The most annoying attempt to foist Edge as a browser is the (new?) setting of a separate default browser for opening links in Outlook 365. Took me 10 minutes to understand why Edge opens. WTF.
Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
81–90 of 330 posts
Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#82Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#83Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's the worst part (and I know that most people will never buy a license because they get it through their OEM or just crack it) but Microsoft are still happy to charge you £220 for a Windows 11 Pro licence [0] and shove ads in your face. [0] https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/d/windows-11-pro/dg7gmgf0d8h...
The second all my games are fully compatible with Linux natively, I'm ditching that horrible "does it all, but poorly" corporation.
Then stop buying games that are not?
Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#84When the fuck is this going to stop! Microsoft lost this monopolizing tactic in a court case decades ago. It seems either no one remembers this fact or that Microsoft hopes it's so. Regulators will you please damn-well regulate. In simple English, do your fucking job.
It's not the same situation as back then.
1. They don't have the same browser market share at all.
2. They don't have the same operating system market share they used to either (specifically, they lost the mobile space - which is how majority of people in the world access the internet).
3. It's easier to use another browser now on Windows then back when it was at its worst in 00s (where IE was more or less part of explorer.exe / core of Windows).
Above can make a huge difference legally. Specifically your reference to the previous court case, which was built on point 1-2 above. Key word here being monopoly and how it's defined.
Apple lived (until a few weeks ago, still do outside EU) in a world where it's OK to have it basically impossible to install another (real) browser on it's biggest OS, or install any app of your choosing without their blessing (and a 10-30% cut on revenue!) for that matter.
It's complex for sure.
It's unfortunate imo that Mozilla/FF got squashed by Chrome, and also made some questionable strategic decisions in the last 10-15 years. Performance, simplicity, stability and keeping up with me web tech being key USPs of Chrome, compared to competition. Note that absent from that list is monopolistic abuse (even though Google has it's fair share of that as well). In other words, you don't win the browser war by simply using monopolistic abuse as a strategy, you need to primarily win on value to your end users. That's at least how it's been in the past.
Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#85Earlier quoted context omitted.
Some much this. I wish there was an option with the current core but something like a lightweight Windows 2000 UI.
WinPE and other stripped-down unofficial "distros" of Windows do exist. Someone will try to run the Win2k shell on a Win11 kernel, if it hasn't already been done. Based on what MS has done with backwards-compatibility, I wouldn't be surprised if it almost "just works". Win10's UI on Win11: https://www.reddit.com/r/Windows11/comments/o6ysyb/so_i_repl...
I actually once saw the Win 7 UI appear behind the Win 11 UI in Acrobat Reader.
Not sure if this was some Acrobat specific stuff or if it’s still “there” in general.
Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#86Earlier quoted context omitted.
Deep analysis of Pocket and other crapware would be nice.
Well, of course we use Pocket if the native browser bookmarking function doesn't save the full text of the page for search. Why can't we have the tiniest improvement for bookmarking in browsers in 25 years? It's like they took an oath to never improve it.
I removed it all the time, but after update it came back like a malware.
Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#87Earlier quoted context omitted.
> The second all my games are fully compatible with Linux natively, I'm ditching I've been seeing this sentiment since 2001 at least. No one ever follows through; if they did we would have seen this already in the desktop stats. You will, whether you consciously realise it or not, switch to playing windows exclusive games the minute all your games run on Linux, hence you will never switch.
>if they did we would have seen this already in the desktop stats Well you can see it. Linux is used by 4.25% of all English speaking Steam users. And its trending upward. https://www.gamingonlinux.com/steam-tracker/
That's a statistic that is irrelevant to my point.
It is not a statistic of Linux desktop share, it's a statistic of existing Linux users, not windows migrations.
Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#88MacOS allows you to "hard click" (long click) a text selection in any application, which pops up a bubble that lets you do a web search for that phrase. But the search only launches Safari. I wasted at least a couple hours scouring boards and kext files, screwing with automation macros, trying to find a way to make this potentially helpful shortcut not open Safari, but instead open Firefox. Eventually I just gave up.…
I utilize the 'select/highlight`–'search web` flow numerous times throughout the day. I am on iOS and, like you, was unable to force the 'search web` highlight selection option to default to a non-Safari browser. However, I use the functionality you speak of through a different invocation: 'select/highlight`–'define`–'search web`. Interestingly enough, this procedure — once a non-Safari browser is set as the default web browser for the iOS device and/or the specification of preferred search engine — redirects towards the user's browser (as well as search engine) of choice. I shall investigate these functionalities' behavior on macOS — id est, desktop — tomorrow possibly and will get back to you noduerme.
{Edit: deletion: " . . . ~such~ redirects . . . "}
Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#89Windows just keeps getting weirder. There's this regrettable dichotomy between (1) a rock solid OS core with great features like Hyper-V, PowerShell and exceptional back-compat, and (2) a crap, sluggish, inconsistent UI slapped on top, laden with ads, "Rewards" Points and tracking.
I don't know, Windows 11 came with many things I've wanted for years: - notepad with tabs - shell UI with tabs, VT-100 support and ability to replace the shell - Paint.net with AI - even Windbg has massively improved
Ahhh, tabs... it only took 40 years!
Re: Over the edge: The use of design tactics to undermine browser choice
#90Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's the worst part (and I know that most people will never buy a license because they get it through their OEM or just crack it) but Microsoft are still happy to charge you £220 for a Windows 11 Pro licence [0] and shove ads in your face. [0] https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/d/windows-11-pro/dg7gmgf0d8h...
OEM licenses are not exactly free or cheap. I was perusing the local shops a couple of weeks ago and the same exact laptop without a Windows Home license is always $100 cheaper, no exceptions. More than that for Pro or whatever the fuck it's called. So most people will buy a license, they'll simply not be aware of it. How convenient for MS.
"OEM" licenses sold by retail is not at all representative of what actual PC makers pay, which is of course going to massively vary. I wouldn't be surprised if some manufacturers, especially those who have been flirting with Linux, have instead been paid to install Windows.