The one thing I don't like about this article (and indeed, much of the discourse around the Pocket integration) is its characterization of the Pocket integration itself. It calls it an “opt-out non-removable [extension]”. The truth is that you can easily disable it just as you can easily disable many other things that Firefox includes by-default. In fact, if you use Classic Theme Restorer (I use it not because I dislike australis, but because I really do not want a navigation toolbar), it has an option baked in to disable Pocket along with webrtc, et al.
Admittedly, I suppose it would be nice if Firefox actually packaged Pocket as a real extension that could be removed from the Extensions menu, but they have already integrated several things without using that schema.
I still use firefox, just with more and more things disabled, because none of the other browsers out there even come close to having what I need in a GUI browser (though, I would note that I'm evermore tempted to abandon GUI browsing altogether).
Either way, the write-up is great, and everything in the article other than that one characterization (which rubbed me a bit the wrong way in the wake of all the fevered discussions around the Pocket Integration) was a truly enjoyable read. Not to mention, it's great that the Pocket devs fixed things quickly; that's always a plus!
>you can easily disable it just as you can easily disable many other things that Firefox includes by-default
>it would be nice if Firefox actually packaged Pocket as a real extension that could be removed from the Extensions menu
These two statements you made seem to corroborate his characterization of it being "opt-out" (meaning on by default, but capable of being disabled) and "non-removable" (baked into firefox as opposed to an extension). Not sure what you find wrong with his characterization.
“opt-out” is certainly correct (though, as I understand it, Pocket, as with all parts of Firefox, is only loaded when it is actually used, so “opt-out” does not seem to tell the whole story to me). I do disagree with the “non-removable” bit. Fully disabling it, to me, counts as removable (though I can understand why someone would disagree).
Perhaps I just read something into the Author's tone (probably due to all the vitriole from the typical discourse around the integration) that wasn't really there. If that's the case, and all the author meant by that statement was that the code itself could not be completely erased from Firefox as-packaged, then that seems to be factually true, and I simply read it incorrectly.
Happy to do it. The last thing I want is for my post to have come across as vitriolic or argumentative; I just wanted to voice the one case of unease the article left me with :)
Admittedly, I suppose it would be nice if Firefox actually packaged Pocket as a real extension that could be removed from the Extensions menu, but they have already integrated several things without using that schema.
I still use firefox, just with more and more things disabled, because none of the other browsers out there even come close to having what I need in a GUI browser (though, I would note that I'm evermore tempted to abandon GUI browsing altogether).
Either way, the write-up is great, and everything in the article other than that one characterization (which rubbed me a bit the wrong way in the wake of all the fevered discussions around the Pocket Integration) was a truly enjoyable read. Not to mention, it's great that the Pocket devs fixed things quickly; that's always a plus!