What Is And How To Install Swiftfox Web Browser in Ubuntu and Other Linux Distributions

I am aware of the fact that probably 90% of you must already know about Swiftfox so this post is for the other 10% of WebUpd8 readers. I wrote about how to fix full-screen flash in Firefox and Swiftfox but I never mentioned what Swiftfox is.

What is Swiftfox?

Well, Swiftfox is an optimized Mozilla Firefox which has different builds depending on your processor which makes it much faster than the normal Firefox because that's compiled to work for everybody, but not optimized for a specific processor architecture.

What Swiftfox version should I use?

Take a look at this chart and see which Swiftfox version is best suited for your computer based on your processor.

How do I install Swiftfox in Ubuntu / Debian?

Ubuntu (and all Debian based distribution) users will be pleased to know that it even comes with a repository which you can add by issuing the following command in a terminal:

sudo sh -c "echo 'deb http://getswiftfox.com/builds/debian unstable non-free' >> /etc/apt/sources.list"

and then, to install Swiftfox:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install <swiftfox version for your processor>

I for instance, have an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, so I have to install the Prescott version:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install swiftfox-prescott

How do I install Swiftfox on other Linux distributions?

If you don't use Ubuntu, the best way to install Swiftfox is to download and run the installer. Everything should work (Flash, etc) right out of the box, and your Firefox profile will be used:

sudo ./install-swiftfox.sh

Will my Firefox extensions and themes work with Swiftfox?

Swiftox is just an optimized build of Firefox so yeah, every add-on or theme that works with Firefox will also work with Swiftfox. Furthermore, Swiftfox will use your Firefox profile so all your Firefox settings will be kept while using Swiftfox. Also, I suggest reading this article on how to force the installation of addons not compatible with the latest version of Firefox.