Microsoft Explains Mystery Firefox Extension 142
Ricky writes with a followup to news we discussed a couple days ago that a Microsoft toolbar update was installing an IE add-on and a Firefox extension without the user's consent. Quoting Ars:
"Microsoft has fixed the distribution scope of a toolbar update that, without the user's knowledge, installed an add-on in Internet Explorer and an extension in Firefox called Search Helper Extension. Microsoft told us that the new update is actually the same as the old one; the only difference is the distribution settings. In other words, the update will no longer be distributed to toolbars that it shouldn't be added to. End users won't see the tweak, Microsoft told Ars, and also offered an explanation on what the mystery add-on actually does. 'The Search Enhancement Pack is a shared component used by the Windows Live Toolbar, MSN Toolbar, and Bing Bar. This component enables toolbar search functionality, like the toolbar search suggestions drop down. It is not the toolbar. It is a component used by the toolbars.'"
English Doc? (Score:5, Insightful)
(looking perplexed)
I still don't understand why it was added to Firefox when I'm not using MSN, Bing, or any other crap
.
Always pushing... (Score:5, Insightful)
Why must constant vigilance be required? There need to be fines against companies who install software without consent. It doesn't matter who you are, it should be an illegal act.
Re:Always pushing... (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Huh? (Score:4, Insightful)
1. Yes, we are all in favor of automatic updates... for Microsoft Software. This includes Office and Windows and more. But Not Mozilla Firefox.
2. Firefox does it's own automatic updates. It tells the users when there are updates for addons and for Firefox itself. Let Firefox manage itself! Microsoft only needs to place the update out on the web and tell its own addon where to find them. If people want this addon, they will install it and it will remain updated.
Re:Always pushing... (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:That will happen when you vote for it (Score:3, Insightful)
People don't *need* it at all. They get it most of the when they purchase a new PC.
No matter how easy Ubuntu (or whatever flavor of Linux we could talk about) is to install, people have already got an operating system on their PC and won't bother to install another one unless MS does something to truly piss them off. I say this as someone who pretty much immediately installs Ubuntu on any new machine I buy.
Re:This is why I don't use toolbars (Score:2, Insightful)
Me too, and moreover, this is one reason why I don't use Windows.
Re:Why is this allowed from FF? (Score:1, Insightful)
No good reason? You do know that hardware DEP is default-disabled for 32-bit processes, no? Enabling it can cause all sorts of shittily-programmed plugins and applications to fail.
and you're paying the 64bit toll without really getting anything out of it.
This makes me think you have no idea what you are talking about and are stuck with a circa 2005 attitude. There is no toll, unless you count literally unnoticeable memory overhead. Performance benefit far outweighs this on average CPU intensive case.
Re:Why is this allowed from FF? (Score:1, Insightful)
There is no reason that the browser and all plug ins aren't 64-bit native today. There is no "64bit toll", quite the opposite. There is a "32bit toll" when running on a 64-bit OS.
Re:English Doc? (Score:5, Insightful)
How do you propose Firefox prevent the installation of an extension by software that has direct file system access? Firefox is open source, so anyone can look and see how an extension is installed. Third party software need only update the right files and the extension would be installed. Firefox had no control over any step.
Now, this doesn't make Firefox a good target for malware writers. Anyone who can execute arbitrary code on your system doesn't need Firefox to cause problems.
Re:That will happen when you vote for it (Score:3, Insightful)
People don't *need* gas at for transport either. They could just live close enough to work to bike or walk.
No matter how easy Ubuntu (or whatever flavor of Linux we could talk about) is to install, people have already got an operating system on their PC and won't bother to install another one unless MS does something to truly piss them off. I say this as someone who pretty much immediately installs Ubuntu on any new machine I buy.
Most people wouldn't change their operating system even if MS pissed them off. Most people don't know they have the option and they don't have a clue how to do it. This is part of the basis for my previous assertion. You might like doing what you do. Some people love biking, too.
If you look at job descriptions, many are asking for ability to use specific programs instead of generic skills. Many web programming gigs still require testing for older version of Internet Explorer. AutoCAD does not run on linux. Many people don't realize that OpenOffice opens Word documents with high accuracy. Many companies ask that resumes are submitted in specifically doc format. Not PDF. Newer versions of Internet Explorer don't run in Wine. Games are still mostly on Windows. Sometimes there just plain aren't Linux drivers available for some hardware. People like what they know and dislike change.
These are some of the generic reasons floating in people's minds, even if many are misguided. You can spend your time shooting down a large number of the above down with the people you meet. I am sure someone will do that in a reply to this exact post, even though they are preaching to the choir. There are a lot of people out in the worcld who don't know that they don't need Windows, and they likely won't rethink computer and software purchases that quickly when the correct answer seems simple right now.
And so, that is why I made the general assertion that Windows sales are mostly inelastic. When the market share of Windows does drop below a certain point, my assertion will suddenly not hold any weight anymore.
Toolbars? (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:English Doc? (Score:3, Insightful)
Bzzt. Good thing for your karma that you post as AC. The claim was that it wouldn't install unless you used these toolbars, not whether you had them installed.
Re:English Doc? (Score:3, Insightful)
Except that if Microsoft circumvented the DRM, it would be flagrantly illegal and could not happen by accident.
We're not talking about defending against a hypothetical foreign attack by a malicious adversary here, we're talking about preventing unwanted accidental or incidental installs.