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When is Firefox going to add a toolbar shortcut to launch a privacy mode tab?

Miker417

Every time I need to launch privacy mode in the Android app, I can't find the button or a link. I don't use it that often, but it's important when I do need it. Each time I need it I spend a lot of wasted time looking for it. Ultimately I have to ask Google Gemini how to do it. 1) I don't want to keep asking AI how to do it. It ought to be easier to find. 2) I don't want a shortcut on my Android desktop with its limited, valuable real estate.

After thinking about it, it occurs to me that adding the ability to add a privacy mode shortcut to the toolbar might be simple for the developers and it would solve my problem. It's too bad I can't add more than one shortcut to the toolbar in Settings, but a privacy mode shortcut is the one I'd select... if only one were available. (sigh)

Mike Russell miker417@gmail.com

Every time I need to launch privacy mode in the Android app, I can't find the button or a link. I don't use it that often, but it's important when I do need it. Each time I need it I spend a lot of wasted time looking for it. Ultimately I have to ask Google Gemini how to do it. 1) I don't want to keep asking AI how to do it. It ought to be easier to find. 2) I don't want a shortcut on my Android desktop with its limited, valuable real estate. After thinking about it, it occurs to me that adding the ability to add a privacy mode shortcut to the toolbar might be simple for the developers and it would solve my problem. It's too bad I can't add more than one shortcut to the toolbar in Settings, but a privacy mode shortcut is the one I'd select... if only one were available. (sigh) Mike Russell miker417@gmail.com

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Chosen Solution

It's enough to long-press the tab button. I don't think that anything can be changed here.

Thanks, TyDraniu. Yeah, there are several methods if the user can find and remember them. They're just not obvious to me because I don't need to go to the private side very often. Here's what I try to remember (or relearn) when I'm going from the non-private side to the private side. There may be more ways and I'm probably incorrect in some details. Thankfully the scenarios going the other direction effectively work the same way.

1. While in the app and in a regular tab or new blank tab, LONG PRESS THE TAB BUTTON. Firefox offers a context menu. Select the "New Private Tab" link and that's what you get, a new private tab. But not the grid of thumbnails of any preexisting private tabs.

2. While in the app and in a regular tab, QUICK TAP THE TAB BUTTON. Select the mask icon at the left of the top bar. Either select the thumbnail of the preexisting private tab you want, OR if there are preexisting tabs but you want a new one, select the plus (+) button at the bottom right to create the first blank one, OR if there are no preexisting tabs you should already be on a new blank one ready to enter an URL. (BTW this is a possible mask icon I'd like to be available on the toolbar in Settings. It does everything with one button.)

3. While in the app and in a new blank regular tab, select the MASK ICON POINTING LEFT, located at the top left below the toolbars. Either select the thumbnail of the preexisting private tab you want, OR select the plus (+) button at the bottom right to create the first blank one. OR if there are no preexisting private tabs, Firefox will create and take the user immediately to the first blank one. (This left pointing mask icon works the same as the mask icon in 2. above. It's the one I'd choose for my toolbar button if it were available.)

4. Leave the app. LONG PRESS THE ORIGINAL LAUNCH ICON on the desktop. Firefox adds an additional choice to the standard Android context menu. Select "New Private Tab" link, and Firefox opens in a new private tab whether any private pages already exist or not. In other words it works exactly like the long press on the tab button when the user is inside the app.

Given the various navigational possibilities, I think the developers have done a great job getting the user to the private side, and hopefully the page they want, no matter what they're current situation. Unfortunately I don't do it often enough to remember the paths and what the buttons do.

Ideally there would only be a single icon, and it would consistently do the same "go to the private side" no matter where it appears. My personal hope would be it always lands on the private tabs thumbnails page, whether or not there are any preexisting private tab(s). If a new tab were desired, I'd click the (+) button. I know... two user clicks. I guess landing on a new blank tab page when no others exist is a good alternative.

In my case consistent navigation to the private side and the ability to do everything when I get there is better than trying to remember where the buttons are and what they do. Since a single user-selectable toolbar button appears to be difficult to implement, I guess me and new users will just have to learn a favorite path.

-mike

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