Thoughts on the wall

I have been spending a lot of time lately bouncing back and forth between Firefox and Vivaldi web browsers. Firefox is the older, more seasoned of the two, and runs off of Gecko web browser engine developed by Mozilla. The browser itself is open source and has been widely forked by other developers into new projects. Vivaldi, on the other hand, was built using Chromium and runs on the Blink web browser engine.

Over time, I’ve found things to love about each and things that annoy me.

What I like about Firefox:

• It’s open source. I may not have the skills to read and comprehend everything in the code, but I appreciate that rather than leave it under the control of a single company, the code can be used and changed to make new projects. Also, I like that those who do have the skills to check the code can and do check it for security issues.
• The PDF capabilities are better than just about any other program I’ve come across, let alone for free. I love that it remembers the page I was on, unlike PDF readers in Chromium browsers.
• The screen capture tool can recognize individual blocks of text and pictures or even posts on social media. This comes in handy when you want to snip a post to share it somewhere else.
• It’s not another Chromium browser. When the bulk of web traffic is from Chrome or browsers built on Chromium, it feels good to use a browser that is different. I remember how sites used to be when Internet Explorer was the dominant browser and sites were built for it, rather than built to web standards.
• It can be hardened to a greater extent for privacy than Chromium browsers. While I have tried to run a browser with greater privacy features and found it more cumbersome, I understand that there are those who want or need those capabilities.
• Along those same lines, you can still install uBlock Origin ad blocker without having to worry about it being shutdown from changes by Manifest 3. For Chromium-based browsers, it’s only a matter of time before they stop patching access.
• Containers are great for isolating web pages from each other. I like that Facebook can be locked up into its own little Firefox jail and not follow what I’m doing across he web.
• Font rendering is better on Firefox than on Chromium browsers. They tend to look crisper and be easier on my eyes. Since I spend so much time online, that’s a big help to me.

What I don’t like about Firefox:

• I’m not interested in AI. Mozilla really wants to develop it further. I respect the desire to create an ethical AI model, but I really don’t want it in my browser.
• I don’t trust Mozilla leadership. For years, we’ve watched them focus on ways to increase profits over the desire of users. I understand that the bulk of their money has come from Google in what feels like an attempt to prove that Google does have at least one serious competitor so it’s totally not a monopoly. But so many of their attempts have been canceled in short order. They weren’t even willing or able to keep up with their Mastodon server. As an outsider looking in, it feels like they just keep throwing everything at the wall in hopes of something sticking and giving them a steady income stream. Money makes the world go round and keeps the lights on, but it’s alienating some users.
• They’re way behind on tab management. After years of users petitioning for tab grouping, they’re finally slowly developing the feature, but it has a long way to go before it’s a viable feature.
• Mozilla feels like it’s ignoring the fundamentals. I’m sure they have access to information about what features users are and are not using, but again, to an outsider, it feels like they just make cuts to either simplify things for their coders or capriciously to be more like Google Chrome.
• Accessing Facebook on Firefox’s Android browser can have issues. Scroll down the page far enough and Firefox will start skipping around, either backsliding up the page or scrolling too far down and skipping posts.
• I routinely check Firefox privacy settings because I have noticed that periodically, Firefox will turn features back on after they have been shut off. Often, these are options that send information back to Firefox or turns recommendations from Mozilla partners back on. I have yet to totally figure out when or why this happens.

What I like about Vivaldi:

• There are some fantastic productivity features built into the browser. I love the notes that sync in the account so you can pull them up on different devices. Same for the speed dial shortcuts. Tiling tabs and web panels are great for looking at multiple web pages at one time. I’ve used the Quick Command menu a number of times to either find a feature quickly or for quick calculations while I’m working on projects.
• The sheer variety of ways to show grouped tabs is fantastic. It’s very handy for taming the tab bar.
• It has a built-in ad and tracker blocker. You can modify it and add additional tracking and blocking lists.
• It has a built-in email client and calendar.
• There’s a ton of customization available.
• They provide a free email account, blog, and Mastodon account to users who sign up. You can also sync most of your data across browsers.
• They finally fixed how quickly you can sync up your account on a new browser install. Initially it could take 10-15 minutes (or more!) to get your existing account setup on a new browser. This has since been fixed to be as fast as most other browsers.
• I trust management. Compared to Mozilla, who have had some privacy slip-ups and cutting staff, I haven’t found anything that really concerns me about the company.

What I don’t like about Vivaldi:

• I have had issues with the email client. It’s not as robust as some other options out there, like Thunderbird, Outlook, Evolution, and others. I have had issues connecting some of my email accounts (mostly Hotmail, though Gmail was difficult to connect when the feature first was deployed). I’ve stopped using it in favor of other options.
• The built-in ad-blocker isn’t as mature as other options and some sites, like Youtube, will recognize that a blocker is in use. I’ve never had that issue with uBlock Origin or uBlock Origin Lite.
• I appreciate the amount of customization available but it can be overwhelming. New users may balk at the pages and pages of options. It’s very much a power user browser.
• At a bare minimum, the default installation should start with tracking blocking engaged. As is, if you miss the startup screen, your browser will have very few privacy settings engaged.
• On my Windows 11 installation at work, the title bar is a bit of a mess. If I use the native title bar, it’s always appears white with black lettering, which doesn’t match the rest of my system theme. The Vivaldi title bar has buttons that overlap buttons on the tab bar. This happens when I have set the menu bar to be visible instead of using the Vivaldi button. It looks sloppy.
• My friends and I use Element.io for group and individual texting. I’ve noticed that Vivaldi doesn’t have all of the emojis installed, unlike Edge and Firefox. Again, this looks sloppy.
• There are a ton of features I just don’t know what to do with or care about. Vivaldi now has a Dashboard page where you can install widgets. I just don’t see myself using this feature at all. Same for the Philips Hue integration or the colored light integration in your keyboard. Yes, you can change colors of lights around your work station based on the web page you visit. I could not care less about this option.
• Vivaldi is yet another Chromium browser. This means that it will work on the bulk of web sites out there, though I have the occasional issues, like with the emojis.
• I don’t like the Vivaldi forums. I have rarely found them helpful. I have seen some exchanges that have left me a little cold. Some people get a little snippy when answering questions. I also hate the method they use for suggesting new features. There are thousands of requests. The last time I found one I liked, I was attacked for suggesting that I’d like to see it since there was only one other person (the original poster) who backed it and because the commenter didn’t feel like it was worth adding. It’s an awful system. As a neurodiverse individual, sorting through dozens and dozens of pages of possible similar entries then risking being attacked for sharing my opinion trigger several issues for me. I avoid using the forums as much as humanly possible. Other forums have been more friendly and more helpful to me in the past.
• I don’t feel like bug reports go anywhere. You don’t get feedback on them without having to follow up and ask (another issue for the neurodiverse mind!). There also feels like a lot of weird, unique issues that pop up in Vivaldi that makes it difficult for others to repeat the issue. I never know if it’s just me or if this is an issue for others. With that and the lack of feedback, it’s hard to want to fill out a bug report.
• Vivaldi has a fairly busy design. I know I can make changes, but then I lose some of the functionality.

When I started working on this list, I was hoping that it would help me cement things in my mind. Technologically, I tend to like Firefox. I find it easier to read on Windows machines and I appreciate the simpler overall design. But I don’t trust management at Mozilla. Vivaldi, conversely, has, for me at least, an inferior use experience in a lot of ways, but I have greater trust in the management. So I guess I’ll be using both (often having both running at the same time!). I want to use Vivaldi to show how much I appreciate the Mastodon instance and the free email and blog. But the bulk of my browsing, for now, will likely be in Firefox.

My wife and I are tabletop role playing gamers (TTRPG). We enjoy getting together with friends, telling stories, pretending to be new people for a while, and telling stories. It’s a good way for all of us to make the time to hang out and spend time with each other. Since a lot of us are more introverted or tend to be otherwise busy, it’s useful to have a reason to meet up.

I’ve spent a lot of time lately as our main group Game Master (GM). For those of you not in the know or aren’t familiar with the hobby, the Game Master is the person in charge of telling the story and moving the narrative along. Depending on the game, that title can vary; Dungeon Master, Story Teller, Director, Hollyhock God…. But Game Master is by far the most common.

Each other player takes on the role of an imaginary person, a Player Character (PC) or character. They design their character based on a set of rules. Most people who play TTRPGs start as a PC.

The GM is in charge of everything else in the game. They decide the actions for all of the Non-Player Characters (NPCs), decide the weather, the setting, tell the story and interpret/adjudicate the actions of the players.

When I started, I played one, maybe two sessions as a PC then moved behind the gaming screen and became a GM. Since then, I’ve gone back and forth and still enjoy being a player but I feel like I really know what I’m doing as a GM and I like that I get to be the group entertainer.

Sometimes I feel a little insecure and I’m constantly asking my groups if they had a good time or if they think I need to change or adjust anything but the fact that they keep coming back to my table really makes me happy. I get to make them feel like Big Damn Heroes. I love that feeling.

Early games often had the GM as a more neutral judge and some games felt like the GM was the opponent of the PCs. The GM was The Enemy. Some GMs actively looked for ways to “win” against the other players or the others saw the GM as the adversary. Or both.

Personally, I see myself as part of the team. I want my players to succeed but I want to challenge them. I don’t want to make it feel too easy. Individual gaming sessions or entire campaigns should feel satisfying, and that works best through mutual collaboration. And I love it!

My wife and I are finally getting our own house. We’ve been married for ten and a half years, and we’ve been living in my parents home while my dad was working in different states (and once in Canada). We paid them rent and they got to keep the house while they rented. It all worked out.

We’re finally in a position where we have the savings and means to get our own house. We’ve selected a place, have a contract in place, a mortgage and insurer lined up… things are going well.

There are going to be a lot of changes on the way. All of the housework and expenses will be on us. We’ll finally be developing equity. We can decorate how we want (within our means). It’s exciting and terrifying and exciting again.

A little context for people reading this in the future: right now, the COVID-19 virus is working its way around the globe. Many people have been asked/ ordered to stay at home and keep physically distant from each other in order to slow down progression of the virus.

This is a stressful time. I’m considered essential/critical personnel, so I go in to work mornings on campus. It’s nice to be able to get out of the house and it feels good to be needed at work. There is some concern about contracting the virus and taking it home, but there aren’t a lot of people on campus anymore.

I feel like I’m writing the opening paragraphs of a dystopian short story.

There are some positive signs. Several countries mortality rates are dropping or have remained constant for the last few days. Things where I live seem to be going well. Stay at home orders seem to be helping as they were intended to.

Stores are going to start limiting the number of people allowed inside to 10% of the maximum allowed by the fire code. It’s recommended that we start utilizing the internet to order supplies for pickup or delivery to reduce wait times at stores.

We will make it through all of this, though it can be difficult to see it from where we are. There are going to be a lot of scared, stressed people looking for help from scared, stressed therapists and other medical professionals. We’ll all need to learn to be patient and more compassionate towards others.

I’ve been trying to keep things lighter and funny on my Facebook page, not that I wasn’t doing that before. People need to be able to smile now.

I’m not really going anywhere in particular with this. I just thought it was important to document what’s going on, for posterity.

Stay the course, be patient with people, be kind where you can, and be safe.