ‘Go’ button. While the page is loading it morphs into a red ‘Stop’ button. Hovering your mouse over the button sees it become a blue ‘Refresh’ button. The default colour when ‘at rest’ is set to blend into the location bar following the user’s chosen colour scheme. A thin green line running under the address bar shows the page loading progress.
The second proposed UI is more ambitious and, the developers admit, “more contentious”. Named the ‘Tabs-on-Top’ concept, this does away with the browser’s title bar and relocates the tabs to sit abopve the address bar – in effect, replicating the cleaner but potentially more confusing interface of Google’s Chrome.
While the move would maximise vertical space and reinforce the connection between the contents of the tab and the address of the site (as displayed in the address bar), Mozilla notes there are several ‘negatives’ to the concept.
This includes that the change “Breaks consistency/familiarity” because “moving things confuses existing users”, and that users will see only a truncated version of the title of the Web page being viewed.
Hence the warning at the top of the Firefox 4 mockup page that “these are not final! They are only for brainstorming/exploration. Feedback is entirely welcome and encouraged.”