Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016) • Hacker News Board

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#221

Post by cortesoft » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:36 PM UTC

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #210

emodendroket wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm guessing (especially when you consider that OS X is in there) that it has more to do with the support burden and small number of people using Linux as a desktop OS than trying to get people to buy Windows.

So they make it run buggy in order to reduce the support burden??? Surely that makes for more support calls. I'd have much more respect for them if they just came clean and said "we hate linux users, if you want to use that OS don't use our products because we try our best to make them not work on linux". Look at what they did with Skype for example. At least then we'd know not to try their stuff.

As an end user, it is sometimes hard to distinguish between 'made to run buggy' and 'put no effort in to make it not buggy'.

They are most likely doing the 'put no effort in to make it not buggy' action, and it just appears that they are doing it on purpose.

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#222

Post by jacquesm » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:36 PM UTC

skybrian wrote: post #215

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So they make it run buggy in order to reduce the support burden??? Surely that makes for more support calls. I'd have much more respect for them if they just came clean and said "we hate linux users, if you want to use that OS don't use our products because we try our best to make them not work on linux". Look at what they did with Skype for example. At least then we'd know not to try their stuff.

Almost always, nobody has any intention to "make it run buggy." It's about making it run well on platforms you care about (and officially support), and ignoring the others. Complicated software is usually fragile enough that it will have similar results.

If a user agent change makes the software slower for a platform then that's not exactly an accident so somebody must have had the intention to make it run buggy.

This has nothing to do with 'making it run well on platforms you care about' but it is 'making it run bad on platforms you don't care about'.

It takes more code for the software to act in this way (this is what proves this is intentional and not accidental), and more support to boot.

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#223

Post by nthcolumn » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:36 PM UTC

mdekkers wrote: post #191

TheRealDunkirk wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Bullshit If you were a Linux user in the mid-90's, then about the only place to get "help" was #linux on EFnet. Collectively, I don't think I've suffered more abuse on the internet than in that forum. And, yes, I'm still bitter. It was NOT a noob-friendly place. The best place -- ever -- to get Linux help was, and will always have been, the Gentoo forums, but that didn't take off till the early 2000's.

The best place -- ever -- to get Linux help was, and will always have been, the Gentoo forums True! However, obligatory "Gentoo is rice" link: https://fun.irq.dk/funroll-loops.org/

Sven Vermeulen wrote great docs and the community was my first social media. Then that compiz-beryl thing happened and... where is she now I wonder?

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#224

Post by bubblethink » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:36 PM UTC

TheRealDunkirk wrote: post #177

easytiger wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a linux user since the 90s, googling for basic issues on Windows is an unmitigated disaster. For linux I have always got a correct answer.

Bullshit If you were a Linux user in the mid-90's, then about the only place to get "help" was #linux on EFnet. Collectively, I don't think I've suffered more abuse on the internet than in that forum. And, yes, I'm still bitter. It was NOT a noob-friendly place. The best place -- ever -- to get Linux help was, and will always have been, the Gentoo forums, but that didn't take off till the early 2000's.

I wonder how much of Linux's recent success (I know it's still a tiny fraction) is just because of Google. I can't imagine using Linux if you take away the ability to Google. The fact that usually the results are posts by actual people and not some company stooge makes a world of difference.

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#225

Post by cortesoft » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:36 PM UTC

daenney wrote: post #180

pjmlp wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Doesn't Hangouts only work properly on Chrome?

It works fine in every browser, but you might need to download a small plugin if you're not on Chrome due to WebRTC being a standard but not a standard. Regardless of your browser, it'll heat your system up so you can fry an egg or broil a steak.

Not in FireFox anymore. They sent alerts for a long time saying FireFox was losing support for hangouts, and now it doesn't work at all.

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#226

Post by kuschku » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:39 PM UTC

TheRealDunkirk wrote: post #177

easytiger wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a linux user since the 90s, googling for basic issues on Windows is an unmitigated disaster. For linux I have always got a correct answer.

Bullshit If you were a Linux user in the mid-90's, then about the only place to get "help" was #linux on EFnet. Collectively, I don't think I've suffered more abuse on the internet than in that forum. And, yes, I'm still bitter. It was NOT a noob-friendly place. The best place -- ever -- to get Linux help was, and will always have been, the Gentoo forums, but that didn't take off till the early 2000's.

Oh, it’s quite easy to get help there, and has always been.

You just have to be tricky: People will not help you, but as pedantic as they are, they’ll correct mistakes you make.

You go there, and say "I’m disappointed that you can’t even use with Linux" and you’ll get hundreds of answers telling you exactly how to use it.

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#227

Post by w4tson » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:39 PM UTC

tankenmate wrote: post #10

mhluongo wrote: post #2

They can't be throttling based on user-agent... right? I thought this was the New Microsoft. Any other hypotheses?

I have no direct understanding but I have a hypothesis; - different generated html / js depending on user agent (UA) - bug fixes are rolled out on a UA by UA basis - bug fixes have been rolled out for Windows and Mac (supported) - but not for the "generic" HTML / JS output If this is true it will mean that anything other than the supported platforms will fall further behind as time goes by.

Hey why doesn't someone just check the sourcecode? ...

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#228

Post by recursive » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:41 PM UTC

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #210

emodendroket wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm guessing (especially when you consider that OS X is in there) that it has more to do with the support burden and small number of people using Linux as a desktop OS than trying to get people to buy Windows.

So they make it run buggy in order to reduce the support burden??? Surely that makes for more support calls. I'd have much more respect for them if they just came clean and said "we hate linux users, if you want to use that OS don't use our products because we try our best to make them not work on linux". Look at what they did with Skype for example. At least then we'd know not to try their stuff.

Software is naturally buggy. It only becomes non-buggy through pro-active effort.

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#229

Post by AsyncAwait » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:44 PM UTC

skybrian wrote: post #215

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So they make it run buggy in order to reduce the support burden??? Surely that makes for more support calls. I'd have much more respect for them if they just came clean and said "we hate linux users, if you want to use that OS don't use our products because we try our best to make them not work on linux". Look at what they did with Skype for example. At least then we'd know not to try their stuff.

Almost always, nobody has any intention to "make it run buggy." It's about making it run well on platforms you care about (and officially support), and ignoring the others. Complicated software is usually fragile enough that it will have similar results.

Simple solution, do not do preferential treatment based on one's OS.

Re: Onedrive is slow on Linux but fast with a “Windows” user-agent (2016)

#230

Post by kuschku » Wed, Mar 22, 2017, 7:44 PM UTC

tankenmate wrote: post #10

mhluongo wrote: post #2

They can't be throttling based on user-agent... right? I thought this was the New Microsoft. Any other hypotheses?

I have no direct understanding but I have a hypothesis; - different generated html / js depending on user agent (UA) - bug fixes are rolled out on a UA by UA basis - bug fixes have been rolled out for Windows and Mac (supported) - but not for the "generic" HTML / JS output If this is true it will mean that anything other than the supported platforms will fall further behind as time goes by.

That sounds exactly like Google, and makes the most sense.

If this happens to also drive people to Windows, that’s just a side bonus.

Regarding Google: Visit google.com with Firefox Mobile UA, and Chrome Mobile UA. The version presented to Firefox is the Google 2010 version, basically unchanged, with no search options or previews. The Chrome Mobile version actually works.

This is part of why Firefox Mobile now supports all -webkit- properties, webkit’s extensions of JS partially, and emulates Chrome’s UA for a great deal of websites.