sbeak 4 points 4 months ago

To some, yes. They are pretty neat. However, not everyone cares all too much about football and the world cup, and many don't really like how it was very in your face.

What if Firefox added a widget counting down when a fancy watch brand is going to release their nth anniversary watch? Some people might like that, but most people aren't that invested in watches. Or perhaps a pop up about next-gen laptops and mini PCs, there are some people who would appreciate that, but most people see something like that as an advertisement.

You could put any other topic as an example: innovative display panels, networking equipment, bicycles, fashion, dishwashers, power tools, 3D printers, backpacks, miniatures, whatever. There is a minority of people who would love something like that, but the majority see it as annoying advertisements. A happy middle would be to add these wallpapers and widgets as an opt-in experience, maybe as an extension or something, I dunno.

save

path: 0 24303369, hotness: undefined, score: 4, children: 7

Auth 1 point 4 months ago

It was optional, there was a suggestion asking if you would like to add the widget.

save

path: 0 24303369 24307557, hotness: undefined, score: 1, children: 6

sbeak 2 points 4 months ago

Yes, most people did not like the box asking you to use those features. I would think it would be in the interests of everyone for these to be opt-in rather than opt-out.

save

path: 0 24303369 24307557 24307827, hotness: undefined, score: 2, children: 5

Auth 2 points 4 months ago

Most people probably didnt care. It wasnt a popup it was a button on a new tab. I dont see where the intense desire for everything to be static comes from, if there is something new I would like to know about it.

save

path: 0 24303369 24307557 24307827 24309746, hotness: undefined, score: 2, children: 4

sbeak 2 points 4 months ago

if there is something new I would like to know about it

Look back at some of the examples I have given. Perhaps you are interested in world cup things, but most people aren't. How things are now, people see it as something a bit forced, when it really would have been better as an extension pack or something else that's opt-in. If you replace the world cup with topics you aren't as interested in, I think you will see the problem.

Here are some more examples if you aren't convinced:

Imagine if Nestle did a coffee promotion with Firefox, and the browser badgered you to use the Nestle themed backgrounds. It would be pretty annoying, right? It's not a war crime, but it taints the user experience.

Or what if McDonalds did something with Firefox, where the start-up sound is the "doo-doo doo-doo doooo", and widgets that show you the nearest McDonalds location were added as well. For most people, this would be a blatant advertisement.

Same goes for other topics I have mentioned, a few people might be interested, but most aren't. It is in the interests of everyone for these to be opt-in as an extension, so the people who do want it can install it themselves rather than having it baked in for all installations!

save

path: 0 24303369 24307557 24307827 24309746 24314851, hotness: undefined, score: 2, children: 3