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MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

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Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#521

Post by aksss »

SteveMoody73 wrote: post #461
aitchnyu wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Umm, MS Teams on Adroid forced me to install Edge to open links. Even the copy action pushes "haha, we wont give away this link you moron" (in corp speak) to the clipboard.

I use Teams on my phone regularly and have never seen this happen. Clicking on a link takes me to the web page without any problems, even in my default browser which is Firefox.

One variable many people don’t consider is that Microsoft gives organizations an incredible amount of control over application behavior when trying to maintain a through line for rights protection of organizational data. Like not allowing organizational data to be opened in apps that aren’t approved, authenticated with user creds, and supportive of rights management (no printing, no saving, etc.).

I’m not saying that’s what’s happening with GP’s experience with Teams, but just pointing out that when thinking about MS app behavior on any platform, it’s a variable that can be present in the corporate context which many “users” remain blissfully unaware of, or see it manifest as these weird rules and behaviors and not acting like other apps. But there can be an entirely different set of user stories at play beneath the surface.

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#522

Post by mywittyname »

Andrex wrote: post #506
toyg wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Microsoft is actually the one reacting here. They were effectively forced to let the web be an open field by antitrust cases; Apple and Google took advantage of that to build two walled gardens, which ended up dwarfing MS's own empire. It was inevitable that, sooner or later, MS would have gone "If this behaviour is now allowed, why should we not do it too?" This is just the result of normalizing monopolistic practic…

> They were effectively forced to let the web be an open field by antitrust cases They won that case on appeal though, and Mozilla wasn't a factor until years after the fact. The more accurate read of the early-00s browser wars was that MS "won" with IE ( 95% market share!) and then pretty much lost the stomach (or focus/budget/etc.) to advance the web in any way.

The specter of further anti-trust action still hung around. It's only been relatively recently that it has become apparent that the country's leadership is not interest in trust breaking anymore. But now Microsoft is playing catchup.

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#523

Post by coffeeling »

hnbad wrote: post #376
can16358p wrote: post #133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hate Microsoft though I highly doubt that the Bing search bar came from a Vscode installation. Are you sure it is the case?

"bar" is an overstatement if you like me were reading that as one of those early 2000s era browser toolbars. A recent Edge update added a fairly large and persistent Bing icon to the right end of the browser's menu bar. It uses a speech bubble design and is likely part of the push for AI chat powered Bing search. It's obnoxious that you can't hide it but it's more of an eyesore than an actual problem.

You can hide it. Settings->Sidebar->Discover

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#524

Post by eppsilon »

NikolaNovak wrote: post #489
thesuitonym wrote: post #328

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You sound like a person who never even tried. Open Settings > Safari > Default Browser App, and select the app you want. It's really that easy.

I've done a fair bit of trying over the years; based on your comment I retried today I still cannot find it under Settings -> Safari -> Default Browser App. To be fair though, I did find it on my wife's iPhone, though under Chrome (she does not have it under Safari (or General either, where I would've expected it)). Still don't have it anywhere on my iPhone. I'll try to see if that's because she's ahead of me on OS u…

If your phone is a corporate device, they may have set the default browser via MDM. Check Settings > General > VPN & Device Management.

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#525

Post by cobbaut »

capableweb wrote: post #106
dustedcodes wrote: post #6

I have no skin in the game, but even I am starting to think the obvious thing here: Apple and Google own the entire mobile OS market. They could literally destroy Microsoft if they started to hugely degrade the experience of Microsoft products on iOS and Android with dark patterns a la Microsoft. But they don't. So far they were competing by making their own products better. Microsoft needs to think hard how hostile…

> Microsoft needs to think hard how hostile they want to be to its competitors and users, because two people can play this game. I don't get Microsoft, have they no pride or desire to become a great company? Have they just become content to be an old corporate software house who only manages to keep users through dark patterns and anti-competitive behaviour because they have given up on making products which people e…

> Since when have they focused 100% on just building great products and competing fairly?

iirc They bought (or rather scammed) Internet Explorer from Spyglass. As they did with many of 'their' products back in the day (Windows NT/SQL server/...). Are MS building products themselves these days?

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#526

Post by jug »

It’s not by force because there is a new option in the latest Outlook but this is still a dirty move because MS could just as well have simply rolled with the system default browser rather than let key applications have their own setting that just happens to default to Edge... It’s obvious what Microsoft are doing here and how this new option is a preemptive defense.

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#527

Post by drewbeck »

whimsicalism wrote: post #502
WhipeeDip wrote: post #488

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can actually ask Siri to navigate with Google Maps by appending "using Google Maps" to a request. So for example, "navigate home using Google Maps". However, clicking an address in a message and being told to install Apple Maps is super aggravating and I'm not sure if there's a way around that...

> You can actually ask Siri to navigate with Google Maps by appending "using Google Maps" to a request. So for example, "navigate home using Google Maps". Yeah, and its easy to open the link from Outlook and Teams in Chrome - just copy the link & paste into the chrome URL bar.

> How do I get Siri to navigate using Google Maps? .... You can't

> You can actually ask Siri to navigate with Google Maps by appending "using Google Maps" to a request. So for example, "navigate home using Google Maps".

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#528

Post by Aerbil313 »

dustedcodes wrote: post #6

I have no skin in the game, but even I am starting to think the obvious thing here: Apple and Google own the entire mobile OS market. They could literally destroy Microsoft if they started to hugely degrade the experience of Microsoft products on iOS and Android with dark patterns a la Microsoft. But they don't. So far they were competing by making their own products better. Microsoft needs to think hard how hostile…

"Microsoft" is not a person with emotions and desires. People too often anthropomorphize, and it is a natural thing to do imo, because we still think with human brains. Microsoft, like any other company, is a far more complex system than I think our brains are ever meant to comprehend, let alone create. Is it food to eat? A fire to warm up? Is it a leader to follow? A book to read?

What even is Microsoft?

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#529

Post by Neil44 »

jug wrote: post #526

It’s not by force because there is a new option in the latest Outlook but this is still a dirty move because MS could just as well have simply rolled with the system default browser rather than let key applications have their own setting that just happens to default to Edge... It’s obvious what Microsoft are doing here and how this new option is a preemptive defense.

Yes it’s a passive aggressive way to get Edge’s numbers up. You have to take action to make it obey your previously stated preference.

Re: MSFT is forcing Outlook and Teams to open links in Edge and IT admins are angry

#530

Post by CrimsonRain »

kitsunesoba wrote: post #363
NikolaNovak wrote: post #295

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree with your premise. I have an iPhone (forced upon me by work) and it's ridiculous how many links still try to open in safari or Apple maps. I've tried to configure it for years and I've literally uninstalled Apple maps, but half the time iPhone keeps wanting me to reinstall it when I click a link or address. And a lot of url links open in safari instead of chrome or Firefox. Same with many other things - I…

> I can install any keyboard I want as long as it's just a skin on their keyboard. As an iOS app dev with a hobby project iOS keyboard, this is false. Third party iOS keyboards have just as much control over the keyboard UI and how each key (if it even has keys — your “keyboard” can be literally anything) interacts with text as a full fledged app does. In fact there is no way to “skin” the standard keyboard, but I wi…

yet, 20% of times, apple loads their own keyboard instead of my default GBoard :)
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