Camino Browser for Mac Reaches 1.0

After four years in development, the Mozilla based Camino Web browser for Mac OS X has gone gold with the release of 1.0. Unlike Firefox, which employs XUL for its user interface, Camino was designed from the ground up using Apple's Aqua interface and native widgets for rendering Web sites.

Camino was initially started due to the lack of work being done to make Firefox feel like a real Mac application, and came before Apple launched its own Safari browser. Camino is now considered one of the fastest browsers available and remains popular despite efforts by Firefox developers to improve the Mac version.

Mike Pinkerton, the lead developer behind Camino, said he was proud of the work volunteered by the community in order to deliver a browser with a wealth of features. "Moving forward from 1.0, we expect to deliver new innovations while continuing to provide the best possible Web experience on Mac OS X," he added.

Camino includes many of the same features found in Firefox, including pop-up blocking, privacy controls and the same Gecko rendering engine. However, the Mac browser may prove more controversial with the inclusion of a feature to remove advertising from Web sites altogether.

While Firefox extensions have long provided such functionality, browser makers have been careful not to step on the toes of Web site owners that make it necessary to have a browser in the first place. Camino's feature, while not enabled by default, ostensibly edits Web sites on the fly and removes IFrames and JavaScript code used to call advertising.

Still, Pinkerton says Camino follows the project's underlying philosophy of viewing the Web "annoyance-free."

Camino 1.0 is available for download now via FileForum. More information on the project can be found on its new homepage at CaminoBrowser.org.