Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 79 posts

Re: Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

#11

Post by dngray »

abstract_put wrote: post #7
bokchoi wrote: post #4

I use Firefox containers with a work and a personal container. Each container can stay logged into separate google accounts, github accounts, etc. and keep them separated. It works pretty well. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/multi-account...

I started using this, but my impression of the usability is poor. E.g. I use GitHub both personally and for work, on the one hand containers are awesome because it handles the "staying logged in" really well, but on the other hand opening tabs and links is a nightmare that ends up with me duplicating every tab in the right container. I'd love it if I could say "this window is my work window, all tabs should open in w…

Yes.. what you want is Temporary Containers, it can be used in conjunction with Multi Account Containers above.

https://medium.com/@stoically/enhance-your-privacy-in-firefo...

You can get it to open things with the same subdomain in the same container, or force it to do differently by holding down control for example. I have mine configured like so:

https://github.com/dngray/user.js/tree/fx-desktop#global-iso...

Re: Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

#12

Post by ggm »

princevegeta89 wrote: post #3
ggm wrote: post #2

Google Chrome supports "people" as an identity, a set of discrete logged in or not logged in runtime instances. I run three all the time: me@gmail, me@personaldomain and me@work. The cost is pane switching. The upside is, having chrome logged in means I get persisting clean history when I want it.

Not sure I follow fully. I agree with the clean history but what if, as a user, I have multiple Google accounts and I simply login to my other accounts from time to time to check on things? Google "adds" that other account, and the process of removing it is really confusing. I don't recall doing it successfully without logging out first. This seems to be a very common use case among my friends as well - they all have…

Then make each chrome account a different person tab and you won't accidentally pollute or cross pollinate your state. If you don't want using Chrome for Gmail (excellent js Gui) to pollute search and other work, might need to see if this kind of segmented behaviour works. Otherwise its two browser types: Chrome for one tab of mail and ephemeral tabs for clicked out of mail, and ff for everything else?

Re: Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

#13

Post by princevegeta89 »

just_steve_h wrote: post #10

"Why hasn't Google 'fixed' this 'bug' that gives them access to so much more of my valuable data?"

I'm already logged in through one account, not sure if there is any value in tracking other accounts there are used so rarely anyway.

Re: Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

#14

Post by cridenour »

abstract_put wrote: post #7
bokchoi wrote: post #4

I use Firefox containers with a work and a personal container. Each container can stay logged into separate google accounts, github accounts, etc. and keep them separated. It works pretty well. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/multi-account...

I started using this, but my impression of the usability is poor. E.g. I use GitHub both personally and for work, on the one hand containers are awesome because it handles the "staying logged in" really well, but on the other hand opening tabs and links is a nightmare that ends up with me duplicating every tab in the right container. I'd love it if I could say "this window is my work window, all tabs should open in w…

Not OP, but: - long clicking the + for a new tab lets you select a container - right click Open in New Container - links opened from a container stay in the container

With those, it seems to cover my use cases.

Re: Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

#16

Post by Mistri »

princevegeta89 wrote: post #3
ggm wrote: post #2

Google Chrome supports "people" as an identity, a set of discrete logged in or not logged in runtime instances. I run three all the time: me@gmail, me@personaldomain and me@work. The cost is pane switching. The upside is, having chrome logged in means I get persisting clean history when I want it.

Not sure I follow fully. I agree with the clean history but what if, as a user, I have multiple Google accounts and I simply login to my other accounts from time to time to check on things? Google "adds" that other account, and the process of removing it is really confusing. I don't recall doing it successfully without logging out first. This seems to be a very common use case among my friends as well - they all have…

I do the same thing as OP - I have multiple separate containers, each has its own set of cookies, and its own Google account that it is logged into. I just change my window when I want to use a different account.

From what I understand, you're asking how you can just "temporarily" log into an account — can't you just add that account as a new user on Chrome?

If not, you can always open an incognito window or a guest window, do your business, and close it. I do that often when I'm logging into an account that I don't want to persist.

Re: Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

#17

Post by geofft »

Do you remember the class-action lawsuit recently where people claimed that Google still tracks you in incognito mode - meaning that Chrome's incognito mode worked exactly as you or I would expect, but if you happen to visit sites with Google Analytics or Google Ads in a single incognito session, those products will leave cookies in that session exactly as you or I would expect?

The average person does not draw a meaningful distinction between a Google login button in the browser and a Google login button on a website. The least confusing UX actually is to avoid the situation where you log into your Google account for e.g. Gmail and then Chrome says "You're logged out."

As others have mentioned, Firefox container tabs are fantastic for solving this (I have a separate "Google" tab, so my normal browsing remains logged out), and I think those of us who care about these things owe it to the world to use Firefox.

Re: Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

#19

Post by Wolfenstein98k »

This is exactly what I would expect to happen - and if you imagine being a typical user, what they would expect too.

I used incognito windows to log into Google services back when I used Chrome.

Now I use Brave, and it has a feature that prevents logging in browser-wide just because you signed in to a given Google service, IIRC.

(I still use incognito though, mostly out of habit and an obsessive desire to manage my "history" - I do all fresh searches and follow all links through incognito and only move things into the normal window when I want it to be in my history / findable later)

Re: Logging into Gmail on Chrome links my Google Account to the browser

#20

Post by princevegeta89 »

quesera wrote: post #6

"Doctor, it hurts when I do this!" https://www.rogerebert.com/features/henny-youngman-doctor-it... In all seriousness, I recommend a browser that takes privacy seriously. It's a spectrum -- but for me, Firefox is the right answer. Compartmentalization via containers and/or profiles (and content filtering with uBlock Origin) is the only way to browse the modern web.

Any idea about brave/vivaldi?
Post reply on HN