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A need an explanation for Firefox Version numbers - do you use the standard major.minor.maintenance numbering scheme to give meaning to version numbers

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  • Last reply by jgw321

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Can you please provide an explanation of the version numbering scheme used by Firefox? Do you use an 'intelligent' version numbering scheme for major.minor.maintenance updates. That is: major = increment if not backwards compatible minor = increment to show inclusion of minor new feature maintenance = increment if bug fixes only

If not, when the Firefox version number is incremented from 19.0.2 to 20.0.1 what information, if anything, does that convey ?

Can you please provide an explanation of the version numbering scheme used by Firefox? Do you use an 'intelligent' version numbering scheme for major.minor.maintenance updates. That is: major = increment if not backwards compatible minor = increment to show inclusion of minor new feature maintenance = increment if bug fixes only If not, when the Firefox version number is incremented from 19.0.2 to 20.0.1 what information, if anything, does that convey ?

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19.0.1 and 19.0.2 were "chemspill" minor updates to fix specific versions.

20.0 was a major version release and 20.0.1 is another "chemspill" update to fix a specific problem with roaming Profiles on Windows servers.

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A new Firefox version is released every 6 weeks and this involves an increase of the major version.
Any updates in between are minor updates that change the minor version.

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So since Firefox 4, will the minor version ever be significant? Or will it always be an x.0.z version?

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Since Firefox 4.0 it has always been majorversion point zero point #

where # will be a chemspill update (due to security and or bug fixe(s)) if deemed necessary and could not wait for next new release.

For example the Firefox 11.0 and 12.0 releases did not have any updates.

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Isn't it about time Firefoxx admits that the three-level numbering scheme is meaningless? Going back to version 4 (which is as far back as the Security Advisories go) every release has been "n.0.1", "n.0.2", or just "n" with no point numbers at all.

The developers have already dropped the middle level in all meaningful ways, and reduced the third level to the brink of irrelevancy. It is about time for the bureaucrats go along with the change.

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I downloaded and installed Firefox a couple of weeks ago and now I am offered an update to Firefox 22, but when I look at help my version is Firefox 12. What happened to 13 through 21?

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Firefox 12 was released last year, are you sure you are downloading from mozilla.org

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If you were using an update of 11 or before, you have to update to Firefox 12 before you are updated until the latest version of Firefox. This is to ensure you don't get an update offer that won't work on your computer, and also to ensure your Firefox profile is updated correctly. So after the update to 12, run Firefox updates again to Firefox 22.

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Yes, I used Firefox itself to check for and apply the latest update.

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download it again from here

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"If you were using an update of 11 or before, you have to update to Firefox 12 before you are updated until the latest version of Firefox."

Ah that was it. I was on 5.0. It would have helped if Firefox had said that it was installing 12 as a first step and not left with me with the impression that I was now up to date. Have now gone to 22. Thanks.