this post was submitted on 01 Jun 2024
7 points (100.0% liked)

Technology

37739 readers
500 users here now

A nice place to discuss rumors, happenings, innovations, and challenges in the technology sphere. We also welcome discussions on the intersections of technology and society. If it’s technological news or discussion of technology, it probably belongs here.

Remember the overriding ethos on Beehaw: Be(e) Nice. Each user you encounter here is a person, and should be treated with kindness (even if they’re wrong, or use a Linux distro you don’t like). Personal attacks will not be tolerated.

Subcommunities on Beehaw:

This community's icon was made by Aaron Schneider, under the CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
alyaza@beehaw.org
TheRtRevKaiser@beehaw.org
gyrfalcon@beehaw.org
rs5th@beehaw.org
coldredlight@beehaw.org
Los@beehaw.org
SemioticStandard@beehaw.org
TheRtRevKaiser@kbin.social
remington@beehaw.org
7
Google Chrome’s plan to limit ad blocking extensions kicks off next week (arstechnica.com)
submitted 5 months ago by UngodlyAudrey@beehaw.org to c/technology@beehaw.org
37 comments fedilink hide all child comments
top 37 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Kissaki@beehaw.org 3 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

Firefox plans to support Manifest V3 because Chrome is the world's most popular browser, and it wants extensions to be cross-browser compatible, but it has no plans to turn off support for Manifest V2.

If Google decided to break V2 compatibility with V3, Mozilla should announce V4 (or V3 extended), which is V3 but with the missing stuff readded.

That'd be a good practical and great product/tech marketing move. Just like most people won't see how V3 is worse than V2, V4 will indicate it's the evolved and improved V3.

It would also simplify supporting V3 and V4 at the same time for extension authors. A great practical gain for extension authors, not having to read and understand two manifest schemes and APIs.

[–] acockworkorange@mander.xyz 1 points 5 months ago

Mozilla’s V3 implementation already extends out removing artificial limitations from it. Mozilla’s doing a reverse E3 and I’m all here for it.

Now if only the nincompoop IT dept on my company allowed me to run Firefox…

[–] mysticpickle@lemmy.ca 3 points 5 months ago (1 children)

::Laughs in Firefox::

[–] onlinepersona@programming.dev 0 points 5 months ago (5 children)

Who knows... Firefox might just follow suit. If devs have to write their extensions one for Chrome and once for Firefox, the Firefox one will probably be the first to die.

Anti Commercial-AI license

[–] Andromxda@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 5 months ago

That's not how it works. Firefox has full support for Manifest v3 extensions, but it does also support MV2 at the same time, and aims to keep MV2 support alive in the future.

[–] smeg@feddit.uk 3 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago)

From the article:

Firefox plans to support Manifest V3 because Chrome is the world's most popular browser, and it wants extensions to be cross-browser compatible, but it has no plans to turn off support for Manifest V2.

I doubt they'll ever choose to shut down V2, but Google is already forcing their hand a little by making them require supporting V3 to stay relevant

[–] 30p87@feddit.de 1 points 5 months ago

Then there will be thousands, millions of people continuing development of FF extensions.

[–] lemmyvore@feddit.nl 0 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Isn't that already how it works? Are there extensions trust work unchanged on both browsers? At the very least they'd have to maintain them on both addon stores.

[–] Andromxda@lemmy.dbzer0.com 0 points 5 months ago

There's a common specification called WebExtension, which is used by all modern browsers. Firefox had their own API (XUL/XPCOM) before that, but they deprecated it in 2017. Safari also used to have its own system for extensions, but it's been deprecated since 2019. The Manifest API is a subset of WebExtension, which defines an extension.

[–] Midnitte@beehaw.org 0 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Not if more people use FireFox...

Firefox also supports mobile extensions, unlike Chrome.

[–] fatalError@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 5 months ago

Unfortunately, as much as I like and use firefox on both pc and mobile, chrome and chromium based browsers dominate the market. It doesn't help that they come pre-installed in both cases.

[–] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 2 points 5 months ago (2 children)

I went back to FireFox way back when the announcement of V3 killing adblockers in chromium first was made. I could go without everything else a browser offers, as long as it has ad blocking.

I legit want AR glasses for the same thing; to block ads IRL.

[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 5 months ago

I actually really like the AR glasses idea. That said, They need to be open source and de-spookified, and there needs to be some kind of regulation that they can't store or transmit images without first displaying a recording indicator.

It's probably not going to happen like that, though, so I'm not mad existing ones have such bad battery lives.

[–] buttfarts@lemy.lol 1 points 5 months ago

Literally just gave up brave for Firefox two weeks ago just for that reason even though brave isn't supposedly gonna be affected. I have no doubt Google might deliberately just break chromium one day once and for all.

[–] ErilElidor@feddit.de 2 points 5 months ago

I'll develop my own browser before using an ad-infested internet. Luckily I don't have to do that, because there are alternatives and also because it would be a damn time consuming project to put it mildly 😅

[–] coffeetest@beehaw.org 2 points 5 months ago

Firefox or Vivaldi. I prefer Vivaldi with its built-in blocking. I also use NextDNS for DNS level blocking. Free plan is good enough for my use.

[–] LordChaos82@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

[–] ssm@lemmy.sdf.org 0 points 5 months ago (1 children)

it is so sad that e is dead

[–] t3rmit3@beehaw.org 2 points 5 months ago

You left out the 'N' and the 'tscape Navigator'

[–] darkphotonstudio@beehaw.org 1 points 5 months ago

We went through all this shit with Microsoft and Internet Explorer. It’s time to break up Google’s monopoly.

[–] megopie@beehaw.org 1 points 5 months ago

Reminder than most other browsers are based on chromium, and Google can probably break ad blockers on them if they want to.

[–] S13Ni@lemmy.studio 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

If someone unironically wore gloves like that I would bully them without hesitation.

[–] millie@beehaw.org 1 points 5 months ago

Those aren't gloves, they're just weirdly soft knuckle dusters.

[–] onlinepersona@programming.dev 0 points 5 months ago (2 children)

I wonder what would happen if µBlockOrigin was just pulled from the Chrome Webstore. Would that drive people to other browsers?

Anti Commercial-AI license

[–] Kissaki@beehaw.org 2 points 5 months ago

Some would switch, some would install another ad blocker extension, and some wouldn't know any better and do nothing.

Unfortunately, most people don't care all that much.

[–] averyminya@beehaw.org 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

37 million Chrome users have downloaded Ublock Origin (if that isn't including duplicate downloads/multiple accounts on one user).

5.3 billion people use the internet. 307 million in the U.S. as of 2022... what is that, 10% of Americans using Chrome using adblock? Less?

[–] onlinepersona@programming.dev 1 points 5 months ago

So max 37M users possibly willing to switch away from Chrome should it not be available anymore. Not nothing.

Anti Commercial-AI license

[–] FlashMobOfOne@beehaw.org 0 points 5 months ago (2 children)

Brave's native adblock works better than anything else I've tried.

Give Brave a look, folks.

[–] Xero@infosec.pub 2 points 5 months ago (1 children)

No thank you, I'll use Firefox instead. Brendan Eich the CEO of Brave is a POS, he donates to shitty causes and then pretends that those donations don't define him as a bigot.

"In other words, because he silently donated to causes seeking to strip rights from minority groups instead of directly harassing them, the outrage was unjustified."

https://www.spacebar.news/stop-using-brave-browser/

[–] megopie@beehaw.org 2 points 5 months ago

It’s also a chromium based browser so good chance it will loose any ad blocking ability if google decides to play hardball.

[–] Banzai51@midwest.social 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Use Firefox. The crypto bros running Brave have been caught multiple times gathering and selling user data. You use Chrome as the base when you want to hoover data.

[–] FlashMobOfOne@beehaw.org 0 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

False.

They sold data from Brave search, which you don't have to use. (and I don't.)

Also, the crypto thing is also opt-in. You don't have to use it either.

It works better than Firefox, especially if your aim is blocking ads.

[–] Kichae@lemmy.ca 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

"I trust these guys to not sell my data because they've only sold me data over there" is a hell of a take.

Someone has their identity tied up in this for some reason

[–] FlashMobOfOne@beehaw.org 0 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

I think that, if you're going to pretend to know what you're talking about, you should know what you're talking about.

I think it's a good thing that a person as to willingly opt-in to data collection.

It's really that simple.

[–] hdnclr@beehaw.org 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

They still sold user data without being upfront about it until caught, and are still running a shady-ass business. They're at the intersection of crypto, bigotry, and dishonesty.

Not using or advocating for Brave is pretty simple.

[–] FlashMobOfOne@beehaw.org 0 points 5 months ago (1 children)

They still sold user data without being upfront about it until caught,

And then they did better, as a business should. It's all in their FAQ.

I'm not sure why there has to be a circle jerk of trolls any time someone mentions Brave, but here we are.

[–] Dark_Dragon@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 5 months ago

How much of a corporate shill are you? Do you own the company or something? Be open minded and try other things. Don't be a corporate drone. Don't defend the corporate doing as right , defend your interests first.