Yeah, this down trend worries me. I’m an early adopter, pre Firefox at version 0.7 on Linux IIRC and still a big fan but I think one fundamental idea needs to change.
The non-profit culture is causing the demise. I keep hearing that Mozilla has the smallest team and that it’s difficult to compete with large for profit corporations. No shit Sherlock. Profit is good and ethical. Profit is a democracy where people vote with their hard earned money, something you want to participate in for numerous reasons.
Here are two ideas.
First, use Kickstarter. I would like to see support CSS Grid Layout and would be ready to donate for that feature alone. Even if it’s not funded, you can gauge the demand.
Second, learn from Chrome’s success. Most people installed Chrome because it was the fastest or at least felt like the fastest browser. You might not want to participate in this speed game but unfortunately, it’s the killer feature for most users. They want a fast, secure, compliant browser, and in that order. I’m not sure Hello is inline with that and I don’t think it will help Firefox regain any market share. I don’t know anyone who would ever install Firefox just for Hello but I know dozens who would switch to Firefox if it was the fastest, most secure and compliant browser.