Mozilla is looking at dropping support for Windows 2000 and versions of Windows XP without at least SP3 installed in early 2010.

The idea is hardly a surprise, as the extended support period offered by Microsoft for the operating systems is ending on 13th July 2010, and would see the requirements for Gecko 1.9.2 raised – Firefox’s rendering engine.

Firefox 3.5 (aka 3.1) are built using Gecko 1.9.1, so the change will not affect users on current or next version of Firefox.

Full discussion on the issue can be read on the mozilla.dev.planning newsgroup.

An article over at ReadWriteWeb suggests that Firefox designers are looking at a complete overhaul of the web browser inerface, to keep up with users change in browsing patterns.

Firefox without tabs

The first idea is from Aza Raskin. His idea invisions tabs being on the side of the browser, as “our screens are wider than they are tall” with vertical height being scarce resource.

The second idea comes from Oliver Reichenstein. His design has completly removed tabs and has an interface similar to Apple’s iTunes.

Reichenstein argues that “today, twenty+ parallel sessions is quite common; the browser is more of an operating system than a data display application; we use it to manage the web as a shared hard drive. If you have more than seven or eight tabs open they become pretty much useless.”

Either way, the future of Firefox still looks bright – tabs or no tabs.

Trend Micro – a major security firm – have released a web browser called Smart Surfing suitable for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

The browser benefits by blocking browsers from accessing malicious sites, using Trend Micro’s Web Reputation technology.

A list of features include:

• Secured by the Trend Micro Smart Protection Network
• Blocks access to Web pages with malicious content
• Helps protect against phishing and pharming attacks
• Provides color-coded search results to easily identify harmful Web pages
• Easy-to-modify protection strength level and notifications
• Supports browsing multiple Web pages at the same time

The browser can be downloaded for free from the iTunes store.

Microsoft has confirmed that it has received a one-week extension from EU antitrust regulators to respond to charges stemming to anti-competitive behaviour.

The complaint is for Microsoft bundling Internet Explorer with Windows, hence discouraging competition in the browser market.

At this point it should be noted that with early builds of Windows 7, Internet Explorer can be removed from the system.

If Microsoft loose, the company may be forced to offer multiple browsers with new copies of Windows.

Microsoft have till April 28 to respond to the Commission’s statement of objections.

Latest builds of Opera 10 now include Opera Turbo, technology used to speed up traffic for end users.

Opera Turbo works by passing all data through one of Opera’s proxy servers, which highly compress the data and sends the data on to the user.

Opera Turbo is set to automatic in current release, which will only improve performance if it detects your network is slow.

The latest build also includes an in line spell checker and increases performance.

The latest Opera 10 build can be downloaded here.

MozillaLinks has posted an article exploring some of the potential features for Firefox 3.6 (code named Namoroka).

Included in the list are performance enhancements, support for Windows 7 jump lists, better theme and add-on management plus a long list of other items.

The article suggests that Mozilla is working around a 10 month cycle at the moment, so we can expect to see Firefox 3.6 possibly in May 2010.

Opera sure have been busy, today announcing a deal with Virgin Mobile (USA) to include Opera Mini 4.2 pre-installed on all Virgin Mobile pre-paid phones.

The deal is a welcome move, considering Opera Mini is leaps and bounds above most standard mobile browsers already included with mobile phones. Features include full page rendering with zooming, and the ability to sync bookmarks with a computer.

Mobiles with Opera Mini pre-installed are expected to show up in the next few weeks.

Ford in-dash browsing

Ford today has announced a deal with Opera for new in-dash browsing.

The new dash is said to be in upcoming E and F-series vans and trucks utilising the Opera Mobile browser.

“Opera’s vision has always been about giving people access to the full Web anytime, anywhere. No example showcases this better than delivering a fast, feature-rich Web browser to a vehicle. This solution will allow Ford truck and van owners to maintain a virtual work environment with access to all of the important files, information, and applications they need on a daily basis” said Opera’s Rod Hamlin.

More details about the new dash can be found on the Ford Work Solutions website.