[Info-vax] [OT] Firefox, was: Re: OpenVMS graphics - once more

[Simon Clubley]

On 2015-08-24, Stephen Hoffman <seaohveh at hoffmanlabs.invalid> wrote:
>
> 6) update the OpenVMS compilers, C and network APIs and related tools, 
> to allow easier and faster porting, and requiring fewer source code 
> changes.  Firefox add-ons themselves are portable and are usually based 
> on Javascript, HTML and CSS. 
><https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/Add-ons?redirectlocale=en-US&redirectslug=Extensions> 
>  FWIW, Firefox plugins have been deprecated.   (There are APIs changes 
> underway to better secure the browser environment.)
>

It depends on the Addon as to how portable things are.

The major compatibility issues arise between desktop Firefox and mobile
(ie: Android) Firefox.

The older XUL based approach doesn't work with mobile Firefox so you
can't install things like DownThemAll and other XUL based Addons.
There's a version of NoScript for mobile Firefox which works reasonably
well but it's not as fully featured as the desktop version.

The Firefox SDK is more limited than the XUL approach so while you
can do a range of things (for example, I've written a very simplified
version of DownThemAll for mobile Firefox as well as a touch based
version of Snaplinks) there are a large range of things you simply
cannot do with the Firefox SDK.

The upcoming planned retirement of XUL from desktop Firefox is also
going to cause some _major_ backlash...

Simon.

-- 
Simon Clubley, clubley at remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP
Microsoft: Bringing you 1980s technology to a 21st century world