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

Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

howtogeek.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

401–410 of 567 posts

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#401

Post by hbn »

addicted wrote: post #398
hbn wrote: post #391

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I really want to easily switch to the previous window, not the previous app. Command + backtick doesn't work either. It doesn't switch to the previous window. It switches to the previous window "in the same app" which is not actually the previous window as that could be from another app. I really can't figure out what your issue is after reading this several times. If the last active window was a different app, you…

I’m not sure why I should be thinking about whether my last active window was in the same or different app. In windows it doesn’t matter whether I switched from a Chrome window to a Firefox window or from one Firefox window to another one. The cognitive load is way less. Also, CMD+’ is way more ergonomically inconvenient to hit.

I guess it's a matter of preference. I use both Mac and Windows and I prefer Mac's way of doing it. Sometimes I'll have 3 IntelliJ windows open + my terminal, along with a dozen other apps that are on other desktops/workspaces that I'm currently not using. So it's nice that I can bounce between the IntelliJ windows for editing my code with Cmd+`, then when I need to hop into the terminal I do Cmd+tab, do my stuff, then Cmd+tab and I'm back in the code. Maybe it's a learning curve but it feels very natural to me.

> Also, CMD+’ is way more ergonomically inconvenient to hit.

What fingers are you using for Cmd+tab if that's comfortable but not Cmd+`? It's exactly 1 key above tab.

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#402

Post by shmerl »

pjfin123 wrote: post #33

Linux Desktop feeling extra good today, my sound often doesn't work but I don't have to deal with Microsoft nonsense.

What kind of hardware do you have? I haven't encountered problems with sound on Linux in years. And Pipewire is indeed good.

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#403

Post by millzlane »

greggman3 wrote: post #315
jccalhoun wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I updated to 11 on my laptop but kept 10 on my main machine. I see zero reason to update my main computer to 11. I was willing to give centered start button a try but the fact that you can't turn off grouping of applications in the taskbar is a deal breaker. If I have two firefox windows open I want to know it and to be able to pick which one I want without having to hover my mouse over the icon for a second while th…

It could be worse. You could be on MacOS where Cmd-Tab switches between apps not windows. I currently have 13 browser windows open (each with 3 to 15 tabs) and another 9 windows of other things (terminal, vscode, etc....) and IMO The Cmd-Tab vs Ctrl-Tab vs Ctrl-Up vs Ctrl-Down suck compared to Windows. I really want to easily switch to the previous window, not the previous app. Command + backtick doesn't work either.…

Me and a collegue were having this discussion a couple of days ago. There is a way to do it. It involved bringing up mission control selecting the window then pressing option.

Also there is this https://alt-tab-macos.netlify.app/

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#405

Post by bshipp »

mihaic wrote: post #399

OSS fanboys have been hailing the coming of Linux on personal computers for years, but it just looks like Windows 11 might be the thing that makes it real, forcing it finally to mature. This is not Vista times, where you can easily get away with a bad OS generation. For the first time in about 12 years I'm dual booting Win 10 and KDE on Ubuntu, and it actually feels like a usable and practical setup. Win 11 really se…

I had to install the last Win 11 release candidate the week before the official release because I needed a new function in WSL2 that was simply unavailable without being part of the "Insiders Program".

I gave it a week instead of a day because I'm old and change is difficult but, if anything, the productivity impacts of their design choices were even more apparent at the end of that week.

Force tab grouping on the Taskbar? That stupid half context menu that requires an additional click to reach the real context menu?

Everything seemed designed to take at least two more clicks than Win10 while offering worse situational awareness as to what was open on my workstation.

I agree, Win11 is not a love letter to users. It's a drunken 3AM rant.

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#406

Post by contravariant »

keithnz wrote: post #400
aufhebung wrote: post #327

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The centered start menu is terrible UX. In 10 you just move your mouse to the bottom corner, where in 11 the position changes. Of course, everyone except your grandma knows you can just press the windows key on your keyboard to open the menu. But grandma is also the person least likely to have the dexterity to hit the tiny button in the middle left of the screen.

I think the grandma case is just made up. I've seen older people use win11 just fine, they aren't so incompetent that they can't click a button on their task bar. If they are having trouble with that, then even if they could get to the windows button easily in the corner, they'd have a tricky job clicking any of the things that come up in the windows menu which are all the same size, and now, not even aligned to the…

This isn't about being competent this is about stuff in corners of the screen being easier to hit.

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#407

Post by fomine3 »

cronix wrote: post #22

So far in the last year or so, I've heard 0 reasons why I'd even need, want or benefit from Win11 over Win10. Tons of reasons in the negative column though. There isn't even anything to salivate over that might make you think it might be worth it to deal with the other tradeoffs. Hard pass.

I upgraded to Win11 for supporting A2DP AAC codec. I'm fine with new explorer, angry for new taskbar and start menu. Nothing is improved for those but just degrade.

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#408

Post by rossy »

zarzavat wrote: post #351
2pEXgD0fZ5cF wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Microsoft, like many other big modern tech companies, just treat goodwill like a currency. Now the time has come to spend it again. I don't believe for a second that EEE is gone from Microsofts culture and strategy.

It's more that Microsoft is a huge company that contains both benevolent and malevolent actors. The Windows team has embraced dark patterns wholeheartedly whereas the VSCode team is doing good work to earn developer love. That these goals are in complete opposition seems to not trouble MS execs.

It's not surprising that Microsoft's developer team is the one gathering goodwill, and it's not because they just happen to be staffed by good people. Microsoft bet against open source and lost, and they were watching themselves lose developer mindshare in real time with the rise of GitHub and open source languages/runtimes like Python, Node.js and Ruby, most of which run better and are easier to use (especially with native addons) in Linux and Unix (incl. macOS.) So suddenly you see VS Code, WSL, Windows Terminal, Azure, .NET Core, POSIX semantics in the Windows API, and so on, all aimed at keeping developers (but not end-users) running Windows on bare-metal, or at least using Microsoft cross-platform software in place of non-Microsoft cross-platform software.

On the other hand, Windows, which is absolutely dominant among end-users, is the one employing dark patterns because they know it isn't under threat. These aren't coincidences.

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#409

Post by paxys »

prox wrote: post #280
gentleman11 wrote: post #274

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Microsoft already warns you that Firefox might be malware and that edge is more secure sometimes. It’s only one step away from a full ban. Decades ago, they got the monopoly treatment for this stuff

Isn’t Microsoft gonna get slapped hard by the EU as anti competitive practice? They are already got a fine for that when IE6 was around.

It’s a very different world today than when Microsoft went through antitrust proceedings for IE6. Regulatory authorities worldwide are getting more toothless by the day. Heck Apple doesn’t even let you use alternate browsers or install your own apps and they are celebrated for it. On what basis would there be action against Microsoft now?

Re: Windows 11 Officially Shuts Down Firefox’s Default Browser Workaround

#410

Post by bsder »

willis936 wrote: post #92
InitialLastName wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That gives me four years for the tools that lock me to Windows to decide to port to literally any other OS.

I'm not old and I have lived to see this sentiment come and go at least twice before. We're still on Windows.

Office365 being web/cloud based is a big difference this time.

A normal office worker wouldn't have much difference whether their desktop is Windows, Linux, Chromebook, etc.

Office workers follow breadcrumb trails through tech. As long as somebody gives them a document explaining how to follow the breadcrumbs, they don't care about anything else.

Post reply on HN