Are there any hidden dangers lurking in Firefox 1.0?

In the Web Features area, there are a couple of settings you'll want to think about too, starting with Allow web sites to install software (which is checked by default, though only the mozilla site is listed). This might not be too dangerous, but back on the Advanced settings there's an option for Firefox to check for updates for not just the browser itself, but any extensions or themes you might have installed. I don't know the code but this sure gives me a small anxiety attack: I've turned off the right to periodically update Extensions, and might well turn off the right to install software too.

Additionally, there's another neat setting that defaults to the logical status (in my opinion, at least): Load Images for the originating web site only. Again, seems like it'd be a good idea to check this option so that you don't get images from third-party servers, but you'd be shooting yourself in the proverbial foot because many large sites use multiple image cache archive servers so that serving up images is split and separate from serving up the HTML pages. Going to a site like CNN would be less compelling if all the news photos were missing.

Another neat thing, but a possible pitfall if you're programming JavaScript: click on the "Advanced..." button on the Web Features area and you'll see a list of what scripts can be allowed to do (or not), including: Move or resize existing windows, Raise or lower windows, Disable or replace context menus, Hide the status bar, Change status bar text, Change images. Reading through that list, you'd think that a browser with a built-in pop-up blocker would also deselect most of these capabilities, but by default scripts can move or resize windows, raise or lower windows, change images (which is important for image rollover effects) and, most surprisingly, disable or replace context menu items. Yet something relatively innocuous like Change status bar text is disabled by default.

If you're experimenting with basic JavaScript with a book like Creating Cool Web Sites with HTML, XHTML and CSS then it'll baffle you to no end when you can't do something as simple as a "window.status='something new';".

Beware of browser settings!

Other than that, honestly, I am impressed and delighted with Firefox and if Safari didn't work so darn well, I'd be very tempted to switch on my Mac OS X systems. On my Windows box, I've already made the switch. After all, you'd have to be daft to run Internet Explorer on Windows, in my opinion.

If you haven't yet downloaded a copy, why not Get Firefox and try it?