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Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

blogs.windows.com

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Re: Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

#41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's strange, I wonder why not EU but rather EEA. Probably the smallest target amount compared to EU and aimed at resolving some conflict with a regulation that only affects EEA rather than EU?

The EEA contains EU countries plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.

+ Switzerland and Turkey

Re: Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

#42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because other places have thriving tech industry which can’t waste time checking what browser to run

Not supporting major browsers doesnt feel like "thriving tech industry" Sounds like cheap ass startups or poorly executing corpos

Yeah mine was a citation of those saying EU hasn’t big tech due to regulations

Re: Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

#43
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The announcement is talking about EEA rather than EU though, which smells a bit weird. I'm not sure what regulation they're trying to resolve the conflict with that is not EU wide but rather EEA and targets the usage of default browsers.

The EEA is practically “EU + a handful of countries that apply EU rules but don’t get to participate in decision making for historical reasons”. That’s why Britain didn’t even consider joining the EEA after they left the Union. From their point of view, it would still be the regulatory burden of EU membership without most of the benefits they enjoyed as a full member. When they’d decided to take the economic impact o…

EEA countries get freedom of movement with the EU, among other things. An EEA citizen can work in an EU country without any other requirements.

Re: Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

#46
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The announcement is talking about EEA rather than EU though, which smells a bit weird. I'm not sure what regulation they're trying to resolve the conflict with that is not EU wide but rather EEA and targets the usage of default browsers.

The EEA is practically “EU + a handful of countries that apply EU rules but don’t get to participate in decision making for historical reasons”. That’s why Britain didn’t even consider joining the EEA after they left the Union. From their point of view, it would still be the regulatory burden of EU membership without most of the benefits they enjoyed as a full member. When they’d decided to take the economic impact o…

Well, you could plausibly argue right this moment that those strict regulatory burdens are a benefit of the club - since in this case they're benefiting from those regulations curbing abuse from international companies

Something which almost certainly wouldn't happen if they passed these laws by themselves, rather than as part of a much larger economic area.

But otherwise... I mostly agree with you. Lots of laws, not much representation.

Re: Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

#47
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That makes me wonder: What are the rules for something to be considered a browser? Does it need to provide certain functionality, or can I register anything as a browser and just have links open in an editor?

Afaik to make a program selectable as default browser, one needs to register it as a protocol handler for http and https urls in the registry. https://stackoverflow.com/a/38205984/2306536

Does that mean I can use a headless browser as default ?

Re: Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

#48
post #4

Neat! But why not respect the users choice everywhere on earth?

Because companies only ever respect user choice for two reasons. 1. it coincidentally makes them money, 2. they're forced to by government. In the US it's interesting to see that state governments are increasingly pushing on several issues (albeit sometimes for dubious reasons), but the federal government is somehow chronically AFK.

Re: Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

#49
post #4

Neat! But why not respect the users choice everywhere on earth?

We don’t police tech monopolies in the USA, they are actually in charge because all of Congress owns the SP500, which is dominated by tech. We have to find a way out of this dystopia spiral.

That's not quite it.

The US doesn't, in general, give any extra rights or protections to its people without a bit of force, and then one is lucky.

Hence, no real consumer protection (which would include this). No signing of a thing giving rights for children, and so on. The rights folks legally have were grand enough 200 years ago, but have become substandard over time with little upgrading.

Re: Windows 11 system components use the default browser to open links in Europe

#50
post #4

Neat! But why not respect the users choice everywhere on earth?

We don’t police tech monopolies in the USA, they are actually in charge because all of Congress owns the SP500, which is dominated by tech. We have to find a way out of this dystopia spiral.

In case you're getting downvoted:

https://unusualwhales.com/politics/article/congress-trading-...

https://campaignlegal.org/update/stock-act-failed-effort-sto...

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/09/13/us/politics/c...

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