You can get (official builds) Firefox for Linux from https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/all/#product-desktop-release

The basics is you untar the tarball archive and then run the firefox-bin to start Firefox. if you are the only user then a common place to put Firefox folder is in Home as the Firefox folder requires read/write permissions for the user to get internal Firefox updates from Mozilla.

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/install-firefox-linux

The minimum system requirements for Linux is mentioned in https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/123.0/system-requirements/

James, Thanks for your reply. I am not a Linux guru. A fan yes. A guru not. Questions: 1. What and how do I "untar the tarball archive", and 2. How do I run the firefox-bin.

I have downloaded Firefox 123 as directed and put it in the home directory. I will need to check if all the minimum system requirements exist in this laptop. I am the only user of it.

Just download, extract, and run. I run several version of Firefox plus Waterfox on all my laptops. see screenshot

I downloaded and extracted /home/jim/Firefox/firefox-123.0(1).tar.bz2 . I clicked and double clicked on the /home/jim/Firefox/firefox/firefox rotated square but nothing happened. What am I doing wrong?

Run this. see screenshot

Thanks for the screenshot. Mine is attached below somewhere. It looks quite different from yours. Firefox-bin is not an icon but an icon of page text. Clicking or double clicking on it does nothing.

What desktop is that? Looks like the icon firefox is it for you. Try changing the view to detailed and filter just firefox to see the executable. see screenshot

How did you extract? Try again like this. see screenshot I just right click on the file and extract to the current folder.

IMHO KDE is the better desktop. Try it and you should also try openSUSE.  ;-))

Sorry, your screenshots do not look anything like mine. I am running Ubuntu 14.04 and using what that offers.

When I double click on the iso file I get the window shown in the screenshot below. Then I click on "Extract" and soon it says it is finished. This is the same procedure I used to make a boot USB thumb drive for ubuntu 22.04.4 which works nicely. That ubuntu also has firefox 123 with it and that also works nicely under ubuntu 22.04.4.

Try the Firefox script (top right) instead.

Upgrade sounds like a good idea.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION (FYI) All I really need is a current browser. The rest of this 10-year-old laptop still does everything else nicely. I could: 1 Buy a new laptop and then have to set it up with all the extra apps I use and enjoy. 2. Just update Firefox which seems to be quite a challenge, at least for me 3. Install a new version of Ubuntu , like 22.04.04, which has Firefox 123 already on it. Then do I install the newer Ubuntu over the old Ubuntu or along side it so I can use both?

And if any of you think I am crazy that's OK with me. Sometimes I think I am being difficult!

You can't update your current install?

To cor-el, I do not find any script at the top right to try.

To jonzn4SUSE, I am ready to try updating my current install. The thumbdrive with ubuntu 22 and firefox 123 on it work fine in this machine when I boot from the external USB thumb drive. It is just that I have never done anything like this before and am trying to go slow, be careful, and seek good advice so I won't wish later that I had done that!

Roger that, carry on soldier.

To each of you who have shared your experience:

After 7 hours sleep I have decided to minimize risks of many kinds and buy a new laptop running Ubuntu 24.04.4 and keep the current 10 year old laptop with Ubuntu 14 as backup.

Thanks again.

I was going to suggest getting something from eBay.  ;-)) Welcome to the future.

What did you get? Do share the details and specs of the new computer.

Sharing the details of my new laptop ordered today 4 March 2024. First off, I do mostly writing and finance. Some photos and a few videos. No gaming. No heavy uses. I do NOT do any social media. I write my own website www.jimkaness.com .

Some 10 years ago I switched from Windows to Linux and bought a Gazelle laptop with Linux Ubuntu 14 installed from System 76. Being delighted with that I bought a new Gazelle from System 76 at https://system76.com . Details:

			$1,375.00 + taxes, fees  and shipping = $1,541.97.

Ubuntu 22.04 LTS 17.3" Matte Full HD 1080p (144 Hz) - Shipping Mid-March 5.4 GHz i9-13900H - up to 5.4 GHz - 24MB Cache - 6 P-cores and 8 E-cores) 4 GB RTX 3050 w/ 2048 CUDA Cores 16 GB DDR4 3200 MHz (1x 16GB) 500 GB PCIe4 M.2 SSD No Additional M.2 NVMe 1 Year Limited Parts and Labor Warranty Normal Assembly Service California LCD Recycling Fee (Over 15")

If you want to know any more, ask System 76. The Gazelle is at the less-expensive end of their offerings.