
Why Firefox? Why? - altrego99
http://opinions5.blogspot.com/2011/10/firefoxs-strange-design-decisions.html
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Udo
In the last few years, there has been some pressure to deprecate RSS
integration from browser UI and, I believe, some people have expressed wishes
to get rid of RSS altogether. I'm not sure where this trend comes from
originally, maybe it's the "Big Content" providers, who knows.

Now the prevailing opinion is that ordinary users don't use RSS. Which is
partly true. Interface changes like these have resulted in a situation where
RSS simply isn't viable for normal users anymore. You can't expect people like
my mom to copy URLs into Google Reader and they're sure as hell not going to
install any plugins. They needed these buttons as part of the standard browser
package.

In the end I believe the demise of RSS will be two-pronged: a lack of stamina
in promoting it and active measures to make it unusable. Browser designers
aren't the only ones to blame, though. For example, Facebook had very cool and
practical RSS feeds during their early growth period. Now they don't anymore.
As a large corporation, RSS was simply running counter to their interests.

For me, RSS is an integral part of the open web. I think there should be an
initiative to push for RSS again, from the bottom up.

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battlebee
Seriously, I have been wondering for months now why websites no longer display
their RSS feeds in the address bar.

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JohnTHaller
Because, in practice, only a small percentage of users use RSS. About 1 in 10.
So those users can turn it on.

