Apple vs the EU, Chrome 122, Firefox 123, MS Edge 122, Polypane 18, Safari 17.4, and more | Front End News #107

Adrian SanduAdrian Sandu
7 min read

Table of contents

NOTE: This is issue #107 of my newsletter, which went live on Monday, March 11. You might find this information valuable and exciting and want to receive future issues as they are published ahead of everyone else. In that case, I invite you to join the subscriber list at frontendnexus.com.

In this issue, we examine the recent interactions between Apple and the EU and their impact on the web platform and the industry. Interaction to Next Paint (INP) replaces First Input Delay (FID) in the Core Web Vitals lineup. Browser News covers Chrome 122, Firefox 123, MS Edge 122, Polypane 18, Vivaldi 6.6 for desktop, Safari 17.4, and Wolvic 1.6.

The Release Radar tracks many updates and releases, such as Angular v17.2, Astro 4.3, Babel 7.24, Deno 1.41, jQuery 4.0.0 BETA, Redwood v7.0, TypeScript 5.4, and more. Today's Web Resources include icons, gradients, generators, and valuable utilities.

Apple vs the EU

Apple is currently locked in a struggle with the EU. I covered in the last issue how they were forced to allow other browser engines to run on iOS devices for EU users. As the DMA deadline loomed closer, things escalated further.

Initially, Apple announced cutting support for progressive web apps from the home screen. As expected, this caused a wave of outrage. People started dissecting the official announcements and highlighting Apple's malicious compliance. Open Web Advocacy even penned an open letter to Tim Cook.

Faced with all this opposition, Apple backtracked on its decision regarding PWAs. The fight is far from over, though. As this topic is too large and important for a single article, I've selected multiple viewpoints to help you better understand what's happening.

Core Web Vitals updates

March 12 marks the day that the First Input Delay (FID) will be replaced in the Core Web Vitals program. In preparation for this move, the Web Vitals team prepared a suite of introduction materials, tutorials, and guides to help you update your websites.

💻 Browser News

If the calendar moved to a new month, there's a "new to the web platform" article from Rachel Andrew. This edition covers the release of Chrome 122 and Firefox 123 and the rest of the changes that landed in February.

Chrome

Chrome 122 brings the Storage Buckets API, DevTool improvements in the Performance panel, and more.

Firefox

Firefox 123 supports declarative ShadowDOM, the 103 Early Hints HTTP status code, and more, along with plenty of security fixes.

Microsoft Edge

As usual, the release notes for MS Edge focus mainly on features specific to this browser: policies and Edge-only features.

Polypane

Polypane has now reached version 18. It would be a legal adult in many countries if that were its age. This release brings Chromium 122, new features, quality-of-life updates, and bug fixes.

But wait! There is more! Polypane is now thinking with Portals. You can now open your local host to the world and share your work with anyone. And the landing page of this new feature is simply gorgeous!

Vivaldi

Vivaldi released a new version of their desktop client. The 6.6 update brings page navigation and extension support for Web Panels, a redesigned Mail Search, and overhauled Website Permissions and Theming (Dark Mode) settings.

WebKit

iOS 17.4 is the update to bring Apple devices in line with the EU DMA regulations. This means a new version of Safari is included in the package. This release brings an improved layout engine, support for CSS scoping, a long list of fixes and improvements, and more.

Wolvic

It's been a while since we last mentioned Wolvic. The team just released version 1.6, which includes Gecko 121 and Android Components 121.1, supports full-screen vertical video, includes new environments, and a lot more.

📡 The Release Radar

🛠️ Front End Resources

  • Bootstrap 5 Modern Backgrounds - Plug 'n play modern background made with Bootstrap, CSS variables, and plain CSS

  • CSS Generators: Tooltips & Speech Bubbles - A CSS-only collection of Tooltips & Speech Bubbles made with a single element

  • Figicon - Discover Thousands of Free Minimal and Pixel-Perfect Figma Icons for Your Projects.

  • Game-icons.net - An ever growing collection of free game icons

  • Gradients List - Biggest collection of gradients on the web

  • ICONSVG - Quick customizable icons for your projects

  • NEAT - Beautiful gradient animations for your website

  • Nucleo Essential Icons - A carefully curated subset of the broader Nucleo icon library

  • Social Media Icons - A collection of free SVG social media icons

  • Specificity battle! - CSS Specificity calculator

  • SVG Encoder / Converter - A simple tool to convert an SVG into different formats

  • SVG Flag Icons - Explore over 200 optimized SVG country flag icons

  • SVGFM - A node graph builder for SVG filters

There's more where that came from. Explore the rest of the Front End Resource collection.

Wrapping things up

Ukraine is still suffering from the Russian invasion. If you are looking for ways to help, please check Smashing Magazine's article We All Are Ukraine 🇺🇦 or contact your trusted charity.

If you enjoyed this newsletter, there are a couple of ways to support it:

Each of these helps me out, and I would appreciate your consideration.

That's all I have for this issue. Have a great and productive week, keep yourselves safe, and spend as much time as possible with your loved ones. I will see you again next time!

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Written by

Adrian Sandu
Adrian Sandu

I am a "front-of-the-front-end" developer, focused on CSS, user experience, and content creation. Available for hire, projects, or outsourcing.