It looks like browser makers have settled on a way to handle high-resolution images now common with the arrival of screens like Apple's Retina displays with lots of densely packed pixels.

Browser makers haven't offered Web developers a consistent, easy way to show the right image for a given screen's size and resolution -- an idea called responsive design. That's been a shame, since screens with high pixel densities are increasingly common on laptops, tablets, and smartphones and can offer crisp, detailed photos and graphics.

The first breakthrough came in September when support emerged for a standard called srcset, nudged along when Apple added the feature into Safari. The approach seemed to be winning out over a rival proposal, the introduction of a new "picture" element.

But that consensus was shattered when Google introduced another option called src-N, which appealed to Mozilla's Firefox developers. A long debate ensued over November, December, and January, that produced a different outcome: a ... [Read more]

Mozilla has begun testing a simpler new system for synchronizing Firefox's bookmarks, open tabs, Web site passwords, and other browser settings.

Until now, the not-for-profit organization had used a complicated mechanism in which you had to type a pairing code shown on one browser into another browser. Now it's begun a shift to begun a shift to a plain old username-password approach to Firefox sync, Mozilla said Saturday.

The old approach had the virtue of working without requiring Mozilla to maintain a database of its users, but it was complicated. Mozilla has lost that aversion and now offers Firefox accounts.

Related stories

• After upgrade hiccups, Alcatel will skip Firefox OS 1.2
• Mozilla: In 2014, all your hardware belongs to us
• Geeksphone makes the Intel switch with Revolution phone

Sync has become increasingly important to browsers as people have moved from using a single PC to using multiple computers, phones, and tablets. Sync he... [Read more]