A reader introduced me to an experimental Firefox feature that makes it work so seamlessly with PWAs, such as Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and other Chromium-based web browsers.
What’s strange about this feature is that Mozilla originally innovated the ability to run web pages and applications as if they were native applications using a technology called Prism that had long since been removed from the browser. But as web applications have become more sophisticated in recent years, Chrome and other browsers have picked up similar features, and Google has a whole platform, called Chrome OS, dedicated to running these applications outside the normal browser container.
I have long wondered why Mozilla discontinued Prism and terminated the ability to run web applications as if they were native applications. But it turns out that the firm did not give up completely. The mobile versions of Firefox have been able to create apps from web pages since 2017. And Mozilla started testing a similar approach for providing these features on desktops almost a year ago.
I can not explain why I was not aware of this (at least the desktop bit), but it is called Site Specific Browser (SSB) and it is now here for those interested in testing it.
“An SSB is an application with a built-in browser designed to work exclusively with a single web application,” explains Mozilla. ‘It does not have the menus, toolbars, and equipment for a regular web browser. Some people have called it a ‘distraction-free browser’ because none of the typical browser chrome is used. An SSB also has tighter integration with the operating system and the desktop than a regular web application done through a web browser. ‘
To use SSB with Firefox, you need to use Firefox 73 or later – which will not be difficult since the latest version is 84 – and you need to enable it first. To do this, tap about: config in the Firefox address bar and click through the alert. Tik dan browser.ssb.engineered in the address bar to find the function. It is currently set to untrue. Use the link button on the right to change it to true and then restart Firefox.
Now you can run any web page (and not just PWAs and other web applications) as if it were an app. To do this, navigate to the webpage or web application you want to use, then click Page Actions (“…”) in the address bar and select “Use this Web site in application mode.”
If you do, the page / app will appear as a standalone app window and shortcuts will appear on the desktop and in the Start menu. You can pin this app, just like with any other app, to the taskbar or to the tile area of the Start menu.
To run the apps you installed this way, open Firefox, open the menu (hamburger) and select “Sites in App Mode.” You can uninstall any app here by selecting the Uninstall button (“x”).
Thanks to SherlockHolmes for showing me this feature.
Tagged with Desktop PWAs, Progressive Web Apps, PWAs