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siljaline
I'm lovin' that double wide
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join:2002-10-12
Montreal, QC

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siljaline

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Mozilla Will Serve Ads Within Tiles Of Its New Tab Pages

Mozilla To Sell Ads In Firefox Web Browser
»adage.com/article/specia ··· /291641/
Mo' Money Mozilla: Firefox to Introduce Sponsored Content
»mashable.com/2014/02/11/ ··· fox-ads/
Publisher Transformation with Users at the Center
»blog.mozilla.org/advanci ··· -center/
Assuming the Moz KB is no longer relevant - Mozilla are in for a user and Industry backlash. »support.mozilla.org/en-U ··· p-sites?

sivran
Vive Vivaldi
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join:2003-09-15
Irving, TX

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sivran

Premium Member

Time for me to switch browsers again I guess. Whether it's a third party build or something else entirely...

GadgetsRme
RIP lilhurricane and CJ
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join:2002-01-30
Canon City, CO

GadgetsRme to siljaline

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to siljaline
According to the link: »support.mozilla.org/en-U ··· p-sites? This feature can easily be turned off, which is good. If it is not I'll be gone.

Blackbird
Built for Speed
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join:2005-01-14
Fort Wayne, IN

Blackbird to siljaline

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to siljaline
I can't say that it matters a lot to me in terms of how I use a browser. Since using Firefox over the last 6 months or so, I've yet to open a blank tab. Every new tab I employ is already occupied with the sought link that opens it, and when I start it up, it goes to my local home page. Back when I used Presto Opera, I always killed off all the SpeedDials for the same reason (being that I never used them). I guess the impact of ads on a blank tab depends on how one uses the browser...

dandelion
MVM
join:2003-04-29
Germantown, TN

1 edit

dandelion to siljaline

MVM

to siljaline
I don't use blank tabs but will turn off the "feature" anyway and hope firefox doesn't extend their greediness to more ads.

edited to add:
Though it is looking like maybe time to change browsers fairly soon

siljaline
I'm lovin' that double wide
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join:2002-10-12
Montreal, QC

siljaline to GadgetsRme

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to GadgetsRme
Seems to me unless I'm missing something;
Randall Rothenberg of the IAB have cut a deal with Mozilla at the Palm Springs meeting to monetise the Browser at next release or soon.

trparky
Premium Member
join:2000-05-24
Cleveland, OH
·AT&T U-Verse

1 recommendation

trparky to siljaline

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to siljaline
Some of the things that Mozilla has been doing as of late have indeed made me move to another browser. I use Palemoon myself which is a Firefox derivative meaning that it's based upon the same source code that Firefox uses but most, if not all, of Mozilla's recently added BS removed from it.

Not only that but it's one of only a few 64-bit browsers out there. I figure that if I have a 64-bit CPU, a 64-bit OS, and a crap ton of RAM why am I limiting myself to a 32-bit browser with a 2 GB virtual address space. The 64-bit version of Palemoon runs far better than Firefox.
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1

Premium Member

Another vote for PaleMoon instead of Firefox:
»www.palemoon.org/

I also find the fairly new QupZilla interesting especially as a replacement for the ever-more bloated Chrome:
»www.qupzilla.com/

siljaline
I'm lovin' that double wide
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join:2002-10-12
Montreal, QC

siljaline to dandelion

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to dandelion
Click for full size
How a new blank tab appears on Firefox 27 (excuse late nite screen capture)
Curiosity
join:2001-10-01
Dawson Creek, BC

1 recommendation

Curiosity to siljaline

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to siljaline
One can always use SeaMonkey instead. The new tabs there are blank.
Mele20
Premium Member
join:2001-06-05
Hilo, HI

2 recommendations

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to GadgetsRme
The ads will only affect NEW users of Fx...(for now at least).

Plus, only those who use New Tab Page will be affected. New Tab Page is the worst feature Mozilla ever came out with in the history of its browser IMO. The same applies to Opera when they started the same crap before Mozilla did.

You don't want to just disable this awful stuff. You want to completely kill it:

In about:config set the following as I have them:

browser.newtab.url;about:blank

browser.newtabpage.enabled;false

If you want enhancements to tabbed browsing there are many excellent extensions for that. I use Tree Style Tabs, Multiple Tab Handler, and Informational Tab all by the same author but there are other excellent ones also and they all negate any need for this junk from Mozilla called New Tab Page and now Ads on the new tabs.
NefCanuck
join:2007-06-26
Mississauga, ON

NefCanuck to siljaline

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to siljaline
I'd be curious though if this type of browser behavior would be stopped by using NoScript and / or AdBlock Plus?

NefCanuck

therube
join:2004-11-11
Randallstown, MD

therube to siljaline

Member

to siljaline
For what would seem to be (could end up being) quite a controversial change, they sure don't provide much information!

And really all they need to say (& do) is to state that; this is disabled by default, & its usage is optional per user choice.

And at that point, whether it is there or not is moot, because the Users at the Center.

I'm quite happy that a blank tab opens ... well, a blank tab (in SeaMonkey .)
cdn_dsl
join:2011-01-07
·B2B2C High-Speed..

cdn_dsl to siljaline

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to siljaline
This can only apply to the new versions, and the old versions can be obtained from ftp.mozilla.org/pub thus negating the effort. I stocked up on old FF and TB anyway as the new ones are monstrosities with unnecessary overhead I am apparently not using.

PlusOne
@comcast.net

PlusOne to PX Eliezer1

Anon

to PX Eliezer1
said by PX Eliezer1:

Another vote for PaleMoon instead of Firefox:
»www.palemoon.org/

Thanks for tip on 64 bit PaleMoon browser. Works great on my 64 bit laptop and all but 1 add-on from Firefox I had worked as well.

aussiedog
join:2007-01-10
Mesilla Park, NM

aussiedog to trparky

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to trparky
said by trparky:

I use Palemoon myself which is a Firefox derivative meaning that it's based upon the same source code that Firefox uses but most, if not all, of Mozilla's recently added BS removed from it.

+1 yes indeedy Palemoon is a fine compilation of FF.

siljaline
I'm lovin' that double wide
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join:2002-10-12
Montreal, QC

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Not much point in running older versions as they would obviously be open to exploits, etc - we'll see how this plays out in the next release.

If the money bit (assuming Mozilla goes through with it) can be disabled via opt-out or about:config

For the time being, I've disabled background or internal updates.
You may not want to do the latter at home.

nwrickert
Mod
join:2004-09-04
Geneva, IL

4 recommendations

nwrickert to siljaline

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to siljaline
I'm not sure what Mozilla is doing, but I suspect people are over-reacting.

When I first saw the firefox version of "Speed Dial" (as Opera called it), there was mostly an empty page. After a while, it filled with pages from my browsing history -- until I disabled that.

I suspect that all they are planning, is to pre-fill the page with advertising, which will eventually be pushed out by pages from your browsing history. And they will probably still allow disabling it.

If that's all that they are doing, then I'm not much concerned.

siljaline
I'm lovin' that double wide
Premium Member
join:2002-10-12
Montreal, QC

siljaline

Premium Member

I suspect the Moz folks are doing the wrong thing as well but may back out as the backlash has been significant, to say the least.

Us Firefox users are a resilient bunch and will surely be able to find something to block the ad-tabs, if we see them.

siljaline

1 recommendation

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to Mele20
It would seem all of this is contrary to Mozilla's Manifesto.
»www.mozilla.org/en-US/ab ··· nifesto/

beck
MVM
join:2002-01-29
On The Road

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I just tried Palemoon too. All my stuff seems to work in it.

goalieskates
Premium Member
join:2004-09-12
land of big

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goalieskates to trparky

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to trparky
Palemoon is wonderful, and it cuts out a lot of the sillier Mozilla crap which, lets face it, is always touted as "for the user."

Which, if it really was "for the user" wouldn't cause Mozilla to either close comments or prune any negative ones. It seems if they want an opinion, they'll give it to you. (Which doesn't bode well for future development.)

Pjr
Don't Panic
join:2005-12-11
UK

1 recommendation

Pjr to nwrickert

Member

to nwrickert
said by nwrickert:

I suspect that all they are planning, is to pre-fill the page with advertising, which will eventually be pushed out by pages from your browsing history. And they will probably still allow disabling it.

That was my understanding too.

From »blog.mozilla.org/advanci ··· -center/ :

The newest program is one we’re calling Directory Tiles, which is designed to improve the first-time-with-Firefox experience. Currently, if a new Firefox user opens a new tab, this is what they see:

[Image of a blank new tab]

Their tiles – those nine rectangles that populate over time with the most frequent and recent websites they visit – are empty. The new tab page isn’t delivering any value for them.

Directory Tiles will instead suggest pre-packaged content for first-time users. Some of these tile placements will be from the Mozilla ecosystem, some will be popular websites in a given geographic location, and some will be sponsored content from hand-picked partners to help support Mozilla’s pursuit of our mission. The sponsored tiles will be clearly labeled as such, while still leading to content we think users will enjoy.


Blackbird
Built for Speed
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join:2005-01-14
Fort Wayne, IN

Blackbird to siljaline

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to siljaline
said by siljaline:

It would seem all of this is contrary to Mozilla's Manifesto.
»www.mozilla.org/en-US/ab ··· nifesto/

In what specific ways?

siljaline
I'm lovin' that double wide
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join:2002-10-12
Montreal, QC

1 recommendation

siljaline

Premium Member

said by Blackbird:

In what specific ways?

Transparent community-based processes promote participation, accountability and trust.


Blackbird
Built for Speed
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join:2005-01-14
Fort Wayne, IN

Blackbird

Premium Member

said by siljaline:

said by Blackbird:

In what specific ways?

Transparent community-based processes promote participation, accountability and trust.

I'm honestly not trying to be argumentative, but how does announcing (and presumably executing) a decision about putting ads on a "new tab page" in a forthcoming Firefox version violate transparency of processes, especially since they indicated last summer they were playing with the concept?

I'm not a current expert on Mozilla or how it gets its code written, makes its decisions, nor maintains user trust. I'm just a fairly recent refugee from Opera, arriving at Firefox 25 (now 27) about 6 months ago. When I had last seriously used a Mozilla product before, was back in Firebird days... and I'm trying to understand where/how this decision would go against the principles of Mozilla as I understood them back then - or how those principles might have changed in the intervening years.
TheMG
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Canada
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I had the tiles thing enable for a few weeks after that feature came out. Found them to be quite useless.

90% of the time, when I manually open a new tab, it is to search for something.

So I configured new tabs to automatically load google.com.

about:config

browser.newtab.url set to whatever you want, or about:blank if you just want a blank tab.

siljaline
I'm lovin' that double wide
Premium Member
join:2002-10-12
Montreal, QC

siljaline

Premium Member

said by TheMG:

I had the tiles thing enable for a few weeks after that feature came out. Found them to be quite useless.


As did I - the question remains, at the next build - will one be able to use about:config to remove the new tab ads if they are rolled out at all. The Firefox user world awaits what Mozilla decides to do next.
Mele20
Premium Member
join:2001-06-05
Hilo, HI

1 recommendation

Mele20

Premium Member

Why don't you join the discussion at Mitchell's blog? She's interacting with those responding and says she will post more tomorrow. Ask her directly.

»blog.lizardwrangler.com/ ··· caution/

chachazz
Premium Member
join:2003-12-14

chachazz to siljaline

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to siljaline
Publisher Transformation with Users at the Center
»blog.mozilla.org/advanci ··· -center/

has an update............More Details on Directory Tiles
quote:
*Feb. 13 update: I posted more details about Directory Tiles here.*