The latest Edge Canary version started disabling Manifest V2-based extensions with the following message: “This extension is no longer supported. Microsoft Edge recommends that you remove it.” Although the browser turns off old extensions without asking, you can still make them work by clicking “Manage extension” and toggling it back (you will have to acknowledge another prompt).

At this point, it is not entirely clear what is going on. Google started phasing out Manifest V2 extensions in June 2024, and it has a clear roadmap for the process. Microsoft’s documentation, however, still says “TBD,” so the exact dates are not known yet. This leads to some speculating about the situation being one of “unexpected changes” coming from Chromium. Either way, sooner or later, Microsoft will ditch MV2-based extensions, so get ready as we wait for Microsoft to shine some light on its plans.

Another thing worth noting is that the change does not appear to be affecting Edge’s stable release or Beta/Dev Channels. For now, only Canary versions disable uBlock Origin and other MV2 extensions, leaving users a way to toggle them back on. Also, the uBlock Origin is still available in the Edge Add-ons store

      • Pumpkin Escobar
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        619 days ago

        It’s desktop-only right now and feels like for the foreseeable future. Firefox sync works between Zen and Firefox so you can just run Firefox or one of the Android-specific versions of Firefox that support the generic/vanilla firefox sync.

        • @pycorax@lemmy.world
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          319 days ago

          I was thinking of maybe trying it for a few specific websites that I keep persistently on since I think it may work well for that. However, I was a bit concerned that logins and stuff won’t sync which might make it annoying. Having this sync seems pretty cool though, might try it out.

    • Gunpachi
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      219 days ago

      Honestly this has been my daily driver for the past 6 months or so.

      I really like it. The aesthetics are really modern, while still maintaining all the things I like about firefox.

    • @ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca
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      1919 days ago

      Zen’s glance feature allows you to view links without actually opening them.

      I do not like the wording of this because you are opening it

      • _cryptagion [he/him]
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        119 days ago

        Nonsense, you’re not opening them! You’re fetching them for viewing. It’s totally different!

      • bitwolf
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        19 days ago

        I was concerned, but it’s not Wiki style.

        It’s just a fancy skin for modal windows. It pops open over 70% of the screen front and center.

        Personally. I find tabs more useful, but haven’t fully switched over from Firefox yet so I haven’t looked into disabling it.

    • @Matriks404@lemmy.world
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      18 days ago

      Why is there a sidebar for tabs? That seems wasteful for all the screen space it takes.

      Edit: From what I see it tries to do everything that is a job of a window manager/desktop environment. There are various solutions to have workspaces, etc. that you can use globally, so I don’t understand why would anyone use this, unless you are on locked system like Windows or Mac.

    • @Matriks404@lemmy.world
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      118 days ago

      I’ve looked it up and apparently there’s a problem where if you open a new window with any amount of tabs and close it last, you will lose all your tabs on the first window. It’s a big no for me, because I already had to restore last opened windows in Firefox many times, and I am pretty sure you previously could just press CTRL+SHIFT+T and it did reopen them, although I might misremember things.

        • @BroBot9000@lemmy.world
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          619 days ago

          Was super easy but my setup is pretty minimal.

          Export bookmarks from Firefox, install favourite addons in the Floorp extension menu and lastly import bookmarks.

          Most of the settings will be familiar and some features will be new like the workspaces and sidebar.

          Hope your transfer goes smoothly!

    • @Kiuyn@lemmy.ml
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      1119 days ago

      Did they fix the issue of their license partially closed? Or is it still the same

  • Singletona082
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    1319 days ago

    oh look at that. It’s ‘chromium based browsers are garbage o’clock.’

    • @x00z@lemmy.world
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      618 days ago

      I don’t suggest Librewolf for the plebians though.

      It comes with very aggressive anti-fingerprinting and privacy features.

      For people in !technology@lemmy.world that’s less of a problem but I wouldn’t suggest it to my family members.

        • @muhyb@programming.dev
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          18 days ago

          You can think of it as a mobile version of LibreWolf. Strict security settings are default and Mozilla’s telemetry is disabled/removed. Also unlike regular Firefox, you can download it from F-Droid (currently you need their repo but it’ll be added officially soon, probably).

          • @dan@upvote.au
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            118 days ago

            Are they doing their own development or are they still mostly reliant on Mozilla? The thing with all these forks is that I doubt they’d be able to continue development if Mozilla were to disappear, since they still rely heavily on Mozilla.

            • @muhyb@programming.dev
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              118 days ago

              They are reliant. These forks are basically tweaked Firefox.

              Yeah, FIrefox is a huge code base. If Mozilla disappears, some big developer group must take over the flag. Otherwise with only community effort, the development would be slowed down.

  • @rottingleaf@lemmy.world
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    2519 days ago

    Right, you don’t need extensions, because you don’t need customization, because what you need is what we the corp say you need.

    I think Web as it exists is a failed branch of evolution.

    A networked (solved) hypertext (solved) document (solved) system - yes. A networked hypertext system with one or two unbelievably complex clients, where only enormous corps have enough resources to change something, - no. One can add steps - E2E encryption, dynamic services, scripts, all not requiring a monolithic piece of nonsense.

    BTW, those hating Flash, I hope, do realize that its proper, paradigm-abiding replacement would be a FOSS plugin with similar goal, not what we have.

    • drthunder
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      318 days ago

      I feel similarly. Javascript was made to add some functionality to documents and now we’re basically running Doom in a word professor. I don’t know what a better system would look like, but I’d draw a line between document-type pages and pages that you want to do more on.

  • @Blackmist@feddit.uk
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    1517 days ago

    Yeah, if you didn’t see that writing on the wall you need your eyes testing.

    No Chrome browser will be maintained to keep using Manifest V2.

    Use Firefox.

  • @Petter1@lemm.ee
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    2919 days ago

    Nooo, it is browser on my workplace! How should I work efficiently without uBlock!?!?

    • @Ibaudia@lemmy.world
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      217 days ago

      The new manifest v3 version is actually not that bad, though not nearly as good as normal ublock.

    • @Regrettable_incident@lemmy.world
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      418 days ago

      My work insists on using it too. Fuck knows why, maybe it’s a security thing? And my personal laptop is constantly nagging me to use edge - it could be the best browser ever and I would still avoid it just because of the pushiness.

      • @OfficerBribe@lemm.ee
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        17 days ago

        It’s a good Chromium based Windows native browser that has integration with your Entra ID account so all your bookmarks / history is automatically synced and users have seamless experience when switching devices. No longer seeing tickets like ″My bookmarks are gone after I reinstalled my PC″ is enough to consider Edge as your company main browser. And the fact that it is part of OS, you do not need to worry about install and patching.

        I prefer Firefox, but from Chromium browsers Edge is really good, you cannot expect companies to suggest something like Vivaldi.

        This is for companies being in M365 ecosystem. If you are in Google then I suppose Chrome would make more sense.

        • @Regrettable_incident@lemmy.world
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          217 days ago

          Yeah, that’s fair, I thought it would probably be something like that. TBF it’s work, they’re paying me, I’ll use whatever they choose. I won’t have it on my own computer though just because of Microsoft’s hard sell

      • @Petter1@lemm.ee
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        19 days ago

        🤭yea, and what are we gonna do against it?

        We manage everything with azure group policies (therefore use all microsoft). we don’t want an extra system to manage the browser of the employees. Maybe corporations are save from that just a while longer than private user 🤔

          • @Petter1@lemm.ee
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            116 days ago

            Of course, but extra work is required for third party browsers vs just using windows built in browser designed to be managed using entraID / intune.

            Companies don’t like to pay extra.

            • @Kit@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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              115 days ago

              It’s no different than controlling add-ons via GPO like we did in the old days of on-prem. No extra cost associated.

                • @Kit@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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                  115 days ago

                  Your outsourced IT provider charges for simple configuration changes? That’s a yikes from me. I worked in MSPs for years and those sort of changes were always covered in the standard contract.

      • @Mayoman68@lemmy.world
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        618 days ago

        This might actually reverse firefox’s decline in userbase at least in the business world. Any shop that already has multi-OS management could probably insta-switch to firefox, and i’m sure that MS locked-in places could too given enough of a push by IT.

        • @Miaou@jlai.lu
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          118 days ago

          I saw one guy from my it team use a browser without adblock. Please send help

      • JackbyDev
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        18 days ago

        So, unironically, I do plan to request Firefox with uBlock Origin as a reasonable accomodation for my ADHD if I’m not able to use it at a job in the future. Banner ads are genuinely distracting and I have a real disability that makes them worse for me.

      • @Petter1@lemm.ee
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        1419 days ago

        I work in research and development, I have to constantly search the web for stuff

  • FlashMobOfOne
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    -319 days ago

    Me and my colleagues in tech call it the ‘Granny Browser’.

    Either use Firefox/UBlock Origin or Brave. Brave’s native adblock is good enough you don’t need add-ons.

    • @A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.world
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      3919 days ago

      I dont know why people keep recommending brave.

      its a fucking scummy fucking browser that has a history of stealing money, hijacking referal codes (like honey just got in deep trouble over), installing unnecessary software without consent and more.

      • _cryptagion [he/him]
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        1419 days ago

        Are you implying the crypto-bro browser with connections to a billionaire that runs the largest corporate intelligence agency in the world may not be the best choice of browser? That’s not the sort of attitude that generates value for the shareholders.

      • Gunpachi
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        819 days ago

        My friends who are less tech literate swear by brave. I think it’s the way they market their browser… Some of Brave’s core audience don’t want to install a third party extension for adblock (either they don’t like third party or they just don’t know they can do it in other browsers)

        Also on opening a new tab, they show the stats of how much data they saved and how much ads it blocked. Some people like seeing the number grow.

        All this is my speculation. There may be some other reason for it being this popular.

        • Engywook
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          -419 days ago

          There may be some other reason for it being this popular.

          Because it just works fine and block ads by default, maybe? A wild guess, I know. /s

        • @A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.world
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          117 days ago

          My friends who are less tech literate swear by brave

          I am entirely unshocked that people who don’t know shit, swear by bad products and scams.

      • @arararagi@ani.social
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        019 days ago

        They really only recommend it because the average joe doesn’t need to install UBO on it, I also removed it after the VPN service controversy.

      • Engywook
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        -819 days ago

        I dont know why people keep recommending brave.

        Because it’s good.

        its a fucking scummy fucking browser that has a history of stealing money, hijacking referal codes (like honey just got in deep trouble over), installing unnecessary software without consent and more.

        Bullshit.

    • KSP Atlas
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      1218 days ago

      Why is it that when I see removed, it’s always from lemmy.ml, is that the only instance with the filter enabled

          • @Soggy@lemmy.world
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            118 days ago

            It’s more that .ml is the biggest instance with that filter that will show up on .world, the biggest instance overall. So statistically, unless they are specifically looking at instances with automatic slur post filtering, this is the situation they will notice it in. They aren’t seeing the content differently, the removed is happening at the post so it’s the same experience for everybody.

    • @shani66@ani.social
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      417 days ago

      Removed? What could the comment possibly say in this context that would warrant removal?

      God, .ml manages to be the worst parts of both shitlib civility bullshit and tankie bullshit.

    • @Trainguyrom@reddthat.com
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      118 days ago

      Edge is actually pretty decent. Native vertical tabs, M365 SSO integration, native multiple profiles with quick switching, preinstalled on your work computer and will work with anything that “only works in chrome”

      Obviously this is ignoring the obvious downsides such as assisting Microsoft’s search, browser and platform monopolies, tracking data sent to Microsoft, etc. etc.

  • Engywook
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    019 days ago

    It’s nice to use a browser which doesn’t depend of extensions to block ads.

  • TomMasz
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    119 days ago

    I had a feeling this would happen. I have to use Google services for a lot of things at work and Edge works fine with them. Firefox usually does okay, but not always. And now Firefox is requiring you to hand over your data to them.

    Can any Chromium-based browser refuse to turn on V3 or is it too baked-in without forking the entire project?

    • Billiam
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      1819 days ago

      And now Firefox is requiring you to hand over your data to them.

      If you’re talking about the most recent news about the Terms of Service, that is a gross misreading of what they said.

    • @TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world
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      419 days ago

      And now Firefox is requiring you to hand over your data to them.

      If you’re talking about the recent news, that’s not what the updated privacy notice says.

      Mozilla will be adding opt in LLM functionality to Firefox. It can use third party LLM providers. The privacy has been updated to say “btw, any info you give to this LLM will be processed by the LLM by a third party.” I.e. the LLM provider has the data once you send it to them.

    • bitwolf
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      319 days ago

      I imagine so, but the technical burden is at risk of growing over time as the upstream chromium may significantly deviate from or remove some of the functionality.

    • @TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world
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      19 days ago

      Brave will support it until it becomes inconvenient or difficult to do so as the Chromium base keeps moving. The more time goes on, the more work it’ll be for Brave to maintain this forked functionality.

      My guess is at some point Brave will discontinue V2 and say “just use the Brave inbuilt adblocker”.

      Regardless, Brave have their own skeletons in the closet… crypto, the Windows installer installing other Brave applications during browser install without consent (that one is straight up malware behaviour. Reminds me of the days of software installing Internet Explorer toolbars without consent), injecting their affiliate links when nobody asked, a CEO who donated money to homophobic causes more than once.

      E: my above theory was correct, sort of:

      We will keep Manifest v2 for as long as it’s still available in Chromium. We expect to drop support in June 2025, but we may maintain it longer or be forced to drop support for it sooner, depending on the precise nature of the changes to the code.

      They are only committing to enabling the disabled Mv2 code in Chromium. Once it’s removed altogether, Brave probably won’t bother keeping it and maintaining it. Basically, if you want Mv2, only Firefox and its derivatives are committed to keeping it.

      • Balder
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        319 days ago

        None of these small browsers can make significant changes to the original project. A browser nowadays is a super complex bloated thing that requires too much resources to maintain. If even M$ abandoned their engine to go with Chromium (because it was probably costing them a lot of resources to keep compatibility with the evolving standards, security fixes etc.) what hope is there for small companies? Arguably Apple’s Safari has significant differences compared to Chrome, but we’re talking about Apple…

        People thinking this is a solution are gonna get disappointed eventually. For now, Firefox is the only alternative product that has been maintained for decades.

      • @TypicalHog@lemm.ee
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        118 days ago

        Fair, I love Brave too much tho. And I don’t care about Manifest V2. So, for me personally its great.

          • @TypicalHog@lemm.ee
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            116 days ago

            You can easily hide crypto stuff (which I do) and Chromium is great, just not Google Chrome, but the actual Chromium.

            • @kusivittula@sopuli.xyz
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              116 days ago

              the problem with chromium is that because 98% of people use it, google gets to decide how the internet works basically

              • @TypicalHog@lemm.ee
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                115 days ago

                I get that, but alternatives suck. Firefox doesn’t even support all of the extensions I need.

      • Engywook
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        19 days ago

        True. Most of the negative comments about Chromium here are really obtuse. Looks like people feel the need to gain imaginary internet points by praising a mediocre browser made by a misguided Corp. such as Mozilla.

        Save your time and avoid replying here. I wont’ reply back. I’m not interested in arguing. Just block me if you disagree and go on with your life.

        • @kusivittula@sopuli.xyz
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          318 days ago

          people think of browsers and operating systems here like it’s a religion or something, it makes them crazy. google is a problem, but it’s not like mozilla isn’t going to pull the same crap when it gets big enough.

        • @MCasq_qsaCJ_234@lemmy.zip
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          118 days ago

          Let’s hope that Ladybird be better than Mozilla Firefox.

          I would be curious if Ladybird is successful, maybe Microsoft, Apple or Brave will use it after leaving Chrome and WebKit.

          • Engywook
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            118 days ago

            Maybe, but even if it happens it’s going to take a lot of time. Let’s wait and see.