11 ms·

Firefox Profilemaker

213 points by octosphere 8y ago

nicoburns 8y ago
I wish Firefox exposed a better UI for it's profiles. It seems like a really powerful feature that is much less useful than it might be due to poor ergonomics...
- sebazzz 8y ago
  I feel that it has become less useful since containerised tabs were introduced. One of the use cases for profiles were using a separate browsing profile.
  - unethical_ban 8y ago
    Agreed, but some of this stuff is for global browser behavior, while container tabs only isolate cookies/localstorage for sites. Profiles should be easy to use, like any other application: When you logout of one profile and into another, everything changes.
  - owaty 8y ago
    Is it possible to clear all cookies in the main profile while leaving the cookies in the containers intact?
- WorldMaker 8y ago
  That's something that I like about experiments in "Container Tabs", where you get the power of separate profiles, but the ability to mix-and-match them in the same browser window and opening a profile can be as simple as opening a new tab. I understand though why Mozilla seems to be having such a hard time converging on a UX for Container Tabs that makes everyone happy and it may be impossible to ever surface 100% of the power of profiles to the average user. But -ProfileManager is so long in the tooth and so clearly predates modern niceties that it would be great for better UI/UX out of the box today.
  - navs 8y ago
    I don’t understand why Firefox removed the tab exposé feature they had. Clicking a button gave you a look at all your open tabs allowing you to then drag them into groups. Only your active group was displayed but you could always switch to another group when browsing in a different context. Combine that experience with the current Containers sandboxing feature and that would be a dream.
    - sorenjan 8y ago
      You can read more about the decision to remove it on Mozilla's Bugzilla [0]. There are extension providing pretty much the same experience, like Panorama view [1]. I agree that it's very convenient to separate tabs into separate topics, and only view the ones that are relevant at any time. [0] https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1222550 https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1222550 [1] https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/panorama-view/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/panorama-view...
  - alexis_fr 8y ago
    « Container Tabs » doesn’t build trust in user’s mind. You’re always one click away from sending data with the wrong profile. With Chrome, you get a separate window, and different skins, and a different data folder on the hard drive, you can at least comfort yourself with the idea that you’ve somewhat isolated your lives. Besides the classic work/home/sysadmin profiles, I also have a profile for browsing websites like /r/MensRights or christian websites: People have been fired for way less, so with such an incentive, Firefox tabs are way below expectations in terms of design.
    - WorldMaker 8y ago
      That's a solvable UX problem. Admittedly, it's a UX problem that Mozilla has struggled with trying to build a UX that is trustworthy for both inexperienced users and power users alike. Most browsers already have highly separated threads/processes for different tabs for performance reasons alone, but also cross-tab security issues. In most cases the technical difference between two tabs in the same window and two tabs in different windows is minimal. Technical differences in profiles such as different data folder on the hard drive is even already a part of Firefox's container tabs. There is definitely an experiential difference, but a lot of the same signifiers (different themes / different "title" bars / etc) can be brought in and applied to multiple tabs in the same window, switching with tabs themselves. Or perhaps new UX signifiers might be developed that work better in a mixed tab space. It was encouraging that Mozilla was experimenting in that space, at least, even if what they built they weren't entirely happy with user studies of it. Again, the fundamental issue should be solvable with enough applied UX. We likely haven't discovered the solution for that yet (especially not one usable by novice users), but its still something interesting to continue to research and something that I hope is continued to be researched. (PS If you are worried about getting fired over your dirty laundry, I'm not sure airing it in cleartext on HN is exactly the right idea either.)
- nachtigall 8y ago
  True, but it got better with about:profiles (enter this in the address bar in firefox)
papayawhip 8y ago
I feel the strong need to point out some of these settings will break Firefox in subtle and hard to understand ways. There’s a reason you “void the warranty” when tweaking the about:config preferences. No rule against it, but just watch out. (Mozilla employee)
- unethical_ban 8y ago
  I won't ask for a complete audit, but is there one example from the wizard that could break stuff, that is NOT called out by the wizard itself?
  - gruez 8y ago
    That might be true for a technical user, but is the average user going to know that discord is broken because they disabled webrtc? Also, resistfingerprinting is going to significantly increase the difficulty of recaptcha challenges you encounter.
    - cpeterso 8y ago
      ResistFingerprinting is currently known to break Google's Recaptcha v3. Here is the Firefox bug: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1503872 https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1503872
      - jammygit 8y ago
        I wonder just how much security relies on tracking. I know my VPN makes captchas an absolute nightmare.
      - lambda 8y ago
        I always have a hard time using some services when in incognito mode; I get the captchas, and either they are wrong or are really hard, and it can take several tries to get through them.
    - gsich 8y ago
gruez 8y ago
>Disable malware scan >The malware scan sends an unique identifier for each downloaded file to Google. AFAIK that's not how safebrowsing works. it checks the hash against a local database, and it only sends the hash to google if there's a match.
- cpeterso 8y ago
  You're correct. Firefox compares a hash of the URL in question to a local database of hashes of unsafe URLs. If a an unsafe hash match is found, Firefox will then double check by contacting Google's Safe Browsing server to request the current status for a truncated part of the suspect URL plus some random "chaff" hashes. So Google never receives the suspect URL or even the URL's full hash. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-does-phishing-and-malware-protection-work https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-does-phishing-and-m...
  - Sylos 8y ago
    More technical article: https://feeding.cloud.geek.nz/posts/how-safe-browsing-works-in-firefox/ https://feeding.cloud.geek.nz/posts/how-safe-browsing-works-...
oneplane 8y ago
I wonder if this is portable to Thunderbird. Would be nice to be able to provision profiles.
baliex 8y ago
I'm not after a whole profile-builder but the Google Redirects Fixer & Tracking Remover add-on (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-GB/firefox/addon/google-no-tracking-url/reviews/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-GB/firefox/addon/google-no-tra...) caught my eye. Unfortunately look's like it's defunct, a bunch of 1-star reviews being left recently. Perhaps worth removing it from the tool if the author is here?
- 10bass 8y ago
  An alternative that works would be "Google search link fix" [1], which is written/maintained by the current developer of Adblock Plus. (There's probably no reason that the core script [2] couldn't be adapted into a userscript for Tampermonkey/Greasemonkey/etc. if he isn't considered trusted.) It does currently have a problem on Firefox for Android where a long-press on a link doesn't trigger the tracking removal. [3] [1]: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/google-search-link-fix/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/google-search... [2]: https://github.com/palant/searchlinkfix/blob/master/data/content.js https://github.com/palant/searchlinkfix/blob/master/data/con... [3]: https://github.com/palant/searchlinkfix/issues/71 https://github.com/palant/searchlinkfix/issues/71
igoose1 8y ago
Found that when was trying to make Firefox browser safer. I'd recommend to read these notes of Firefox config: https://www.privacytools.io/#about_config https://www.privacytools.io/#about_config It might be difficult to read, but there a little bit more information and links which aim to protect privacy.
pretty_bubbles 8y ago
Mozilla Hello ? This is a very very old website if it still mentions that product. I think it was shutdown years ago.
garysahota93 8y ago
I used to work in IT and had built this exact thing via Python for large scale, role-based, preference management on our workstations (particularly in lab situation at Universities). I wish chrome had something similar!
keyle 8y ago
I've seen expensive training seminars for less options than that! It's sad that someone would ever need to know half of these to browse the Internet safely.
nwrk 8y ago
Something like this should be made for all Microsoft products. Really love how transparent this is + description of each field.
- vtesucks 8y ago
  Every single MS product is configurable by registry. You just have to know the right keys. Fire up that powershell
dangom 8y ago
If I opt for multiple "hidden" settings that make my browser more private, am I not giving away my privacy? I mean, finger-printers will notice my unique fingerprint consisting of tailor made privacy choices.
vtesucks 8y ago
How do I get the two row address bar back? I don't know who decided it was a good idea to have it single row without doing basic UX research.

213 points by octosphere 8y ago

I wish Firefox exposed a better UI for it's profiles. It seems like a really powerful feature that is much less useful than it might be due to poor ergonomics...

sebazzz 8y ago
I feel that it has become less useful since containerised tabs were introduced. One of the use cases for profiles were using a separate browsing profile.
- unethical_ban 8y ago
  Agreed, but some of this stuff is for global browser behavior, while container tabs only isolate cookies/localstorage for sites. Profiles should be easy to use, like any other application: When you logout of one profile and into another, everything changes.
- owaty 8y ago
  Is it possible to clear all cookies in the main profile while leaving the cookies in the containers intact?
WorldMaker 8y ago
That's something that I like about experiments in "Container Tabs", where you get the power of separate profiles, but the ability to mix-and-match them in the same browser window and opening a profile can be as simple as opening a new tab. I understand though why Mozilla seems to be having such a hard time converging on a UX for Container Tabs that makes everyone happy and it may be impossible to ever surface 100% of the power of profiles to the average user. But -ProfileManager is so long in the tooth and so clearly predates modern niceties that it would be great for better UI/UX out of the box today.
- navs 8y ago
  I don’t understand why Firefox removed the tab exposé feature they had. Clicking a button gave you a look at all your open tabs allowing you to then drag them into groups. Only your active group was displayed but you could always switch to another group when browsing in a different context. Combine that experience with the current Containers sandboxing feature and that would be a dream.
  - sorenjan 8y ago
    You can read more about the decision to remove it on Mozilla's Bugzilla [0]. There are extension providing pretty much the same experience, like Panorama view [1]. I agree that it's very convenient to separate tabs into separate topics, and only view the ones that are relevant at any time. [0] https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1222550 https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1222550 [1] https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/panorama-view/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/panorama-view...
- alexis_fr 8y ago
  « Container Tabs » doesn’t build trust in user’s mind. You’re always one click away from sending data with the wrong profile. With Chrome, you get a separate window, and different skins, and a different data folder on the hard drive, you can at least comfort yourself with the idea that you’ve somewhat isolated your lives. Besides the classic work/home/sysadmin profiles, I also have a profile for browsing websites like /r/MensRights or christian websites: People have been fired for way less, so with such an incentive, Firefox tabs are way below expectations in terms of design.
  - WorldMaker 8y ago
    That's a solvable UX problem. Admittedly, it's a UX problem that Mozilla has struggled with trying to build a UX that is trustworthy for both inexperienced users and power users alike. Most browsers already have highly separated threads/processes for different tabs for performance reasons alone, but also cross-tab security issues. In most cases the technical difference between two tabs in the same window and two tabs in different windows is minimal. Technical differences in profiles such as different data folder on the hard drive is even already a part of Firefox's container tabs. There is definitely an experiential difference, but a lot of the same signifiers (different themes / different "title" bars / etc) can be brought in and applied to multiple tabs in the same window, switching with tabs themselves. Or perhaps new UX signifiers might be developed that work better in a mixed tab space. It was encouraging that Mozilla was experimenting in that space, at least, even if what they built they weren't entirely happy with user studies of it. Again, the fundamental issue should be solvable with enough applied UX. We likely haven't discovered the solution for that yet (especially not one usable by novice users), but its still something interesting to continue to research and something that I hope is continued to be researched. (PS If you are worried about getting fired over your dirty laundry, I'm not sure airing it in cleartext on HN is exactly the right idea either.)
nachtigall 8y ago
True, but it got better with about:profiles (enter this in the address bar in firefox)

papayawhip 8y ago

I feel the strong need to point out some of these settings will break Firefox in subtle and hard to understand ways. There’s a reason you “void the warranty” when tweaking the about:config preferences. No rule against it, but just watch out. (Mozilla employee)

unethical_ban 8y ago
I won't ask for a complete audit, but is there one example from the wizard that could break stuff, that is NOT called out by the wizard itself?
- gruez 8y ago
  That might be true for a technical user, but is the average user going to know that discord is broken because they disabled webrtc? Also, resistfingerprinting is going to significantly increase the difficulty of recaptcha challenges you encounter.
  - cpeterso 8y ago
    ResistFingerprinting is currently known to break Google's Recaptcha v3. Here is the Firefox bug: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1503872 https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1503872
    - jammygit 8y ago
      I wonder just how much security relies on tracking. I know my VPN makes captchas an absolute nightmare.
    - lambda 8y ago
      I always have a hard time using some services when in incognito mode; I get the captchas, and either they are wrong or are really hard, and it can take several tries to get through them.
  - gsich 8y ago

gruez 8y ago

>Disable malware scan >The malware scan sends an unique identifier for each downloaded file to Google. AFAIK that's not how safebrowsing works. it checks the hash against a local database, and it only sends the hash to google if there's a match.

cpeterso 8y ago
You're correct. Firefox compares a hash of the URL in question to a local database of hashes of unsafe URLs. If a an unsafe hash match is found, Firefox will then double check by contacting Google's Safe Browsing server to request the current status for a truncated part of the suspect URL plus some random "chaff" hashes. So Google never receives the suspect URL or even the URL's full hash. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-does-phishing-and-malware-protection-work https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-does-phishing-and-m...
- Sylos 8y ago
  More technical article: https://feeding.cloud.geek.nz/posts/how-safe-browsing-works-in-firefox/ https://feeding.cloud.geek.nz/posts/how-safe-browsing-works-...

oneplane 8y ago

I wonder if this is portable to Thunderbird. Would be nice to be able to provision profiles.

baliex 8y ago

I'm not after a whole profile-builder but the Google Redirects Fixer & Tracking Remover add-on (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-GB/firefox/addon/google-no-tracking-url/reviews/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-GB/firefox/addon/google-no-tra...) caught my eye. Unfortunately look's like it's defunct, a bunch of 1-star reviews being left recently. Perhaps worth removing it from the tool if the author is here?

10bass 8y ago
An alternative that works would be "Google search link fix" [1], which is written/maintained by the current developer of Adblock Plus. (There's probably no reason that the core script [2] couldn't be adapted into a userscript for Tampermonkey/Greasemonkey/etc. if he isn't considered trusted.) It does currently have a problem on Firefox for Android where a long-press on a link doesn't trigger the tracking removal. [3] [1]: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/google-search-link-fix/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/google-search... [2]: https://github.com/palant/searchlinkfix/blob/master/data/content.js https://github.com/palant/searchlinkfix/blob/master/data/con... [3]: https://github.com/palant/searchlinkfix/issues/71 https://github.com/palant/searchlinkfix/issues/71

igoose1 8y ago

Found that when was trying to make Firefox browser safer. I'd recommend to read these notes of Firefox config: https://www.privacytools.io/#about_config https://www.privacytools.io/#about_config It might be difficult to read, but there a little bit more information and links which aim to protect privacy.

pretty_bubbles 8y ago

Mozilla Hello ? This is a very very old website if it still mentions that product. I think it was shutdown years ago.

garysahota93 8y ago

I used to work in IT and had built this exact thing via Python for large scale, role-based, preference management on our workstations (particularly in lab situation at Universities). I wish chrome had something similar!

keyle 8y ago

I've seen expensive training seminars for less options than that! It's sad that someone would ever need to know half of these to browse the Internet safely.

nwrk 8y ago

Something like this should be made for all Microsoft products. Really love how transparent this is + description of each field.

vtesucks 8y ago
Every single MS product is configurable by registry. You just have to know the right keys. Fire up that powershell

dangom 8y ago

If I opt for multiple "hidden" settings that make my browser more private, am I not giving away my privacy? I mean, finger-printers will notice my unique fingerprint consisting of tailor made privacy choices.

vtesucks 8y ago

How do I get the two row address bar back? I don't know who decided it was a good idea to have it single row without doing basic UX research.