3 ms·

FWIW I quite like it. I'm not sure your dislike is universal, and tbh your comment feels a little https://xkcd.com/1172/ https://xkcd.com/1172/ :-)

Wowfunhappy 6y ago
I don't doubt that every change will have some detractors—but that isn't a reason to shout down all complaints. "It's just a vocal minority—most users like it!" Well, maybe that's true, and maybe it isn't—we'll never know, because this isn't the sort of thing you can measure with analytics. All you can do is listen to feedback. Right now, my comment is sitting at the top of this HN thread, even though we're several updates out from when the design change was first introduced. There's similar outcry over on Reddit. I think it's safe to extrapolate that a significant enough number of people dislike the expanding bar to at least warrant a hidden config flag.
- afiori 6y ago
  For sure it is valuable feedback for Mozilla, but honestly as a long term user of Firefox and based on following various controversies and criticism my aggregate opinion is that many Firefox users often chose the strangest arguments. A pinch of how "linux is not about choice"[1] would improve the discourse around Firefox. I understand that many choices Mozilla made are dubious and that the browser is one of the most important pieces of software on a modern computer... still that xkcd looked quite relevant [1] http://www.islinuxaboutchoice.com/ http://www.islinuxaboutchoice.com/
  - Wowfunhappy 6y ago
    You're right—what Mozilla should really, ideally do, is revert back to the old behavior, with no option to re-enable the new one. :) Just about any other design would be fine, actually; I'm not married to the old one. No other browser has a URL bar I find particularly offensive. I would bet a very large sum of money that if you sat every person in the world down in front of two computer screens, and let them play with both URL bar designs side-by-side, a large majority would say they prefer the old design. Not everyone, to be sure—humanity will never agree on what is most aesthetically pleasing—but most. That is why the modern field of graphic design focuses on grids systems and consistent spacing and margins—because most people find them appealing. (Not even to mention the other issues around covering the bookmarks and tab bars.) If I seem a bit overly worked up about this, it's because working in the graphic design industry has made me very sensitive to poorly-aligned visuals, in the same way type designers become sensitive to bad kerning. And I live in my web browser. I'll eventually adapt, as most people will. That does not mean this is a good change.

Wowfunhappy 6y ago

I don't doubt that every change will have some detractors—but that isn't a reason to shout down all complaints. "It's just a vocal minority—most users like it!" Well, maybe that's true, and maybe it isn't—we'll never know, because this isn't the sort of thing you can measure with analytics. All you can do is listen to feedback. Right now, my comment is sitting at the top of this HN thread, even though we're several updates out from when the design change was first introduced. There's similar outcry over on Reddit. I think it's safe to extrapolate that a significant enough number of people dislike the expanding bar to at least warrant a hidden config flag.

afiori 6y ago
For sure it is valuable feedback for Mozilla, but honestly as a long term user of Firefox and based on following various controversies and criticism my aggregate opinion is that many Firefox users often chose the strangest arguments. A pinch of how "linux is not about choice"[1] would improve the discourse around Firefox. I understand that many choices Mozilla made are dubious and that the browser is one of the most important pieces of software on a modern computer... still that xkcd looked quite relevant [1] http://www.islinuxaboutchoice.com/ http://www.islinuxaboutchoice.com/
- Wowfunhappy 6y ago
  You're right—what Mozilla should really, ideally do, is revert back to the old behavior, with no option to re-enable the new one. :) Just about any other design would be fine, actually; I'm not married to the old one. No other browser has a URL bar I find particularly offensive. I would bet a very large sum of money that if you sat every person in the world down in front of two computer screens, and let them play with both URL bar designs side-by-side, a large majority would say they prefer the old design. Not everyone, to be sure—humanity will never agree on what is most aesthetically pleasing—but most. That is why the modern field of graphic design focuses on grids systems and consistent spacing and margins—because most people find them appealing. (Not even to mention the other issues around covering the bookmarks and tab bars.) If I seem a bit overly worked up about this, it's because working in the graphic design industry has made me very sensitive to poorly-aligned visuals, in the same way type designers become sensitive to bad kerning. And I live in my web browser. I'll eventually adapt, as most people will. That does not mean this is a good change.