Australis does not take up enough vertical space.
Removing the option to use small icons was a step in the right direction, but there's still too much vertical space. I suggest adding more padding, larger icons, and perhaps more default toolbars to reduce the vertical viewing space to about 1 pixel.
All Replies (6)
Hello,
In order to better assist you with your issue please provide us with a screenshot. If you need help to create a screenshot, please see How do I create a screenshot of my problem?
Once you've done this, attach the saved screenshot file to your forum post by clicking the Browse... button below the Post your reply box. This will help us to visualize the problem.
Thank you!
I assume that this is not really a problem, but rather meant to be ironically to emphasize that the Australis design is taking a lot more screen estate for the user interface then the current release leaving less room for the browsing area.
The OP seems to suggest to enlarge all toolbar items that much that the full screen minus 1px will be taken up by the toolbars and its icons. :wink:
Yes, the Australis design is taking up more screen estate as this is to prepare for touch screens and tablets that need larger icons.
There will probably be themes and extensions that will address this expansion for normal screens and allow for more browsing estate in these cases.
Modified by cor-el
Shouldn't a separate browser or UI be released then for touch screens and tablets? Why are the designers assuming that everyone is suddenly using a touch enabled device? Why remove the incredibly simple option to just tick a check box use smaller icons?
It's incredibly unintuitive to force the users to develop and use unofficial extensions in order to restore the browser to the current UI in stable. It was a step forward from Firefox 3, since it maximized screen real estate, but Australis goes backwards. I understand that this is essentially pre-alpha at the moment, so I hope they designers reconsider and allow users to make their own choices instead of dictating how they should use the browser.
Thanks for your responses and for providing an explanation as to why this approach was taken. I still don't approve but it's good to at least understand what the designers had in mind when they implemented the change.
You're welcome
There is also a metro version of Firefox in development, the purpose of the new Australis theme is for consistensy on the Desktop and Mobile platforms.
I have to agree with the OP--I'm planning on using the ESR release for the time being, but the vertical space issue is a drag if you are using a 13" laptop. You could use a theme, but most of them aren't really satisfactory. The "Restore Classic Theme" extension also doesn't really solve the vertical space problem.