Mark Evans

If you're curious about the swirling speculation about Microsoft acquiring Opera, it may have to do with all the cool Firefox extensions
being released. As Firefox gains more market share, it has also
encouraged more developers to get involved. In the past month, we've
seen Performancing for Firefox (a blog editor that sits within the browser), Hyperwords (a search plug-in) and (hat tip to Om Malik) Xinha (a
WYSIWYG editor). For the geeks, quasi-geeks and, increasingly, the rest
of us, Firefox's appeal is growing because it provides
ever-growing ways to customize the browser experience - rather than
being forced-fed the next upgrade (a.k.a. Internet Explorer 7). As the
browser becomes the way to access applications and
services, it seems reasonable that different users will want the
browser to provide a variety of features - some simple and
some sophisticated. I believe Firefox can push forward even more
aggressively but offering different flavors: Firefox Lite for the DIYer
who wants to pick and choose his/her own extensions; Firefox Basic,
which would come with some extensions pre-packaged; and Firefox
Mainstream, which would be feature-rich. While I'm a die-hard Firefox
user and obviously biased, I still believe Firefox could easily grow to 20% of the market in
2006 as its awareness and usability grows. The fertile extension
development environment will only bolster to Firefox's momentum as
more people find it easier to create a browser to meet their specific
needs.
Update: Quick Online Tips offers up a list of his/her best Firefox extensions, while Lifehack has a list of essential extensions for Webmasters.