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> Chrome didn’t come to dominate the desktop browser market by forcing users’ hand, but by offering a better experience. Disagree strongly. Reasons: - Google

> Chrome didn’t come to dominate the desktop browser market by forcing users’ hand, but by offering a better experience. Disagree strongly. Reasons: - Google has been extremely pushy with Chrome, including lying (IMO) about it on their front page, a place where no other ads have been shown ever (IIRC). - Their own products often don't work in other browsers. Might be an honest mistake but personally I really don't buy the idea that Google cannot afford a QA team, so I'm going with the idea that they classify all this as "really useful bugs". - People keep telling me that Chrome is better. I've tried to like Chrome (before I started shunning Google, I used to be a fanboy) and for me it could never replace Firefox for work (development, support and research). So I go with "better for some people". - Today I'd argue that more than ever Chrome is a worse choice. It's not like they've stopped sending every address you type in back to their AI, and recently they've strayed so far from "Don't be evil" that even they realized it was becoming a joke. (Something something about animals on a farm and pigs painting the barn wall at night.)

cm2187 8y ago
It doesn't matter how pushy or honest is google. Users have to go out of their way to use chrome instead of the default browsers and they still do. And I haven't heard anyone saying "I'd rather use Edge or IE but site xxx only works on Chrome".
- reitanqild 8y ago
  > It doesn't matter how pushy or honest is google. Users have to go out of their way to use chrome instead of the default browsers and they still do. Not entirely true. Chrome as been bundled with other popular software for significant time. Also saying someone has to go out of their way to install it when it is advertised on the front of Google.com isn't my definition of "out of their way".
  - tehduder9 8y ago
    What has chrome ever been "bundled" with? And if it was there was no reason to people to simply not use it. You just can't admit that Chrome does have its merits for some non-logical reason...
    - reitanqild 8y ago
      > What has chrome ever been "bundled" with? The JRE is at the top of my mind. > You just can't admit that Chrome does have its merits for some non-logical reason Disagree again. And I don't really understand where you get that from. I admit Chrome is nice for a lot of people. The reason why it owns the market today is because it is a decent/good browser (except for its huge privacy issues) and because Google has put an enormous effort behind pushing it everywhere all the time.
mda 8y ago
So many conspiracy theories. When did HN become this hysterical...
- AlexandrB 8y ago
  These are not conspiracy theories. They’re practices of a search engine monopolist trying to get an unfair advantage in other markets. Compare and contrast to old Microsoft and browser bundling.
- reitanqild 8y ago
  Please let me know where I either stated something as a fact that isn't, or didn't point out that something was my personal opinion, interpretation or how I remembered it. The closest thing I find that might resemble a conspiracy theory in my post above is probably the part about convient bugs that makes Google products lag in other browsers. In that particular case I agree: it might just be that the front-end devs at Google are seriously unprofessional or that their QA team is really understaffed or bad or something. But I think I pointed to that alternative, just that I didn't find it plausible. Reasonable alternative explanations for why the search results page would keep one core on my machine spinning up, but obly in Firefox or why there's always something with Calendar (but only in Firefox) might be accepted. But personally, even as a one man team at the moment, I try to make sure it works in all browsers.
- deleted 8y ago
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- bepotts 8y ago
  Yeah it's really off putting. A lot of people here cannot come to grips with the fact that many tech companies are big because their customers people love their products; this includes Apple, Google, Facebook, and Amazon. Nobody is pulling a fast one on me when I buy my iPhone and Mac. I know full well what Google and Facebook are doing with my data when I use their sites. I. Don't. Care. They have products and services that I want and I'm happy to fork over cash or data to get them. Please take your conspiracies elsewhere.
  - 8y ago
jgh 8y ago
Chrome started becoming really popular when Firefox started becoming terrible around 10 years ago. Chrome was much faster and had better features. Firefox was bloated and slow and was pretty much resting on its laurels. These days it has inertia on its side, not that it's necessarily better anymore (I would argue Firefox is better now)
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cm2187 8y ago

It doesn't matter how pushy or honest is google. Users have to go out of their way to use chrome instead of the default browsers and they still do. And I haven't heard anyone saying "I'd rather use Edge or IE but site xxx only works on Chrome".

reitanqild 8y ago
> It doesn't matter how pushy or honest is google. Users have to go out of their way to use chrome instead of the default browsers and they still do. Not entirely true. Chrome as been bundled with other popular software for significant time. Also saying someone has to go out of their way to install it when it is advertised on the front of Google.com isn't my definition of "out of their way".
- tehduder9 8y ago
  What has chrome ever been "bundled" with? And if it was there was no reason to people to simply not use it. You just can't admit that Chrome does have its merits for some non-logical reason...
  - reitanqild 8y ago
    > What has chrome ever been "bundled" with? The JRE is at the top of my mind. > You just can't admit that Chrome does have its merits for some non-logical reason Disagree again. And I don't really understand where you get that from. I admit Chrome is nice for a lot of people. The reason why it owns the market today is because it is a decent/good browser (except for its huge privacy issues) and because Google has put an enormous effort behind pushing it everywhere all the time.

mda 8y ago

So many conspiracy theories. When did HN become this hysterical...

AlexandrB 8y ago
These are not conspiracy theories. They’re practices of a search engine monopolist trying to get an unfair advantage in other markets. Compare and contrast to old Microsoft and browser bundling.
reitanqild 8y ago
Please let me know where I either stated something as a fact that isn't, or didn't point out that something was my personal opinion, interpretation or how I remembered it. The closest thing I find that might resemble a conspiracy theory in my post above is probably the part about convient bugs that makes Google products lag in other browsers. In that particular case I agree: it might just be that the front-end devs at Google are seriously unprofessional or that their QA team is really understaffed or bad or something. But I think I pointed to that alternative, just that I didn't find it plausible. Reasonable alternative explanations for why the search results page would keep one core on my machine spinning up, but obly in Firefox or why there's always something with Calendar (but only in Firefox) might be accepted. But personally, even as a one man team at the moment, I try to make sure it works in all browsers.
deleted 8y ago
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bepotts 8y ago
Yeah it's really off putting. A lot of people here cannot come to grips with the fact that many tech companies are big because their customers people love their products; this includes Apple, Google, Facebook, and Amazon. Nobody is pulling a fast one on me when I buy my iPhone and Mac. I know full well what Google and Facebook are doing with my data when I use their sites. I. Don't. Care. They have products and services that I want and I'm happy to fork over cash or data to get them. Please take your conspiracies elsewhere.
- 8y ago

jgh 8y ago

Chrome started becoming really popular when Firefox started becoming terrible around 10 years ago. Chrome was much faster and had better features. Firefox was bloated and slow and was pretty much resting on its laurels. These days it has inertia on its side, not that it's necessarily better anymore (I would argue Firefox is better now)

deleted 8y ago

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