zlacker

Outlook now ignores Windows' Default Browser and opens links in Edge by default

submitted by mfwit+(OP) on 2023-06-27 13:21:30 | 893 points 624 comments
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35. vladva+q7[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 13:53:50
>>hardwa+g5
This is funny since, according to Netflix, it has better support for edge than for chrome.

https://help.netflix.com/en/node/23742

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44. cresha+59[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 14:00:22
>>jjoona+48
It's far from being ready, but as usually Valve is making the most progress: https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/HDR_monitor_support
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47. happym+Q9[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 14:03:42
>>jjoona+48
HDR is currently experimental.

Red Hat is working on getting it integrated, and Valve have it in their display manager.

https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/HDR_monitor_support

But for general users, out of the box, no.

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59. Charle+Ob[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 14:12:02
>>trampi+sa
https://github.com/beardedspice/beardedspice
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64. jkaplo+fc[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 14:14:29
>>kjells+k8
Everything you said is accurate except for the word "completely". He's no longer on the MS board of directors or in any officer role, but there is this bit of ongoing involvement:

> In 2020, Bill Gates left the board of directors of Microsoft, the tech giant he cofounded in 1975. But he still spends about 10% of his time at its Redmond, Washington headquarters, meeting with product teams, he says.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2023/02/06/bill-gate... (article is from early February of this year)

Still, agreed, that doesn't really make him responsible for MS's current decisions.

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70. shever+cd[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 14:17:59
>>userbi+63
I asked ChatGPT to write the announcement, and it was very close to this kind of language: https://chat.openai.com/share/67c7c09f-e01d-494b-aac3-0104b9...
85. acomje+Gf[view] [source] 2023-06-27 14:26:31
>>mfwit+(OP)
Its getting worse everywhere:

some things I've noticed: Mobil Safari seems to be using the search bar to hijack my google search (Particularly for locations which open in apple maps)

Although I'm mostly linux these days I went to install an alternative browser on a windows machine (using edge to download). I mentioned this in another post, but edge seems to watch for "chrome" or "firefox" downloads and politely reminds you that 'Edge is a great browser with added "trust of microsoft"' (A company who happen to be watching when you download a web browser).

https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/2/22813733/microsoft-window...

Linux seems like an OS that is way more respectful.

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88. netsha+Wf[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 14:27:40
>>jeltz+24
Windows has had a mechanism called Windows Resource Protection[1] for a long while now, if you delete notepad.exe (I guess nowadays that file isn't even deletable), after a few seconds it will reappear again. If you delete edge.exe (or whatever it's called) or replace it with a copy of, let's say firefox.exe, the WRP will see the file has been removed/modified and restore it, because somewhere inside C:\Windows there's a backup copy of the files..

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Resource_Protection, previously Windows File Protection, introduced in Windows 2000.

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89. noahjk+2g[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 14:28:05
>>trolli+72
> Microsoft seem to be entering another phase of baiting antitrust regulators

On the "FedEx Accused of Largest Odometer Rollback Fraud" post, llimos says "When did we move to a "do whatever you think you can get away with" model of society?" [0].

Like light_hue_1 says in response, "Because the cost of fraud is far too low and it's now factored into business plans." That seems to be exactly what is happening here too. It's honestly disheartening.

[0]: >>36492496

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138. probab+Uo[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 15:01:56
>>privac+95
That argument is surprisingly similar to the one that Microsoft argued back in their antitrust case [1]: that "the merging of Windows and IE was the result of innovation and competition" and "that the two were now the same product and inextricably linked".

For those who were too young at the time, Microsoft lost the first instance of that trial and eventually reached a settlement.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft_C....

143. margin+mp[view] [source] 2023-06-27 15:03:55
>>mfwit+(OP)
Obligatory reminder Microsoft has been pulling bullshit like this (and worse) for over 30 years, at least as far back as the AARD code.

https://www.geoffchappell.com/notes/windows/archive/aard/ind...

157. dbg314+0s[view] [source] 2023-06-27 15:15:02
>>mfwit+(OP)
Dear Microsoft,

Nobody wants Edge. Not now. Not ever.

Here's a graphic showing for the many uses for Edge.

https://i.imgur.com/bq0LK8X.png

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162. Timon3+Vt[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 15:22:21
>>rjh29+3p
Better yet, check reports of other users in ProtonDB: https://www.protondb.com/

They are not necessarily applicable to everyone, but most of the time they are accurate. Makes it easy to see whether setting it all up under Linux is worth it for your library.

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169. nicksp+6v[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 15:26:58
>>afiori+xq
I'm currently experimenting with "link eye" from FDroid on Android. There's also [finicky](https://github.com/johnste/finicky) for MacOS.
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178. dbg314+ax[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 15:35:53
>>hospit+7g
I think these two things help make Windows more usable.

* O&O ShutUp10++ – Free antispy tool for Windows 10 and 11 | https://www.oo-software.com/en/shutup10

* StevenBlack/hosts: Consolidating and extending hosts files from several well-curated sources. Optionally pick extensions for porn, social media, and other categories. | https://github.com/StevenBlack/hosts

205. entrop+NB[view] [source] 2023-06-27 15:58:58
>>mfwit+(OP)
https://github.com/rcmaehl/MSEdgeRedirect

That should fix it, right?

I use it for quite a long time now and it works with the search bar in the startmenu.

237. haolez+QJ[view] [source] 2023-06-27 16:32:36
>>mfwit+(OP)
I'm currently using Linux due to this kind of hostile behavior from Microsoft on Windows.

However, we are power users and the big masses won't care about an ever increasing misalignment between the users' needs and Microsoft's. We cannot vote with our wallets, e.g. by using Linux instead. It won't matter.

What we could maybe do is contribute to projects like ReactOS[0] and make it easier for the layperson to migrate to it if modern Windows finally annoys them. Just food for thought.

[0] https://reactos.org/

244. andrew+jL[view] [source] 2023-06-27 16:38:35
>>mfwit+(OP)
This is reminiscent of the USA vs Microsoft case in 2001... I wonder how much the antitrust team at Microsoft gets a say in product decisions like this. Just feels like they're toeing a line...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft_Cor....

Also definitely not in the best interest of users, which isn't the Satya Nadella way of operating, at least not as demonstrated in the developer tools side of the business.

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251. tredre+6N[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 16:45:09
>>crazyg+cG
> When did Google open browser links by default in Chrome instead of the system default?

On my iphone the GMail app seems to frequently "forget" that Safari exists and I'm prompted to install Chrome when I tap a link.

https://i.redd.it/tg2yj98o5ao51.jpg (Obtenir means Get/Install).

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269. noSync+TR[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 17:00:07
>>OJFord+pR
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install
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299. bilege+h11[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 17:43:54
>>skeake+YW
Because that's not objecting; you're still feeding into the power Windows has over computing.

Bill Gates said so himself in 2007: "It's easier for our software to compete with Linux when there's piracy than when there's not,"[1]

I'm not pretending that the intervening 16 years hasn't changed things; I am happily gaming exclusively on Linux after all, something most people didn't truly expect back then. But that statement remains true regardless.

[1]https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2007...

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314. cherry+D31[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 17:56:37
>>beebee+LD
https://github.com/ilya-zlobintsev/LACT

This application lets you adjust everything and the settings are saved on reboot

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319. madars+i41[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 17:59:49
>>Sebast+q01
Don't forget making SMS in unreadable neon green (to the point that it violates Apple's own accessibility guidelines https://archive.is/4nSWV)

"iMessage on Android would simply serve to remove [an] obstacle to iPhone families giving their kids Android phones" -- an actual quote from the SVP of Software Engineering in charge of iOS, revealed in Epic Games v Apple court discovery

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.36...

Of course, if you really cared about green bubbles, you'd switch to Android because there you can adjust outgoing message color to your heart's liking :-)

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332. madars+k81[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 18:19:49
>>lttlrc+s71
They deliberately reduced the contrast. Compare iOS 5 when iMessage came out: https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/archive/09-27... and now: https://images.macworld.co.uk/cmsdata/features/3468389/how_t... This underscores GP's point: Apple is expert at making anti-consumer decisions that fall just inside the Overton window.
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334. Barrin+i91[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 18:24:00
>>umvi+J41
Edge has been available on linux for a while https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/download?form=MA13FJ&ch
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343. saving+hb1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 18:33:14
>>EMM_38+wP
They are not obligated to do that.

https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/04/16/what-are-co...

(arguably)

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401. AprilA+4n1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 19:35:25
>>js2+ah1
Green has higher luminance than blue at equivalent saturation. The values for SMS and iMessage background colors are, respectively and in sRGB, #00CC46 and #0080FF, corresponding to relative luminance values of 0.436 and 0.227 according to the WCAG 2 formula.

With white foreground text, this gives a contrast ratio of 2.15:1 for SMS and 3.79:1 for iMessage. WCAG 2.x AA level compliances requires a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for normal text and at least 3:1 for large text.

https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG21/Understanding/contrast-minimum...

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403. cosmot+Qn1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 19:40:06
>>js2+ah1
Contrast ratio for white on green is only 2.15:1 : https://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/?fcolor=FFFFFF&...

Whereas for black on green it's 9.72:1 : https://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/?fcolor=000000&...

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415. bilege+bq1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 19:51:56
>>philis+Hl1
The real sore spot is with multiplayer anticheat, about 50/50 according to https://areweanticheatyet.com/ ... plus maybe a few singleplayer games with draconian DRM. Otherwise, things usually just work with the occasional hiccup (those hiccups, in all fairness, can be a real PITA to resolve though from my experience; but things are getting better with time too!)
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433. Animat+Xu1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 20:16:16
>>simion+D51
Then your install instructions start with "first install Flatpak". This is unacceptable for an end user program.

If you use the "Snap Store", you're imprisoned in a walled garden and subject to arbitrary decisions by Canonical, Inc.[1] They also take a cut if you charge for an app.

[1] https://ubuntu.com/legal/developer-terms-and-conditions

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442. hospit+cx1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 20:30:13
>>philis+im1
That isnt factual. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GSMA

Google doesnt control RCS. Its a general format. Apple could implement RCS. At most, they are a loud voice. Any phone can adopt it.

This is completely different from a closed imessage that cannot be adopted by others. Not to mention, imessage has been pretty anti-consumer with all their security problems, inability to accept high quality video, etc... None of this is good for the consumer.

What is good for the consumer is that the color of the bubble are different, this is important for status seeking individuals who want to be part of the in-group.

Back to the parent comments, RCS is better if you want a computing device. iMessage is the best if you want to buy your way into an in-group.

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469. timbit+AH1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 21:25:01
>>vxNsr+Gz
What would happen if you edited the binary from "edge://" to "http://"?
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487. js2+hM1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 21:52:28
>>AprilA+4n1
Thank you. FWIW, here is it under iOS 16 with Accessibility > Display & Text Size > Increase Contrast turned on.

https://imgur.com/a/b61lmAf

To my eyes, the green/blue doesn't make much difference in terms of legibility. I obviously find the reduced contrast throughout iOS annoying and keep increase contrast turned on.

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492. ryukaf+aO1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 22:02:30
>>rootus+nK1
They did change the shade of green, and the newer one is much less readable. See for yourself:

Original: https://ronstauffer.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/taking-a-pic...

Current: https://support.apple.com/library/content/dam/edam/applecare...

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506. FireBe+6U1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 22:37:03
>>rootus+7L1
> I've never had to do that.

Using OKD (OpenShift Kubernetes Distribution) because I just dealt with this morning:

https://github.com/okd-project/okd/releases - download the MacOS installer and unzip it.

Then try to run it from the command line. Be told that it "cannot be opened because the developer cannot be verified". This is NOT the "is an app downloaded from the Internet, do you wish to run it?" dialog.

Go to Finder, and double click it. Get the same message.

You have to go to Finder, then right click the app, specifically hit Open (which will open a terminal that will immediately exit), and only now can you run this app in your original terminal.

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507. lhamil+sU1[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 22:39:05
>>rootus+nK1
They actually did change it. It used to be much more readable. There's a comparison screenshot in this article https://css-tricks.com/apple-messages-color-contrast/
521. drdaem+yZ1[view] [source] 2023-06-27 23:11:16
>>mfwit+(OP)
https://github.com/rcmaehl/MSEdgeRedirect still works
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522. babypu+h02[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-27 23:14:46
>>ars+tP1
This is because the "search with Google" feature is not actually provided by Terminal, it is a service[1] provided by Safari. Other browsers could easily provide their own service, but I haven't seen any that actually do.

You can see and configure all available services by going to the app menu in the menu bar and selecting Services -> Services Settings

1. https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/use-services-in-app...

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534. jodrel+8f2[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 01:05:52
>>8note+Ip1
> "I think you'd be hard pressed to find somebody who wants an unreliable and inconsistent laptop"

All you have to do is search HN for "linux laptop", look:

"newer laptops still have their fair share of issues. When I bought my thinkpad A485 kernels wouldn't boot without additional parameters, the graphics would freeze at times and cause a hardlock, sleep and hibernation have been fixed and broken again intermittently over several kernel versions, the wifi card's AP mode started causing segfaults in kernel 5.2 due to the driver's rewrite but has since been fixed, the fnlock key LED didn't update properly, which I spent a while debugging and submitted a kernel patch for, and while over the years the fingerprint scanner has been implemented, it's a pain to install and support for fingerprint scanning in linux is still in a very sorry state. Oh and bluetooth still can't connect more than one device at a time" - >>32964872

Reply: "With Wayland, Gnome and KDE have no way to adjust the scroll speed on a laptop trackpad. Not the pointer speed, the scroll speed. In 2022."

"I have a slimbook pro (the model before the silver keyboard) and sadly I am very unhappy with it, I got a fairly maxed out version and it's fans are always on full blast and I have found no way to keep the power management under control except throttling the CPU - so it is constantly overheated, suspend is not working properly and the chassis is not strong enough so the fans stall unless you have it on a flat surface. [...] Still I will keep buying these things.. eventually someone will figure out how to make reliable laptops that align with the ethos of free software. I've researched system76, puri.sm and also lately the way too expensive MNT reform, but really the only laptop people seem to be happy with is thinkpad x220 / x230 which came out 12 years ago.... This makes me sad. I would pay a lot for a super sturdy laptop which works (and aligns with the free software ethos)." - >>23925729

NB that they say what they want is 'super sturdy which works' but their actual behaviour, and the market signal they send, is they pay a lot for an unreliable and inconsistent piece of junk, knowing and expecting it will be that way, and that they will keep doing so indefinitely as long as companies keep making them, and as soon as companies make a good thing they will stop buying. Hmm.

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536. jodrel+wg2[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 01:15:31
>>afiori+xq
Browser Tamer[1] registers itself as the URL handler on Windows, and allows you to configure based on domain name which browser to open the link in. [it probably won't override the kind of hack in this article where Outlook is coupled directly to Edge].

[1] https://www.aloneguid.uk/projects/bt

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559. gbraad+ZH2[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 05:45:48
>>gbraad+V1
Also added a message that this happens for mspaint on Windows: >>36502731
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562. solard+ML2[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 06:19:39
>>andyfe+Kd2
That's what RCS is but Apple doesn't want to join. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rich_Communication_Services?wp...

iMessage is apparently a differentiator for them.

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563. solard+oM2[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 06:23:46
>>vladva+N91
Apple first party devices have proprietary H1/H2 chips that supplement the Bluetooth stack and enable easier pairing, audio sharing, spatial positioning, etc.

https://www.soundguys.com/how-does-apple-h1-chip-work-21049/

That only works if you use two Apple devices together. You don't get those functions with other Bluetooth on a Mac, or using Airpods with an Android. It doesn't really make that big of a difference IMO but it's there.

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566. kakadu+TN2[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 06:37:04
>>acomje+Gf
> Its getting worse everywhere:

I was introduced to the following concept[1] some time back, and I can't help but think it gives a very reasonable explanation as to why everything is a subscription these days.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tendency_of_the_rate_of_profit...

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579. diffeo+2b3[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 10:22:45
>>RoyGBi+i42
Which would be fine. The annoying thing is making things worse if you don't buy in, e.g.

https://9to5mac.com/2023/01/16/apple-tv-iphone-required/

Or sherlocking stuff without acknowledging anyone, e.g. game porting toolkit.

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580. Jnr+Yc3[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 10:42:50
>>dmitry+Q21
That is not true. Maybe it is your experience but it is not universal. And you have to look at that particular device you used. Depending on the distro you most likely will have to do additional configuration to enable different power saving features on Linux.

From the Thinkpads I have seen and used (last one in 2023) I haven't yet seen one that is "fully supported" out of the box on Linux and all of them required some degree of tinkering.

By the way Arch wiki has a nice overview on configuring power saving properly, in case you ever need it in the future: https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Power_management

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587. diffeo+qk3[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 11:53:56
>>bombel+o91
Battery life of hackintoshes never was that impressive or was it? But if you want apples to oranges instead, then even in its very basic, hacky state linux on that macbook gets 8-10 hours:

https://twitter.com/AsahiLinux/status/1500039345142923269?la...

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607. skeake+zq4[view] [source] [discussion] 2023-06-28 17:06:53
>>autoex+ls1
> What makes you think the crack you apply to your official ISO isn't compromising your OS?

I guess the crack being FOSS with readable source code helps. It's a 9000 line cmd file with insane Windows-y things everywhere that make it hard to read, but being open at all and with that many users gives me quite a bit of confidence in it.

https://github.com/massgravel/Microsoft-Activation-Scripts

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