CPU-optimized Firefox 3 builds available

Back in the days of Firefox 2 (a.k.a. last week), my browser of choice was a special version of Firefox that was optimized for my Intel processor. Made by Neil Bruce Lee of the BeatnikPad blog, these builds not only ran speedier than the official build of Firefox, but also had aqua widgets, making the application fit in a little better with the rest of my Cocoa apps.

But with the arrival of Firefox 3, I tossed aside my CPU-optimized build, happy with the major speed increases and Cocoa-ness of latest incarnation of Mozilla’s new browser. Yet not too long after Firefox 3’s famed “Download Day,” Lee released his Firefox 3-optimized builds.

Like the older builds, the optimized Firefox 3 versions come in different versions for different processor architectures. For now, only Intel and G5 builds are available, but G4 will hopefully come soon. Unlike older optimized builds, however, the ones for Firefox 3 no longer come with an option for aqua widgets, as this is natively built into the browser (but, if you desire an even more Mac-like Firefox appearance, Lee does provide a link to the Safari-like GrApple themes for Firefox). Also, the builds look a little different than the official version of Firefox 3. Uses of the name “Firefox” in the application, such as in the menubar, are changed to Minefield, Firefox 3’s codename, and the application icon uses one created by Adam Betts, all to avoid copyright infringement.

In any case, I’ve tried out the optimized build of Firefox 3, and in my very limited testing, I can’t say that it feels any faster than the standard version of Firefox, at least in very mild use. Still, any bit of speed helps, and these builds can provide that little boost that will make your web browsing experience just a little more pleasurable.

(Via MacUser.)