Firefox & Opera on Ubuntu 9.10 your thoughts?

[Mem]

I have had some serious issues with Firefox 3.64 over the last few hours which is due to a software package update having issues I think with flash 10.0.45.2, even uninstall of Firefox and reinstall did not help,basically websites take ages to load the flash part of the website in question or freezes so web browsing is virtually at a standstill.

Anyway I've installed Opera 10.10 and was amazed how fast for general browsing Opera is on Linux( I have not used Opera for a few years) and I'm seriously thinking of staying with Opera on Ubuntu regardless of when I get my Firefox working 100% right.

I was wondering what do all the AT members out there use for their main browser on Ubuntu or Linux Distros?..

I have tried Chrome on Win7 but not with Ubuntu just yet.

Btw flash is working great on my Opera.


Update: Finally got Firefox and Flash working together on Ubuntu,I had to uninstall all Flash plug-ins from Synaptic Package Manager,websites I now visit with flash are working fine now,Opera is still a faster browser however.

 

[ockky]

I'm a dedicated Opera fan/user, but Chrome loads significantly faster on my POS laptop that i have Ubuntu on.

Edit: I haven't put Opera 10.51 on my laptop, since i dont use it often...

Also, i'm typing this in Opera on my Win7 machine

 

[lxskllr]

I use Firefox on most of my computers, but I use Chrome on my Ubuntu netbook. Firefox does some weird writing to the disk, and it makes my Eee really lag due to the pokey SSD. I've heard that using EXT4 will help that problem, so if that fixes it when I format/install 10.04, I'll go back to Firefox.

 

[Nothinman]

I've always avoided Opera since it's non-free and uses QT.

 

[Mem]

I've always avoided Opera since it's non-free and uses QT.

Opera is free.

My flash issue has returned ,seems I can either get flash working in Opera or Firefox but not both .

 

[Nothinman]

Opera is free.

My flash issue has returned ,seems I can either get flash working in Opera or Firefox but not both .

Only monetarily, it's still closed source.

 

[Mem]

Only monetarily, it's still closed source.

Ah I see what you mean,regardless I'm looking forward to testing the new 10.50 version for Ubuntu once it becomes available which uses the new Javascript engine (Carakan)...I hear it makes Opera even faster.

 

[Aluvus]

Only monetarily, it's still closed source.

Describing something as "non-free" when it is in fact "free as in beer" (but not "free as in speech") is inaccurate at best, misleading at worst. And no offense, but it's one of the behaviors I associate with the stereotypical "Free Software zealot". In any event, I am sincerely curious why you would avoid something because it uses QT.

@OP: I have been using Opera on Ubuntu 9.04 for a while now (and on Windows for much longer). There are downsides (it's not in any of the standard repositories at least for 9.04, and as you've seen the Linux versions tend to lag behind a bit), but it runs tolerably even on an Atom system.

After spending some time with 10.5 on Windows, it is certainly faster. I had some stability issues and other bugs running 10.50, but 10.51 seems much better.

 

[AnonymouseUser]

I've used Opera for almost 10 years now, on Linux and Windows, and it's the only closed source program I use on a regular basis despite having open source alternatives. Flash occasionally works better on FF than Opera, so that's the primary reason I use FF for certain sites.

 

[Mem]

I've used Opera for almost 10 years now, on Linux and Windows, and it's the only closed source program I use on a regular basis despite having open source alternatives. Flash occasionally works better on FF than Opera, so that's the primary reason I use FF for certain sites.

I have the opposite problem ie fine on Opera but not woking on Firefox 3.64,quick google search shows I'm not the only one with Firefox 3.64 flash issues http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1451278 (bottom post).

I can disable my flash in Opera to get Firefox working without freezing but then I have no flash for Opera or Firefox,so I would rather have and use flash in Opera until the Firefox/flash is fixed.

Anyway there should be a fix sooner or later.

Finally fixed my Flash issue thanks to someone that posted a fix in the link above.

I was able to find out which settings in about:config control the flash isolation behavior. Here goes:

Type about:config in the address bar
In the filter pane, type ipc

The filter should produce the following four config lines -

dom.ipc.plugins.enabled;false
dom.ipc.plugins.enabled.libflashplayer.so;true
dom.ipc.plugins.enabled.libnptest.so;true
dom.ipc.plugins.timeoutSecs;10


To turn off the flash process isolation, change the second line (libflashplayer.so) to false and restart the browser. Then re-enable flash and the browser should be able to load flash pages and play flash video as usual.

I changed dom.ipc.plugins.enabled.libflashplayer.so;true to "false" on Firefox 3.64.

I have flash working on both Opera and Firefox now .

 

[Nothinman]

Describing something as "non-free" when it is in fact "free as in beer" (but not "free as in speech") is inaccurate at best, misleading at worst. And no offense, but it's one of the behaviors I associate with the stereotypical "Free Software zealot". In any event, I am sincerely curious why you would avoid something because it uses QT.

I have no problem admitting that I'm a Debian zealot. I'll use non-free software when necessary but will almost always choose free software whenever given the choice. But the wording is indeed accurate, the fact that the English word free has multiple meanings isn't my fault.

And my dislike for QT is just a personal preference. Virtually everything on my system uses GTK and I like consistency so I try to avoid apps that use other toolkits.

 

[pdusen]

I was wondering what do all the AT members out there use for their main browser on Ubuntu or Linux Distros?..

I have tried Chrome on Win7 but not with Ubuntu just yet.

I use Chrome/Chromium, on all platforms and linux distros (With the singular exception of Arch, which uses a ridiculously old version for reasons I cannot fathom.)

I used to use Firefox exclusively, but once Chrome came along I was no longer able to justify Firefox's atrocious performance on all platforms.

I miss a few extensions, but now that Chrome has bookmark syncing, I don't really miss much.

 

[Brazen]

I have no problem admitting that I'm a Debian zealot. I'll use non-free software when necessary but will almost always choose free software whenever given the choice. But the wording is indeed accurate, the fact that the English word free has multiple meanings isn't my fault.

And my dislike for QT is just a personal preference. Virtually everything on my system uses GTK and I like consistency so I try to avoid apps that use other toolkits.

I agree, I will use libre software when libre and non-libre software are equivalent or nearly-equivalent. Of course, if libre software is better, which I find to be the case most often, then I definately use libre software.

On my blackberry phone, I use Opera because there is no viable libre alternative. On any full-blown PC (laptop, desktop, etc) I use Firefox and the fact that Opera is gratis has little consequence for me. I've not experienced the flash problems in Firefox (on either Windows or Linux), so all things being equal, I'll use the libre software over the gratis-only software.

Label me a zealot, if it makes your feel better, but I'm not so much a "Debian zealot" as I am a "freedom zealot." I also support the freedom of things like whether or not to purchase health insurance, or whether or not you smoke flavored cigarettes or even marijuna - even though I think it's best you do participate in the first example and do not participate in the last two.

I do also like to stick with GTK, but it's a minor preference and I didn't actually realize Opera was QT.

[/soapbox]

clarification on gratis vs libre: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratis_versus_Libre

 

[konakona]

I have had some serious issues with Firefox 3.64 over the last few hours which is due to a software package update having issues I think with flash 10.0.45.2, even uninstall of Firefox and reinstall did not help,basically websites take ages to load the flash part of the website in question or freezes so web browsing is virtually at a standstill.

Anyway I've installed Opera 10.10 and was amazed how fast for general browsing Opera is on Linux( I have not used Opera for a few years) and I'm seriously thinking of staying with Opera on Ubuntu regardless of when I get my Firefox working 100% right.

I was wondering what do all the AT members out there use for their main browser on Ubuntu or Linux Distros?..

I have tried Chrome on Win7 but not with Ubuntu just yet.

Btw flash is working great on my Opera.


Update: Finally got Firefox and Flash working together on Ubuntu,I had to uninstall all Flash plug-ins from Synaptic Package Manager,websites I now visit with flash are working fine now,Opera is still a faster browser however.

If you liked chrome enough on win7, why not try chromium? I have not noticed any quirks with it, I personally see no reason to ever go back to FF.

 

[Jodell88]

With the singular exception of Arch, which uses a ridiculously old version for reasons I cannot fathom.

Old? I'm running Chromium 5.0.342.9 from the official repo. What is the latest version then?

 

[pdusen]

Old? I'm running Chromium 5.0.342.9 from the official repo. What is the latest version then?

Oh really?

[root@Ares pdusen]# pacman -Sy chromium
:: Synchronizing package databases...
 core is up to date
 extra is up to date
 community is up to date
 archlinuxfr is up to date
resolving dependencies...
looking for inter-conflicts...

Targets (1): chromium-4.0.249.43-1  

Total Download Size:    0.00 MB
Total Installed Size:   47.27 MB

Proceed with installation? [Y/n]

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but that certainly looks like Chromium 4 to me.

 

[Jodell88]

Are your mirrors up to date?

The chromium package in the repos is 5.0.342.9. I don't use any testing repos.
http://www.archlinux.org/packages/?q=chromium

 

[Mem]

If you liked chrome enough on win7, why not try chromium? I have not noticed any quirks with it, I personally see no reason to ever go back to FF.

I do like my Firefox add-ons/extensions so its a trade off as usual.

 

[pdusen]

Are your mirrors up to date?

The chromium package in the repos is 5.0.342.9. I don't use any testing repos.
http://www.archlinux.org/packages/?q=chromium

That's interesting. I'll have to look into it.

 

[Mem]

I gave Chromium a try on Ubuntu 9.10 ,version I downloaded was 5.0.376.0 (44292) ubuntu,its fast but I would not say a big difference between Opera 10.10 and Chromium,I do prefer the extras/layout of Firefox and Opera.

I guess Chromium is ok if you prefer a streamlined fast browser.It is stable but so is my Firefox and Opera ,so as usual its down to what you need in a browser.

 

[k_john]

Opera is a decent combination with Ubuntu.Opera is more compatible in terms of speed with Ubuntu. It is similar in terms of solr's compatibility with ubuntu 8.04. U can visit http://www.lucidimagination.com/search/document/61e2bc8bb79dd1e4/solr_on_ubuntu_8_04 for detailed overview.

 

[Mem]

Opera is a decent combination with Ubuntu.Opera is more compatible in terms of speed with Ubuntu. It is similar in terms of solr's compatibility with ubuntu 8.04. U can visit http://www.lucidimagination.com/search/document/61e2bc8bb79dd1e4/solr_on_ubuntu_8_04 for detailed overview.

Opera is nippy on Ubuntu 9.10,btw welcome to the AT forums k_john.

I had a few updates this morning on my ubuntu 9.10,one was for my Firefox build which is now 3.6.5 Pre, which seems to be working great and decent speed too.