Extension Manager:UI Update

Background

This wiki will serve as a planning page for a redesign of the Add-ons Manager for Firefox 3.7.

Past work

Main article: past work

Madhava worked on redesigning the add-ons manager in 2007, and posted his work here. He also designed much of the current add-ons manager for Firefox 3, which is largely unchanged today.

Current Add-ons Manager

Main article: Current Add-ons Manager

Goals

Main article: Prioritized Goals

Main article: Redesign Themes

There are five main areas of the add-ons manager that this redesign will involve:

1. Maintaining and Configuring

2. Updating

3. Installing

4. Discovering

5. Troubleshooting

Tier One: Basic Functionality Minimum features needed for usable add-ons manager, would substantially change in any redesign, incorporation of newer forms of add-ons (jetpacks, personas) cannot happen without. The functionality here is not provided anywhere outside of the add-ons manager	Tier Two: Current Problems Areas that are currently interrupting user tasks	Tier Three: Enhancements Features that are currently barely present in add-ons manager but could provide substantial value to users. The functionality provided by these is available outside of the add-ons manager, but could be provided within it
1. Maintaining and Configuring	2. Updating	4. Discovering
	3. Installing	5. Troubleshooting

Wireframes

Storing/Managing Add-ons

Two-Panel System

The default Add-ons Manager view will be in a two-panel basic hierarchy view within the content area of the browser. Add-on categories, search, past searches, and recommended add-ons will be in the left panel, and expanded view will be on the right. This increasingly common format is a familiar layout in operating systems and applications, and follows a larger planned design plan for Firefox's auxiliary controls.

For viewing installed add-ons, the Detail View in the right panel will either show the contents of a category or an individual add-on, depending on which is selected. Viewing the contents of a category will show a summary view of the add-ons, with basic information and the ability to disable or remove an add-on. This gives the user the ability to quickly browse the contents of a category with more information than the list in the left panel provides. The information shown will be similar to what's in the current add-ons manager, but will allow for sorting by categories such as size and date added.

When the user selects an individual add-on, the right panel displays the add-on's information, options, preferences, and the ability to contribute to its developers.

Searching for and Installing Add-ons

Disabling Add-ons

= Removing Add-ons

Team

Sprint lead 

Boriss

Development 

Unfocused, Mossop

AMO liaison 

Nick and Fligtar

Other contacts

• Jetpack: 
  • Atul, Aza

• Personas: 
  • Suneel Gupta, Amy Zehren(?)

• Firebug:
  • Firebug team is currently designing a new install/update solution for Firebug extensions. Let me know if anyone is interested in discussing it. jjb

Resources

Past work

• 3/2006: Extension Manager UI Comments from developers on redesign ideas
• 7/2007: Firefox:Add-ons Manager UI: Madhava's two-panel proposed design
• 12/2007 Add-ons Manager UI interim rev2 Scaled back version of above, one panel design, very similar to current
• 1/2010 Older, Expanded version of Add-ons Manager Wiki Scaled back version of above, one panel design, very similar to current

Feedback Received

Main article: Feedback from Blog Posts

Bugs

• 256509 install without restart

Not Current Images & Wireframes

Main article: Not Current Images & Wireframes