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Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

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Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#111

Post by lancesells »

rosser wrote: post #98
epicide wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you have a "zero inbox" type approach, I find Mail.app to be serviceable, but to each their own. There are a few others to try. I used Airmail a few years ago. However, be on the lookout for "native" email clients that are really just web gmail wrappers.

I've been curious about Airmail, but I'm tiring of OSX, to the point that I'm leaning towards switching back to Linux.

I've been a user of Airmail for a couple years and it's great. That said, they just had a security breach on macOS so I've stopped using it on that platform. https://appleinsider.com/articles/18/08/22/exploit-in-airmai...

I think I'll go back but I'm not sure.

Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#112

Post by manigandham »

duxup wrote: post #50

I wish I could just have multiple Chrome installs segregated from each other for different purposes. I used to use Firefox for work and chrome for personal stuff. My new employer uses Google's business apps so it is easiest in Chrome....but that knocks out my two browsers at once system. Often I'll need something I saved to drive (sample code, doc, something) or bookmarked in my personal account that suddenly was rel…

You can do exactly that with Chrome profiles, which associates the entire browser profile (avatar, cookies, bookmarks, history, etc) to a single account. This can also be an offline/local only account or tied to a google account to sync everywhere.

https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/2364824

Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#113

Post by ronilan »

l0b0 wrote: post #81
r721 wrote: post #54

"Google calls the feature "Identity consistency between browser and cookie jar" and a Chrome representative on the official Google Chrome Help Forum confirmed that this is the intended behavior. >This is an intended behaviour if you are using the same Google Account for your Gmail and Chrome. If yes, you'll be signed out of Chrome when you signed out of Gmail account. ... Good news is that it is possible currently to…

1. Less than 1% of the users are going to both hear about and understand those instructions. 2. Google can say >99% of users "prefer" the new setting. 3. Tighten the lock-in.

You assume that the feature will result in some net benefit for Google (at some potential expanse to users/public) but there's no such guarantee.

Historically, the great Google products are made from scratch (or bought early) and stand by themselves. Their not-so-good products or features are the result of some elaborate corporate thinking that comes out under phrases like "Identity consistency between browser and cookie jar".

So, while they (may) think it tightens the lock-in, it (may) actually end up doing the opposite and be a disservice to everyone.

Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#114

Post by manigandham »

Androider wrote: post #85

Once again G Suite customers get the shaft. I have a personal Gmail account, and a business G Suite account, and this change makes working with the two accounts a complete pain. All my years of Chrome bookmarks/settings/etc. are associated with my personal account, so I want the browser itself to always be logged in with that identity. But I want to be logged into my business G Suite email account "by default" when I…

Use Chrome Profiles feature which basically gives you an entirely separate browser. Each profile can be associated to an offline/local account or a Google account that syncs everywhere. It allows you to keep personal, work, and anything else completely separate.

https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/2364824

Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#116

Post by hdima »

Hello71 wrote: post #104
blfr wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The most straightforward solution is to create a separate Chrome user/profile for your work account. It's a great way to keep your private and organizational accounts completely separate. You can even sync all Chrome settings, extensions, and bookmars though the company account if they allow you to use your own devices. Unlike Firefox (major pain point btw), you can run Chrome with multiple profiles at once, each in…

Firefox has had profiles since at least 0.8, released in 2004, when it was renamed from Firebird, more than four and a half years prior to Google Chrome's release. This code, however, was inherited from Netscape Communicator 4, released more than a decade before Google Chrome. Hell, Netscape 4 predates Google ! However, since the profile code is so old, it is not accessible from the main interface; it must be accesse…

Firefox also has Multi-Account Containers add-on which is much more lightweight than profiles: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/containers

Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#117

Post by yjftsjthsd-h »

zonidjan wrote: post #101
2ion wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Firefox has gained a feature called multi-account containers several releases back solving exactly this kind of problem in a slick way: Your tabs can be assigned to different accounts (represented by different colors/names/icons (which are configurable). Each account has its own cookies etc, allowing you to be signed in to any number of services while keeping them separated. I use this feature heavily to separate dif…

But... Chrome has had this feature for MUCH longer than Firefox.

If you mean profiles, Firefox has had it even longer, albeit with poor UI.

Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#118

Post by gniv »

duxup wrote: post #50

I wish I could just have multiple Chrome installs segregated from each other for different purposes. I used to use Firefox for work and chrome for personal stuff. My new employer uses Google's business apps so it is easiest in Chrome....but that knocks out my two browsers at once system. Often I'll need something I saved to drive (sample code, doc, something) or bookmarked in my personal account that suddenly was rel…

On Mac, I keep separate Chrome windows for personal and work accounts. And I keep them in separate desktops, so I can easily switch using Ctrl-arrow.

Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#119

Post by brennebeck »

rosser wrote: post #84
kstrauser wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you sure? My employer uses gmail, which I access via Mail.app exclusively. I bet I open the web app maybe once or twice a year, usually by clicking a link in a calendar event. It's perfectly possibly to use gmail-the-service without using gmail-the-app.

I find Mail.app to have a terrible UX, but I did try it, thanks. My standing solution is to use one browser to log into big-G services, another to log into FB, and a third for everything else.

Have you tried mailplaneapp.com?

Re: Tell HN: Using Gmail? You will be force logged into Chrome

#120

Post by tempestn »

rosser wrote: post #84
kstrauser wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you sure? My employer uses gmail, which I access via Mail.app exclusively. I bet I open the web app maybe once or twice a year, usually by clicking a link in a calendar event. It's perfectly possibly to use gmail-the-service without using gmail-the-app.

I find Mail.app to have a terrible UX, but I did try it, thanks. My standing solution is to use one browser to log into big-G services, another to log into FB, and a third for everything else.

Have you tried Firefox's multi-account containers? They might be more convenient than using multiple browsers.
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