Mozilla released Firefox 3.6 last week. There are many noticeable improvements compared to Firefox 3.5, but two that stand out to me.
First, performance has improved quite a bit. And not just Javascript performance. Startup time is improved; the awesomebar responds instantly to keystrokes; Javascript and redraw/redisplay are faster. I no longer perceive a huge speed difference between Firefox and Google Chrome on most web apps, and the UI has become more responsive. (A few things—startup time, redraw/redisplay/scrolling, and creating/closing new windows and tabs—are still minorly annoying when I use Firefox alongside Chrome—but 3.5 and 3.6 are like night and day.)
Second, Firefox 3.6's implementation of HTML5 media, or at least audio, is superb. Having spent lots of time hacking on and listening to Zeya on Chrome, Firefox 3.5, and Firefox 3.6, the latter is the one where things most often just seem to work as spec'd. Moreover it's Firefox 3.6 (and only Firefox 3.6) that can consistently maintain the illusion that I'm using a native media player rather than a web-based one. That's colossal.
So, kudos to the Firefox developers.
PSA: the ubuntu-mozilla-daily PPA has nightly builds of Firefox 3.5, 3.6, and 3.7 packaged for all Ubuntu releases since Hardy. It's a low-hassle way to teach an old dog new tricks.
