What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Old discussions related to the Android/mobile version of Pale Moon.
_Poke_

What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by _Poke_ » 2015-04-18, 12:25

I'm wondering what everyone will be switching to now that PM4A is unsupported. There's no compelling reason I've heard to switch yet, but it'd be good to at least have a backup soon.

I just tried UC browser based on past threads' recommendations, but couldn't find any way to set my search to DuckDuckGo which was a dealbreaker. (Not completely comfortable with all the facebook/etc. integration either, even if it is disable-able.... just reeks of "will sell your data for quick cash", but I'm probably just being paranoid.)

I'm guessing a lot of you will be picking up regular Firefox, but are there any other good browsers out there?

x-15a2

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by x-15a2 » 2015-04-18, 15:42

Yeh, so far my list is browsers that I won't use vs those that I will I agree with your stated criteria: No DDG = No deal (although the DDG app is a good fallback as you can use it for search and it will display results in your default server).

Right now, I'm living in denial, hoping that that cowboy with a white hat will come along and passionately pick up the project from MC. I wish that I had the resources to do so but that's simply not viable for me at this point in my life.

Here's a pretty good listing of current Android browsers, this might be of benefit: http://theultralinx.com/2015/01/best-in ... 5-edition/

dark_moon

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by dark_moon » 2015-04-18, 16:25

I use Fennec Fdroid, which i link here: viewtopic.php?p=52448#p52448

x-15a2

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by x-15a2 » 2015-04-19, 12:00

I'm looking at Ghostery browser which defaults to DDG searches, has Ghostery features built in and lots of privacy controls. So far it renders my pages well. PM4A continues to be my default browser and will continue to be and I'll probably look at more broswers as well. Sure wish I could find a way to export\import favorites from PM4A to other browser candidates.

I haven't looked at Fennec FDroid because I removed FDroid from my Android devices following the negative experience that MC faced trying to get PM4A posted by them.

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Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by Moonchild » 2015-04-19, 12:31

Just FYI I will probably make a final build for 25.4 -- no use letting this work put in in the meantime go to waste, and should keep you pretty ok to run that version for a while with what has been fixed (VPN/IPv6/etc.) either until someone/somefolks can pick up the torch or until it simply has to be considered lost.
"Sometimes, the best way to get what you want is to be a good person." -- Louis Rossmann
"Seek wisdom, not knowledge. Knowledge is of the past; wisdom is of the future." -- Native American proverb
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x-15a2

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by x-15a2 » 2015-04-19, 12:34

Thanks MC, this is indeed great news! Your efforts are appreciated.

_Poke_

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by _Poke_ » 2015-04-19, 12:38

I came to the same conclusion from that article you listed, though I didn't test any others.
Ghostery works well for me so far, with a nice UI, similar speeds + rendering quality to PM and inbuilt blocking of tracking scripts.
Not sure if add-ons are available though - no mention of them in-app, but perhaps it'll take extensions for whatever it's branched from? (UA says Chrome I believe, couldn't find any info on the Play Store though...).

Of course at this point, you have to consider that Ghostery is also available as a Firefox mobile extension (or just use a generic ad/script blocker), so if the performance isn't too different it's probably better to go with FF for the versatility.

Though from the sounds of it, PM is going to last a while longer and this may all be moot. Much appreciated MC. :clap:

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Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by cyberreine » 2015-04-19, 16:36

At the moment, I'll continue to use PM, especially now that Moonchild has offered to make a final build. But ever since I read his earlier announcement, I've been trying to decide what to replace PM with. My current thinking is the Dolphin browser, which I used for a while before PM. Dolphin does offer DDG as one of several search engines available. It works with LastPass, my password manager (failure to do so would be a dealbreaker for me). It renders most web sites well. One feature PM offers that Dolphin apparently does not is the "Save as PDF" option; it's one I use a lot, since I can save sites as pdfs and then show them to people even if I don't have an Internet connection (my Nexus 7 tablet accesses the Internet only through wi-fi). Firefox also offers the save as pdf feature, but I was not all that happy with Firefox's rendering of some web sites, and I'm also wary of Firefox because of the minimalist direction it's moving to in the Windows version.

I'll continue to read this thread, and I'll also take a look at the browsers discussed in the link provided by x-15a2.
PM 29.1.1(32-bit) on Win10 Professional 64-bit

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Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by TheRobin » 2015-04-23, 01:17

I am looking for a new browser to replace PM on my Android now due to all the extensions refusing to install. I don't like jumping through hoops to get things work and it will only become more troublesome in the future trying to deal with an unsupported browser.

However, it seems there is nothing in the market quite like FF. Once you have ad blocking, ghostery, gestures and full screen support, it is hard to adapt to lesser browsers even if they run a bit smoother. I can't find a browser that seems to offer advance privacy features, easily toggled full screen browsing, ad blocking features and gestures for easy and faster control in full screen and normal view.

I do not like the direction Mozilla has taken FF in the past couple of years which is why I am using PM. But now that PM on android is falling behind, I don't really see a better option than FF. I much rather use the stock browser in cyanogenmod with its quick controls and full screen options than the rest of the junk in the play store.

dogkappa

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by dogkappa » 2015-04-23, 12:18

TheRobin wrote:I am looking for a new browser to replace PM on my Android now due to all the extensions refusing to install. I don't like jumping through hoops to get things work and it will only become more troublesome in the future trying to deal with an unsupported browser.

However, it seems there is nothing in the market quite like FF. Once you have ad blocking, ghostery, gestures and full screen support, it is hard to adapt to lesser browsers even if they run a bit smoother. I can't find a browser that seems to offer advance privacy features, easily toggled full screen browsing, ad blocking features and gestures for easy and faster control in full screen and normal view.

I do not like the direction Mozilla has taken FF in the past couple of years which is why I am using PM. But now that PM on android is falling behind, I don't really see a better option than FF. I much rather use the stock browser in cyanogenmod with its quick controls and full screen options than the rest of the junk in the play store.
I cannot help but agree.

I tried out Dolphin Browser, UC browser and the new Opera Mobile, and while they all were very slick, fast page loading and easy to use, they are very feature barren compared to Firefox. And they seem "slimy" - even my old favorite browser, Opera, is full of amazon links, facebook links etc when you first load the browser. That doesn't really give me good first impression when the first task is to clean all the sponsor links, google analytics and whatever. :(

I switched PM4A to FF4A, and so far it seems to be alright. Maybe I am imagining, but Pale Moon seemed little bit faster to load pages? Could be some extension slowing down FF.

That seems to be the only big problem Firefox for Android has - it is really slow compared to all those other competing browser I mentioned.

I also tried FDroid Fennec, but ended up deleting it because it seemed to be very close to Firefox (basically only difference is no crash reporter to mozilla and different icons&name) and because I don't know if Fdroid is really trustworthy considering the bad experience Pale Moon developers had working with them.

half-moon

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by half-moon » 2015-04-23, 17:01

I don't have any android-powered device, so I don't know anything about the browser landscape there. What I do know, is that mobile browsing is a huge joke that you can lose your breath when laughing so hard at it.

x-15a2

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by x-15a2 » 2015-04-23, 23:17

So, you know this from your admitted lack of experience? What a waste of a post.

half-moon

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by half-moon » 2015-04-24, 12:46

x-15a2 wrote:So, you know this from your admitted lack of experience? What a waste of a post.
I've tried mobile browsing with Android x86 in a VM, and it is a pretty huge mess. And no, I wasn't talking about browsers.

EDIT: Then again, maybe overall mobile web design might have changed since I last tried a year or two ago.

_Poke_

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by _Poke_ » 2015-04-24, 14:41

Mobile web design isn't amazing, but most pages are alright (and most of the others can be fixed with a simple request desktop). I prefer using a laptop or desktop, but it's convenient to have access on a phone as well in case you're out of the house.

Overall I think I may have to settle for FF, but hopefully PM will last a while until then. Even when official builds end I might look into building my own.

davenz

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by davenz » 2015-09-18, 21:36

I will be looking at Vivaldi and while another chrome based browser it is made by the old opera team so could end up being ok. Everything is so commercialised these days, all free software is stuffed with sponsor's crap but that's browsing in the 201Xs.

DAC324

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by DAC324 » 2015-09-21, 12:39

Hello,

I also tried a few browsers on Android, and Pale Moon is still the best.

Here's my experience:

Stock browser: Pretty fast but has problems on some pages and it is not very stable. Also, there are security concerns.
Dolphin Browser: frequently crashing on me, slow rendering pf pages
Opera Mobile: problems rendering a lot of pages, slow
Naked Browser: This is the Android stock browser in disguise, and therefore has all its disadvantages.

Firefox for Android: Seems to be a bloated program but at least does all you want. Sometimes, a bit slow in starting and loading pages.

But the show-stopper for all those browsers except Firefox and Pale Moon is a very simple fact: They use the system's download manager. This is especially problematic when downloading something from One-Click hosters, such as Uploaded.Net or ShareOnline.biz.

All the browsers relying on the Android download manager fail to download anything from the One-Click hosters. That is because they request the file themselves and afterwards give control to Android's download manager. The download manager then requests the file again which is rejected by the hoster because it thinks you are trying to download the file twice.

As only Firefox and Pale Moon seem to do that right (they are using their own download manager), there is at least for me, no reasonable alternative yet.

Kind regards,
DAC324

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Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by Moonchild » 2015-09-21, 23:15

For the people interested, I have been pulling PM4A up to more current code and getting it to build. I'll likely release a 25.7.1 PM4A version as a straight up maintenance and security release - no work has been done since the last version for specific Android features or Lollipop compatibility improvements, for example - but it needs a bit more testing to see if it's stable enough. If you want to help with that, shoot me a PM with your Android version and make+model of your mobile device.
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ekrys

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by ekrys » 2015-09-23, 21:34

@Moonchild

Embedded YouTube videos seem to be broken on both test devices.

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Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by Moonchild » 2015-09-23, 22:48

Unfortunately I can't promise perfect media playback on Lollipop - it's one of the known issues with PM4A.
Embedded youtube videos work fine on Android 4.3, though (made sure to test on my Lenovo Yoga tablet)
"Sometimes, the best way to get what you want is to be a good person." -- Louis Rossmann
"Seek wisdom, not knowledge. Knowledge is of the past; wisdom is of the future." -- Native American proverb
"Linux makes everything difficult." -- Lyceus Anubite

ekrys

Re: What browser will you replace PM4A with?

Unread post by ekrys » 2015-09-24, 01:07

Ah, ok. I forgot to mention my Amazon Fire was running 4.4.4, but installing VLC seemed to fix all playback issues on that device at least (the browser would simply crash trying to play them if they were embedded, and going onto YouTube directly would result in just a black screen, without VLC). This is on an AOSP ROM as well (Slim), so it's possible I just didn't have the proper codecs installed as it's a pretty light ROM. Other than playback issues, it seems to be running just as stable as the older versions. Haven't noticed anything else yet, but I'll be sure to report it if I do. And thank you for deciding to keep this browser updated, I really appreciate your work.

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