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A (very) interesting new browser
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Posted by MadaboutDana
Sep 8, 2017 at 08:06 AM
Now, returning from the vexed (but always interesting) Windows vs. Mac (vs. Others) question, I’d like to recommend a new discovery to users of ALL platforms: Cliqz, a very nice browser by a German company that has just bought out the Ghostery extension (the one that allows you to block EVERYTHING sneaky, underhanded or dubious on ANY website).
Cliqz has many interesting things to recommend it, not least a very nice, clean appearance, seriously quick loading and a massive emphasis on personal privacy/non-tracking, as well as all the other things a modern browser should (but isn’t always) be capable of such as pinned tabs, a reader view, anti-phishing, a built-in search engine with fallbacks if required, etc. etc.
It’s partially built on the Mozilla Firefox code base, but gives a much cleaner impression than the latter. I haven’t tried installing extensions yet (apart from Ghostery, which remains available for all browsers), but will be doing so shortly.
I’m experimenting with Cliqz as my default browser at the moment, and I must say, enjoying it immensely.
Cheers,
Bill
Posted by Paul Korm
Sep 8, 2017 at 08:50 AM
And Cliqz is owned by Hubert Burda Media, the €2.3 billion conglomerate. So, what’s the revenue model here? The in-house search engine? Cliqz Offers? Something keeps those “134 team members” fed.
@MadaboutDana wrote
>Cliqz, a very nice browser by a German company that has just bought out the Ghostery extension (the one that allows you to block EVERYTHING sneaky, underhanded or dubious on ANY website).
Posted by MadaboutDana
Sep 8, 2017 at 10:59 AM
Ha, I didn’t spot that!
Well, perhaps they’ve embarked down the Virtuous Apple path, i.e. User Privacy Is Us, kind of thing.
No doubt we’ll see how they monetise it (or not) - in the meantime, I’m encouraged by their stern words about NO extensions unless they’ve been reviewed in exquisite detail.
However, maybe this is just another attempt to build another Chrome…
In the meantime, however, it’s nice to use.
Posted by Dellu
Sep 8, 2017 at 01:36 PM
I am hooked with Opera: thanks for the free and fast VPN.
Posted by MadaboutDana
Sep 10, 2017 at 09:34 AM
Having recommended Cliqz on Mac260.com, I was advised by another reader to take a look at the traffic from/to Cliqz using “Little Snitch”, a brilliant utility that tracks all network activity into/out of your Mac.
And he (and by extension, Paul) was right: Cliqz phones home all the time, despite its purportedly rigorous upholding of privacy principles. Clearly its own servers are exempt from all the apparently impressive privacy settings it offers.
So I’m back to Opera; as Dellu says, it’s got its own built-in VPN, and I’d forgotten (doh!) that it also supports Chrome extensions using the amazing “Download Chrome Extensions” extension. So you can make up for the egregious lack of a Reader View by installing an appropriate Chrome extension such as “Just Read” (highly recommended).
Little Snitch is reporting minimal phoning home (apart from the VPN server), whereas Cliqz was producing red flashes every few seconds!
I feel safer already!
Shame about Cliqz, but I’m glad Opera continues (despite its new Chinese ownership) to adhere to its principles.
Cheers,
Bill