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Firefox's Web Push Notification System Announced

Posted by Soulskill on from the convergent-alert-evolution dept.

eldavojohn writes "Describing Notifications as 'somewhere between email and IM,' Mozilla has announced this push technology as a way to receive notifications from websites without having to keep them open in your browser — as well as receiving them on your mobile device. A JavaScript API reveals early interface ideas by the team. This core concept is not new — both Google and Apple have their own push notification systems for Android and iOS respectively. However, 'It's important to note that this push notification system is distinct from the existing desktop notification mechanisms that are already defined in pending standards. The desktop notifications that websites like GMail and Seesmic Web display to Chrome users, for example, will only work when the website is left open in a tab. Mozilla's push notification system moves beyond that limitation.' Mozilla is attempting to take push notifications to the entire web for any website to use."

12 of 132 comments (clear)

  1. WebSlices by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Microsoft did this with WebSlices in Internet Explorer 8.

    http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/cc956158%28v=vs.85%29.aspx

    As you can tell from how prominent they are, this idea really took off among web users.

    1. Re:WebSlices by Anaerin · · Score: 5, Informative

      IE may have introduced it in IE8, but Netscape (Remember them?) introduced it in 1995 in NS1.1, and it's supported in every browser except IE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Push_technology#HTTP_server_push

  2. Interesting Concept by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's like we're fighting with ourselves though. "I really love these web apps, but I really wish they weren't web apps"

  3. Im not opposed by james_van · · Score: 5, Interesting

    but i feel like we're back in the late 90's/early 2000's with all the different web technologies from different companies, almost to the point of having to add the old "best viewed in derp derp browser" messages to websites. i know this sort of thing is necessary to move things along, but i kinda hate this limbo phase where we have all kinds of new/interesting/exciting/annoying technologies, and no standards yet to bring them together. that's my rant, ill be quiet now.

    1. Re:Im not opposed by arose · · Score: 4, Interesting

      You're looking too far ahead. The bleeding edge basically has to be this way to hammer out the problems before proposing the standard. On the other hand quite a few new/interesting/exciting/annoying technologies have been drafted together and implemented across the board. Or are things moving so fast that stuff like canvas, that is barely starting to see production adoption, doesn't qualify anymore?

      TL;DR It only seems like The Browser Wars because it's easy to pick out the incompatibilities.

      --
      Analogies don't equal equalities, they are merely somewhat analogous.
  4. What a great idea: Syndication! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Now if there were only a way to make this syndication Really Simple.

    1. Re:What a great idea: Syndication! by sexconker · · Score: 4, Interesting

      That's pull, no push. Pushing is much more efficient.

      A "pull" notification requires the client to poke a server and check for content. This is typically done on a set interval.

      A "push" notification requires an open connection to push content through. The client acts as a server.

      Pushing is only more efficient if you're the server or you have a device with such a shitty battery.
      Desktop and laptop users don't give a flying fuck about the battery use required to poke at a server. The only ones who care are people on phones / tablets / nettops / other fad devices. And they all have "apps".

      The bottom line is that the client should NOT have to maintain a connection the server can inject into.
      It's backwards and retarded behavior for a web browser to maintain open connections to remote servers after a page is closed.
      You might as well just elav the tab open.

      There's a reason why no one uses IE's web slices.

    2. Re:What a great idea: Syndication! by JustSomeProgrammer · · Score: 4, Informative

      A pull notification system is more efficient only if there are updates more frequently than polls. If the updates are very infrequent it gets to be more efficient for pushing. And pushing shouldn't require you to keep a connection open to each site, it should just require you to keep one port open where all push notifications would go. The server would open a connection to that port in order to send the push. Unless pushes are frequent then you might maintain an open connection blah blah blah. At least every push system that I've ever worked with works in this way. Usually results in less traffic since there's never a poll that goes "hey ya got anything yet?"

  5. more spam please! by HarrySquatter · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Yay! A new spam vector!

    1. Re:more spam please! by sexconker · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Riiiight. Because it couldn't at all be possible to have a settings page like this:

      From which sites do you wish to permit push notifications?
      slashdot.org
      news.google.com
      cnn.com

      No, your browser would have to accept (and display!) every single notification ever sent to you. Makes perfect sense.

      And for each little notification bubble, why couldn't there be a little button? "Don't allow any more notifications from this service." Done.

      It's like saying you just have to deal with spam emails. No, you don't. That's what spam filters, whitelists, etc. are for. This sort of service sounds like it would be whitelist-based to begin with, so anyone who abuses the service can easily be blocked.

      Sorry, this post cannot be displayed.
      Please make sure you enable cookies, javascript, popups, and ads from yet.another.spamming.and.tracking.domain.from.google.com .

  6. Data caps? by mr_lizard13 · · Score: 4, Funny

    I fear if they use this to push notifications for each new Firefox release then I'll exceed my data cap.

    --
    "We live in a global world" - Harvey Pitt, former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman
  7. Will it even work? by Todd+Knarr · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Will it work:

    • When the browser isn't running?
    • When the machine's behind a NATing router that isn't configured for port forwarding or a DMZ?
    • When the machine's behind a firewall that blocks all incoming connections that aren't associated with an outbound connection?

    If it can't, then we're going to be able to use it how again?