Internet Explorer is dead. With the launch of Windows 10 this week, Microsoft has replaced the much reviled browser with the all new Microsoft Edge and it is getting rave reviews all around. In fact, many early adopters are going so far as to say that they will be replacing their default browsers with Edge from hereon.
Mozilla is understandably upset at this. But they are even more upset that Microsoft has made it even more difficult to switch to Firefox in their latest operating system. Edge is now the default browser in Windows 10, even if you’re updating from a system that previously used Chrome or Firefox as the default.
Mozilla CEO Chris Beard has written an open letter and blog post to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, outlining the company’s concerns. “It now takes more than twice the number of mouse clicks, scrolling through content and some technical sophistication for people to reassert the choices they had previously made in earlier versions of Windows,” claims Beard. “It’s confusing, hard to navigate and easy to get lost.”
Mozilla has even created a video to demonstrate the amount of clicks required to set Firefox as the default browser.
Although it certainly takes more steps now to make Firefox – or any other browser, for that matter – the default in Windows 10, it isn’t impossible for the web-savvy user. All you have to do is to open your browser of choice and go through a few steps to tell Windows 10 about your choice. You can’t just click “Use Firefox as my default browser” now. All that button will do is open up the Windows 10 default settings. But for non-technical users, the procedure isn’t exactly self-explanatory, and that is Mozilla’s point.
Google Chrome, meanwhile, seems to be unfazed by all the accolades Edge is receiving. Its development team sent a congratulatory cake to their counterparts at Microsoft, stating: “Congratulations on the launch. Cheers!”
Thanks, @googlechrome! The icing suffers from rendering/layout issues. It’s what’s inside that counts! What’s inside? pic.twitter.com/qUIwEQqRbV
— Tobin Titus (@tobint) July 29, 2015
Sending cakes seems to have become a tradition in Silicon Valley circles, especially amongst web developers. In 2012, Mozilla sent Microsoft a cake for the launch of IE10 and the next year, Microsoft returned the favor when Mozilla celebrated 15 years in the business.
We presume Mozilla will not be sending out any cakes this time round.