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I suspect that's because they're attempting to move to a scheme like Chrome's: all you need to know is you're on the latest, most secure, most capable version a

I suspect that's because they're attempting to move to a scheme like Chrome's: all you need to know is you're on the latest, most secure, most capable version and there's extremely little pain from having upgraded.

wvenable 15y ago
The sort of assumes that Firefox is exactly like Chrome and historically that hasn't been true. For example, Firefox 4 has a very different UI from Firefox 3. Extensions are much more involved in Firefox than in Chrome and major versions tend to be indications of whether or not they'll break (which is an important consideration for upgrading). Extension compatibility is checked by version number, and it seems the greatest problem in moving to Firefox 5 has been that extensions don't think they're compatible (even if they are). They're trying to copy what Chrome is doing without considering how they're different from Chrome and without having a completed auto-update scheme. If version numbers are meaningless, does it even matter what scheme they're using. If they're merely counting upwards isn't 4.1 just as valid of choice as 5?
- ryannielsen 15y ago
  It does assume that Firefox will become more like Chrome. In fact, the Mozilla foundation has explicitly said they want features that are very similar to what Chrome offers today. They're working towards a transparent auto-update mechanism, they just shipped a new add-on mechanism in FF5 (http://blog.mozilla.com/addons/2011/06/21/add-on_sdk-builder-_beta/ http://blog.mozilla.com/addons/2011/06/21/add-on_sdk-builder...) that is much like Chrome's and is thus less likely to break on major upgrades, and they have explicitly stated they plan to release major new versions every three months. Just as with Chrome, they're de-emphasizing the major version number. Expect FF6 soon and FF7 before the year's end. Expect the version number to become less meaningful.

wvenable 15y ago

The sort of assumes that Firefox is exactly like Chrome and historically that hasn't been true. For example, Firefox 4 has a very different UI from Firefox 3. Extensions are much more involved in Firefox than in Chrome and major versions tend to be indications of whether or not they'll break (which is an important consideration for upgrading). Extension compatibility is checked by version number, and it seems the greatest problem in moving to Firefox 5 has been that extensions don't think they're compatible (even if they are). They're trying to copy what Chrome is doing without considering how they're different from Chrome and without having a completed auto-update scheme. If version numbers are meaningless, does it even matter what scheme they're using. If they're merely counting upwards isn't 4.1 just as valid of choice as 5?

ryannielsen 15y ago
It does assume that Firefox will become more like Chrome. In fact, the Mozilla foundation has explicitly said they want features that are very similar to what Chrome offers today. They're working towards a transparent auto-update mechanism, they just shipped a new add-on mechanism in FF5 (http://blog.mozilla.com/addons/2011/06/21/add-on_sdk-builder-_beta/ http://blog.mozilla.com/addons/2011/06/21/add-on_sdk-builder...) that is much like Chrome's and is thus less likely to break on major upgrades, and they have explicitly stated they plan to release major new versions every three months. Just as with Chrome, they're de-emphasizing the major version number. Expect FF6 soon and FF7 before the year's end. Expect the version number to become less meaningful.