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*Adds [[64-bit computing]] support and [[hardware acceleration]]<ref>[http://www.palemoon.org/palemoon-x64.shtml Pale Moon x64 build]</ref>
*Adds [[64-bit computing]] support and [[hardware acceleration]]<ref>[http://www.palemoon.org/palemoon-x64.shtml Pale Moon x64 build]</ref>
*Exposes additional configuration options such as scrolling, status and new features specific to this browser
*Exposes additional configuration options such as scrolling, status and new features specific to this browser
*Support for Pale Moon exclusive extensions and themes (ex: Adblock Lattitude<ref>[https://addons.palemoon.org/extensions/privacy-and-security/adblock-latitude/]</ref>)
*Support for Pale Moon exclusive extensions and themes (ex: Adblock Lattitude<ref>https://addons.palemoon.org/extensions/privacy-and-security/adblock-latitude/</ref>)
*Functional status bar and more freedom in customization
*Functional status bar and more freedom in customization
*Uses the [http://ip-api.com IP-API] service instead of [[Google]]s for [[Geolocation]]
*Uses the [http://ip-api.com IP-API] service instead of [[Google]]s for [[Geolocation]]

Revision as of 07:07, 12 February 2015

Pale Moon
Developer(s)M.C. Straver
Initial releaseOctober 20, 2009 (2009-10-20)
Repository
Written inC/C++
EngineGecko
Operating systemWindows, Linux, Android
PlatformIA-32, x86-64[1]
Available in85 languages[2]
TypeWeb browser
License
Websitewww.palemoon.org

Pale Moon is a is free and open source web browser based on Mozilla Firefox, available for Linux, Windows and Android, developed and distributed by Dutch developer M.C. Straver.[4][5][6][3] Pale Moon builds on Firefox, optimizing for efficiency of code and aimed at current and modern microprocessors.[7]

Because it is based on Firefox, most of the available Firefox extensions and plugins are compatible with Pale Moon.[8]

Features

Pale Moon is a fork of the Firefox web browser with a number of different features:

Optimization

Pale Moon on Microsoft Windows makes use of compiler optimizations by using the Microsoft C compiler's speed optimization, auto-parallelization and auto-vectorization features, and also by targeting NT6 based operating systems to increase performance of the browser.[12] The resulting browser will not run on particularly old hardware as a result, but "by cutting out support for older hardware, Pale Moon works with an optimized code base that takes full advantage of modern processor instruction sets."[13] Pale Moon on Linux makes use of the -O3 switch in the GNU Compiler Collection, like the Windows build Pale Moon on Linux is stripped of older processor support, and features which are considered to be bloatware by the developer of Pale Moon.[14]

Further performance tuning is achieved by removing uncommonly used functions of Firefox, including accessibility features, parental controls, crash reporter, ActiveX and Active Scripting.[6][15]

These optimization techniques increased the subjective performance of Pale Moon as compared to Firefox.[4][6][16][17]

User interface

The user interface of Pale Moon since version 4.0 substantially differs from that of Firefox. The status bar was re-added by the authors to keep the information provided by web applications and the messages about the current state of the browser accessible yet less intrusive, as well as keeping other status elements that were removed from the Firefox user interface (webpage download progress bar, file download indicator) by bundling an edited version of an open source status bar extension, until version 12, after which that extension was fully integrated into the core of the browser.[18][19] The tab bar in Pale Moon is also preserved below the other toolbars in the application (as opposed to Firefox's and Google Chrome design). The developer also reordered UI controls with a goal to collect the control elements in the same place to improve the user experience from the usability point of view.[20]

Incompatibility with older hardware

For a while, Version 3.x of the browser (based on Firefox 3.x source code) was maintained separately to provide support for older processors that don't support the SSE2 instruction set, which is required to run Pale Moon versions 4.0 and later.[21] In August 2012, the head developer announced the end-of-life for that legacy Pale Moon browser citing dropped functionality, maturation of the next-generation code and increasing difficulty for back-port security patches (especially issues related to JavaScript).[22]

Versioning

The browser used to follow Mozilla Firefox's rapid release schedule before 12.0 was released. Subsequent versions were released sticking to the ESR versions of Firefox with additional and independent development on top. The current (version 25 and above) versioning scheme of the browser is completely independent from other Mozilla-based browsers as the Pale Moon browser has fully broken its previous ties with the Firefox rapid release schedule and Firefox as a product.[23]

Android

Pale Moon for android was first released on August 3, 2014 as an APK on Pale Moon's own servers, beginning as version 24.7.1.[24] Version 24.7.2 could be downloaded from either the Google Play store or the Pale Moon servers.[25] Although Pale Moon originally supported all devices running Gingerbread (2.3) or later, the developer announced on November 7, 2014 that the minimum requirement would be android 4.0 for the future versions.[26]

Pale Moon supports mobile Firefox extensions, but Firefox does not support mobile Pale Moon extensions. Pale Moon also uses Pale Moon Sync instead of Firefox Sync. The application is built upon the Gecko source code for the desktop version.[27]

You can view the most recent version on the Google Play Store or check out the release notes.

License

Like Firefox, Pale Moon is released under the Mozilla Public License 2.0 except for parts relating to branding. Unlike Firefox, however, the Pale Moon binaries may only be redistributed under certain conditions.[3] According to the author, this is to prevent the possibility of any confusion with tainted versions. The project's name and logo are trademarked and the intellectual property of M.C. Straver, and cannot be used in e.g. third party Firefox builds or other related products without the author's prior permission.[15]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Minimum system Requirements at Home Page". Retrieved 2015-02-10.
  2. ^ "Pale Moon language packs". Moonchild Productions. Retrieved 16 June 2012.
  3. ^ a b c "Pale Moon redistribution", Official website, retrieved 2012-02-16
  4. ^ a b Purdy, Kevin (2010-04-14), "Pale Moon Is a Faster Firefox Clone for Windows and Linux", Lifehacker, retrieved 2012-02-16
  5. ^ "Pale Moon 24.6.2" by Razvan Mihai Asmanow Serea, Neowin, 16 June 2014
  6. ^ a b c Snyder, Bill (2012-01-10), "Pale Moon: The Fastest Browser You've Never Heard Of", Consumer Tech Radar, CIO Blogs, retrieved 2012-02-16
  7. ^ Firefox Optimized for Windows – Pale Moon Custom Built Browser, TECK.IN, 2011-04-08, retrieved 2012-02-16
  8. ^ "Pale Moon: Frequently Asked Questions (F.A.Q.)". palemoon.org. Moonchild Productions. Why do some add-ons not work (properly) with Pale Moon?. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  9. ^ Pale Moon x64 build
  10. ^ "Adblock Latitude".
  11. ^ "Browser Pale Moon Integrates New Personal Start Page" (Press release). Amsterdam: PRWeb. February 11, 2015.
  12. ^ "Pale Moon Home Page", Pale Moon Home Page, Moonchild Productions, retrieved 2013-04-01
  13. ^ Wilson, Mark (2011-04-06), "Pale Moon 4: Firefox's leaner, meaner twin – and, whoa is it fast", betanews, retrieved 2012-02-16
  14. ^ http://sourceforge.net/p/pm4linux/wiki/Building%20Pale%20Moon%20for%20Linux%20yourself/
  15. ^ a b "Pale Moon: Technical Details", Official website, retrieved 2012-02-16[non-primary source needed]
  16. ^ Williams, Mike (2011-06-25), "Pale Moon 5 outshines sibling Firefox 5", betanews, retrieved 2012-02-16
  17. ^ Noyes, Katherine (2011-08-27), "Want a faster Firefox? Pale Moon can help", PC World, retrieved 2012-02-16
  18. ^ Finalization of the integration of status bar (Part of PM12 official announce in forums)
  19. ^ Pale Moon – Release Notes, retrieved 2012-06-01
  20. ^ "About the Pale Moon layout in version 4 and later", Official website, retrieved 2012-02-16[non-primary source needed]
  21. ^ "Pale Moon: AthlonXP", Official website, retrieved 2012-02-23[non-primary source needed]
  22. ^ End-of-Life announcement for Pale Moon "Legacy" (Official forum)
  23. ^ Pale Moon versioning F.A.Q. entry
  24. ^ "Pale Moon for Android 24.7.1". August 3, 2014.
  25. ^ "Pale Moon for Android 24.7.2". September 11, 2014.
  26. ^ [1]
  27. ^ [2]

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pale_Moon&oldid=646765562"