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Lest we forget: A third party company (funded by venture capital) created something called "Pocket", which allowed you to save any article you were reading to

Lest we forget: A third party company (funded by venture capital) created something called "Pocket", which allowed you to save any article you were reading to their service. Pocket had an extension that you could choose to download & enable on your Firefox browser. For apparently no reason at all, in June 2015, Mozilla integrated the proprietary Pocket into their open source browser, not just as an optional extension but as part of the default installation. The only way to disable Pocket was to go into "about:config", as the option was not available in the "Extensions" toolbar. (Later, Mozilla Corporation purchased the company Pocket, though at the time Pocket was introduced as an inextricable part of Firefox, Pocket was a separate company.) The Mr. Robot addon had some similarities with the Pocket fiasco: 1. it was pushed to users without their knowledge or consent 2. it was integration of a plugin for a private company into an open-source project 3. it was a decision by marketing, and not development I am not quite sure how or when we can begin to trust Mozilla Firefox, and what they would need to do to regain that trust.

calcifer 9y ago
> The only way to disable Pocket was to go into "about:config", as the option was not available in the "Extensions" toolbar. This isn't exactly correct. The Pocket integration did absolutely nothing at all until and unless you tried to use it. So by "disabling" it from about:config all you did was to remove the icon.
- yarrel 9y ago
  That isn't correct. Try the new mobile Firefox. Buying Pocket signalled that if you can take the right Mozillan to lunch, you can get an early exit. That did not solve the problem. It's still impossible to remove Pocket.
  - calcifer 9y ago
    I think you misunderstood me. The Pocket integration in Firefox does literally nothing (not even a single network request) if you don't actively try to use it. So by "remove Pocket" or "disable Pocket" all you really mean is "hide the icon" because there really is no difference.
    - seanp2k2 9y ago
      I get it, but the code is still there. What if Apache httpd came with a commercial module that was disabled by default but bundled with the base package? It’s not THAT bad compared to what some software companies do, but...why do it at all? Is Mozilla getting paid, similar to using !Google as the default search engine? If so, it’s more understandable. If not, what is the justification for not just making it a regular add-on?
  - leeoniya 9y ago
    yes, this is the part that bugs me. they solved the privacy concern in a very awkward manner (via acquisition) but not the user choice concern. it is impossible to believe that pocket is so integrated into the codebase that it cannot live as a removable addon. it was an addonafter all. fwiw, firefox sync should also be a removable addon. i am fine with mozilla installing these as removable addons at major version upgrades. i am not fine with silently side-loading and permanent non-removable integration. i need my tools to be secure, reliable and predictable.
  - anonemouse145 9y ago
    Yes, the latest mobile Firefox does make network requests. When Firefox updated, I got a "recommended by Pocket" section full of ads and click bait. I do not want that. And it's on about:blank just like when Chrome started capping up the blank page. I had to install a script to load an actual blank HTML page because about:blank isn't blank.
    - ta87786554 9y ago
      I turned on transparent proxying for HTTP and HTTPS the other day to see what requests FF was up to for its highlights on the supposedly blank page etc. It's very chatty, annoyingly. Captive portal check on all requests that has to be disabled in about:config and a laundry list more. That config is scarily full of remote and telemetry based URLs also, but at least they are co figurable I guess. An open source browser that just does what you want and no more seems like a dying hope.
- adambard 9y ago
  Sure, but until you do Firefox comes bundled with an ad for Pocket in the toolbar at all times.
  - Rebelgecko 9y ago
    Or until you right click the icon and remove it.
ako 9y ago
I actually like the pocket integration: these days more than. >50% of what I read, I read though pocket. Anything interesting is saved to pocket and read there. Pocket really makes the Internet a lot more readable, and I applaud Mozilla for recognising that, and making that as easy as possible. Regarding the I robot thing, I must be living under a rock, had not heard of it before today. Storm in a glass of water.
badrequest 9y ago
> For apparently no reason at all Mozilla acquired Pocket in February: https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2017/02/27/mozilla-acquires-pocket/ https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2017/02/27/mozilla-acquires-po...
bwat49 9y ago
> The only way to disable Pocket was to go into "about:config" All you had to do was remove it from the toolbar. Pocket is/was lazily loaded, it doesn't do anything if you're not using it.

calcifer 9y ago

> The only way to disable Pocket was to go into "about:config", as the option was not available in the "Extensions" toolbar. This isn't exactly correct. The Pocket integration did absolutely nothing at all until and unless you tried to use it. So by "disabling" it from about:config all you did was to remove the icon.

yarrel 9y ago
That isn't correct. Try the new mobile Firefox. Buying Pocket signalled that if you can take the right Mozillan to lunch, you can get an early exit. That did not solve the problem. It's still impossible to remove Pocket.
- calcifer 9y ago
  I think you misunderstood me. The Pocket integration in Firefox does literally nothing (not even a single network request) if you don't actively try to use it. So by "remove Pocket" or "disable Pocket" all you really mean is "hide the icon" because there really is no difference.
  - seanp2k2 9y ago
    I get it, but the code is still there. What if Apache httpd came with a commercial module that was disabled by default but bundled with the base package? It’s not THAT bad compared to what some software companies do, but...why do it at all? Is Mozilla getting paid, similar to using !Google as the default search engine? If so, it’s more understandable. If not, what is the justification for not just making it a regular add-on?
- leeoniya 9y ago
  yes, this is the part that bugs me. they solved the privacy concern in a very awkward manner (via acquisition) but not the user choice concern. it is impossible to believe that pocket is so integrated into the codebase that it cannot live as a removable addon. it was an addonafter all. fwiw, firefox sync should also be a removable addon. i am fine with mozilla installing these as removable addons at major version upgrades. i am not fine with silently side-loading and permanent non-removable integration. i need my tools to be secure, reliable and predictable.
- anonemouse145 9y ago
  Yes, the latest mobile Firefox does make network requests. When Firefox updated, I got a "recommended by Pocket" section full of ads and click bait. I do not want that. And it's on about:blank just like when Chrome started capping up the blank page. I had to install a script to load an actual blank HTML page because about:blank isn't blank.
  - ta87786554 9y ago
    I turned on transparent proxying for HTTP and HTTPS the other day to see what requests FF was up to for its highlights on the supposedly blank page etc. It's very chatty, annoyingly. Captive portal check on all requests that has to be disabled in about:config and a laundry list more. That config is scarily full of remote and telemetry based URLs also, but at least they are co figurable I guess. An open source browser that just does what you want and no more seems like a dying hope.
adambard 9y ago
Sure, but until you do Firefox comes bundled with an ad for Pocket in the toolbar at all times.
- Rebelgecko 9y ago
  Or until you right click the icon and remove it.

ako 9y ago

I actually like the pocket integration: these days more than. >50% of what I read, I read though pocket. Anything interesting is saved to pocket and read there. Pocket really makes the Internet a lot more readable, and I applaud Mozilla for recognising that, and making that as easy as possible. Regarding the I robot thing, I must be living under a rock, had not heard of it before today. Storm in a glass of water.

badrequest 9y ago

> For apparently no reason at all Mozilla acquired Pocket in February: https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2017/02/27/mozilla-acquires-pocket/ https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2017/02/27/mozilla-acquires-po...

bwat49 9y ago

> The only way to disable Pocket was to go into "about:config" All you had to do was remove it from the toolbar. Pocket is/was lazily loaded, it doesn't do anything if you're not using it.