Firefox 3.7 May Receive New Interface Design

Mozilla looks to transform the interface of its Firefox browser in the next major release.

This post over on the Mozilla Wiki shows early mockups of an obviously planned redesign of the Firefox browser interface for v3.7. Created by designer Stephen Horlander, the images depict three appearances: Windows Vista and 7 using Aero, Windows Vista and 7 without Aero, and four layouts for Windows XP (Luna, Silver, Olive, Royale).

"These are not final," Horlander declares on the webpage. "They are only for brainstorming [and] exploration."

Despite that fact, the mockups show a definite improvement over the outdated default Windows design present in the current version. For all three platforms, the mockup depicts raised buttons to achieve a "tactile" feel. For the Vista and 7 versions, the images sport a new Page button and a translucent, "glassy" appearance. In addition, the menu bar looks to borrow from Google's Chrome and implement a pair of drop-down menu buttons.

Mozilla officially released Firefox v3.5 back on June 30, making it the first major release since the launch of Firefox 3 during June 2008. Update version 3.5.1 is now available for download, addressing a security vulnerability in the browser's TraceMonkey JavaScript engine.