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Comment by deaps | Hacker News Reader

It's not an overreaction. It's literally a targeted ad showing up in your day to day work space. It's invasive. I switched to mac a long time ago, but I still have a Windows device because some things are just painful (or impossible) to use on a mac.

The difference between using an application that prompts "make this default?" and a specifically targeted ad showing up on your start menu is that the user used the application that threw the prompt...That might actually be helpful.

The fact is, if Microsoft wants me to switch to Edge, they need to tell me the benefits. A chart will do fine comparing it to other common options. I don't need a targeted ad that proves they know and keep track of what browser I'm actually using. That's literally ridiculous.

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Apple does the same sort of thing these days, Music.app on my phone keeps showing me a full screen ad for Apple Music around a month, dismissed it about 5 times now.

it's everywhere outside of overtly freedom-concerned software.

the idiots are winning.

Like the (now past) Amazon integration in Ubuntu?

> freedom-concerned software.

Thank you for giving a example of why we can't use the term "free software" any more. Also fuck Ubuntu.

It seems a bit absurd that this is still a reason to say 'fuck ubuntu' when they listened to user feedback and reversed that feature. I can't think of any other similar missteps in recent years.

> I can't think of any other similar missteps in recent years.

I stopped using Ubuntu a while ago due to a large number of individually minor "missteps", so I don't have any equally blatant/memorable (or particularly recent) examples, but there were enough of them to be a constant hazard of updating anything.

(For similarly large, there's systemd and wayland, but neither those are specific to Ubuntu.)

Also, someone (for analogy) dumping toxic waste into a drinking water supply, and then listening to feedback and ceasing to dump toxic waste into the water supply, still seems like a damn good reason to say "fuck those guys in particular" to me, and that's what shipping malware in a software update amounts to.

What I hate is that you can’t even say no to Apple any more. It’s all this “not right now” or “maybe later” passive aggressive bollocks.

I just want a “no never” button.

You can't delete Apple's Music app in the same simple way that you can delete the Spotify music app.

Same thing. Abuse of monopoly.

Still – it’s a misleading title (border-line click bait). Anti-Firefox ad implies that they say something negative about Firefox, which clearly isn't the case.

"Still using Firefox?" Seems to me implies that it's old and antiquated and only used by people who don't know any better. Of course the opposite is true.

To build on your point: Yes, and this is precisely how Microsoft intended. It’s a disingenuous question. The OS knows you’re still using Firefox, because that’s what prompted the ad to begin with.

It sucks, but it is kind of an overreaction.

I turned the ad off... there's nothing but 32 pixel icons in my start menu.

I simply never see the outrage, customize your Windows install and move the fuck on.

That's why Linux gets jacked off all the time right, customizability?

(that was rhetorical, I support Linux and realize the most beneficial aspect is it's open-source nature)

sure, but those types of ads aren't really for people like you. they are for the vast majority of Windows users who aren't in control of their machine but are instead being controlled by it. many don't even realize they can get rid of those ads, or they give in and just start using Edge..

Well maybe instead of articles complaining about ads we educate the users on how to turn ads off and how to install ad-blockers.

But that's not what this article is about, it's a Microsoft hit-piece. That's all journalism is nowadays, mercenaries for hire.

And final point, if the ad isn't for me or anyone else here for that matter, why are we seeing an article about it? And why did noone else here mention you can turn it off?

Microsoft is not the harbinger of ads and they never will be, Google was and is. If you want to war ads, take it up against Google, their browser, their OS, and their search engine.

Ironically MS put an adblocker in Chromium by default.

You people and your biases...

My observation has been is that most users who use Firefox aren't the kind to be controlled by their PC. Someone who can use Firefox (specially because of privacy concerns and have installed extensions) should easily be able to switch off this ad. If anything I found it bold and kinda funny of Microsoft to do that. I myself am a Brave user, btw.

It's anticompetitive as fuck but people stopped caring about that it seems. Also why it's against firefox and not let's say chrome. Inb4 Google does this too on their products. Yeah and it's less fucked but absolutely fucked just the same.

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