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When using an internet browser, be it Microsoft’s Internet Explorer or Mozilla’s Firefox, you’ve probably used the full screen option that’s available when pressing F11. This is great for those of you who want a bit more breathing room while viewing the content.

Yet, in spite of how liberating that option can be, there are those times when you’d like to have some your browsing features available – such as the status bar or the address field. As in the past, I’ve happened upon a neat Firefox extension that introduces a new way of browsing, just one of a myriad of add-ons that significantly augments your browsing experience.

It’s called Hide GUI Bars, and it allows users to select which elements they’d like to remove from the browser, ultimately freeing up the viewing area on Firefox.  Those segments that you can specify the removal of include the navigation bar, the tab bar, the menu bar, the status bar, and the bookmark bar. Multiple combinations – if you, for instance, only want the bookmark bar visible — are available when using this extension.

There is a default hot key (CTRL-SHIFT-A), but it can be changed to suit your preference by using any other combination of keys.  Absolutely free, this is yet another example of the ingenuity that has propelled Firefox to the head of the browsing class.

You can grab Hide GUI Bars here.

The much delayed but greatly anticipated Firefox 3.6 is finally here, introducing significant improvements in this popular browser’s performance and functionality.  From increased speed to stronger security, improved font management to one click themes, this is a considerable step up from its predecessor.

Over here at the Geek Choice office, we’ve been using the various iterations of the Firefox 3.6 beta, keeping you apprised of their release. Almost immediately, we were impressed by an observable uptick in its performance, with greater speed and decidedly impressive rendering of pages.

These are the following additions to Firefox 3.6:

• Firefox 3.6 will alert you if your plug-ins is out of date, offering you links from which to grab the most recent versions. This is of particular significance when dealing with the likes of Adobe Flash, which has come under fire for its security leaks.
• Full Screen video is available, which sees Firefox play any free streaming videos in a Full Screen format if you so choose.
• Instant Themes are made available by the Personas Gallery. When visiting the gallery, you  can select a theme and see how your browser would look if implemented. If the theme’s to your liking, apply it with just one click.
• What you’ll immediately notice is just how much faster it is. Through more efficient management of memory and better handling of Javascript, the speed of Firefox 3.6 is unmistakable, second only to Chrome.

For a more detailed explanation of just what this update introduces, Mozilla has included release notes that give a nice overview of what’s included.

Firefox 3.6 is free and available for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux computers.

You can download it here.

A sure sign as any that the official debut of the much anticipated, but heavily delayed, Firefox 3.6 approaches is the recent release of its first release candidate.

The term “release candidate” refers to that release which, having ironed out much of the quirks found during the beta stage, stands a good chance of being the official version.

This could very well be your chance to take the final release for an early test drive.

According to Mozilla, this release candidate comes with significantly improved performance and greater functionality, including tools that ensure those beloved Firefox extensions are kept current.

This is a free download available for Windows, Mac OSX, and Linux users.

You can get it here.

If you haven’t made the leap to the beta for Firefox 3.6, you should know that Mozilla has released an update for Firefox 3.5.

According to its developers, Firefox 3.5.7 addresses stability concerns and how significant updates are introduced to users.

Though you should be prompted for this update shortly, you can download it now.

Grab the Firefox 3.5.7 update here.

From creating spreadsheets to playing the latest games, we use our computer for multiple purposes, one of the most common being our navigation of the internet.  With the use of the internet occupying so much of our time, it stands to reason that we’d want to enhance that experience as best we can.

When it comes to internet browsers, there isn’t a more ubiquitous one than Microsoft’s Internet Explorer. Bundled with Microsoft Windows, the most widely used operating system in the personal computing market, Internet Explorer is the standard by default.  However, in spite of its widespread use, there are alternatives to Internet Explorer that are arguably more popular with the geeks amongst us.

Because of its de facto popularity, a result of being packaged with Microsoft Windows, Internet Explorer has seen only incremental advances in how it functions. This lack of innovation has paved the way for competitors to release alternative choices which offer greater functionality and more reliable security for users browsing the internet.

Of those choices, my favorite is Mozilla’s Firefox.

Free and thoroughly customizable, Firefox is fast becoming the choice to which users are migrating from Microsoft’s problematic browser, its superior functionality immediately apparent:

• Firefox includes helpful features that augment the browsing experience, such  as spell checking and saving sessions for those who accidentally quit the browser.
• hundreds of plug-ins afford users a staggering level of customization for their browsing experience.
• Though Internet Explorer now has tabbed browsing , which allows multiple pages to be opened within a single browser, Firefox’ tabbed browsing is faster and easier to manage.
• With the advent of malware, those bugs that creep along the porous byways of the internet highway, your computer remains at risk whenever you use the internet. When it comes to security, Firefox is unmatched, with seamless updates that keep you protected from vulnerabilities that leave Internet Explorer users subject to spyware and viruses.

While your internet browser of choice is a personal preference, there’s no denying that Firefox adds a bit more to the experience than Internet Explorer. Yes, Microsoft’s offering has certainly taken steps in the right direction, but much of its improvements were available in the first version of Firefox.

The functionality of Firefox may prove daunting to new users, but Geek Choice is always available to show them how to get the best out of its use.