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Comment by bdisraeli | Hacker News Reader

Not all Smartphone users are iPhone users.[1] I use Firefox for Android as my primary mobile browser and am mostly pretty happy with it (I stay on the Beta channel so occasionally there are stability problems). In addition, Mozilla will soon have an entire mobile OS[2] based on their browser.

HN always seem quick to jump on the whole "Firefox is dying" meme, but Firefox still seems to to have about 20% market share in most usage reports I've seen[3][4]. I think it's great to see the Mozilla Foundation continue to standup for their principles.

[1] http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2335616

[2] http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/partners/

[3] http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2013/03/chrome...

[4] http://gs.statcounter.com/

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Of course not. Up until recently I was an Android user myself. That's why I said "less relevant", rather than "completely irrelevant" (after all, it's not as if no iOS sync will kill firefox itself - but it's certainly another reason why I won't pick it).

"Not all Smartphone users are iPhone users."

Not all mobile computing devices are smartphones. If you add tablets and PMPs to the mix, iOS has quite a presence.

"Firefox still seems to to have about 20% market share"

If 20% is enough to be called a major player (and I think it does), then surely you agree it's hard to ignore iOS.

I agree that it's unfortunate that there isn't be a Firefox on iOS, but it's a problem with Apple and their App Store rules and not with Mozilla.

We have to remember that Mozilla is a non-profit foundation with a specific manifesto[1] that espouses principles directly in opposition to the closed nature of Apple's App Store. Chrome on the App Store is a different beast than Firefox would be.

Google's primary mission, all the 'Don't be evil' stuff not withstanding, is to make money, so they need to go where users are. Mozilla's goal is to help build a free and open Internet to create choice for users, and a skinned UIWebKitView isn't real choice for users.

[1]http://www.mozilla.org/about/manifesto.html

The rules under which Mozilla would have to play to put Firefox on iOS would mean they are not putting Firefox on iOS. All Firefox would be, under Apples rules, would be a wrapper around Safaris WebKit. Firefox is not just a window, Firefox is its rendering and javascript engines.

I would say it is very easy to ignore iOS when you basically can not put your product on it.

It's not just about putting your product on it, though. It's about creating a nice experience for those using your product. I don't think that iOS users will really mind if it's Gecko or not.

Mozilla wouldn't be creating a nice experience for its users though, the experience would be as nice as Apple makes it. Any problems with Safaris WebKit though will indeed be blamed on Firefox for the very same reason that they don't care or know if it's WebKit or Gecko, all they'll see and complain about is 'Firefox fucked up.'

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