The fifth beta version of Firefox 4 has landed, marking another milestone for the browser and bringing us a bit closer to the final release. The latest build doesn't add many features, but there are a few noteworthy changes. GPU acceleration, which was introduced in beta 4, is now enabled by default for Windows 7 users, so you don't have to make any changes in about:config -- unless you want to disable it. If that's the case, follow the first three steps here
The update adds hardware-accelerated graphics and tab sets, formerly known as tab candy. The browser's built-in graphics acceleration will use Windows' Direct2D, but it won't be enabled by default. Flipping the switch should only take a minute, though:
1. Enter about:config in the address bar and click through the warning
2. Enter gfx.font in the 'Filter' box
3. Double-click on gfx.font_rendering.directwrite.enabled to set it to true
4. Below this, right click and select New > Integer to add a pref setting
5. Enter mozilla.widget.render-mode for the preference name, 6 for the value
6. Restart
, except set the entry to "false" instead of "true".
Other changes include support for the new proposed Audio Data API, an updated look for the Firefox menu button, HSTS security protocol functionality, and the addition of more languages. You can find a comprehensive list of the changes made to previous Firefox 4 beta builds
here -- where, of course, the latest release is also readily available.
