Chrome Add-Ons Everywhere!
This one is fun. I don't personally use browser add-ons where it can be avoided for every reason under the sun. The biggest being, I largely have no need for them. But, many people use them regularly. Very regularly.
So, it was news when I first heard that Edge would be adopting. And now even more news since Firefox is adopting them as well. With Opera already having adopted them a while ago, this means that 90%+ of browser users will soon be able to use a common add-on base.
The fun bit is people's reactions. I think that the funniest is the people accusing those adopting these add-ons as "following the leader". This is true in some ways, but actually wrong in all of the ways that matter. Add-ons are primarily a desktop browser thing. And in that market Chrome isn't #1... they aren't even #2. They are #3. IE is #1, and Firefox is #2. So, neither Microsoft or Mozilla are following the leader. Well... maybe Mozilla is following Microsoft.
So why is everyone adopting support for Chrome's add-ons? A number of reasons.
For Microsoft, Silverlight and those sorts of browser extensions are dead. Even Edge is simply starting off without support for it. So, right off the bat, for Edge it means no existing add-on solution. They could re-invent the wheel and come up with one of their own... but why? There are already some out there with developer followings. And, Microsoft has always been a company quick to support the development of standards (even when they aren't their own). Chrome add-ons have a large developer base and Google has a strong following. On the flipside, Mozilla doesn't have near as much support and it has been waning as far as I can tell over the years. There is also another browser adopting Chrome's add-ons outside of Chrome, which made it further along to becoming a de facto standard than any other implementation. In short... it was the obvious answer.
For Mozilla, I think the truth lies in the fact that Microsoft's decision was the death blow. IE is only #1 because it is the default browser on Windows PCs. With Edge now taking that lucrative default browser position, it will likely surpass IE (and everything else) in short order. Which means that Mozilla would now be following the leader... and the rest of the market. Fighting that would be silly. At best this move would have little to no impact on their developer base, but worst case is they hemorrhage developers for their own add-ons in the face of a very large unified front that is now very feasibly cross browser.
I know the move will piss off developers of Mozilla's add-ons, but this was the right decision for the browser and its users.
Many look at Mozilla's move as solidifying Chome Add-ons as the de facto standard. But honestly, that is a fallacy. Microsoft's adoption is what made it a de facto standard. Mozilla's move is just a company conceding to that fact. Microsoft has the largest browser share on desktop and Google has it on mobile. When those agree on something, it becomes a standard (at this point in time at least).
The end result of all this is good news for users. And good news for new add-on developers and existing Chrome add-on devs. For users dependent on certain add-ons it means more choice in browsers as your add-ons will eventually be supported just about anywhere. For new developers it means a clearer picture than ever of where you should invest your time and effort and for existing Chrome devs, it means a larger audience.
So, it was news when I first heard that Edge would be adopting. And now even more news since Firefox is adopting them as well. With Opera already having adopted them a while ago, this means that 90%+ of browser users will soon be able to use a common add-on base.
The fun bit is people's reactions. I think that the funniest is the people accusing those adopting these add-ons as "following the leader". This is true in some ways, but actually wrong in all of the ways that matter. Add-ons are primarily a desktop browser thing. And in that market Chrome isn't #1... they aren't even #2. They are #3. IE is #1, and Firefox is #2. So, neither Microsoft or Mozilla are following the leader. Well... maybe Mozilla is following Microsoft.
So why is everyone adopting support for Chrome's add-ons? A number of reasons.
For Microsoft, Silverlight and those sorts of browser extensions are dead. Even Edge is simply starting off without support for it. So, right off the bat, for Edge it means no existing add-on solution. They could re-invent the wheel and come up with one of their own... but why? There are already some out there with developer followings. And, Microsoft has always been a company quick to support the development of standards (even when they aren't their own). Chrome add-ons have a large developer base and Google has a strong following. On the flipside, Mozilla doesn't have near as much support and it has been waning as far as I can tell over the years. There is also another browser adopting Chrome's add-ons outside of Chrome, which made it further along to becoming a de facto standard than any other implementation. In short... it was the obvious answer.
For Mozilla, I think the truth lies in the fact that Microsoft's decision was the death blow. IE is only #1 because it is the default browser on Windows PCs. With Edge now taking that lucrative default browser position, it will likely surpass IE (and everything else) in short order. Which means that Mozilla would now be following the leader... and the rest of the market. Fighting that would be silly. At best this move would have little to no impact on their developer base, but worst case is they hemorrhage developers for their own add-ons in the face of a very large unified front that is now very feasibly cross browser.
I know the move will piss off developers of Mozilla's add-ons, but this was the right decision for the browser and its users.
Many look at Mozilla's move as solidifying Chome Add-ons as the de facto standard. But honestly, that is a fallacy. Microsoft's adoption is what made it a de facto standard. Mozilla's move is just a company conceding to that fact. Microsoft has the largest browser share on desktop and Google has it on mobile. When those agree on something, it becomes a standard (at this point in time at least).
The end result of all this is good news for users. And good news for new add-on developers and existing Chrome add-on devs. For users dependent on certain add-ons it means more choice in browsers as your add-ons will eventually be supported just about anywhere. For new developers it means a clearer picture than ever of where you should invest your time and effort and for existing Chrome devs, it means a larger audience.
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