Firefox is a desktop browser.
Mozilla Firefox -LRB- or simply Firefox -RRB- is a free and open-source web browser developed by the Mozilla Foundation and its subsidiary the Mozilla Corporation .. Mozilla Foundation. Mozilla Foundation. Mozilla Corporation. Mozilla Corporation. free and open-source. free and open-source. web browser. web browser. Firefox is available for Windows , macOS and Linux operating systems , with its Firefox for Android available for Android -LRB- formerly Firefox for mobile , it also ran on the discontinued Firefox OS -RRB- ; where all of these versions use the Gecko layout engine to render web pages , which implements current and anticipated web standards .. Windows. Microsoft Windows. macOS. macOS. Linux. Linux. Android. Android ( operating system ). Firefox OS. Firefox OS. Gecko. Gecko ( layout engine ). Firefox for Android. Firefox for Android. layout engine. layout engine. web standards. web standards. An additional version , Firefox for iOS , was released in late 2015 , but this version does not use Gecko due to Apple 's restrictions limiting third-party web browsers to the WebKit-based layout engine built into iOS .. iOS. iOS. Gecko. Gecko ( layout engine ). WebKit. WebKit. layout engine. layout engine. Firefox for iOS. Firefox for iOS. Apple. Apple Inc.. Firefox was created in 2002 under the name `` Phoenix '' by Mozilla community members who desired a standalone browser , rather than the Mozilla Application Suite bundle .. Mozilla community. Mozilla. Mozilla Application Suite. Mozilla Application Suite. Even during its beta phase , Firefox proved to be popular with its testers and was praised for its speed , security , and add-ons compared to Microsoft 's then-dominant Internet Explorer 6 .. beta. beta software. Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer. Firefox was released in November 2004 , and was highly successful with 60 million downloads within nine months , which was the first time that Internet Explorer 's dominance was challenged .. Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer. Firefox is considered the spiritual successor of Netscape Navigator , as the Mozilla community was created by Netscape in 1998 before their acquisition by AOL .. Mozilla community. Mozilla. spiritual successor. spiritual successor. Netscape Navigator. Netscape Navigator. Netscape. Netscape. AOL. AOL. Firefox usage grew to a peak of 32 % at the end of 2009 , temporarily making version 3.5 the world 's most popular browser .. usage. usage share of web browsers. Usage then declined in competition with Google Chrome .. Google Chrome. Google Chrome. , Firefox has between 9 % and 16 % of worldwide usage as a `` desktop '' browser , making it the second most popular web browser .. web browser. web browser. usage. usage share of web browsers. Firefox is still the most popular desktop browser in Cuba -LRB- even most popular overall -RRB- , Eritrea , and Germany , with 85.93 % , 79.39 % , and 37.01 % of the market share , respectively .. Cuba. Internet in Cuba. Eritrea. Eritrea. Germany. Internet in Germany. It is also the most popular desktop browser in many other African countries .. According to Mozilla , there were half a billion Firefox users around the world .