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> Browser extensions are severely underrated as a platform because they aren't sexy. Nah, it's because it's a niche, fragmented platform on which it's very har
by toyg 4y ago
> Browser extensions are severely underrated as a platform because they aren't sexy.
Nah, it's because it's a niche, fragmented platform on which it's very hard to make real money. It's also a very fragile platform that makes very clear you're a sharecropper who can be evicted on a whim by any browser vendor.
I like extensions, I've built several for personal and public use, but I wouldn't invest a penny on them.
- bambax 4y agoYeah, I tend to agree. I have built a couple of extensions. It's not fun. The review process, both on Chrome and on Firefox, is long and incredibly annoying. (For example, including minified versions of popular libraries like Lodash gets you stern warnings... Why can't the review process check automatically, and once and for all, that the library is safe and that the version included in an extension is correct?) The promise of "build once, run everywhere" runs aground very fast because of slight differences between browsers, and because some bugs on Firefox stay unfixed for years. Sideloading has been made difficult to the point of impossibility. And now Manifest V3 sucked all the remaining fun out of it. It's very clear you're building something on someone else's property; they don't like it, they don't like you, and they'll try to fire you at the flimsiest occasion.