Mozilla looks beyond browser tabs

Mozilla believes that the internet has begun to push the limits of the tab structure

The developers behind Firefox are looking at ways to eliminate the practice of tabbed browsing.

Mozilla is asking members of the development community to suggest ideas for a new system which could replace the tabs in future versions of Firefox.

In a new open design challenge contest for the public, administrators at Mozilla Labs want developers to examine the problem as part of the company's Summer Design Challenge.

When Firefox first used tabbed browsing several years ago, the system was seen as a major improvement on using a new window for each page.

Since then, however, Mozilla has argued that the internet has begun to push the limits of the tab structure.

"Tabs worked well on slow machines on a thin internet, where 10 browser sessions were 'many' browser sessions," the company said.

"Today, 20-plus parallel sessions are quite common, and the browser is more of an operating system than a data display application. We use it to manage the web as a shared hard drive."

To adapt to these changes, the company is asking developers to look into a 'tree tab' system, or moving certain tabs to the side of the screen rather than the top.

Mozilla said that developers wishing to participate in the programme would have until 21 June to submit a video and mock-up of their design. Winners will be announced on 8 July.