This kind of matter needs support from government agencies. Unfortunately I don’t know that any government agencies that would be either willing or knowledgeable about what needs to be done to support users and software developers on online platforms. How helpless are developers and users when faced with what is essentially unregulated corporate behaviour.
How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
101–110 of 131 posts
Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#102Earlier quoted context omitted.
What's that?
It's where you have to shame them by publishing an article on HN/reddit/wherever about how they screwed you before they'll fix your problem.
Ahh yes, the way I have to deal with my cloud provider, as well as my local fast food outlet's delivery service. Very high tech.
Thanks for the heads-up
Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#103Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#104Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#105In the final update post[0] the author says There isn’t any option left to circumvent the Chrome Store. Starting with Chrome 53, extensions cannot be side-loaded anymore. Is it possible that Firefox will undergo such a restriction in the future? [0] https://graffino.com/web-development/after-my-post-went-vira...
Firefox already has a similar restriction on Windows, and I think MacOS, but not Linux. On the normal version of firefox for those platforms you can't permanently sideload an extension, you need to reload it on each restart. The Developer Edition still lets you sideload addons normally, however.
It's present on Linux too, and probably MacOS. Aside from Developer Edition there's an Unbranded Firefox you can get from Mozilla in English only which will allow it. Or you can compile it yourself with the MOZ_REQUIRE_SIGNING flag disabled, which is not too hard. On Arch Linux it's just download the firefox-nightly-hg AUR package and delete the MOZ_REQUIRE_SIGNING line, then makepkg -s.
https://the-pwner224.neocities.org/compiling-firefox/index.h...
This also provides a good security benefit - for extensions that aren't continually updated you can download them with the "Extension source viewer" extension and then change their ID in the manifest and manually sideload them to prevent them from auto updating and using invasive permissions - malicious buyouts by ad companies are not unheard of in both the Chrome and FF app stores.
And also important, you can tweak the extension code as desired. For example the Old Reddit Redirect extension, which automatically switches reddit.com to old.reddit.com also changes new.reddit.com to the old one, so if you ever want to actually visit the new design then you have to disable the addon. There's no way to change this aside from editing the extension and then loading it unsigned.
Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#106Ran a online retail business for 12 years. One day, Adwords account suspended. Some generic 'voilation' email. No way to resolve, no person to speak to, no comment on the issue. Tried to resolve for months. Fired 15 staff, gave up. Basically the internet = Google when you run online retail.
Notably absent, the generic details about the company. I'm removing Google from my life as we speak, but whenever you prod further about these you find out they did violate TOS and are just unhappy.
Even if that's true in this specific case (it's certainly not true in all cases, like you say), it doesn't excuse the lack of options to appeal.
Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#107Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why not use Ungoogled Chromium [1] instead? Developer Mode is active forever, and no Google-centric integrations. [1] https://github.com/Eloston/ungoogled-chromium
That's a weird way to spell Firefox...
Firefox has a shitload of tracking features integrated if you don't use the Librefox Profile template. If you don't believe this, add an MITM proxy to verify what's happening on the newtab page.
Personal note: From google analytics in the about:addons view that can only be deleted with physical deletion of the profile folder, to digicert's OCSP service and Google Safebrowsing getting all your cookies, to detectportal.firefox.com tracking all your Geolocation data on every restart... these are all reasons for me to not use Firefox anymore.
That is not privacy respecting. It's what I expect from Google, not Mozilla.
Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#108In the final update post[0] the author says There isn’t any option left to circumvent the Chrome Store. Starting with Chrome 53, extensions cannot be side-loaded anymore. Is it possible that Firefox will undergo such a restriction in the future? [0] https://graffino.com/web-development/after-my-post-went-vira...
Firefox already has a similar restriction on Windows, and I think MacOS, but not Linux. On the normal version of firefox for those platforms you can't permanently sideload an extension, you need to reload it on each restart. The Developer Edition still lets you sideload addons normally, however.
> On the normal version of firefox for those platforms you can't permanently sideload an extension ...
Are you sure about that?
I am using Firefox on Windows and I currently have no problem sideloading extensions. They stay enabled and even update automatically.
Try, for example, installing this [1] bypass paywall extension via the "Download and install the latest version" link. Works flawless. ... or am I getting something wrong?
[1] https://github.com/iamadamdev/bypass-paywalls-chrome/blob/ma...
Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#109Earlier quoted context omitted.
I am not worried that Amazon would shut down all of AWS any time soon. Can you honestly say it would be a complete surprise, however, if Google announced an EOL for GCP?
Yeah, I mean, I get their huge history shutting down small ancillary projects that they didn't see as strategic advantages, but GCP isn't one of those, and probably not for the foreseeable future.
Wave wasnt small ancillary, Google+ wasnt small ancillary. Google Hangouts wasnt small ancillary, reader wasnt small ancillary.
By that bar GCP is in the same boat. Good luck with that!
Re: How Google obliterated my 4 year old Chrome extension with 24k+ users (2016)
#110Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, I mean, I get their huge history shutting down small ancillary projects that they didn't see as strategic advantages, but GCP isn't one of those, and probably not for the foreseeable future.
Wave wasnt small ancillary, Google+ wasnt small ancillary. Google Hangouts wasnt small ancillary, reader wasnt small ancillary. By that bar GCP is in the same boat. Good luck with that!
Wave was, Google+ failed, Hangouts got merged into Duo or whatever they call it now, Reader was.