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Makes you wonder how someone thought this was a good idea in a browser that was an early pioneer of popup blockers. Imagine if Firefox in the 2000's had seen po

Makes you wonder how someone thought this was a good idea in a browser that was an early pioneer of popup blockers. Imagine if Firefox in the 2000's had seen popup ads and said "Yeah let's get in on that action!" At least it was a small scale experiment and not something that rolled out to the whole install base, I use Firefox on a couple of computers and didn't see it myself. But should you really need user feedback to know that inserting an overlay that looks like in-page ad content is a bad idea?

logdap 3y ago
Mozilla management are malicious snakes. This isn't the first time they've tried something like this and it won't be the last. Each time they issue noncommittally apologies, if you can call them that, but it keeps on happening. They're testing the water for even more ads in Firefox, trying to normalize this until people stop complaining. Keep the heat on them, don't give them an inch or they'll take a mile.
- MichaelZuo 3y ago
  They might not care anymore or trying to do a Hail Mary, once >99% of browser-share is just Chromium and Webkit/Safari, then popular websites might not even work with FireFox anymore.
- wodenokoto 3y ago
  I’m not sure what “something like this” you are referring to. But Firefox is an ad supported browser and has been for nearly 2 decades. That they want to take ownership of the advertising is no surprise. Who knows when google will turn off the faucet. But this is definitely not the right way
  - logdap 3y ago
    [dead]
- mozman 3y ago
  It's not all management. It's Mitchell Baker. She needs to step down as CEO.
  - ipaddr 3y ago
    [flagged]
- JohnFen 3y ago
  > Each time they issue noncommittally apologies, if you can call them that, but it keeps on happening. An apology needs three parts: admission that you did wrong, expressing regret for your wrongdoing, and a change in your behavior so that you don't do it again. Mozilla's tendency to just do the first two and skip the third means that, in my view, those weren't real apologies.
  - Macha 3y ago
    It's hard to say they even do the first two. This one for example is not "sorry we added ads", but a "We're sorry you're concerned or confused".
- avereveard 3y ago
  To be fair I've notice that apologies for company screwups have gone up in quality significantly afte r the introduction of chatgpt, and I await their with interest to see if the trend holds.
- roelschroeven 3y ago
  If they keep doing things like this, people will stop complaining. Because they drive users away, and there will be nobody left to complain.
- pessimizer 3y ago
  > Each time they issue noncommittally apologies Introduced by a bunch of gaslighting that it isn't actually happening or isn't anything different that what was always happened, then interleaved with accusations of bullying and entitlement directed at its userbase.
ChuckNorris89 3y ago
>Makes you wonder how someone thought this was a good idea in a browser that was an early pioneer of popup blockers. Two reasons: clueless management who chases short term returns, and a rabid fanbase that will constantly make excuses for them no matter how much they decline, because "at least they're not Google/Microsoft"
- elashri 3y ago
  >and a rabid fanbase that will constantly make excuses for them no matter how much they decline, because "at least they're not Google/Microsoft" To their defense, that ought to be more about the rate of decline that Google/MS goes compared to Mozilla. It is usually supported out of necessity, not ideology. But I'm not sure for how long this will actually work.
- 0cf8612b2e1e 3y ago
  "Rabid fanbase"? I feel like the majority of us are only begrudging users. Best of the worst available options.
  - JohnFen 3y ago
    Amongst my friends, I was consider a "rabid firefox user" because I kept using it for a few years after everyone else bailed on it after quantum.
weinzierl 3y ago
If something like this happens once it could be a slip, but we've been there again and again. Mozilla is testing how far it can go only backpedaling when there is resistance. I don't trust them a bit and would switch Browser anytime if there was a visble alternative.
- wlesieutre 3y ago
  Orion (from Kagi) is "planning support for other platforms in the future," if that lands for Windows I'll probably bail on Firefox For me it's been downhill since they removed "Compact" UI density, and I'd just as soon not jump through a bunch of custom CSS hoops to have sidebar tabs when nearly all the other browsers (outside of Chrome/Safari) are building them in natively. The main thing going for Firefox is being the independent rendering engine, for customization and power user features it's nothing special anymore.
sharess 3y ago
This ad overlay shows such a fundamental lack of understanding on what Firefox was built on that the people who greenlighted this need to go immediately. They are completely out of their depth and not fit for their job.
- lelanthran 3y ago
  The people who greenlighted this were the people who ousted those who built Firefox. The current crop of "leaders" have a vision that does not include Firefox being the best browser it can be. Trust me, they're politically aware of what they are doing, and are only gauging outrage now. Give it some time and they'll figure out how to leverage the outrage, as they did before. Never let a good crisis go to waste, and all that.
  - Animats 3y ago
    > The people who greenlighted this were the people who ousted those who built Firefox. Mozilla got rid of their founder, Brendan Eich, for donating to a California initiative against gay marriage. Now we see what that costs us.
    - Sunspark 3y ago
      There would have been a cost to keeping him as well. There is a significant percentage of tech workers who are gay or trans, which would have reduced the hiring pool available to Mozilla.
      - 93po 3y ago
        Jeff Bezos donated more than Eich in 2018 to Cory Gardner, who is anti-equal marriage, anti-LGBT+ discrimination laws, and against same-sex adoption. It's interesting we don't hold the same standard to Bezos, or speculate that Bezos' donation affected his hiring pool.
        pessimizer 3y ago
MiddleEndian 3y ago
Microsoft basically got in on this with a lot of their recent Windows stuff. With Windows 7, suddenly you saw people's PCs were no longer full of adware. Then by 8 or 10, Microsoft thought, "Wait, people put up with adware for decades, let's get on that and put it into the OS ourselves."
- intelVISA 3y ago
  Now now, it's just Good and Proper Business to Milk Your Customer Dry.
JKCalhoun 3y ago
Makes me wonder why so much of Corporate America make decisions based on "What's the outrage threshold for our users and how can we sneak up close to it?"

logdap 3y ago

Mozilla management are malicious snakes. This isn't the first time they've tried something like this and it won't be the last. Each time they issue noncommittally apologies, if you can call them that, but it keeps on happening. They're testing the water for even more ads in Firefox, trying to normalize this until people stop complaining. Keep the heat on them, don't give them an inch or they'll take a mile.

MichaelZuo 3y ago
They might not care anymore or trying to do a Hail Mary, once >99% of browser-share is just Chromium and Webkit/Safari, then popular websites might not even work with FireFox anymore.
wodenokoto 3y ago
I’m not sure what “something like this” you are referring to. But Firefox is an ad supported browser and has been for nearly 2 decades. That they want to take ownership of the advertising is no surprise. Who knows when google will turn off the faucet. But this is definitely not the right way
- logdap 3y ago
  [dead]
mozman 3y ago
It's not all management. It's Mitchell Baker. She needs to step down as CEO.
- ipaddr 3y ago
  [flagged]
JohnFen 3y ago
> Each time they issue noncommittally apologies, if you can call them that, but it keeps on happening. An apology needs three parts: admission that you did wrong, expressing regret for your wrongdoing, and a change in your behavior so that you don't do it again. Mozilla's tendency to just do the first two and skip the third means that, in my view, those weren't real apologies.
- Macha 3y ago
  It's hard to say they even do the first two. This one for example is not "sorry we added ads", but a "We're sorry you're concerned or confused".
avereveard 3y ago
To be fair I've notice that apologies for company screwups have gone up in quality significantly afte r the introduction of chatgpt, and I await their with interest to see if the trend holds.
roelschroeven 3y ago
If they keep doing things like this, people will stop complaining. Because they drive users away, and there will be nobody left to complain.
pessimizer 3y ago
> Each time they issue noncommittally apologies Introduced by a bunch of gaslighting that it isn't actually happening or isn't anything different that what was always happened, then interleaved with accusations of bullying and entitlement directed at its userbase.

ChuckNorris89 3y ago

>Makes you wonder how someone thought this was a good idea in a browser that was an early pioneer of popup blockers. Two reasons: clueless management who chases short term returns, and a rabid fanbase that will constantly make excuses for them no matter how much they decline, because "at least they're not Google/Microsoft"

elashri 3y ago
>and a rabid fanbase that will constantly make excuses for them no matter how much they decline, because "at least they're not Google/Microsoft" To their defense, that ought to be more about the rate of decline that Google/MS goes compared to Mozilla. It is usually supported out of necessity, not ideology. But I'm not sure for how long this will actually work.
0cf8612b2e1e 3y ago
"Rabid fanbase"? I feel like the majority of us are only begrudging users. Best of the worst available options.
- JohnFen 3y ago
  Amongst my friends, I was consider a "rabid firefox user" because I kept using it for a few years after everyone else bailed on it after quantum.

weinzierl 3y ago

If something like this happens once it could be a slip, but we've been there again and again. Mozilla is testing how far it can go only backpedaling when there is resistance. I don't trust them a bit and would switch Browser anytime if there was a visble alternative.

wlesieutre 3y ago
Orion (from Kagi) is "planning support for other platforms in the future," if that lands for Windows I'll probably bail on Firefox For me it's been downhill since they removed "Compact" UI density, and I'd just as soon not jump through a bunch of custom CSS hoops to have sidebar tabs when nearly all the other browsers (outside of Chrome/Safari) are building them in natively. The main thing going for Firefox is being the independent rendering engine, for customization and power user features it's nothing special anymore.

sharess 3y ago

This ad overlay shows such a fundamental lack of understanding on what Firefox was built on that the people who greenlighted this need to go immediately. They are completely out of their depth and not fit for their job.

lelanthran 3y ago
The people who greenlighted this were the people who ousted those who built Firefox. The current crop of "leaders" have a vision that does not include Firefox being the best browser it can be. Trust me, they're politically aware of what they are doing, and are only gauging outrage now. Give it some time and they'll figure out how to leverage the outrage, as they did before. Never let a good crisis go to waste, and all that.
- Animats 3y ago
  > The people who greenlighted this were the people who ousted those who built Firefox. Mozilla got rid of their founder, Brendan Eich, for donating to a California initiative against gay marriage. Now we see what that costs us.
  - Sunspark 3y ago
    There would have been a cost to keeping him as well. There is a significant percentage of tech workers who are gay or trans, which would have reduced the hiring pool available to Mozilla.
    - 93po 3y ago
      Jeff Bezos donated more than Eich in 2018 to Cory Gardner, who is anti-equal marriage, anti-LGBT+ discrimination laws, and against same-sex adoption. It's interesting we don't hold the same standard to Bezos, or speculate that Bezos' donation affected his hiring pool.
      - pessimizer 3y ago

MiddleEndian 3y ago

Microsoft basically got in on this with a lot of their recent Windows stuff. With Windows 7, suddenly you saw people's PCs were no longer full of adware. Then by 8 or 10, Microsoft thought, "Wait, people put up with adware for decades, let's get on that and put it into the OS ourselves."

intelVISA 3y ago
Now now, it's just Good and Proper Business to Milk Your Customer Dry.

JKCalhoun 3y ago

Makes me wonder why so much of Corporate America make decisions based on "What's the outrage threshold for our users and how can we sneak up close to it?"