Skip the navigation
News

Google Gears no slam-dunk for Mozilla's Firefox

Browser maker won't junk its own work on running Web apps offline

By Gregg Keizer
June 1, 2007 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld - Mozilla Corp. is gung-ho on support for offline applications, but it's not committed to using the just-announced Google Gears technologies in the next Firefox, an executive of the open-source developer said today.

There's no question that Firefox 3.0, scheduled to launch later this year, will work with offline applications, said Mike Shaver, Mozilla's director or ecosystem development. What's up in the air is whether Firefox will use Gears' three application programming interfaces (APIs) to build its support, or whether the browser will rely on the work already done by paid and volunteer developers.

Gears' APIs include LocalServer, a specialized cache that intercepts an offline Web application's URL requests and serves them from the user's own drive; Database Module, an SQLite-based database that stores the user's data on the local machine; and WorkerPool, which runs scripts in the background to keep the browser or Web app interface responsive.

Shaver, like many developers in the first days after Google's announcement of Gears, was enthusiastic about its potential. "Gears is a set of capabilities, three powerful primitives being added to the Web 2.0 platform," Shaver said. "There haven't been a lot of big flag days in the Web, [but] Gears will create an explosion of Web apps, in a good way, in a creative way. It's the way forward for the Web."

Yet he wasn't as sure how Gears would fit into Mozilla's own plans for Firefox 3.0. A lot of offline app work has already been done -- enough to demo the browser's offline app support -- and Mozilla won't discard that work, even though Google payments to Mozilla make up the bulk of its income. In 2005, Google paid Mozilla $52 million for setting Google as the default search engine in the FireFox browser.

"We're talking to Google engineers and looking at how these two models -- ours and theirs -- compare. This is in the open now, and going forward we'll see what we can learn from each other," Shaver said. "But there's a lot of work that's been done already [on Firefox 3.0], and we're not planning to throw that work away."

And at least one of Gears' APIs looks too ambitious to Mozilla. Developer Module, which uses the open-source SQLite to store unstructured data, is a "bold" move, said Shaver. "Using SQLite, that's the hardest one for us to figure out [if it will work with Firefox]."

Firefox 3.0 already uses SQLite, but for "Places," the revamped bookmarks and history feature. Shaver said the Database API was the least likely to be adopted in Firefox 3.0. Instead, according to planning documents on the Mozilla site, the new browser will rely on DOM Storage, a Web Applications 1.0 specification that exists in the current Firefox 2.0.



Additional Resources
Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
WHITE PAPER
Solving application issues over the WAN requires careful consideration. Based on their independent research, Forrester Consulting offers recommendations on how to tackle application performance issues, insufficient bandwidth and the inability to quickly restore users in a disaster.

Read now.

Security KnowledgeVault
WHITE PAPER
Security is not an option. This KnowledgeVault Series offers professional advice how to be proactive in the fight against cybercrimes and multi-layered security threats; how to adopt a holistic approach to protecting and managing data; and how to hire a qualified security assessor. Make security your Number 1 priority.

Read now.

Cut Communications Costs Once and for All
WHITE PAPER
New IP-based communications systems are being deployed by small and midsized businesses at a rapid rate. Learn how these organizations are enabling faster responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing existing communications costs.

Read now.

Networking White Papers
Digital Transformation: Creating New Business Models Where Digital Meets Physical
Individuals and businesses alike are embracing the digital revolution. Social networks and digital devices are being used to engage government, businesses and civil...
Make the Connection: Better Network Connectivity Drives Transformation
Network connectivity is more than just plumbing. Leading organizations today see high-performance network connectivity as a critical enabler of competitive advantage, and not...
Virtualizing Government Infrastructure
All server virtualization solutions are not created equal. The more-with-less agenda for government agencies is tailor-made for server virtualization, which is evolving into...
Moving Service Management to SaaS
Today, organizations can enjoy similarly substantial benefi ts by migrating their IT service management functions to a software-as-a-service model. This paper shows how...
Achieving 360 Degree Network Visibility with Nimsoft
360° network visibility is critical for ensuring continuous availability of networks, servers, and applications-anything less could
have costly bottom-line implications.
All Networking White Papers
Networking Webcasts
Optimizing Networks for the Cloud
Join guest speaker, Rohit Mehra, IDC Director of Enterprise Communications Infrastructure, to explore current trends, discuss best practices for optimizing Data Center and...
Unified Communications 101
What's the best way to implement a unified communications solution for your organization?
Try the OptiView® XG on your network - FREE
The OptiView® XG is the first dedicated tablet with automated network and application analysis -- fastest way to root cause. XG raises the...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 2: Designing and Deploying SQL Server on VMware vSphere
Download this webcast to learn about the design considerations for virtualizing SQL workloads, performance and scalability information and high-availability options, as well as...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 1: Designing and Deploying Exchange 2010 on VMware vSphere
Download this webcast to learn the virtual hardware design considerations for Exchange 2010, deployment using the building block approach, options for high-availability and...
All Networking Webcasts
Newsletter Sign-Up

Receive the latest news test, reviews and trends on your favorite technology topics

Choose a newsletter
  1. View all newsletters | Privacy Policy
IT Jobs