Gecko (software): Difference between revisions - Wikipedia
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Line 29: On July 15, 2003, AOL laid off the remaining Gecko developers and the Mozilla Foundation (formed on the same day) became the main steward of Gecko development. Today, Gecko is developed by employees of the [[Mozilla Corporation]], employees of companies that contribute to the Mozilla project, and volunteers.{{Citation needed|date=April 2023}} In the Netscape era, a combination of poor technical and management decisions resulted in Gecko [[software bloat]].<ref name="Collins_interview">{{cite web |url = https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2004/06/collins-interview/2/ |title = Ars Technica sits down with Scott Collins from Mozilla.org |author = Jorge O. Castro |website = Ars Technica |date = 2004-06-15 |access-date=2017-02-16}}</ref><ref name="FestaCnet"/><ref name="dbaron-complexity">{{cite web|url=http://dbaron.org/log/2003-01#l20030109 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090728082253/http://dbaron.org/log/2003-01 |title=Thursday 2003-01-09 |work=David Baron's weblog |author=David Baron |publisher=self-published |date=2003-01-09 |archive-date=2009-07-28 |access-date=2017-02-16 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Thus in 2001 [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] chose to fork [[KHTML]], not Gecko, to create the [[WebKit]] [[browser engine|engine]] for its [[Safari (web browser)|Safari]] browser.<ref name="FestaCnet">{{cite web|url=http://news.cnet.com/2100-1023-980492.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025015655/http://news.cnet.com/2100-1023-980492.html |title=Apple snub stings Mozilla |author=Paul Festa |publisher=[[CNET Networks]] |date=2003-01-14 |archive-date=2012-10-25 |access-date=2017-02-16 |author-link=Paul Festa |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="dbaron-complexity"/> However, by 2008 Mozilla had addressed some of the bloat problems, resulting in significant performance improvements for Gecko.<ref>{{cite web |url =https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2008/09/mozilla-committed-to-gecko/ |author = Ryan Paul |title = Why Mozilla is committed to Gecko as WebKit popularity grows |date = 2008-09-09 |access-date=2017-02-16}}</ref>▼ In October 2016, Mozilla announced [[#Quantum|Quantum]], an ongoing project encompassing several [[software development]] efforts to "build the next-generation web engine for [[Firefox]] users". It included numerous improvements to Gecko, taken from the experimental [[Servo (software)|Servo]] project.<ref name="QuantWiki">{{cite web|url=https://wiki.mozilla.org/Quantum|title=Quantum|website=Mozilla Wiki|access-date=2017-04-20}}</ref><ref name="QuantAnnounce">{{Cite news|url=http://news.softpedia.com/news/mozilla-announces-quantum-a-new-browser-engine-for-firefox-509767.shtml|title=Mozilla Announces Quantum, a New Browser Engine for Firefox|last=Cimpanu|first=Catalin|newspaper=softpedia|access-date=2016-11-07}}</ref> Firefox 57, also known as "Firefox Quantum", first shipping in November 2017, is the initial version with major components from the Quantum/Servo projects enabled. These include increased performance in the [[CSS]] and [[GPU]] rendering components. Additional components will be merged from Servo to Gecko incrementally in future versions.<ref name="QuantWiki" /> Line 63 ⟶ 65: Other web browsers using Gecko include [[GNU IceCat]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.fsf.org/working-together/gang/gecko|title=Gecko|last=sdubois|date=24 June 2010|website=Free Software Foundation|access-date=23 May 2019}}</ref> [[Waterfox]], [[K-Meleon]], [[Lunascape (web browser)|Lunascape]], [[Mozilla Firefox, Portable Edition|Portable Firefox]], [[Conkeror]], [[Classilla]], [[TenFourFox]]. Gecko is also used by [[Sugar (GUI)|Sugar]] for the [[OLPC XO-1]] computer === Past users === Products that formerly used Gecko include [[Pale Moon (web browser)|Pale Moon]] (now using [[Goanna (software)|Goanna]]), Epiphany (now known as [[GNOME Web]] and using [[WebKitGTK]]), and [[GNOME DevHelp]] (now using [[WebKitGTK]]). Line 71 ⟶ 72: === Proprietary dependency === On Windows and other platforms, Gecko depends on proprietary compilers.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Building Firefox for Windows|url=https://firefox-source-docs.mozilla.org/setup/windows_build.html|website=MDN Web Docs After Gecko 2.0, the version number was bumped to 5.0 to match Firefox 5, and from then on has been kept in sync with the major version number for both Firefox and Thunderbird,<ref>{{cite web |title = Gecko versions and application versions |url = https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Gecko/Versions |work = [[MDN Web Docs|MDN]] |access-date = 2013-11-18 |archive-date = 2020-10-31 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201031145622/https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Gecko/Versions |url-status = dead }}</ref> to reflect the fact that it is no longer a separate component.<ref>{{cite web |title = Not much in new Thunderbird 5, but roadmap looks promising |url = https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2011/06/not-much-in-new-thunderbird-5-but-roadmap-looks-promising/ |website = [[Ars Technica]] |date = 30 June 2011 | access-date = 2018-02-07 }}</ref>
▲In the Netscape era, a combination of poor technical and management decisions resulted in Gecko [[software bloat]].<ref name="Collins_interview">{{cite web |url = https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2004/06/collins-interview/2/ |title = Ars Technica sits down with Scott Collins from Mozilla.org |author = Jorge O. Castro |website = Ars Technica |date = 2004-06-15 |access-date=2017-02-16}}</ref><ref name="FestaCnet"/><ref name="dbaron-complexity">{{cite web|url=http://dbaron.org/log/2003-01#l20030109 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090728082253/http://dbaron.org/log/2003-01 |title=Thursday 2003-01-09 |work=David Baron's weblog |author=David Baron |publisher=self-published |date=2003-01-09 |archive-date=2009-07-28 |access-date=2017-02-16 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Thus in 2001 [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] chose to fork [[KHTML]], not Gecko, to create the [[WebKit]] [[browser engine|engine]] for its [[Safari (web browser)|Safari]] browser.<ref name="FestaCnet">{{cite web|url=http://news.cnet.com/2100-1023-980492.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025015655/http://news.cnet.com/2100-1023-980492.html |title=Apple snub stings Mozilla |author=Paul Festa |publisher=[[CNET Networks]] |date=2003-01-14 |archive-date=2012-10-25 |access-date=2017-02-16 |author-link=Paul Festa |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="dbaron-complexity"/> However, by 2008 Mozilla had addressed some of the bloat problems, resulting in significant performance improvements for Gecko.<ref>{{cite web |url =https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2008/09/mozilla-committed-to-gecko/ |author = Ryan Paul |title = Why Mozilla is committed to Gecko as WebKit popularity grows |date = 2008-09-09 |access-date=2017-02-16}}</ref> ==Quantum== Line 94 ⟶ 92: * '''Render''': Servo's [[Rendering (computer graphics)|rendering]] architecture, called WebRender, integrated into Gecko. WebRender replaces the [[Immediate mode (computer graphics)|immediate mode]] drawing model with a [[retained mode]] model that is more easily accelerated by the [[GPU]] by taking advantage of CSS/DOM's similarity to a [[scene graph]]. Worst-case scenario rendering in testing exceeds 60 frames per second.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://air.mozilla.org/bay-area-rust-meetup-february-2016/|title=Bay Area Rust Meetup February 2016|website=Air Mozilla|access-date=2017-03-28}}</ref> Mozilla began enabling the new renderer for select hardware/OS combinations in Firefox 67.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wiki.mozilla.org/Platform/GFX/WebRender_Where|title=Webrender Where|website=Mozilla Wiki|access-date=2020-07-14}}</ref> * '''Compositor''': Gecko's existing [[compositing|compositor]] moved to its own process, isolating browser tabs from graphics driver related crashes. Since compositor crashes will not bring down the browser content process, the compositor process can be restarted transparently without losing user data. This was released in Firefox 53.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2017/04/19/first-big-bytes-project-quantum/|title=Firefox faster and more stable with the first big bytes of Project Quantum, simpler with compact themes and permissions redesign|website=Mozilla Blog|access-date=2017-04-27}}</ref> * '''DOM''': Loosely inspired by Servo's Constellation architecture<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=an5abNFba4Q |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/an5abNFba4Q| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|title=Servo Architecture|website=YouTube|date=18 January 2017 |access-date=2017-03-28}}{{cbignore}}</ref> and [[Opera (web browser)|Opera]]'s [[Presto (browser engine)|Presto]] engine,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://billmccloskey.wordpress.com/2016/10/27/mozillas-quantum-project/|title=Mozilla's Quantum Project|website=Bill McCloskey's Blog|access-date=2017-03-28|date=2016-10-27}}</ref> Quantum DOM uses cooperatively scheduled threads within the [[Document Object Model|DOM]] to increase responsiveness without increasing the number of processes and, thus, memory usage. The core of this shipped in Firefox 57.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hacks.mozilla.org/2017/11/entering-the-quantum-era-how-firefox-got-fast-again-and-where-its-going-to-get-faster/|title=Entering the Quantum Era|date=2017-11-13|website=Mozilla Hacks|access-date=2020-07-14}}</ref> * '''Flow''': An umbrella for user visible performance improvements driven by a team that works across Gecko components. Focused on real user performance improvements on major [[Web application|webapps]], primarily G Suite (now called [[Google Workspace]]) and [[Facebook]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wiki.mozilla.org/Quantum/Flow|title=Quantum Flow|website=Mozilla Wiki|access-date=2017-03-28}}</ref> This work completed and shipped for Firefox 57.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ehsanakhgari.org/blog/2017-09-21/quantum-flow-engineering-newsletter-25/|title=Quantum Flow Engineering Newsletter #25|date=2017-09-17|website=ehsanakhgari.org|access-date=2020-07-14}}</ref> * '''Photon''': A [[User interface|UI]] refresh of the entire application, with a strong focus on improving UI performance. Treated as a sister project to Quantum Flow.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dolske.wordpress.com/2017/05/18/photon-engineering-newsletter-1/|title=Photon Engineering Newsletter #1|last=dolske|date=2017-05-18|website=Dolske's blog|access-date=2017-07-04}}</ref> This was released in Firefox 57.<ref name="57notes"/> Line 100 ⟶ 98: == Azure == The '''Mozilla Azure''' project is a stateless low-level [[graphics abstraction]] API used in [[Firefox]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wiki.mozilla.org/Platform/GFX/Moz2D|title=Platform/GFX/Moz2D - MozillaWiki}}</ref> ==References== | |||