Giving away estates — the Firefox conundrum

No not those bits of land everyone loves to squabble and fight over which in time will be either at the bottom of a sea, or pitching and yawing broiling in the mantle, or perched atop a mountain top with some new species, all ready to conquer!

No, I’m talking about the recently released FF4.  A new Firefox which certainly loads faster than FF3, not as fast as Chrome – with the same number of extensions in both, but the release puts it firmly back into pleasurable browser usage territory, instead of turning into an IE6 look-alike; simply down to usage perceptions.  So kudos to the hard work put into this release, by all of those involved. 

I find (and counting myself in here), that many Firefox users load in add-ons as though legislation is being hurriedly enacted banning them from ever using their favourite crutch again.  The poor browsers are so encumbered with add-ons, they creak and groan under the combined weight of anything from the latest top 10, to looking up the defining quote for beibergit (definition of which is still awaiting entry).  Those older stalwart users remember the days of memory hogging - where the program grabbed as much memory as it could handle until your pc fell over – making the entire experience slower than watching paint dry, twice!

Naturally, over the years, this has inevitably led to Chrome becoming the default due to its unmatched speed; but even here, the inclusion of many extensions has reduced this once proud road runner to a slightly speedy wile e coyote.

I have being using Firefox since its inception and wanted to return to those halcyon days of tear-jerk quality every techno-nerd finds a need to return to.  This latest incarnation (including the table mats) once again makes Firefox a viable browser of choice. 

So, in pictures…

Ah yes, so where does giving away estates come into things, I hear the pondering?

If you look compare and look closely at the top bars of Chrome and Firefox, you’ll notice Firefox has a 3mm extra drop – if you look closely.  Don’t knock it, perception of size matters.  For those who don’t give a fig, give it a whirl and definitely try the table mats Ctrl + Shft + E in the browser, it’ll open up a whole new world of browsing possibilities.

Firefox 4, browsing to the future

AOL recommendations

Logged into aol to check my emails.  A chore that usually takes no more than five minutes, once a month.

The good thing about having aol as my main account?  Nothing.  If I hadn't signed a new contract a few months ago - I would certainly not be using them now.

The last time I had a choice, it was between aol and be. It would have been be for their speedier pipes, but aol gave me a reasonable offer. So i stuck with them, and have regretted it ever since.  A point i might have mentioned once or twice, in previous tappings.

So i was quite surprised to receive a mass email  offering £30 (or $52.5c and falling), if I would recommend a friend to use their services.  Nearly fell off my stool - really must get that leg fixed. 

Finally i came to my senses.  Realised I would rather recommend a friend buy a clapped out moss-grown citroen 2cv (yes even moss would get a speeding ticket faster than an old iconic 2cv) than go with aol.  If they were the last company on the planet offering broadband, i would recommend a friend go back to using dial-up.  Recommend aol?  Put me in front of a rampaging herd of bulls; let them put me out of my misery - quickly. 

Picture purloined for point proving, but from this wonderful site.

So what would i recommend aol for?

If you wish to enjoy a slow browsing experience, use aol's.  If you require (generally) unhelpful service, use aol.  If you want to engage technical support in linguistical riposte, to be told it's all your fault, then please do use aohell. 

I was always surprised time warner did the bed-hopping episode. But greed is a powerful stimuli.

With all these things, it's always your own personal experience.  A bit like the mint adverts (2004 was a better year).  In this case someone out there, is having all my service... 

Now, where did i put that friend?