March 1, 2006. Copyright 2006, Graphic News. All rights reserved

FirefoxÕs Mitchell Baker flying high
By Joanna Griffin

LONDON, March 1, Graphic News:  Mitchell Baker is not out for revenge or world domination. The ÒleaderÓ of open-source web browser Firefox/Mozilla insists that she just wants to keep the web fluid, free and fun. The marriage of her mindset and chosen medium may be one reason why the Firefox browser is helping to push the technological revolution a stage further.

Since its launch in November 2004, Firefox has steadily increased its market share and is expected to claim 10 percent in mid-2006 (in some countries it is reportedly already higher). Not surprisingly Ms Baker, president of the Mozilla Corporation, the division of the Mozilla foundation that coordinates development of its open-source internet applications, has begun to get noticed: she was included in Time MagazineÕs 100 people of 2005.

Baker, a mother of one who flies the trapeze a couple of times a week for fun, has certainly shown courage in taking on the mighty MicrosoftÕs Internet Explorer, but the impact of Firefox goes further: the browser has rekindled the old excitement about the internet, and ignited a new race among software developers as rivals vie to outdo it.

ÒThe web is still young -- too young to be tied to a single path of developmentÓ, Baker wrote in a recent blog that highlighted the dangers of the ÒmonocultureÓ of current operating systems. Too many people relying on Windows is dangerous, bad for business and unhealthy for the web, she wrote. Firefox could help to provide some answers.

As a lawyer who first graduated in Asian Studies at Berkeley, Baker does not have the background of many Silicon Valley ÒgeeksÓ. But her appointment to oversee legal issues for Netscape in 1994 led to a long involvement in the companyÕs licensing and product development and an eventual job as ÒChief Lizard WranglerÓ of Mozilla.org, the division that dealt with the open source browser. After she was fired by parent company AOL in 2001, she continued working for Mozilla.org, eventually heading Mozilla Corporation.

In November 2004 Firefox was born. Within a year it had been downloaded almost 20 million times -- and its popularity was growing. With an open-source browser, anyone is permitted to explore the programming code (MicrosoftÕs code is secret) and suggest ways to fix bugs. While Firefox fans certainly include many who are jaded with the Microsoft monopoly, experts point out that -- in terms of security at least -- the browser is just better.

This is partly due to the precocious talent of Blake Ross, a 19-year-old software genius who has been compared to the young Bill Gates. Ross was 10 when he began designing web pages for AOL and 14 when he was offered a job at Netscape. He and programmer David Hyatt developed Firefox 1.0, and a second version is underway to help Mozilla.org stay ahead of the pack. Ross insists it is the search Òfor the grailÓ that drives him on.

Time will tell whether even Ross and fellow ÒlizardsÓ at Mozilla.org can ensure that Firefox 2.0 fends off the hackers who are bound to sniff blood as the browserÕs popularity grows. Meanwhile, Baker has said that one problem in achieving more downloads may be that less computer-savvy Internet users feel uncomfortable ditching their Internet Explorer. In the end, however, the biggest challenge for Firefox will probably come from Microsoft.
/ENDS