50,000 Web Developers Download and Test Open Source Mozilla Browser, the Basis for Netscape Navigator 5.0

External Contributions Double As Thousands Help Mozilla.Org Build The Web's Most Standards Compliant Browser

Mountain View, Calif. (August 16, 1999) -- Netscape (R), a subsidiary of America Online, Inc. (NYSE: AOL), today announced that external developer support for mozilla.org has more than doubled since the beginning of the year, underlining the growing momentum for the organization chartered with managing the open source development initiative for Netscape's Communicator codebase. According to statistics released by mozilla.org, more than 50,000 open source testers throughout the world have downloaded and tested the milestone 7 release of the mozilla browser, providing contributions and feedback that will help to deliver the leading browser in the industry.

"By downloading the regularly updated milestone releases of the browser even before a public beta version is made available, the mozilla community is helping to ensure that the upcoming Netscape browser will be widely tested and based on the most standards-compliant technology on the Internet," said Bob Lisbonne, senior vice president of client products at Netscape. "mozilla.org is establishing itself as yet another successful open source project."

External code submissions have increased by over 50% in the period since January, reaching 173 for the month of June compared to 114 in January, helping to enhance the browser. Involvement from the Web is further evidenced by the growing number of external module owners which has doubled since January, going from 5 non-Netscape owners then to 12 in June. Module owners play a critical role in the future of the browser as they assume responsibility for specific areas of mozilla development.

Active external input regarding the browser's design, planning and review is also evidenced by newsgroups postings which have increased by 50% since January, part of a development model in which Web developer participation and review are critical for the outcome of the software. In fact, unique newsgroup posters averaged close to one thousand per month since the beginning of the year, illustrating the growing number of individual contributors to mozilla.org. More and more developers are also visiting mozilla.org regularly as daily visits to the site increased nearly fifty percent since January.

Web developers have already praised the Netscape Gecko browsing engine's adherence to Web standards, and recent numbers show that bug reports filed by external developers on mozilla to improve standards compliance and quality have more than doubled over the last five months. In June, 341 non-duplicate, verifiable bug reports were submitted, a 2.4 times increase over the 142 reports filed in January.

"To use current browsers, developers have to keep elaborate lists of bugs and workarounds. The fewer bugs there are in mozilla, the easier it will be for Web authors in the future. Developers are helping to make sure the final product has as few bugs and deviations from standards as possible," said David Baron, a developer and leading authority on Cascading Style Sheets who is also a student at Harvard University.

"I am quite happy to work for mozilla just to get a decent, free, standards compliant browser onto the market," said Ian Hickson, a Web developer from the UK who contributed to the mozilla BugAThon project. "That is an incentive in itself, the rest is just a bonus."

Mozilla.org has also received significant external contributions in the form of new platform ports such as BeOS and OS/2 Warp, as well as technology enhancements like the standards-compliant XML parser which was originally contributed to mozilla.org by James Clark and recently enhanced to enable localization for the worldwide use of XML.

In a related program, the international developer community is localizing Netscape Communicator into languages that might otherwise not have been available for specific areas. This additional language support is available through the Universal Localization Program where there are currently 17 translation projects underway to offer localized Communicator versions in languages such as Basque, Bulgarian, Catalan, Hawaiian and Maori.

Web developers can get further information, download and test the browser with each milestone build from http://www.mozilla.org, file bug reports at http://bugzilla.mozilla.org, and join the BugAThon at http://www.mozilla.org/newlayout/bugathon.html to simplify bug reports and create test cases.

Netscape is a leading provider of software and services for businesses that want to transform the way they create and keep customers in the emerging Net Economy. Recently acquired by America Online, Inc., Netscape is based in Mountain View, California.

Additional information on Netscape is available on the Internet at http://home.netscape.com, by sending email to info@netscape.com, or by calling corporate sales at 650/937-2555.

Netscape, Netscape Navigator and the Communicator logos are registered trademarks of Netscape in the United States and other countries. Other Netscape logos, product names, and service names are also trademarks of Netscape Communications, which may be registered in other countries. Other product and brand names are trademarks of their respective owners.