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Mozilla Flips Kill-Switch On Skype Toolbar
An anonymous reader writes "Whenever Skype is installed or updated, it automatically installs the Skype Toolbar add-on for Firefox. Unfortunately, the add-on causes serious performance problems, slowing down some operations by a factor of 300 and is one of the top causes for Firefox crashes. As a result, Mozilla has decided to 'soft-block' the add-on, effectively killing it on all Firefox installs unless the user intentionally re-enables it. Given the extreme popularity of Skype, this has ramifications for millions of users."
the skype toolbar is junk anyway.
wait, let me fix it for myself
toolbars are junk anyway.
All I have to say is good for them! Yahoo toolbar here, Some-Terribly-Pointless toolbar there... as I warn people I know, always press the "Advanced Install" option and if possible.
Skype is Adware, there I said it. Do something without the user's consent or knowledge (what is a EULA?)... I mean who uses a Skype toolbar anyway? Most people I ask usually reply, "Well I didn't know how to get rid of it..."
Rabble rabble rabble...I hate these types of software "bonuses" and blatant "promotions". Is it just me or do companies not realize that these practices usually make the customer angry? (I mean it certainly doesn't make them happy every time they view something they disabled.) /endrant
We should start a new Slashdot and return control to the geeks. It actually wouldn't be that hard to get some users to
I had a similar problem yesterday except in Chrome. I guess I wasn't really paying attention but why the hell does Skype install toolbars without my input anyway?
That addon was removed pretty damn quick after it crashed and locked up my browsing session. Useless crap...
crazy dynamite monkey
summary was written by a skype executive...just because you developed a great product doesnt mean there isnt:
1. competition that is less popular but technologically superior, just waiting for an advance
2. cause to assume your success and popularity are justification for sloppy software lifecycle practices.
3. open source communities capable of reacting organically to protect their users, not your profits.
Good people go to bed earlier.
And here comes the endless 500 post thread on how shouldn't allow to install without . This then ends up becoming a debate on operating system security and rights management and 100 other completely unrelated topics. Oh, and vi is better.
Note to self: Stop putting jokes in my insightful comments so I can get something other than +1 Funny!
Why do people insist on having desktop apps embedded as plugins to browsers?
Thank god. I had to install skype for an interview.
When I removed it, it decided to wipe out all my bookmarks, addons and themes for firefox.
I was pissed, but at least I had xmarks.
If not, there would be hell to pay.
The toolbar isn't silently turned off; there's nothing that nefarious going on. Users are notified about what is happening, and as the post says, can re-enable the toolbar if they choose.
That said, I'm not thrilled about anyone remotely doing anything on my computer without my explicit permission ahead of time.
Anything that auto-installs needs to go to hell and burn.
Most recent example: My boss finally starts using Chrome instead of IE. Shortly after he starts using it, he complains that Gmail won't load - it gets stuck in a reloading loop. I look it up and NO ONE seems to know what is happening. Clearing the cache - all that - nothing works. A couple weeks later, it happens to me, and I immediately notice something new - a new extension has been installed, a big green "M" in the upper right hand side. McAfee decided I needed their "safe browsing extension" (something I NEVER want), and the safe browsing extension seems to cause the gmail reload loop. I uninstalled it (just because I didn't want it) and immediately noticed that the gmail problem was resolved.
Browser makers (well, google, and maybe mozilla) work really hard to make a kick ass, stable program, and then any jackass with some untested crap can auto-install whatever they want and bring it down. Skype, McAffee, these are supposed to be mature companies (well, some people hate McAfee, but whatever) yet they still pull BS shit (yes, two shits) like auto-installing something that isn't even stable. Or Apple installing safari automatically (but apple is already evil so that wasn't too much of a surprise).
I really wish there were some way to make that illegal without just causing some big legal shithole. Really I just wish there was some code of honor that good software vendors would agree too - autoinstalling being something to avoid (or have a box that says "Do you want to install the Skype shitty toolbar" *making sure* to have a "don't ask me again" checkbox).
This isn't 2003 and I don't want every toolbar you came up with installed on my machine!
-Taylor
Worldwide Military budgets: $2100 billion. Worldwide Space Exploration budgets: $38 billion. Really, world? Really?
WHY is it grayed out? WHY MOZILLA? Tell us?
This is not acceptable, the button should always be enabled even if the file is a plugin and resides outside of mozilla's profile folders, have a delete plugin file button. When you click it if you don't have the user rights to delete the file it should automatically throw a user escalation prompt.
How hard is it to get this right? COME ON!
While we are at it forbid installation of plugins and extensions without direct user approval from inside firefox. What OTHER installers are doing to firefox shouldn't be trusted, not at all.
Please disable all toolbars by default. When the user logs in, pop up a page that says:
"This program tried to install a toolbar, you probably don't need it and it's probably full of ads. The nephew you always call when you have computer trouble would seriously be mad if you enable it. Would you like to enable it at this time? If so, please type in 'yes, I'd like to be inundated with ads and malware please' in the box bellow."
Are installed not to the user profile. Exit Firefox, re-launch as an Administrator (Right-click the shortcut, select 'Run as Administrator' and accept the UAC prompt)
You'll now find yourself able to uninstall that, and any previous versions of the Java Console that have been left behind by numerous updates to that piece of software as well.
I agree that no outside installer should be able to install an addon without explicit permission the next time the user enters the browser. Would avoid people who don't know better than to look at all those checkbox options when they install something (like anything from Yahoo or even Java).
After having Firefox crash several times because of it. I removed it. I never used it, and don't miss it. Most Skype users won't.
You've got to be really careful with anything that requires user escalation... I'm not sure if there is a clean way to do this. However, this is the reason there are some "uninstallable" addons - They're addons that were installed system-wide.
Just deleting files from Firefox unfortunately screws up uninstaller apps.
I don't think there is a clean way to do what you want in a cross-platform manner.
retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
Because such add-ons are installed and loaded differently from standard add-ons. Normal add-ons are per-user and reside in the user's profile; Firefox knows what this directory structure looks like and can safely remove addons. However these special add-ons are installed who knows where on your disk and a special registry entry set up to have every Firefox user profile load them. Firefox doesn't even know if it CAN be uninstalled (Example: user permissions forbid writing to the add-on's folder, likely to happen under Vista/7).
Oh, but you "asked" for it when you didn't bother to uncheck the "Yes, install Skype Toolbar!" button during installation. Never mind that it's checked by default and most people just click "Next" until the thing is finished...
Check out my world simulator thingy.
WHY is it grayed out? WHY MOZILLA? Tell us?
Because it's installed globally, IE for all profiles. Why should user a be able to remove it for user b?
Your hair look like poop, Bob! - Wanker.
Skype installing a toolbar isn't half as annoying as the JRE (Java Runtime) or my Logitech Mouse Software installing the Yahoo! toolbar.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
1. Skype shouldn't have the ability to install an extension without explicit user agreement. I believe this is Mozilla's fault, it has been abused by others as well. Fix the extension installation process.
No, its the OS's fault. As Mozilla is just another application with the same level of privileged access to the user's configuration settings as any other application, anything that Mozilla can do to stop auto-installers can be undone by the very same auto-installers. If Skype really wanted to, the next version of their auto-installer could turn off this "kill-switch" too.
When information is power, privacy is freedom.
The Stumpleupon toolbar is quite cool. And there's the Webdeveloper's toolbar as well.
The latest BitTorrent update installs a toolbar even if you tell it not to.
Although this idea can work, it just starts an escalation. Assume Firefox is updated to do this. Firefox has to track the information about addons it knows about so that it can detect the new one. The slimeballs that are doing this eventually figure out how the tracking works and set it to approved. Then Mozilla makes an update to encrypt the store of known addons. It stops the slimeballs for awhile. Eventually, they figure out how to copy an encrypted data blob that has several known addons already allowed - including theirs. Mozilla makes another update - this time to use some LUID type information as part of the encryption so that the files can't be copied. Another escalation. Unfortunately it is hard to stop bad behavior with technical solutions.
Why bother installing the Logitech mouse software? Surely it works fine with out it?