It’s been 5 years since Firefox 1.0 was released. I still remember reading about the Firefox 1.0 launch in a local IT magazine. In that time, I was familiar with Mozilla family, Mozilla browser (and then Mozilla Firebird) were my first applications which opened me to the gate of the amazing Internet.
I started to realize how poweful the internet is, how important the information I access online is and that Internet is the central piece of those “chaotic” free software communities and groups. As a young Free Software enthusiast, I was using the Internet mostly to search for information I needed and to be connected to the local community.
I continued to use Firefox, seeing in it another free software project in its incipient stage. I never thought that it will gather in only 5 years over 24% marketshare or that I’ll become an active contributor.
Sometimes people asked me why I’m contributing to Mozilla and free software/open source in general. I thought some time ago I should write why, what convinced me to dedicate part of my time volunteering to a movement such as Mozilla, and my experience with Firefox.
Internet became indispensable for me, and the Web turned to be a connection with a new, amazing world.
After my first approaches to Internet, I started to develop my first own website, and then to write my first article in the High School Magazine about GNU/Linux and Firefox. By mid 2005, when I started the University I just realized that the web was actually one of my main interests, that big unknown which I was trying to understand (how it worked and how I could contribute). Then I started to help people from my Faculty to organize events like November Web. There I had my first public presentation ever about why contributing to Free Software is different (from a developer point of view), which are the benefits of using free software… And I used as example: Firefox 
the young browser which started to gather more and more attention from the wide Free Software community, because I thought that is the best example of defining technological freedom and its importance for both normal users and developers.
After some more months, in a Linux workshop I organized I met one of the first Romanian Mozilla contributors and, at the same time, a veteran from a Romanian Linux Users Group. He was one of the first people who translated Firefox into Romanian.
My first true experiences on the web
During some web technologies courses, I started to play more and more with my browser, I used a large number of add-ons, played with other Mozilla projects such as Calendar. Then I saw that Firefox was becoming an increasingly important tool at our courses, and part of the projects consisted in developing extensions for Firefox.
This was the moment I realized that Mozilla Firefox had not only given to me (and to others) the freedom to access the web and feel more secure online, but also the possibility to learn and discover the beautiful part of open technologies.
This made me interested in learning more about what’s behind of Firefox and how a simple open source project gathered the attention of such a wide number of developers and Internet users.
Shaping the Mozilla principles
Some confusing times were coming. My main focus was in maintaining and building the regional community around the GNU/Linux operating system and speaking to people about Free Software philosophy. Every time when I talked about the benefits of Open and Free Software, one of my examples was Firefox. But, at the same time, I was angry that I couldn’t clearly explain to people the principles behind Mozilla ( which I was trying to shape into my mind). I read and searched for examples from the history of the web in order to begin to understand the Firefox effect (which for the Free Software community was considerable).
There were two facts that attracted my attention towards Firefox and Mozilla: the fact that Mozilla had been one of the first “bazaar projects”, and Firefox as its main project, which has happened to be liberating the web after 10 years of its birth.
By the mid of 2007 I heard about Mozilla history by first time. Thanks to Zak I was able to shape on my mind what those lizards were doing. Afterwards, one of the things I did was going and reading the Mozilla Manifesto, which was released just 2 months before.
Then, everything was was easier to understand and, since then, I started to tell about Mozilla to others.
I want to be a *Lizard (now Mozillian)! Discovering the power of a worldwide community.
One of my aims in those times were to spread the awareness about Free Software and open source development model among people. I realized that the Internet became part of daily life for more and more people (how much time are you using your browser as Desktop background?) and the browser one of most used piece of software.
My life changed a lot because of leaving Romania, LUG and other projects. I started to think how volunteering Mozilla could be (even I had actually done that in the past by spreading the word at events, presentations, meet-ups), how to begin… For a moment, it seemed to be impossible, because I was living in a new country, losing somehow the connection with Romanian community members.
And yes, this was the moment when I finally discovered how easy is to get involved or, no matter where you are, no matter if you are an experienced developer or just a free software enthusiast, designer or translator.
Indeed, I can’t disregard the importance of understanding Mozilla principles and focusing on some ideological aspects had in becoming a contributor in the end. This make my passion stronger.
Letting stories a part, the 5th birthday of Firefox, MozCamp EU 2009 and some discussions I had with other Mozillians made me think about how the future of the Web would look like. And now, in my mind, there are these questions: the Internet is giving us the freedom we need? How free (libre) is the web?
Looking back at the Mozilla principles, and the aim of Firefox, I can sort out the following points:
- Internet has become part of our lives and has to be a public resource. Everyone should be free to USE the Internet.
- Internet should allow every user to have their own experience on the web, LEARN about and STUDY the web / web tools we use. Opportunity is important in order to maintain a continued healthy development of the web
- Building open technologies. Every user should be free to SHARE their experience with others.
- Every individual should be allowed to IMPROVE the web they use. Participation is the key to innovation on the web. Security and interoperability are other mandatory aspects of a healthy web
.
All those 4 web liberties may lead us to a new age of Internet freedom.
It is not hard to realize that the Web is now living a critical moment in its development.
Mozilla started an Internet revolution 11 years ago. With the devotion and trust of a large number of hackers and supporters 5 years ago, Firefox was released and in this way Mozilla started to (re)build the freedom of the web. A freedom which is now living some moments of incertitude.
Two other interesting articles for reading: by Ars technica and Chris Blizzard.
Alina’s dents
Mozilla Firefox and (re)building the freedom of the web
It’s been 5 years since Firefox 1.0 was released. I still remember reading about the Firefox 1.0 launch in a local IT magazine. In that time, I was familiar with Mozilla family, Mozilla browser (and then Mozilla Firebird) were my first applications which opened me to the gate of the amazing Internet.
I started to realize how poweful the internet is, how important the information I access online is and that Internet is the central piece of those “chaotic” free software communities and groups. As a young Free Software enthusiast, I was using the Internet mostly to search for information I needed and to be connected to the local community.
I continued to use Firefox, seeing in it another free software project in its incipient stage. I never thought that it will gather in only 5 years over 24% marketshare or that I’ll become an active contributor.
Sometimes people asked me why I’m contributing to Mozilla and free software/open source in general. I thought some time ago I should write why, what convinced me to dedicate part of my time volunteering to a movement such as Mozilla, and my experience with Firefox.
Internet became indispensable for me, and the Web turned to be a connection with a new, amazing world.
the young browser which started to gather more and more attention from the wide Free Software community, because I thought that is the best example of defining technological freedom and its importance for both normal users and developers.
After my first approaches to Internet, I started to develop my first own website, and then to write my first article in the High School Magazine about GNU/Linux and Firefox. By mid 2005, when I started the University I just realized that the web was actually one of my main interests, that big unknown which I was trying to understand (how it worked and how I could contribute). Then I started to help people from my Faculty to organize events like November Web. There I had my first public presentation ever about why contributing to Free Software is different (from a developer point of view), which are the benefits of using free software… And I used as example: Firefox
After some more months, in a Linux workshop I organized I met one of the first Romanian Mozilla contributors and, at the same time, a veteran from a Romanian Linux Users Group. He was one of the first people who translated Firefox into Romanian.
My first true experiences on the web
During some web technologies courses, I started to play more and more with my browser, I used a large number of add-ons, played with other Mozilla projects such as Calendar. Then I saw that Firefox was becoming an increasingly important tool at our courses, and part of the projects consisted in developing extensions for Firefox.
This was the moment I realized that Mozilla Firefox had not only given to me (and to others) the freedom to access the web and feel more secure online, but also the possibility to learn and discover the beautiful part of open technologies.
This made me interested in learning more about what’s behind of Firefox and how a simple open source project gathered the attention of such a wide number of developers and Internet users.
Shaping the Mozilla principles
Some confusing times were coming. My main focus was in maintaining and building the regional community around the GNU/Linux operating system and speaking to people about Free Software philosophy. Every time when I talked about the benefits of Open and Free Software, one of my examples was Firefox. But, at the same time, I was angry that I couldn’t clearly explain to people the principles behind Mozilla ( which I was trying to shape into my mind). I read and searched for examples from the history of the web in order to begin to understand the Firefox effect (which for the Free Software community was considerable).
There were two facts that attracted my attention towards Firefox and Mozilla: the fact that Mozilla had been one of the first “bazaar projects”, and Firefox as its main project, which has happened to be liberating the web after 10 years of its birth.
By the mid of 2007 I heard about Mozilla history by first time. Thanks to Zak I was able to shape on my mind what those lizards were doing. Afterwards, one of the things I did was going and reading the Mozilla Manifesto, which was released just 2 months before.
Then, everything was was easier to understand and, since then, I started to tell about Mozilla to others.
I want to be a *Lizard (now Mozillian)! Discovering the power of a worldwide community.
One of my aims in those times were to spread the awareness about Free Software and open source development model among people. I realized that the Internet became part of daily life for more and more people (how much time are you using your browser as Desktop background?) and the browser one of most used piece of software.
My life changed a lot because of leaving Romania, LUG and other projects. I started to think how volunteering Mozilla could be (even I had actually done that in the past by spreading the word at events, presentations, meet-ups), how to begin… For a moment, it seemed to be impossible, because I was living in a new country, losing somehow the connection with Romanian community members.
And yes, this was the moment when I finally discovered how easy is to get involved or, no matter where you are, no matter if you are an experienced developer or just a free software enthusiast, designer or translator.
Indeed, I can’t disregard the importance of understanding Mozilla principles and focusing on some ideological aspects had in becoming a contributor in the end. This make my passion stronger.
Letting stories a part, the 5th birthday of Firefox, MozCamp EU 2009 and some discussions I had with other Mozillians made me think about how the future of the Web would look like. And now, in my mind, there are these questions: the Internet is giving us the freedom we need? How free (libre) is the web?
Looking back at the Mozilla principles, and the aim of Firefox, I can sort out the following points:
.
All those 4 web liberties may lead us to a new age of Internet freedom.
It is not hard to realize that the Web is now living a critical moment in its development.
Mozilla started an Internet revolution 11 years ago. With the devotion and trust of a large number of hackers and supporters 5 years ago, Firefox was released and in this way Mozilla started to (re)build the freedom of the web. A freedom which is now living some moments of incertitude.
Two other interesting articles for reading: by Ars technica and Chris Blizzard.