Firefox slower due to add-ons.
This is not a specific question, as it is more of a general frustration with Firefox. I notice Firefox is much faster if I disable many add-ons I have installed over the years. It seems like Firefox gets a bad wrap because some add-ons slow down Firefox. Aren't there benchmarking tools available to show before and after results of using an add-on? I am using 5 out 19 add-ons at the moment and performance is a lot faster. All this time though, I just thought Firefox sucked when disabling add-ons leads me to believe that the culprit for the slow performance is due to an add-on.
Anyway, I think if Mozilla wants to protect their reputation more, the benchmarking tools should be a tool a browser user can interact with.
Chosen solution
This thread is 12 months old. Mozilla has been working on this Add-ons issue recently.
Performance testing add-ons for startup performance, to start out with.
http://blog.mozilla.com/addons/2011/04/01/improving-add-on-performance/
This extension is now available.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/extension-test/
I haven't used it myself so I don't even know what it tests for and how good it is at finding problems with an extension.
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It may not be all the addons that are causing the slow down of Firefox. Just particular ones such as Toolbars, AntiVirus addons, etc. Can you list your extensions by going to Tools>Addons>Extensions?
Right. Whether it be a particular one or all of them, they give Firefox a bad rap because the user blames Firefox and not an add-on. I want Firefox to keep anonymous stats of all users and benchmark performance of the browser before and after the add-on. Perhaps give this score a benchmark and if you collectively see negative performance over time, there is reason to investigate and/or let users know... if you install this add-on you will lose performance.
I'm currently testing my set up. So far, I have these up and my browser seems to be stable and faster:
Adblock Plus 1.3.1 AI Roboform Toolbar for Firefox 6.10.1 Download Statusbar 0.9.7.2 DownThemAll! 1.1.10 Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on 0.9.1
What I had running previously and will add back on slowly to observe differences:
CheckPlaces 2.3.0 CookieSwap 0.5.253 Copy Fixer 1.1.2 Firefox Sync 1.5.1 Flashblock 1.5.14.2 goo.gl lite 1.7.5 Google Toolbar for Firefox 7.1.20101113Wb1 ImageShack Toolbar 5.2.3.7 Java Console 6.0.19 Nightly Tester Tools 2.0.3 Resizeable Textarea 0.1d Tab Mix Plus 0.3.8.4 Textarea Cache 0.6.4 Xmarks 3.9.2
That's a lot to expect of Mozilla, considering the tens of thousands of extensions available for Firefox, and very few users install the same exact batch of extensions.
If you would be willing to volunteer your time to benchmark the 20,000 plus extensions that are offered at AMO alone, not counting the many thousands that are offered elsewhere and not available from AMO; and also test the innumerable combination's of all those extensions - I'm sure Mozilla would be willing to integrate a "benchmark rating system" at the AMO website.
I happen to have 53 extensions installed in this Profile, with no noticeable impact to speed that would have me trying to figure out which one's might be contributing to the slowdown. Sure, I can't run the same number of extensions on my Netbook, which has 40% of the processor speed and half the RAM as my desktop PC has, but hardware specs have to be taken into consideration when installing extensions.
hey ed - thanks for replying.
> lot to expect of Mozilla
Sure, it is a lot to expect of Mozilla. Also, I think by raising expectations, Mozilla can rise to the challenge. :)
I hope you didn't misunderstand me by thinking that benchmarking would be a manual effort. It was envisioning something more along the lines of Mozilla Test Pilot (http://mozillalabs.com/testpilot/) and have Firefox anonymously collect data. I don't have installation usage notes, but I gather there is a common set of add-ons users like to install that can be prioritized. I'm not a programmer, but if I can help in some way, I can allot some time from my weekly schedule.
> with no noticeable impact to speed
I'm glad your set of extensions are working well for you. Unfortunately, the set I am working with (perhaps different from your set?) have caused slow browsing and sometimes even runaway process (100% CPU).
Since part of the selling point of Firefox are the add-ons, I think it is important to make sure they are interacting with Firefox in an efficient and stable manner. As Google Chrome continues to build out extensions, this selling point of Firefox is becoming less of a unique feature. Performance is an area Google Chrome touts, and I think Firefox could do some more in that area to retain loyalty and increase the user base.
Chrome has built-in a "Task Manager" It allows users to see all their extensions in use, their CPU, Memory, etc ...
It would be nice if firefox had something like this. Would make narrowing down which addon is becoming a resource hog.
I got over a dozen addons and I know at least one of them is making firefox slower the longer I keep it open. Eventually, it would eat up 50% my CPU when clicking on links. I have a dual core leading me to believe the addon is not multithreaded? Can't pin point which addon it is yet.
Chosen Solution
This thread is 12 months old. Mozilla has been working on this Add-ons issue recently.
Performance testing add-ons for startup performance, to start out with.
http://blog.mozilla.com/addons/2011/04/01/improving-add-on-performance/
This extension is now available.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/extension-test/
I haven't used it myself so I don't even know what it tests for and how good it is at finding problems with an extension.