Mozilla is planning to include simple-text commands and desktop web apps in the next version of Firefox.

Firefox 3.2 will see the company build the Mozilla Labs project, Ubiquity, into the browser. Ubiquity allows users to type natural language phrases into the browser to perform certain tasks, such as typing "map 10 Downing Street" to instantly see a Google map of that address, or "share-on-delicious" to bookmark the site you're currently visiting on the social news site.

Ubiquity, which is already available in beta form, currently requires users to press Ctrl + Space to enter the text commands, but Mozilla is aiming to integrate the feature into the address bar (or "Awesome Bar") for the next version of the browser.

Firefox architect Mike Connor said it's part of a plan to develop more ambitious features for the browser. "We're looking at where we can incorporate features from Mozilla Labs," he told PC Pro in an exclusive interview. "We're looking for more pure innovation than just incrementally getting better. It's nice to try stuff where we don't know if it's going to work."

"All the stuff we set out to do in the beginning is already done," Connor, who's been working on Firefox since the days it was known as Firebird, added. "What next? Make it faster? That's not really a great answer for us."

Connor said the company has been impressed by the level of interest in Ubiquity already. "The response has been really fantastic," he said. "It's got to the point where we have as many Ubiquity commands as [Firefox] Extensions."

pcpro.co.uk