Firefox for Windows 8 is dead, states low user adoption

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We?ve covered the journey of Firefox for Windows 8 since the project was announced in late 2012. Our first real look at the app came in February 2013 when we took the app for a spin and did a hands-on of Firefox for Windows 8. This past August the team at Mozilla announced that Firefox for Windows 8 would come out in December.
We later learned that the release was pushed back to 2014. A bunch of updates later and the app finally went into open beta last month. Turns out that was all for nothing. Mozilla is killing Firefox for Windows 8.

Full story from the WPCentral blog...
 

BIGPADDY

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I been reading some general tech sites and comments and there all calling it a fail for Microsoft that just insane so much hate toward MS.
 

psychotron

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I been reading some general tech sites and comments and there all calling it a fail for Microsoft that just insane so much hate toward MS.

Modern UI adopton stats have been pretty flat, but I don't know that I'd call it a "fail". It is somewhat unfortunate that we'll be back to one option only for a browser on that interface if for no other reason than choice is always a good thing. I've been consistently using the most recent beta and it really wasn't too bad at this point. Speed was getting better and can't recall the last time it had crashed on me. Pity.

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Guytronic

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Double dang it ... too bad :straight:

PCWorld said something about Mozilla saying less than 1000 beta downloads turned off further development.
Mozilla essentially indicated a Metro version would be a waste of time for them.
 

Laura Knotek

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I downloaded it and actually had it as my default Windows 8.1 browser. The problem is I rarely browse in metro at all. 99% of the time when I run Windows, I use desktop Firefox. I just don't like metro browsing, since it lacks so many features of desktop browsing. My default desktop browser in Windows 8.1 is Firefox.
 

Guytronic

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I downloaded it and actually had it as my default Windows 8.1 browser. The problem is I rarely browse in metro at all. 99% of the time when I run Windows, I use desktop Firefox. I just don't like metro browsing, since it lacks so many features of desktop browsing. My default desktop browser in Windows 8.1 is Firefox.

Ya know you're right Laura touch browsing is a real chore.
Me rarely can stand it for more than a few minutes.

I use both IE then Firefox on desktop.
Some things work on one when things don't work on the other.

I have just about everything blocked or filtered on both browsers.
 

Laura Knotek

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Ya know you're right Laura touch browsing is a real chore.
Me rarely can stand it for more than a few minutes.

I use both IE then Firefox on desktop.
Some things work on one when things don't work on the other.

I have just about everything blocked or filtered on both browsers.

Firefox just works better for me due to the extensions available. I use Ghostery and Request Policy, which are not available in IE.
 

Guytronic

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Firefox just works better for me due to the extensions available. I use Ghostery and Request Policy, which are not available in IE.

I use Ghostery also.

Seconds ago I had to switch to Firefox so I could like yer postings IE11 won't let me like on WPC again lately.
A very minor hassle.
 

Jan Tomsic

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Well maybe they'll focus on their 'desktop' firefox now, the quality has been going straight down for past 10 versions or so, flash always chrashing, on dual monitor setup it always opens on the wrong one, they ruined the address/search bar... I've disappointed with firefox in general lately. I haven't tried the 'modern' app because I'm on a PC not on a tablet.
I hope they get their stih together and fix their browser.
 

palandri

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I use Firefox on the Windows 8.1 desktop 95% of the time with AdBlock Plus and No Script with 3rd Party cookies turned off in options.

I started with Netscape due to the early versions of IE being so bad. After AOL bought Netscape, I moved to Mozilla and then Firefox.
 

psychotron

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I downloaded it and actually had it as my default Windows 8.1 browser. The problem is I rarely browse in metro at all. 99% of the time when I run Windows, I use desktop Firefox. I just don't like metro browsing, since it lacks so many features of desktop browsing. My default desktop browser in Windows 8.1 is Firefox.

I'm the complete opposite. I spend the majority of my computing time away from the desk on my Venue Pro tablet so having an alternative was nice. I try to do as much work with my fingers as possible so as not to have to rely on the stylus any more than I have to.
 

wpn00b

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psychotron

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PCWorld advised people not to install it (since it must be default) because it was so bad. To say that the issue is the OS is shortsighted by Mozilla
Hands-on with Mozilla's long-delayed Metro Firefox app: Good thing it's a beta | PCWorld

And this article by techradar is absurd. I like the lone bullet point at the very end... *shakes head*
Firefox 'Metro' app abandoned because no one wants Microsoft's Modern UI | News | TechRadar

They never said it was the OS. They said it was the low adoption rate. When you only have 1,000 beta testers vs millions of beta testers on the desktop at any given time that doesn't bode well for continued investment of resources. You've gotta admit that's pretty bad given that there's enough interest in the Linux version to make it worth their while when those have to be fairly modest numbers as well.

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