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Updated AAATheFAQ (markdown)

Cameron Kaiser 2016-11-12 14:27:49 -08:00
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AAATheFAQ.md

@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ Mozilla stopped supporting Power Macintosh and Mac OS X v10.4 with Firefox 4/Moz
## What modifications were made to 10.4Fx?
10.4Fx contains modified widget code to work with OS X Tiger and the 10.4 SDK, modified font code to use Apple Type Services instead of CoreText, disables OpenGL graphics acceleration and WebGL (which are incompatible with tiger), and includes AltiVec- and PowerPC-specific code for JavaScript acceleration and decoding of WebM, JPEG and HTML. Here is a more or less complete [[list of changes in TenFourFox|TechNotes]].
10.4Fx contains modified widget code to work with OS X Tiger and the 10.4 SDK, modified font code to use Apple Type Services instead of CoreText, disables OpenGL graphics acceleration and WebGL (which are incompatible with tiger), adds its own MP3 audio decoder, and includes AltiVec- and PowerPC-specific code for JavaScript acceleration and decoding of WebM, JPEG and HTML. Here is a more or less complete [[list of changes in TenFourFox|TechNotes]].
## Does Mozilla support TenFourFox?
@ -30,11 +30,11 @@ Starting with Firefox 10, Mozilla introduced the Extended Support Release, or **
The stable branch, despite its name, does receive selected new TenFourFox features and does have "betas" for testing them, but does not receive other feature updates from Mozilla. Although it is not as technologically advanced as the unstable branch, it is based on tested and stable code and receives security updates, and therefore **the stable branch is the recommended version for most users.**
The _unstable_ branch of TenFourFox is based upon the current release version of Firefox. Note that not every version of Firefox has a corresponding version of TenFourFox; we sometimes skip versions for technical or timing reasons. In addition, because the unstable branch is not release-quality, it frequently has known bugs and therefore is only recommended for developers and advanced users. Nevertheless, we encourage technically proficient users to help us develop and keep the OS X/ppc Firefox port viable. If you are interested in helping to test the unstable branch, please visit the [TenFourFox Development](http://tenfourfox.blogspot.com) blog.
The _unstable_ branch of TenFourFox includes new Firefox-general and TenFourFox-specific features for testing. Note that not every version of Firefox has a corresponding version of TenFourFox; we sometimes skip versions for technical or timing reasons. In addition, because the unstable branch is not release-quality, it frequently has known bugs and therefore is only recommended for developers and advanced users. Nevertheless, we encourage technically proficient users to help us develop and keep the port viable. If you are interested in helping to test the unstable branch, please visit the [TenFourFox Development](http://tenfourfox.blogspot.com) blog.
## Are there other PowerPC OS X builds of Firefox?
We are no longer aware of other current builders. For a period of time AuroraFox issued a 10.5-only build, but is no longer supported as of Firefox 20. There are also some older Firefox rebuilds for Power Macs made directly from Mozilla's source code, but none of them are still maintained either. The long-running SeaMonkeyPPC (10.5 only) has not received an update in over a year as of this writing, nor has the OS X/ppc version of the Tor Browser Bundle (compatible with 10.4/10.5 and based on 10.4Fx code).
We are no longer aware of other current builders. For a period of time AuroraFox issued a 10.5-only build, but is no longer supported as of Firefox 20. There are also some older Firefox rebuilds for Power Macs made directly from Mozilla's source code, but none of them are still maintained either. The long-running SeaMonkeyPPC (10.5 only) has also ceased updates, as has the OS X/ppc version of the Tor Browser Bundle (compatible with 10.4/10.5 and based on 10.4Fx code).
However, for Thunderbird users, there is [Tenfourbird](https://en.osdn.jp/projects/tenfourbird/) which is also based on 10.4Fx code and compatible with 10.4 and 10.5.
@ -94,7 +94,7 @@ There is a silver lining, though: once XUL is mostly/fully loaded, much of it re
## Can 10.4Fx run on an Intel Mac with 10.4, 10.5 or 10.6?
Yes, but: **Intel Macintoshes are not supported. Please do not ask for support on Tenderapp.** Because Intel is a better-known architecture to attackers than PowerPC, both Intel 10.4 and 10.5 are much more likely to be successfully attacked than PowerPC, even though both technically have the same or similar security holes. **You are strongly advised to update to at least Snow Leopard (10.6) and run Firefox ESR 45**, which will give you a more current operating system and still lets you run most OS X PowerPC applications. [Apple still sells Snow Leopard](http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MC573Z/A/mac-os-x-106-snow-leopard), which even the earliest Intel Macs can run and is a necessary prerequisite for later versions of OS X. Firefox ESR 45 still runs on Snow Leopard, Lion and Mountain Lion (10.6-10.8), and will be supported until August 2017.
Yes, but: **Intel Macintoshes are not supported. Please do not ask for support on Tenderapp.** Because Intel is a better-known architecture to attackers than PowerPC, both Intel 10.4 and 10.5 are much more likely to be successfully attacked than PowerPC, even though both technically have the same or similar security holes. **You are strongly advised to update to at least Snow Leopard (10.6) and run Firefox ESR 45**, which will give you a more current operating system and still lets you run most OS X PowerPC applications. [Apple still sells Snow Leopard](http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MC573Z/A/mac-os-x-106-snow-leopard), which even the earliest Intel Macs can run and is a necessary prerequisite for later versions of OS X. Firefox ESR 45 still runs on Snow Leopard, Lion and Mountain Lion (10.6-10.8), and will be supported until June 2017.
That having been said, if you are absolutely unable or unwilling to upgrade your Intel Mac, it is possible to run TenFourFox on it under the Rosetta PowerPC translator that comes with 10.4-10.6. However, because TenFourFox uses advanced custom code specific to the PowerPC architecture, Rosetta may have compatibility problems running the browser. Follow the steps below:
@ -117,7 +117,7 @@ The good news is, all Intel Macs that can run 10.8 can run 10.9 through 10.11, a
Yes, because as far as your Mac is concerned TenFourFox _is_ Firefox, so it will use your previous profile seamlessly including all of your old bookmarks, all compatible add-ons and all settings. **However, you may wish to install versions in between and upgrade through them so that your profile is correctly updated**, such as from 2 to 3 to 3.5 to 3.6.
Similarly, **if you are updating from a Firefox version prior to 10.0 (such as Firefox 3.6)**, download and install TenFourFox 10.0.11, run it once, then download and install 17.0.11, run that once, then download and install 24.7.0, run that once, then download and install 31.8.0, run that once, and finally download and install the current version of TenFourFox. If you are unable to do so, consider removing the `Library/Application Support/Firefox` folder in your home directory to make sure settings are clean and correct, but this will destroy your bookmarks, saved settings, cookies and add-ons. **If your Mac has never run Firefox (even if it ran Camino), you don't need to do this.**
Similarly, **if you are updating from a Firefox version prior to 10.0 (such as Firefox 3.6)**, download and install TenFourFox 10.0.11, run it once, then download and install 17.0.11, run that once, then download and install 24.7.0, run that once, then download and install 31.8.0, run that once, then download and install 38.10.0, run that once, and finally download and install the current version of TenFourFox. If you are unable to do so, consider removing the `Library/Application Support/Firefox` folder in your home directory to make sure settings are clean and correct, but this will destroy your bookmarks, saved settings, cookies and add-ons. **If your Mac has never run Firefox (even if it ran Camino), you don't need to do this.**
Again, in some cases, you may have corrupted or buggy settings from older versions that will actually cause problems with 10.4Fx. In that case, you may need to [reset your profile](http://tenfourfox.tenderapp.com/kb/general/how-to-reset-your-profile); there is usually no way to fix this otherwise.
@ -205,17 +205,65 @@ If a site offers HTML5 H.264 video as an option, you can play many such videos o
WebM video support is built into TenFourFox, including for YouTube. No special software is necessary.
## WebM video playback is too slow on my Mac.
## YouTube video is too slow on my Mac.
## WebM video is too slow on my Mac.
WebM video is generally slower than H.264 video because no Power Mac has hardware acceleration for WebM. 10.4Fx does have AltiVec acceleration for WebM, however, which improves performance on G4 and G5 systems. For this reason, most G5 Power Macs can play standard definition WebM without issue but practically no G3 Macs can, due to the CPU power needed to decode, scale and composite the video in the browser.
TenFourFox uses the YouTube HTML5 player, which streams video to the browser using WebM. WebM video is generally slower than H.264 video because no Power Mac has hardware acceleration for WebM. 10.4Fx does have AltiVec acceleration for WebM, however, which improves performance on G4 and G5 systems. For this reason, most G5 Power Macs can play standard definition WebM without issue but practically no G3 Macs can, due to the CPU power needed to decode, scale and composite the video in the browser.
As for G4 systems in the middle, many will play video with acceptable stuttering, but Macs slower than 1.25GHz are likely to perform badly. If you are in the upper G4 range, video plays back better if you **play the video after it is done downloading and reduce the number of tabs open**. Also, because decoded frames can be cached depending on available memory, playing the video a second time often performs considerably better than the first time. Finally, make sure the playback controls are not showing (move your mouse into and back out of the player window if they do not go away on their own), and turn off closed captioning if you don't need it, as compositing graphics over the video image uses additional CPU power.
Here are some general tips for improving performance:
Although 10.4Fx still supports Theora (VP3) video, much less content is available in this format than in WebM, and for this reason its playback is not as well optimized.
* **Systems slower than 1.25GHz are likely to perform badly.** Although video may play on these computers, we don't support them, and we strongly recommend a G5 for HTML5 video.
* **Make sure you have sufficient RAM installed.** If you have less than 1GB of RAM, your computer is likely to swap other programs out (especially on 10.5), which will slow video playback further. We recommend at least 1.5GB.
* **Don't let the video autoplay.** This will cause the browser to dramatically slow while it tries to load the page _and_ play the video at the same time. **Click _once_ anywhere on the video to pause it and let the rest of the page load**, and _then_ click once on the video to start it again. Or, you can use any of the Firefox autoplay disabler extensions which will do this automatically.
* **Close unnecessary tabs and windows.** If you have many tabs or windows open and loaded, the browser must service them too, which can steal CPU time from playing the video.
* **Don't make the window too big.** On a wide screen you may be tempted to make the browser window fill it, but YouTube will then faithfully try to make the video bigger also.
Please note that no Power Mac, not even the quad G5, plays high definition WebM fluidly in the browser, nor full-screen WebM. There just isn't enough CPU bandwidth. Similarly, even though recent versions of 10.4Fx support VP9 video, even partial playback is unwatchable on all but the Quad because of the data rate required.
Full-screen and theatre mode are only of acceptable performance on high-spec G5 systems, and only in standard definition. You should leave the video windowed on lower-end G5 systems and all G4 systems.
Improving video performance is an active area of development in TenFourFox.
## Should I turn MediaSource Extensions (MSE) on?
## How can I play YouTube video at a lower resolution?
There are two supported types of WebM video: VP8, the older technology, which is less computationally intense but provides poorer bitrates (comparable to H.264), and VP9, a newer technology that can offer better resolution in less space but requires more work to decode it (comparable to H.265/HEVC).
VP9 YouTube video requires Media Source Extensions (MSE) and has been officially supported since TenFourFox 45.5. VP8 video has been supported since TenFourFox 4. TenFourFox offers custom AltiVec acceleration for both VP8 and VP9 on all G4 and G5 systems. VP8 YouTube video is usually offered only at 360p resolution, while VP9 YouTube video with MSE allows you to choose from several resolutions, usually 144p, 240p, 360p and 480p (as well as HD resolutions, which we do _not_ recommend). Note that if you use MSE/VP9, YouTube will select 360p resolution by default. This bitrate is too high for the majority of our older machines which is why we warn it may be slower.
**The correct choice depends on your individual computer.** Some systems can only play lower resolution video well, and _should_ have MSE turned on so you can choose a low-resolution VP9 stream. On the other hand, many G4 systems play VP8 video rather better than VP9, while late-model G5 systems and the Quad G5 perform better in VP9 and can use the higher 480p resolution.
Currently, TenFourFox ships with MSE _disabled_, which will use VP8 video.
**To use VP8 video**, go to Preferences and select the TenFourFox preference pane, and make sure the MSE option is _not_ checked (which is the default). Reload any open video pages.
**To use VP9 video and select a resolution:**
* Go to Preferences and select the TenFourFox preference pane, and make sure the MSE option _is_ checked. Reload any open video pages.
* To select a lower resolution instead of 360p:
* **If the video autoplays, _click it once_ to pause it** (or use one of the Firefox autoplay disabler extensions).
* Click the gear icon on the video.
* Choose the desired resolution.
* Resume the video. There may be a pause while the new resolution buffers.
Here are our recommendations for various configurations which should give you a basic idea of what to expect from your own system. _Good_ means audio rarely, if ever, skips, and the video infrequently pauses. _Max_ still has good audio, but video pauses may be somewhat longer, and is the limit of what we would consider reasonable to watch. Your mileage may vary. _Performance_ refers to the CPU Performance setting in Energy Saver (if the machine does not allow setting this, we just say "n/a").
System | Performance | VP8 | 144p | 240p | 360p | 480p | Advise
------ | ----------- |:---:|:----:|:----:|:----:|:----:| ------
1.0GHz iMac G4* | n/a | poor | max | | | | MSE on, 144p
1.33GHz iBook G4 | Reduced | poor | max | | | | MSE on, 144p
| Highest | acceptable | good | max | | | MSE off (use VP8)
1.67GHz DLSD PowerBook G4 | n/a | acceptable | good | max | | | MSE off (use VP8)
2.5GHz Quad G5 | Reduced | good | good | good | max | | MSE on, 360p
| Highest | good | good | good | good | max | MSE on, 360p
*This machine is not supported for video playback, but is included for comparison purposes.
## High definition video really sucks!
Unfortunately, no Power Mac, not even the Quad G5, can currently play high definition WebM in the browser at any reasonable frame rate.
Improving video performance is an active area of TenFourFox development.
## Does 10.4Fx support MP3 audio?
Yes. TenFourFox supports playing back MP3 files and streaming MP3 audio (such as many Internet radio sites), as well as HTML5 audio encoded in MP3. For example, Shoutcast and Soundcloud are compatible. This support is built-in to TenFourFox and no special software is necessary.
## Does 10.4Fx support Java?