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Google Browser Sync Source Released

Posted by timothy on from the how-every-orphan-should-be-treated dept.

AySz88 writes "Google has made an official announcement of their decision to discontinue Google Browser Sync. But it comes with a brighter side — its source code is now open and available."

10 of 33 comments (clear)

  1. privacy by iMaple · · Score: 4, Insightful

    One of the reasons why the browersync was popular is that people trusted Google with their setting and passwords and bookmarks( I mean they already have my email, my calender, my photos, my IM history, my cc number).

    Now its not easy for someone to convert this into a generic extension, unless everyone trusts that person already. What the source could be useful for, is syncing it to your own server (or say a university server). The extension can be modified so that the sync server could be made customizable.. that way your data remains with you.

    1. Re:privacy by glop · · Score: 3, Insightful

      You could also encrypt the data before sending it to the server.
      That way any web server is just fine and trustworthy.

    2. Re:privacy by TooMuchToDo · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Have the plugin talk to a bucket at Amazon S3. Encrypt the data. Done.

    3. Re:privacy by electrosoccertux · · Score: 2, Informative

      That's what Mozilla Weave does!

  2. WEAVE by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Use Firefox Weave. It's by the mozilla developers and does everything Google Browser Sync does, with support from mozilla.

    1. Re:WEAVE by trash+eighty · · Score: 4, Informative

      Weave is ridiculously in alpha, i couldn't even create an account using that without it crashing, Google Browser Sync just worked. Foxmarks seems to do the trick for now anyway.

    2. Re:WEAVE by dissy · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Foxmarks does extremely well for addition of bookmarks, plus it even has a history of previous modifications so you can restore your own mistakes.

      Wish I could have seen browser sync but its the same idea overall.

      If only. I wish there was a plugin even close to the functionality of google browser sync (and now there might just be one)

      Foxmarks comes up short because all it can sync is your bookmarks and nothing else. Same with everything else that isn't google bookmark sync so far, sadly.

      I need syncing of not just bookmarks, but saved passwords in the encrypted store, saved cookies, and form data.
      Having url and search history synced has been handy too, but not a feature i personally would complain about lacking. The saved passwords and form data however is a deal killer.

      Yet it seems everyone else on slashdot has always shrugged off google browser sync saying such comments as yours, like 'its the same thing over all' where 'its' is always some plugin that has only one out of all the features the google plugin had.

    3. Re:WEAVE by Chyeld · · Score: 4, Informative

      You are misinformed.

  3. Kudos to Google by Bandman · · Score: 2, Insightful

    At least now, there's hope that this will be fixed and improved upon.

    This is a really responsible way to "end of life" a product. Release the source code to the community so that the dedicated users aren't stranded hopelessly.

    --
    Check out my sysadmin blog!
  4. GMarks plugin never mentioned? by renbear · · Score: 2, Interesting

    While I recognize that Google Browser Sync was significantly more comprehensive than just bookmarks, I am surprised that no one bringing up bookmark-syncing replacements has brought up GMarks, a Firefox plugin that syncs with Google Bookmarks.

    The link above is its addon page. Its features are listed here, and the project's homepage is here. I've used it for quite some time, and am satisfied with it. It's not amazingly earth-shatteringly innovative, but it gets the job done.