Ubuntu: Firefox 3 beta and unhappy users

Beta software prohibited! (Photo obtained from here)

I was really disappointed over past few weeks about Ubuntu 8.04 release. The major reason of disappointment was Firefox 3 beta 4-5. The browser might be having lot of new things which are amazing, the performance might is improved for JavaScript execution but in reality, the overall performance of the browser wasn't that good. I was experiencing slow browsing speeds, sometimes the browser wouldn't respond and sometimes even crash.

Firefox 3 is still gaining popularity and there are tons of plug-ins which are still not compatible with it. My favorite plugins are no longer usable with Firefox 3 and that was a big drag for me. Firebug was one of them.  The main reason I feel very disappointed was Firefox 3 was in beta!

Ubuntu was simplifying Linux for all the users who don't want to touch command line for writing documents and browsing internet etc. They are doing a great job on that front too. Firefox 3 made me think is it going away from that goal by giving beta software distribution? I will urge Ubuntu community for not including any of the beta software in mainstream distribution for any reason. That might not only discourage non-technical users but also put wrong message on the table.

For those users who have similar problem, they can uninstall the Firefox 3 from synaptic package manager and install Firefox 2 browser instead. Happy browsing!