The newest version of Firefox added browser.ml.linkPreview.* settings in about:config, which apparently serve no purpose other than popping up massive, stupid overlays where they offer to use AI to describe the bookmark you've visited 500 times.
So fuckin' stupid that we have to constantly disable more and more settings they've randomly added to get around the fact that we've disabled all the settings. It's just the fucking worst, people that run companies are all brain-dead assholes.
@hermannus @mrt181 @Craigp Most of us have realised that we need Firefox (or at least Gecko) in the market to keep Google from dominating the Browser space and therefore having too much power to influence future web standards.
That Firefox seem intent on destroying themselves is a problem - and installing a different browser doesn't solve for the systemic problem here.
@StryderNotavi
You have to explain that one to me a bit more, please.
Fwis:
- market domination isn't good and there should abolutely be a balance.
- to much US big tech: same
- switching browsers to smaller ones (also: ditching Google, Bing) should therefor be a good thing, right?
I get where we're coming from. But now?
Voting with your feet (a.i. switching) isn't the best way of showing a company their policies are crap?
@hermannus @mrt181 @Craigp Switching to smaller browsers is good on its own.
But pretty much all of the smaller browsers are basically a skin around one of only three (Chrome, Gecko/Firefox or WebKit) engines.
Chrome is already by far the largest (with Edge, Brave and several others being built on it). If we saw more consolidation on Chrome based browsers then we'd also need to worry about Google using that to shape web standards in their favour and further entrench our dependence on them.
@hermannus @mrt181 @Craigp And, for clarity - I'm not saying that you shouldn't switch.
Its that switching away is not the end of the problem.
Which is why your response was offtopic earlier. It doesn't really solve the problem people were actually discussing.
@StryderNotavi
Well that is the advantage of OSS, you can always have a core to pick and build on.
The problem is creating a developping community. And/with a userbase "that gets it" and doesn't fall for all the bling (like AI)
Perhaps within the EU we should develop a new core engine ....
@hermannus @mrt181 @Craigp Apparently Linux Foundation Europe are the ones currently working on Servo, so there's a starting point for that idea there.
Whilst I like Librewolf and Waterfox, I don't think either has the resources to maintain a complete browser engine on their own.
@Craigp
Use policies to make it more resistant for Mozilla to turn them back on silently and apply to multiple profiles (and perhaps clones).
(`prefs.js` did not work for me for some reason.)
https://mozilla.github.io/policy-templates/#generativeai
CC: @eniko
There's hope...
> Something that hasn't been made clear: Firefox will have an option to completely disable all AI features.
> We've been calling it the AI kill switch internally. I'm sure it'll ship with a less murderous name, but that's how seriously and absolutely we're taking this.
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