Mozilla today, after releasing Firefox 10, has also released Thunderbird 10, a new version of the email software.

Thunderbird too is now flagging add-ons as compatible by default. Add-ons ship with minimum and maximum version compatibility information. The issue previously was that add-ons were flagged as incompatible if the author failed to update the version information in time. This made it difficulty for developers to keep their add-ons compatible with the latest releases.

Another change is the native integration of the Open Search extension in the email client. A right-click now displays an option to search for the selected term on the Internet. This is handled in the email client and not in the default system web browser.

The rendering component uses the Gecko 10 engine that the Firefox web browser uses as well.

Users who do not want their searches to open in the email client can set the preference mail.websearch.open_externally to true. This is done with a click on Tools > Options, switching to Advanced > General, clicking on Config Editor in the menu and filtering for the above preference. Just double-click it to toggle its value from false to true. Is there a way to disable web search completely? Not that I’m aware off. Maybe there is a preference but I have not found it yet.

Two new keyboard shortcuts have been added to Thunderbird 10, in addition to the changes outlined above. It is now possible to add attachments to messages with the Ctrl-Shirt-A (Command-Shift-A) shortcut. Named anchors can now be removed with Ctrl-Shift-R (Coammdn-Shift-R), and messages in the message reader and compose window can now be zoomed with the scroll wheel (Ctrl-Scroll Wheel).

Thunderbird users should have received update information by now in the email client. New users can download the latest version for all supported operating systems and languages from the Mozilla website.

The release notes list several fixed security vulnerabilities which make Thunderbird 9 a mandatory update for all users of the email client. The security advisories page lists a total of seven security vulnerabilities, of which one has been rated critical and the other six as moderate.

It is however relative unlikely that Thunderbird will see attacks exploiting the issue, as it uses a crash when scaling an Ogg video element to extreme sizes.

The remaining list of changes is not nearly as spectacular. Thunderbird 9 uses the new Mozilla Gecko 9 engine, and an opt-in system to send anonymous performance and usability reports to Mozilla. The data is used to improve future versions of the email client. This is the same feature that has already been implemented into the Firefox web browser.

Windows users can now show and hide the menu bar when they press the Alt key. The change log furthermore lists better keyboard handling for attachments without going into details as to what has been improved in the version.

The only other features listed in the change log are additional support for Personas, and “several user interface fixes and improvements”.

Thunderbird 9 ships with another change that has not been mentioned in the release notes. Users who click on the Tools menu will notice a new Test Pilot entry there. This is a Thunderbird extension that the developers have installed in the email client. Test Pilot is used to “make Thunderbird better by running user studies”.

Silently installing the extension without giving users options to opt-out during updating or installation is definitely something to be criticized. Thunderbird users can however uninstall the extension in the add-ons manager.

Have you updated your version of Thunderbird yet? What’s your take on the new version?

Thunderbird 8 has just been released. Existing Thunderbird users may have already noticed the update when they have stared the desktop email client today. Users who have not can check for new updates by going to Help > About Thunderbird in the main menubar of the email client. This triggers an automatic check for new updates in the program itself.

So what’s new in Thunderbird 8? The beta release notes, which have been published last month list the following improvements:

• Add-ons installed by third party programs are now disabled by default
• Added a one-time add-on selection dialog to manage previously installed add-ons
• Improved accessibility of the attachment lists
• Several user interface fixes and improvements
• and numerous other platform fixes

The big new feature is the blocking of automatic installations via third party software programs. This is actually the same feature that made it into Firefox 8 released a few days ago. In addition, Thunderbird users now get a one-time dialog when the update in which they can manage installed add-ons. The email client will suggest add-ons that may not be compatible giving the user the choice to disable them to improve stability of the email client.

The official download site is still listing Thunderbird 7.01 as the latest stable version. It may take some hours or maybe even a day until the new Thunderbird 8 version is published on the official website. Download portals such as Softpedia or MajorGeeks are already hosting the new version, so grab it from there if you are in a hurry.

Update: The calendar add-on Lightning for Thunderbird has been released in version 1.0 as well today.

With the release of Firefox 7 came also the release of Thunderbird 7. The email program made a big jump from version 3 all the way to version 7, even skipping a version to sync with the Firefox browser.

Existing Thunderbird users should get update notifications right in the email client. They can then update from within without having to download the client from the official website. Users who have not received the notification of the update yet can check for it manually by going to Help > About Thunderbird.

The release notes list several changes and feature enhancements.

• Thunderbird is based on the new Mozilla Gecko 7 engine
• Several user interface fixes and improvements
• Several fixes to attachment handling
• Ability to print a summary of selected email messages
• Platform improvements to Address Book
• Fixed several security issues
• Numerous platform fixes that improve speed, performance and stability

Nothing major as you can, mostly under the hood improvements or changes that the majority of users might not even recognize.

The Welcome to Thunderbird page after updating or installing the new version lists additional features. I’m not sure if they all made their way into this version or if they have been available before. Thunderbird 7 starts up faster and is more responsive according to that feature listing. A new troubleshooting information page is listed there as well. It looks exactly like the page of the Firefox web browser.

New users can download the latest Thunderbird version from the official Mozilla Thunderbird project homepage. It is available there for all supported operating systems and languages.

Are you using Thunderbird? Let me know what you think of the latest update.

So what is new in Thunderbird 6.0? The release notes, which are up already on the official website, list the following items that have been updated, changed or added to the email client.

• Thunderbird is based on the new Mozilla Gecko 6 engine
• Several theme improvements for Windows 7
• Support for Windows 7 Jump lists
• Several fixes when importing email from Microsoft Outlook
• Default mail client check now works with newer Linux distributions
• Various other user interface fixes and improvements
• Numerous platform fixes that improve speed, performance, stability and security

The feature list, as you can see, is rather small, and offers barely any new features for users of the email program. Windows 7 users benefit from jumplist support and theme improvements. Jumplists show up when a Windows user right-clicks on the icon in the taskbar. For now, Thunderbird users get links to their address book, writing a new message and the mailbox.

The update check from within the email client is already picking up the new version. This makes it possible to perform an in-program update to install the latest version of Thunderbird.

Users can do that with a click on Help > About Thunderbird.

The email client is also available for download at the official website for all supported operating systems and languages. Thunderbird users who want to take a closer look at the release notes of this particular release can do so here.

There they find troubleshooting tips and known issues, which are always worth checking out before upgrading or install a new version of the software.

For now, downloads are only available on the official Mozilla ftp server and on some of the mirror servers. It is likely that the big software download repositories will have the release for download before the official announcement.

The release notes have not been updated yet. The beta release notes however hint at the changes and additional features that have made their way into Thunderbird 5.

With the streamlining of the release cycle with the Firefox browser come additional similarities. Thunderbird now sports the very same add-on manager that Mozilla added to the Firefox browser earlier.

The email account creation wizard has been revised to improve the setup of new email accounts in the program. See the list below for a full list of changes in Thunderbird 5.

• New Addons Manager and extension management API (user interface will be changed before final release)
• Tabs can now be reordered and dragged to different windows
• Revised account creation wizard, offering improved set-up
• Attachment sizes now displayed along with attachments
  New troubleshooting information page to aid supporting and diagnosing problems in Thunderbird
• Plugins can now be loaded in RSS feeds by default
• Various other user interface fixes and improvements
• Support for Mac 32/64 bit Universal builds (Thunderbird Beta will no longer support PowerPC on Mac)

The big version jump from Thunderbird 3.1 to 5 will definitely render some addons incompatible. The easiest way to force compatibility is to install the Addon Compatibility Reporter extensions.

Have you downloaded and installed Thunderbird 5 yet? If so, what’s your opinion so far? (via)

Bugzilla lists a total of 71 bugs that have been fixed in Mozilla Thunderbird 3.1.10, of which two have received the highest possible rating blocker. Additionally, 16 of the issues listed have received a severity rating of critical, and another four one of major.

Several of the fixes appear to be language related, for instance crash fixes when spell checking with French or Hungarian dictionaries, or update crashes when localized strings excess certain parameters.

Just check Bugzilla for the full list of fixes in this version of Thunderbird. The release, unlike that of Firefox 4.0.1 is already available for download at the official Mozilla Messaging website.

You can for instance download it from the official release notes page. It is likely that the email client will pick up the new release soon as well and display notifications in the application, so that in-application updates will become possible as well.

Bugzilla lists a total of 56 bug fixes of which 13 have a severity rating of critical. Among the critical fixes are memory leaks, crashes and security issues.

The download link at the official release notes page links already to the newest version of the browser. Existing Thunderbird 3.1.x users should receive update notifications in the email client shortly. Those who do not want to wait can download the new version and install it manually instead.

Mozilla has furthermore released a Firefox update that is currently being distributed to release servers worldwide. Firefox 3.6.14 is the latest stable release of the web browser. The update fixes several security and stability issues according to the beta release notes page.

Bugzilla lists 40 bugs and issues that have been fixed in the latest update, of which seven have received a critical rating. Several of the issues that have been fixed in Thunderbird have been fixed in Firefox as well, including a memory leak and crashes.

Firefox 3.6.14 and 3.5.17 are not officially available for download yet. Users can download the releases from software portals like Softpedia. It is likely that the browsers will pick up the new version in the coming 24 hours.

The update is already available for download. Users who already work with a version of Thunderbird can check for new updates by clicking on Help > Check for Updates in the email client’s interface. The new version is also available for download at the official Mozilla Messaging site, good for users who cannot update the client directly.

How is Thunderbird affected by the vulnerability anyway? If you remember, the email client has browser-like capabilities, and that’s where it becomes vulnerable. The user needs to open a website in Thunderbird that exploits the vulnerability. If the email client has not been upgraded the system could be compromised, and an attacker could get remote access to the local system.

Thunderbird users who do not use the browser-like features are safe, but should update anyway to eliminate the possibility of a successful attack.

Thunderbird users can check for the new version in the email client, by clicking on Help in the menu and then Check for Updates. Currently though no updates are found.

The other option is to visit the official Mozilla Messaging website which offers downloads of the latest release version of Thunderbird 3. Currently, version 3.1.4 is offered. This too will change in the coming hours.

So what’s new in Thunderbird 3.1.5? According to the release notes of the beta, Thunderbird 3.1.5 includes several stability and security fixes, as well as fixes to the user interface of the email software.

Bugzilla lists a total of 59 buts that have been resolved in this new version of Thunderbird. Eleven bugs have received a critical rating, the second highest severity rating available.

Thunderbird users who do not want to wait for the official release announcement can download the English version from Softpedia, or download any language version from the official Mozilla ftp server.

An update for the desktop email client Thunderbird was just released, raising the version of the email software to 3.1.4.

The version is considered a stability update, and therefor a recommended update for all Thunderbird users of the 3.x branch.

Thunderbird users who already run a version of Thunderbird 3.1 should get update notifications in the next hours. Those who do not want to wait can either check for updates manually by clicking on Help > Check for Updates, or visiting the official Mozilla Messaging site which offers downloads for all supported operating systems and languages.

thunderbird update 3.1.4

The release notes mention several stability updates and fixes to the user interface. A closer look at the bugs listed at the bug tracking service Bugzilla shows four fixes, including a fix for the bug that was earlier this day fixed in the Firefox web browser.

Several crash related bugs where fixed, especially one when new mail arrived and the user clicked either on the system tray icon, or the new mail notification information.

In other news, the Thunderbird 3.0x branch has also been updated to version 3.0.8.

The release has not been officially announced yet, which means that the release notes are not available as well at this point in time. The beta release notes however mention several stability and security fixes in Thunderbird 3.1.3.

thunderbird 313

This indicates a mandatory for every user of the Thunderbird 3.1 branch. Bugzilla lists 83 bugs that have been fixed in the beta version of the email client, of which 13 have been rated as critical.

On top of the security and stability fixes, several fixes to the user interface have been made. Don’t expect any noticeable changes though, the release’s aim was to fix bugs, not to add or change features in the email client.

Thunderbird users can download the release once it has been officially announced by the development team. The update checker in the client will pick up the new version at about the same time.

Users who do not want to wait that long can download the English version of the email software from Softpedia.

Bugzilla lists seven bugs that have been fixed in the new release. Two of the bugs have been rated as major, four as normal and one as minor. Three of the bugs affect only the Windows operating system, one each the Mac and Linux system, and two all supported operating systems.

Thunderbird 3.1.2 fixes the following issues in Thunderbird 3.1.1:

Several fixes to improve stability.
Several fixes to the user interface.

The new release is already listed on the official Mozilla Messaging website from where it can be downloaded directly. Thunderbird users, with Thunderbird 3.1x installed are already receiving update notifications in the email client.

A manual update check is available by clicking on Help > Check for Updates.

Interested users can take a look at the official release notes, or the Bugzilla listing that lists all fixed bugs in the release.

The new version is currently only available on the official Mozilla release ftp server, with a slim chance of a last minute bug preventing the public release.

The new version of Thunderbird 3.1.1 is as usualyl available in dozens of localized versions for Windows, Macintosh and Linux.

thunderbird 311

The release notes list stability and security fixes, as well as several fixes to the user interface. No further details are offered on that page.

Bugzilla lists a total of 93 bugs that have been fixed in Thunderbird 3.1.1, among them 12 critically rated bugs and nine moderate ones.

It is likely that the official release notification is posted later today, Thunderbird 3.1 users will then receive automatic update notifications, but only if that feature is enabled in their email client.

Users who can’t or do not want to wait that long can download the latest version of Thunderbird from the Mozilla ftp server.

The homepage has already been changed to provide visitors with information about Thunderbird 3.1, the latest available version however is still Thunderbird 3.0.5 at the time of writing.

Thunderbird 3.1 comes with several new and improved features including a quick filter toolbar to search and sort through mail folders in realtime, faster search results thanks to improved message indexing, an improved migration assistant to aid Thunderbird 2 users who migrate to Thunderbird 3.1 and a saved files manger that displays all files that have been saved in that session.

thunderbird 3.1

Thunderbird 3.1 is available in 48 different langauges for Windows, Macintosh and Linux systems. Downloads will likely be enabled later today on the official website and the automatic update in the email client should recognize the new version in the next 48 hours.

Thunderbird users who cannot wait to get their hands on the latest iteration of the email software can download it from the official Mozilla ftp server or one of the community mirror sites.

Update: Downloads have been enabled on the official website, no need to download the client from mirror sites.

Thunderbird 3.1 will replace the Thunderbird 3.0 branch once it is released introducing several new features in the email client including better message filtering, a saved file assistant and improved memory handling and stability.

The fixed bugs list of Thunderbird 3.1 RC 1 lists 54 issues that have been resolved in this new release including one blocker, eleven critical and four major ones.

Most critical issues that have been fixed were crash related but there are also minor fixes for better IMAP handling, interface and quick filter bar.

The email client release is considered stable by the developers but it still aims largely at developers and testers and not general users who are asked to wait until the final version of Thunderbird 3.1 is released before they migrate to the new client.

More information about the release are available at the blog post announcement, release notes and bugzilla.

Thunderbird 3.1 RC 1 is available for download for all supported operating systems and languages at the Mozilla website.

In the case of Thunderbird 3.0.3 it is a single bug fix that fixes missing folders and an empty folder pane for some users who have updated to Thunderbird 3.0.2.

Mozilla Messaging recommends the new release to all Thunderbird 3 users even if they have not been affected by the bug.

The new release is already available at the official Mozilla Messaging website. It is provided for all supported operating systems and languages.

The automatic update check of the email client usually picks up new releases quickly as well, expect a notification today in the email client.

Thunderbird 3 users who still want to try out the new release can get it currently only from the Mozilla ftp server to which we no longer link directly out of courtesy for the developers.

A total of 56 bugs have been fixed in the new Thunderbird release including several that caused crashes. At least one security issue was also fixed in the new version of the email client, namely a DNS prefetch security issue. This version also fixes an update for Outlook Express users who want to migrate to Thunderbird 3 as previous versions had troubles importing messages with many recipients or large msg header.

The full list of bug fixes and changes is accessible at the Rumbling Edge. If you want to download and update Thunderbird right now make sure to backup the email client first. (via Caschy)

Update:

The official Mozilla Messaging website has announced the release of Thunderbird 3.0.2. It can be downloaded from there directly for all supported operating systems.

Thunderbird 3.1 will be the next release of Thunderbird and the first alpha release marks a new milestone towards that goal. The Thunderbird developers ask interested users to test the new email client but also warn anyone from installing the email client in a productive environment as it is an alpha version that can contain bugs.

The most notable changes in Thunderbird 3.1 alpha are:

• upgrade of the layout engine to Gecko 1.9.2.
• Several improvements to IMAP.
• Several fixes for Smart Folders, message filters, and attachment handling.
• Several design improvements and corrections to the interface.
• Download Manager is now accessible as a menu item (Tools > Saved Files).
• Stability and memory improvements.

Bugzilla lists a total of 147 bug fixes and changes in Thunderbird 3.1 alpha of which 2 have been rated as blockers (highest rating) and 14 as critical. Several of the critical bugs fix issues when updating from Thunderbird 2 to Thunderbird 3. Others fix crashes and fix other issues.

Users who are interested in trying out Thunderbird 3.1 alpha can download the email client from the Mozilla Messaging website.

Mozilla Thunderbird 3.01 is a security and stability release that fixes several issues in the email client. The list of changes lists 124 bugs that have been fixed in the new release including 25 bugs that have received a critical rating and 17 that received a major rating by the developers.

Most of the critical issues that have been fixed are related to crashes but there also have been some security fixes. Users who are planning to install Thunderbird 3.01 should take a look at the known issues before they do so to make sure that they do not run into problems using the email software.

Thunderbird 3.01 is available at the Mozilla ftp server but also at popular download portals such as Softpedia.