You know, the only time I boot up IE is when I need to work on Joe's sites. Writingblogs and Sharepoint both require IE to work properly; it gives Firefox fits. Also, Blackboard doesn't work well with Firefox; most parts do, but there are issues, particularly with the gradebook.

It sucks, too, because that pitiful ass Blackboard crap is so poorly designed, that having Firefox's tabbed CTRL-click browsing would be a dream.

I'm assuming you are using the newest version of Firefox, but do you have the newest version of the Java Runtime Environment? It's been a while since I used Blackboard. Somebody tell me if I'm wrong, but doesn't it use Java? If it does, upgrading JRE may help.

Also, you might try Opera. Maybe it will work with all/some of the above, and at least you'd get the pleasure of tabbed browsing and no IE for those applications :)

I've been using FF for a while now, and was jazzed to download FF1.0 yesterday. With the "live bookmark," "Sage," "Web Developer," and "Wikalong" extensions--this is an incredible tool.

Wikalong is a bit slow, but it provides a wiki sidepanel feature so that as you browse, if someone in the community has been there already, you can see their entry--and, true to wiki form, edit or add to it. If you are the first there, mark it yourself. I've not seen other tools like this...maybe they're out there, but I dunno. I can see it, though being an awesome option for a class wiki.

However, to me, the web developer tools in FF are absolutely incredible. I've used them a ton this summer, and will definitely have my students use the tool when they analyze their own sites later this semester.

jeff

Since you have to use Blackboard, try Mozilla. I've used it from version 1.3 on up and had no problems accessing the gradebook. I only have to use IE now when I'm doing a browser check on webby work.

WOw. I hadn't heard of this feature before. Jeff, can you tell me more about it? Sounds fascinating.

Well, my Firefox HATES pdf with a passion and generally locks up my computer whenever I try to access one. Of course, this could be because I screwed up an install and have never been able to purge all remnants of an older version of Firefox from my computer. Even now, whenever I boot up Firefox it asks me to upgrade to the new version, even though I have the latest version. I talked about this, but there's not much I can do about it apparently.

Blackboard works fine except the gradebook--apparently the tables aren't setup correctly and everything is spaced wayyy out.

just saw your comment after i posted about live bookmarks. great feature.

Hey matt--

the project wiki is at http://wikalong.phunnel.org/wiki/index.cgi?WikalongExtension

Wikalong is basically an actual wiki, the tie-in with Firefox is that it an extension which can be open in your side panel. Right now, it seems, from the bit I used it, that there is a server running a single wiki for anyone who uses the extension--so as you go to a page, if there is a wiki page on it, you can read along on the side panel, edit, etc--like a normal wiki page. As you browse, you get a running commentary--or can start one--which anyone using the extension gets to see.

While I think having one wiki for general use is a great idea, I'd also like to see it extended so that users could direct their side panels to different wikis (and I'm sure that is a plan for later development--this is a new extension as of Sept 14 or so, I think). I can see some awesome uses for this with a closed or class-focused wiki--though I'd like to access a more widely used one for my personal use. Imagine, though a set of wikis running--so that, depending upon what you go to a site for (your class, kairosnews, etc) you could contribute to a community wiki for others who have the same interests in the site.

I'm not very familiar with Wiki culture in general, but from an outsiders point of view, I think an open, running wiki could get a bit crowded with different input (that is, if the wiki purpose were less focused than something like wikipedia...)

One issue that is discussed on the project page are questions about whether services like this or Bugmenot (which is more targeted for the suspect practice) somehow promotes or allows illegal behaviors like the sharing of Access codes or serial numbers for software (like a Cracks site).

One tech point with the current service is that it seems awfully slow in serving up pages.

Overall, it seems pretty dang cool.

jeff

Nothing wrong with the preview release, but Tabbed Browser extensions don't seem to have been updated for it yet. Looks like I'll have to wait a little bit.

See Shelley's posts on Firefox here and here. In the first post, she says, "Firefox is one scary piece of good technology. Gives me the shivers it’s so good." :D In the second posts, she describes the "find in this page" feature, which is ultra cool and improved. Makes me want to download 1.0...

CultureCat

i tried it before i switched back. but gotta have my tabbed browser extensions. i imagine it will only be a few weeks before it's available.

meanwhile, in my mind, firefox is proof of concept of open source development. think about how far mozilla products have come in the last year.

now i'm just waiting for nvu to begin really maturing.

Was able to download a version of tabbed browser extensions which works with 1.0PR directly from the developer.

:)