Firefox makes browsing and sharing on your Windows 8 Touch device easier and faster. We'll give you an overview of its features so you can get started right away.

Switch between desktop Firefox and Firefox for Windows 8 Touch

Easily switch back and forth without losing your place.

From Windows 8 Touch: Swipe up from the bottom of the screen, tap the menu button and select Relaunch in Desktop.

Toolbars and tabs only when you need them

No more fussing with toolbars on a small screen. The tabs, search field and a simplified toolbar stay out of your way until you need them. Just swipe up from the bottom of the screen (or down from the top) to make them reappear!

• Awesome Bar: Just start to type in a search or web address and Firefox will match what you type with sites you've already bookmarked or visited. It will also give you search engine choices, in case you want to start a new search. Just click on the tile you want from the options that appear.

• Navigation bar: This simplified toolbar contains the Awesome Bar and essentials such as the browser back and forward buttons, bookmark, pin and menu buttons. Flick up from the bottom of the display to bring up these controls.

• Tabs: Want to open a new tab? Just tap the plus sign sitting o the right edge of the display.

To see your open tabs, swipe down from the top of the display.

Get organized with Tiles

Firefox displays websites in large tiles that are easy to recognize and tap. No more clicking on the wrong site!

• Easy-to-recognize tiles on the home page: The Firefox home or start page displays your most visited sites, bookmarks and history all in one place. Pin, hide or delete sites from the Firefox home page by holding down its tile to highlight and selecting your preferred option from the menu.

• Pin your favorite sites to the Start screen: Want to access your favorite sites directly from the Windows Start screen? Simply load your page in Firefox and tap the pin icon. Enter a name in the dialog window and Pin to Start. Your pinned site will appear on the Start screen.

Set your privacy and search engine preferences

You can change many of your settings through the Windows Charms bar:

1. Swipe from the right edge of the screen to bring up Charms, then select Settings.

   

2. From the Settings panel, you'll be able to select Options to change your privacy and notification settings and Search to set your default search engine:
   • Clear Private Data: While Firefox for Windows 8 Touch version does not support Private Browsing, you can still clear your history, passwords and site preferences immediately after you browse. Under the Options panel, go to the Clear Private Data section, select the types of information you want to clear and tap Clear.
   • Do Not Track: Let websites know whether or not you want to be tracked. In the Options panel, scroll down to the Do Not Track section and choose your setting.

   See How do I turn on the Do Not Track Feature? to learn more about this feature.

   • Search engines: From the Settings panel, select Search and choose your favorite search engine.

Share a page or save it for later

See something that's too good to keep to yourself? Just swipe from the right edge of the screen to bring up the Charms bar and select Share. From here, you can email someone a link or screenshot, post the page to your social networks, or save it to the Reading List app to enjoy later.

Having problems?

We're here to help. Here's what to do if you encounter one of these problems:

My Firefox froze.

• Having many apps open can slow down or freeze Firefox. Just swipe from the right edge of the screen to bring up the Charms bar and select Search. Choose Everywhere on the search menu and search for Task Manager. When Task Manager launches, select Firefox from the choices and press the End task button.

I can't find the Firefox tile on my Start screen.

• It's probably still waiting for you in the Apps list. Drag the Start screen up to pull up the Apps list. Look for the Firefox tile there, hold it down to select it, then choose Pin to Start from the menu that comes up.

Add-ons don't work with Firefox for Windows 8 Touch. To use, install or manage your add-ons, please switch back to desktop mode.