Google Browser Sync To Be Discontinued

Dude With An Afro writes "What could have been a great Google project is now history. For those who never used it, Google Browser Sync was a Firefox extension that synchronized your bookmarks, web history, browser sessions and passwords across multiple computers by temporarily saving them to Google's servers. According to the Google Browser Sync team: 'It was a tough call, but we decided to phase out support for Browser Sync. Since the team has moved on to other projects that are keeping them busy, we don't have time to update the extension to work with Firefox 3 or to continue to maintain it.' For all of those who fell in love with Google's Browser Sync, our only hope now is to resort to poorly maintained 3rd party extensions without Google's blessing." While it was undoubtedly a useful utility, the argument can also be made that it wasn't the most secure extension in the world, what with having your personal data kept on Google's servers and shot around the internet.

Comments

Foxmarks is great

[JoelMeow]

I think it's a little mean to refer to Foxmarks as a "poorly maintained 3rd party extension." I've been using it since before Google's browser sync existed, and I never bothered to try out Google's extension because Foxmarks worked perfectly. If you need a replacement, I would recommend checking them out.

Re:Foxmarks is great

[Niten]

I think it's a little mean to refer to Foxmarks as a "poorly maintained 3rd party extension."

Yeah, that comment reeks of spite and ignorance. It also glosses over the privacy issues that kept many from using Google Browser Sync to begin with, but which aren't an issue with Foxmarks.

And anyway, I'm much more willing to trust Foxmarks to store my private data than I am Google -- unlike Google, Foxmarks is not one of the world's fastest-growing advertising companies; and unlike Google, Foxmarks is founded by Mitch Kapor, one of the co-founders of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Better still, the Foxmarks extension allows you to use your own server for synchronization, if you're so paranoid that you don't even trust your data in the hands of an EFF founder.

If anything can be called a "poorly maintained 3rd party extension" here, it would have to be Google Browser Sync -- which, I suppose, is why it has fallen out of favor.

Re:Alternatives?

[seriv]

Look into foxmarks (assuming you use firefox). It works decently well, and it has firefox 3 support. I never switched to Google's thing, because foxmarks seemed better.

Mozilla Weave is working great for me

[Anonymous Coward]

http://labs.mozilla.com/featured-projects/#weave

Syncs lots of things, including bookmarks.

Mozilla Weave

[beezly]

Mozilla Weave does similar stuff... http://labs.mozilla.com/2007/12/introducing-weave/

I've been using it for a while and it's pretty good, even though it's still under lots of development.

Re:Fear not...

[Ambush Commander]

I have mod points, but I have to point out here that Opera Sync currently only works with your bookmarks and your speed dial, making it Opera's built-in equivalent of Foxmarks (which I myself have been using happily). It is no Google Browser Sync replacement.

Re:This makes me cry...

[i.of.the.storm]

Mozilla is actually working on an extension called Weave that essentially does everything it sounds like GBS did. At least, I know it syncs bookmarks, history, and cookies, and other things.