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Mozilla Flips Kill-Switch On Skype Toolbar

Posted by Soulskill on from the take-a-time-out-until-you-can-play-nice-with-the-other-kids dept.

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."

7 of 284 comments (clear)

  1. do it mozilla. by Skarecrow77 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    the skype toolbar is junk anyway.

    wait, let me fix it for myself

    toolbars are junk anyway.

    1. Re:do it mozilla. by by+(1706743) · · Score: 5, Funny

      You're wrong -- toolbars are awesome...

  2. All I have to say is... by masterwit · · Score: 5, Insightful

    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
  3. Auto-Installing *anything* needs to die. by Facegarden · · Score: 5, Interesting

    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?
    1. Re:Auto-Installing *anything* needs to die. by Facegarden · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Apple installing safari automatically (but apple is already evil so that wasn't too much of a surprise).

      Apple never automatically installed Safari on Windows machines. When you use Apple's updater it will have Safari checked as an additional, optional install but you can uncheck that and Safari won't be installed. It's not hidden or automatic, the user can check or uncheck the box as they desire.

      You are wrong, sorry:
      http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-9901006-7.html

      When they first introduced the tactic, it was not listed under "optional installs", but right alongside iTunes under "updates" or whatever, so it looked like an update to something you already had. For years, I just clicked "yes" to the apple updater, because it was always just there to update software I had (iTunes). And then one day, it said Safari needed an update, even though I didn't have it installed. Well, *I* noticed this, but plenty of other people didn't.

      After a little while, they moved it from "updates" to "additional installs" or whatever, but it was still checked by default. People had to pay attention, and normally with software updaters, you just say yes - its an "update".

      You build a certain level of trust with a user that your "updater" will only be used for updates, and it is an abuse of that trust to use it for installing new software without making it extremely clear that something has changed (like not having it checked by default, or having a prompt that is different from the usual software's behavior).

      You may say it would be my fault for getting duped, but what about my mom? She doesn't have a lot of money, so her computer is a few years old. She's also not very computer savvy, so she falls victim to every one of these things, and her computer is constantly loaded up with extra junk. All she wants to do is log onto facebook to message her children, and her computer is so slow she can't really do that anymore.

      The bottom line is:
      *When someone like Apple tricks a user into installing new software, they're cheating old ladies out of communication with their loved ones just to pump up their install base.*

      That is true sleezeball move.

      --
      Worldwide Military budgets: $2100 billion. Worldwide Space Exploration budgets: $38 billion. Really, world? Really?
  4. Re:But you still can't uninstall it... by jack2000 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    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.

  5. Dear Mozilla by Charliemopps · · Score: 5, Insightful

    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."