Live data from Hacker News

Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

news.softpedia.com

11–20 of 578 posts

Re: Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

#12
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Building adds into the start menu search is ridiculous.

How do normal people (who use Windows) think that this is ok? In what universe is that possibly ok - to put ads in a paid-for OS? No matter the context, no matter the version of an os, no matter the reason, no matter what the ads are for, no matter that they could through some questionable hacking or editing be removed - ads in a paid-for OS. Has the whole world gone crazy? What is going on here?

If you are used to ads everywhere now, why would you be surprised to see them in Windows? I mean for a "normal" person the argument against would probably make sense, but it probably won't jump in front of their eyes as a jarring thing

Re: Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

#13
> Many of those who commented in the linked reddit thread actually praise Microsoft Edge, explaining that they already installing the new browser and it’s just as good as Chrome or Firefox. And of course, many remind that it’s possible to disable suggestions in the Start menu to block such “ads” from showing up again.

Gotta wonder if that’s astroturfing.

Re: Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

#14
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Building adds into the start menu search is ridiculous.

How do normal people (who use Windows) think that this is ok? In what universe is that possibly ok - to put ads in a paid-for OS? No matter the context, no matter the version of an os, no matter the reason, no matter what the ads are for, no matter that they could through some questionable hacking or editing be removed - ads in a paid-for OS. Has the whole world gone crazy? What is going on here?

[deleted]

Re: Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

#15
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Building adds into the start menu search is ridiculous.

How do normal people (who use Windows) think that this is ok? In what universe is that possibly ok - to put ads in a paid-for OS? No matter the context, no matter the version of an os, no matter the reason, no matter what the ads are for, no matter that they could through some questionable hacking or editing be removed - ads in a paid-for OS. Has the whole world gone crazy? What is going on here?

My gripe is the following; How did we get to the point where people have to say (from the article) “I need Chrome for work” The more I read this the more we, as developers should start steering towards true open source solutions.

Re: Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

#16
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Building adds into the start menu search is ridiculous.

How do normal people (who use Windows) think that this is ok? In what universe is that possibly ok - to put ads in a paid-for OS? No matter the context, no matter the version of an os, no matter the reason, no matter what the ads are for, no matter that they could through some questionable hacking or editing be removed - ads in a paid-for OS. Has the whole world gone crazy? What is going on here?

No it's just going back to normal. Remember when you paid for tv and still watched ads?

Re: Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

#17
post #6

Microsoft doing shady stuff again. It's really a shame. The engineering that the teams at Microsoft put to the kernel and the actual operating system at large is amazing. But then some Product Management division decides to shove this shit down people's throat and, for me at least, ruins all the fun of what would is otherwise an amazing piece of an operating system. I paid for an operating system, just let me use the…

> Microsoft doing shady stuff again.

Seems anything but shady? On the start menu in full sight and just explicitly suggesting their browser over Firefox. Doesn't even claim anything about either browser, just suggests theirs! Seems as honest and upfront as any advertising could be? 'Try our band of coffee' effectively.

Re: Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

#19
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Building adds into the start menu search is ridiculous.

How do normal people (who use Windows) think that this is ok? In what universe is that possibly ok - to put ads in a paid-for OS? No matter the context, no matter the version of an os, no matter the reason, no matter what the ads are for, no matter that they could through some questionable hacking or editing be removed - ads in a paid-for OS. Has the whole world gone crazy? What is going on here?

Clearly you're right. 2020 for me is the year of Linux on the laptop.

Re: Microsoft begins showing an anti-Firefox ad in the Windows 10 start menu

#20
This, and every other screw-up in the same vein, is why those of us old enough to remember the Halloween documents don't buy the whole "new Microsoft" thing.

Want to get me to try Edge? Great -- instead of a passive-aggressive ad, try telling me how it's better than Firefox and why I'd like to use it instead. What will it get me? Better privacy? Better performance? Better development tools?

Cynically, it's amazing that Microsoft collects so much personal data about each user -- and yet its "target" ads are hopelessly generic and tasteless.

Also, leaving the matter of whether or not I should even be seeing ads after I paid for the damn thing aside, the company that brought us Internet Explorer is the last one that should crack jokes about other browsers, even if they're good (which this one isn't).

Post reply on HN