A new version of Firefox is on the way. Version 8, the fifth new release of the browser this year, will be released next Monday and is now available as a release candidate build (Mozilla now considers its final beta builds release candidates).
With no more changes, except critical bug fixes, to be expected, the latest Firefox will arrive with Twitter search, tab tweaks and greater restrictions for third-party add-ons, which will make Firefox 8 a must-upgrade.
In Firefox 8, restored tabs will only load the active tab in a new session. All other tabs will be loaded when viewed by the user. Tab dragging is now represented by an animated tabbed and not just a simple line. Third party add-ons such as toolbars will be much more guarded in Firefox 8 as they cannot run without the user's explicit permission anymore. This should prevent at least some breakage in the browser that is caused by outdated or unwanted add-ons.
Not included in this version is the much anticipated silent upgrade feature in Firefox that will work similarly to the process Google is using with Chrome. Mozilla expects this feature to be available in Firefox 10.
