
I don’t like your web browser, so I programmed a new one - void_nill
https://medium.com/@voidnill_28965/i-dont-like-your-web-browser-so-i-programmed-a-new-one-199f45fa8cd8
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alpaca128
This is one of the projects that go a step too far for me in terms of
minimalism. No bookmarks, what? No, we don't need complicated bookmarking with
tagging etc., but what's wrong about having a text file with one URL per line,
like qutebrowser does?

And without JavaScript this browser has even fewer features than suckless'
surf, the browser that doesn't even come with an address bar. To be quite
honest I would love to be able to surf the web without JS, but nowadays the
amount of websites still working with that restriction just isn't enough.

~~~
void_nill
[Dev] I understand your arguments well and accept your criticism. The problem
with the bookmarks has been solved so that the user can send them by email.
The links are stored centrally and I can access them directly from my
computer, laptop or smartphone. A text file on my OS is cumbersome and I can
access it very badly with other services.

Yes, it is really difficult to surf the Internet without Javascript. But I
deliberately decided against it, because Javascript is not necessary for my
information retrieval. I need information and I need it fast. I don't have
time to load hundreds of single JS scripts, only to display advertisements,
blink features and unnecessary menus. The web has evolved into a massive blob
of additional features in recent years. That's ok if you want to be
entertained. The browsers have adapted to it. But, so now I have to ask a
question, why does news.ycombinator.com allow me to login and comment without
javascript? Because the focus is on a good and fast service. And this is what
the Alligator Browser is designed for.

~~~
alpaca128
Well, I simply sync my bookmarks file with Syncthing between PCs, and on my
phone I usually only use the browser for quickly looking up random stuff.
Email could work too, but I guess I just prefer to have the bookmarks cleanly
separated from anything else.

I fully understand your point about JavaScript - I would prefer it if most
websites were like this one. But for me, the tradeoff when blocking all
scripts isn't quite worth it. A good ad blocker(and notification block)
handles the vast majority of annoyances. The only thing I'm still missing is a
way to block all videos by default. It would be nice to have that without just
getting rid of everything.

~~~
void_nill
[Dev] I'm not a fan of syncthing, but that's up to everyone. Why I used email
is because I often have to send links from websites to other contacts. I click
the right mouse button and send the link. I like to combine several
applications to save time. At first it sounds like a marginal time difference,
but it's the total time of a year. The browser has evolved as it turned out to
be best for my very special way of working. I can't please all people and I
don't want to.

I am not satisfied with the previous Javascript solution. Yes, an ad blocker
can help, but this is at the expense of loading time. I hate to wait until a
website is loaded. Since most videos are implemented as Javascript
application, they are blocked by default in the alligator. I don't want to
missionize you here either, because there are enough web browsers on the
market. My main goal is to get to know other points of view so that I can
develop a better product.

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BAReF00t
TL;DR: He didn't!

He wrote a UI for a browser engine (Webkit, of couuurse). Using a UI toolkit
(Qt). In a scripting language.

Which is more putting wallpaper on the walls than constructing the building or
even painting the walls.

~~~
BubRoss
I don't know who would downvote this. There are lots of articles about someone
creating their own browser and they all turn out to be a variation of 'they
didn't create their own browser, they made their own skin'.

~~~
detaro
Many different browsers use the same engine at the core. That doesn't mean
they aren't different pieces of software. just that they use the same engine.

(In this case, one might nitpick that "programmed" suggests something
different, but I don't think that's clear cut)

~~~
BubRoss
At some point surely there is a line when the whole headline is 'this is bad,
I made my own'. That would be like me saying 'modern OSs are bad, I made my
own' and it actually being a new task bar for a Linux distribution.

At some point people need to take responsibility for the titles they write.

~~~
detaro
Sure, but it's IMHO clearly arguable where that line is. The underlying engine
is only a part of the user experience of a browser, and browser based on a
common engine are commonly described as different products.

Chrome, Chromium, new Edge, Brave and Qutebrowser all use the same engine, but
even the first two are not uncommonly considered to be different products.
Same with Safari, Chrome and Firefox on iOS, despite Apple only allowing their
own browser engine on iOS.

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rini17
Is webassembly port planned? /s

~~~
void_nill
[Dev] So far I had not included webassembly in my planning. I will read myself
into the topic. At the moment I can't make any promises if WA will be
implemented at some point.

