the information it stores while you're surfing, such as browsing history and saved passwords. You can choose how long Firefox remembers this information, and you can clear it all at once with a simple keystroke: Ctrl+Shift+Delete in Windows (see Figure 1-5; see Chapter 14). Figure 1-5: Firefox's Clear Private Data feature lets you clear all your browsing records with a keystroke. "The Internet is slow." Over the past five years, a plague called spyware has infected computers worldwide. Spyware is a kind of software that creeps onto your machine and watches what you're doing so it can display supposedly relevant advertisements. It isn't just a distraction; it's an invasion of your privacy, and it slows your computer to a crawl. Research indicates that much of the spyware on computers today comes through Internet Explorer. Firefox helps you avoid these annoying pests. When you cut down the spyware on your computer, your Internet connection speeds up. "Computers are stubborn." Sometimes it seems like you have to obey software and not the other way round. Firefox knows who's boss: You are. Build your dream browser through glamorous themes (see Figure 1-6; check out Chapter 17 for more info) and powerful extensions that reshape, redesign, and enrich Firefox (see Figure 1-7 and Chapters 20 and 22). You can also customize your toolbars to your heart's content, as I explain in Chapter 18. Figure 1-6: Who said software had to be ugly? Choose from hundreds of Firefox themes. Figure 1-7: Extensions add new features, such as weather information, to Firefox. "I can't find the files I downloaded." It's amazing that you can retrieve files from all over the world, but if you can't find them on our own computers after you download them, you have a problem. Firefox integrates a Download Manager that offers one-click access to your downloaded files (see Figure 1-8; see Chapter 11). Figure 1-8: The Download Manager makes it easy to keep an eye on your downloads and open them when they finish. "Staying up-to-date is stressful." As wonderful as the Internet is, it can be overwhelming. Some people track so many sources of information that it's impossible to keep up. Firefox brings the news to you through a feature called Live Bookmarks - bookmarks that can update themselves. Whether you want to stay on top of the headlines, the weather, or your sister's blog, Firefox keeps you connected automatically. Figure 1-9, for example, shows the latest batch of headlines from BBC News. Firefox creates and updates this list automatically. (See Chapter 5 for more about bookmarks and live bookmarks.) Figure 1-9: Firefox can update your bookmarks automatically, so stay where you are: The info comes to you. Firefox is developed by people who care The greeting card writers are calling me now, but I don't know how else to say it: Firefox developers care. You've heard this sales pitch from companies before, but there are two differences here: We aren't selling anything, and we aren't a traditional company. Firefox is a free product that is guided by a non-profit organization. Unlike most other software projects, Firefox is developed by a global network of volunteers through a development model called open source. This model ensures