Database Users

Google Chrome

So, I've just installed the new Chrome browser from Google and first impressions are that it's a good match for the Shift. Seems pretty fast and the tools bar etc doesn't occupy a lot of screen real estate.
I'm starting this thread as I'm interested to hear other peoples experiences with this browser on the Shift.
Regards,
Dave

It seems pretty snappy, but I'd forgotten how many ads there are are the sites I regularly visit, and it makes me realise how well the AdBlock Firefox extension works.

I just did the first tests too...
I like to flick with the stylus over the screen for scrolling up and down...doesn't work on chrome
also i used the plugins firebug and smart bookmarks bar on FF, which aren't yet supported on chrome.

Should you/we be sending these requests back to google so they can include functionality? Cheers

Hi,
my impression is that it is much faster than IE and FF, but missing add-ons so far. For example, Google's own toolbar. I use it for synchronizing bookmarks.
S.

As far as I know ....
As far as I know it's jet too early to install Google Chrome in a pc......
http://www.webnews.it/news/leggi/9046/chrome-ed-e-subito-vulnerabilita/
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/30983
...vulnerabilities in Chrome...

We all take risks every time we visit a new site, or click on a link in an email. The simple fact of the matter is that the only truly safe way to browse the internet is on someone elses machine, and not to use any kind of internet banking or any other site where personal details can be obtained and compromised!
There are vulnerabilities in *every* mainstream browser, most of which are yet to be found, but that doesn't mean that they shouldn't or can't be used.
Each to their own of course!
Regards,
Dave

Yess...
We take risks everyday but, why to use well known bugged browsers?
Regards

Simply because if someone doesn't, future bugs will never get found and fixed. This particular bug has already been fixed in the current version of WebKit and therefore I'd expect to see a new release from Google based on the latest (or later) version of WebKit within a fairly short order.
Yes, this version of Chrome has a number of vulnerabilities, but then again so will IE, Firefox, Opera, Safari - so take your pick!
Thus far though, surfing the web using Chrome on the Shift is proving to be a far more pleasant experience (for me at least) than IE or Firefox.
Regards,
Dave

I absolutely agree....
...but in the meanwhile I prefer to use broswers whose bugs are often fixed allthough it's clear that there are unknown or not jet discovered vulnerabilities.
But it's still just my opinion.
Best solution would be to keep an eye on what happens on some sites like securityfocus.org.
Best regards

Why do people prefer AdAway to AdBlock Plus?

Spent this weekend putting all my root goodness back on my G4 -- thanks again to all the devs who worked on this. I didn't realize how much I missed being rooted until I was again!
I had been running AdBlock Plus on my previous phone, galaxy S4, and never thought much about it, but in the course of reading various threads while waiting for root on the G4, it seems like most people mention AdAway as the preferred ad blocking tool. I gave it a shot, and it seemed to be far inferior to AdBlock. So I feel like I must be doing something wrong and was hoping for some discussion on this.
AdAway works by changing the hosts file to block known ad sources. For me this caused several problems. Web pages still load slowly (perhaps because of timeouts associated with trying to access a non-responding server?). There are still large areas on the screen with broken link icons where the ads used to be, which is pretty ugly. I tried using the AdAway local server, to provide a response to the spoofed/blocked domains, it didn't seem to make much difference. Finally, using the default config, many commercial web sites are just blocked entirely, which is a non starter.
My understanding is that AdBlock instead creates a proxy. With AdBlock web pages load MUCH faster than with AdAway, even when running the local server. It also removes the content entirely, instead of just blocking, so the output is a lot prettier.
The difference in web browsing experience was stark for me. AdBlock was the clear winner. So I'm trying to understand why so many people seem to prefer adaway. I would rather use a more light-weight solution if it works as well, but it just didn't seem to for me. Am I missing something?

I prefer AdFree, http://adfree.bigtincan.com/.

jamtre said:
Spent this weekend putting all my root goodness back on my G4 -- thanks again to all the devs who worked on this. I didn't realize how much I missed being rooted until I was again!
I had been running AdBlock Plus on my previous phone, galaxy S4, and never thought much about it, but in the course of reading various threads while waiting for root on the G4, it seems like most people mention AdAway as the preferred ad blocking tool. I gave it a shot, and it seemed to be far inferior to AdBlock. So I feel like I must be doing something wrong and was hoping for some discussion on this.
AdAway works by changing the hosts file to block known ad sources. For me this caused several problems. Web pages still load slowly (perhaps because of timeouts associated with trying to access a non-responding server?). There are still large areas on the screen with broken link icons where the ads used to be, which is pretty ugly. I tried using the AdAway local server, to provide a response to the spoofed/blocked domains, it didn't seem to make much difference. Finally, using the default config, many commercial web sites are just blocked entirely, which is a non starter.
My understanding is that AdBlock instead creates a proxy. With AdBlock web pages load MUCH faster than with AdAway, even when running the local server. It also removes the content entirely, instead of just blocking, so the output is a lot prettier.
The difference in web browsing experience was stark for me. AdBlock was the clear winner. So I'm trying to understand why so many people seem to prefer adaway. I would rather use a more light-weight solution if it works as well, but it just didn't seem to for me. Am I missing something?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just a thought, but AdBlock Plus has to be running 24/7 in the background, so some people may notice or think it takes a hit on battery and system resources. I am running AdBlock Plus now as well, but I downloaded AdFree after the user above recommended it, I'll give it a go.

geoff5093 said:
Just a thought, but AdBlock Plus has to be running 24/7 in the background, so some people may notice or think it takes a hit on battery and system resources. I am running AdBlock Plus now as well, but I downloaded AdFree after the user above recommended it, I'll give it a go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll try AdFree too, hadn't seen it before. But it seems to work the same way as AdAway does so I'm not expecting much difference...

I used to use adaway but it broke my Pandora app, and after switching to adblock plus it hasn't crashed
Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk

Some people don't like ABP's "Approved Advertisers" (or whatever they call it), where some ads aren't blocked by default. I know my boss complains about it, but it doesn't typically bother me. That may be the reason some people prefer AdAway (or some other similar host blocker).

I noticed that with Adblock Plus, anytime I tried to go to Android Central i'd get a Error 400 and couldn't open the site. With Adaway it loads fine, minus the godawful scrolling ads.

I used to use AdBlock Plus but I remember there was a reason I switched over to AdBlock instead. I think they were blocking all ads, even those you should just leave alone to support sites you enjoy or something along those lines. Since switching to AdBlock I'm never bothered with ads and enable ads for sites I respect.

I've never really had any of those issues with Adaway. I haven't used ABP in a while but the last time I did (and to the best of my knowledge out still works this way) it was just a proxy, which newer versions of Android wouldn't let the app configure itself. I could never get it working without being really slow and clunky and I couldn't figure out how to use it on a data connection at all. I'm away from wifi a lot so something that doesn't work at all half the time and works poorly the other half was useless to me.

Zorque said:
I've never really had any of those issues with Adaway. I haven't used ABP in a while but the last time I did (and to the best of my knowledge out still works this way) it was just a proxy, which newer versions of Android wouldn't let the app configure itself. I could never get it working without being really slow and clunky and I couldn't figure out how to use it on a data connection at all. I'm away from wifi a lot so something that doesn't work at all half the time and works poorly the other half was useless to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's only if you aren't rooted. There is no manual config if you are. You need to be rooted for adaway no matter what so seems fair to compare root mode of ABP only.

I have been using adfree since before they pulled all ad blocking apps from the play store. Adfree doesn't slow anything down or leave broken links in web pages. Pages load fast like they should plus it blocks ads and popups in apps also which is great cause I have been going almost postal on some of these ads popping up when I close some apps. I guess I'm OCD about that.

Yea I noticed that when using Adblock Plus, my links on SlickDeals.net won't work. They get a redirect error and just fail.
Going through a Proxy is dangerous too since any and all traffic goes through them, so be careful when entering login/credit card information. You are also creating a bottleneck where all traffic must go through, so if the Proxy is overloaded or offline, so is your connection unless you change your local routing (I guess by uninstalling the app).
For me it is a back and forth issue. I prefer NOT to use a Proxy. This is a work related phone so I do not want to have any 3rd party company playing Man-in-the-middle with my data traffic.
Personally I like to just block apps on my device. Yes it causes longer page loading times while crap sits there and times out... but at least my data is safe and the page is easier to navigate once the ads are gone.
I just downloaded AdFree from the official website but it requires Root (I haven't rooted yet). I think all Ad blocking apps require root.

Many sites on slickdeals redirect through viglink.com or similar for revenue. All you have to do is whitelist those [*.viglink.com] and it will begin to redirect just fine

player911 said:
Yea I noticed that when using Adblock Plus, my links on SlickDeals.net won't work. They get a redirect error and just fail.
Going through a Proxy is dangerous too since any and all traffic goes through them, so be careful when entering login/credit card information. You are also creating a bottleneck where all traffic must go through, so if the Proxy is overloaded or offline, so is your connection unless you change your local routing (I guess by uninstalling the app).
For me it is a back and forth issue. I prefer NOT to use a Proxy. This is a work related phone so I do not want to have any 3rd party company playing Man-in-the-middle with my data traffic.
Personally I like to just block apps on my device. Yes it causes longer page loading times while crap sits there and times out... but at least my data is safe and the page is easier to navigate once the ads are gone.
I just downloaded AdFree from the official website but it requires Root (I haven't rooted yet). I think all Ad blocking apps require root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the proxy is on you own device. Not in any other server.

seb93 said:
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the proxy is on you own device. Not in any other server.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Either way adblock downloads the whole page ads and all then removes it. Adblock app has to be running in background to strip ads.
Adaway blocks access to the ad site altogether.
As for site formatting being wrong or not pretty would be the site page programmer programming certaib spaces in the page dedicated to thr ad that was supposed to show there.
I also like no ads in apps and youtube. Hence why I prefer adaway.
Parcing a large host file may require more resources..
In both you can whitelist if youre missing content you'd prefer to see.

clockcycle said:
Either way adblock downloads the whole page ads and all then removes it. Adblock app has to be running in background to strip ads.
Adaway blocks access to the ad site altogether.
As for site formatting being wrong or not pretty would be the site page programmer programming certaib spaces in the page dedicated to thr ad that was supposed to show there.
I also like no ads in apps and youtube. Hence why I prefer adaway.
Parcing a large host file may require more resources..
In both you can whitelist if youre missing content you'd prefer to see.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was just saying that adblock is not "dangerous" because he thought the traffic goes through another server.
Envoyé de mon LG-H815 en utilisant Tapatalk

seb93 said:
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the proxy is on you own device. Not in any other server.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Correct. Proxying elsewhere can be very dangerous.

I think I can answer this question...ADP sucks (and I use it religiously in Chrome) when it comes to your phone.
It COMPLETELY broke MMS for me (on Cricket). I removed ADP, rebooted, and was good to go.

I've always Adfree as it is simple and lightweight only modifying the hosts file.

Adblock kills MMS for me. Cannot send or receive.

for people who complain aobut M7 browse speed I recommend Comodo Adblocker

Comodo Adblocker is really one of its kind adblocker for android ,it works like this, it creates a local vpn tunnel on your device, all internet traffic and all apps must go thru this local vpn tunnel so it works
on all programs, I have noticed a big improvement in browsing speed on Mate 7 with this activated, it is usually these heavy adds that makes the sites too heavy for the Mate 7 being smooth.
Chrome for android does not support extensions, but I have tried similiar products with firefox such as uorgin, I found that sites does not work well with this plugin, a lot of site does simply not work...
With comodo adblocker it all seem to work.
You can download it here
http://whichadblocker.com/
To do a test, ironcially androidauthority.com is one of the most heavy sites and which make mate 7 very slow and very unsmooth scrolling etc due all ads, try it with the comodo adblocker activiated
the difference is huge...

I wonder who Comodo sell thier data to?
Sort of joking but I‘m always suspicious

Just tried and it does work even on play store, the pics would load slow now almost instant, I obviously have some adds blocking my internet.
Sent from my JAZZ using Tapatalk

thanks, it help a lot!

You can't get effective ad blockers on google play because it hurts google revenue. I tried ad block plus in the past. It was garbage. Comodo was reputable for PC in the past so I‘ll check this out

Yes I have used their anti virus and firewall solution for over ten years.

Opera Mobile and TLS 1.2

It's time to show a little more love for arguably the best browser for the NST/G
I've been reading up on the whole TLS 1.2 thing and bemoaning the gradual eroding of the NST/G internet capabilities as various apps wink out of usefulness due to the recent change. I felt the same way about Opera Mobile 12.10, especially when I had finally figured out an app for Google News, only to find that many of the external links could not be opened, presumably due to this new security protocol.
Imagine my surprise today when I revisited the configuration screen for Opera Mobile and saw that even on this nearly prehistoric app there is an option for TLS 1.2!! Once I had selected that I could suddenly navigate to all kinds of sites that were previously snubbing me! Woo-hoo!
The procedure, in pictures, below. Love live Opera Mobile (at least until TLS 1.3).
Edit: I should mention that this has nothing to do with the recent NST/G update to 1.2.2. B&N only added TLS 1.2 handshaking for their own purchasing system, not anything else. I have one device running 1.2.1 and one updated to 1.2.2. They are identical in their need for and response to this change in settings for Opera Mobile.
Edit, Edit: I've been looking at this issue again recently and found sites that actually test the browser and recommend changes in settings. It turns out that ONLY the TLS 1.2 should be enabled, not older protocols. One site also recommended disabling the SSL v.3, but my tests with two devices trying to access the same sites indicated that was a bad idea.
My most unexpected discovery was a post on an Opera board somewhere that suggested simply clearing cache (from the Menu: Settings>Privacy>Clear Cache) will often allow access to sites that initially give a security connection error. This actually seems to work in many cases. I have no idea why, but it prompted me to try unticking ALL cache settings except for "Empty on Exit" (last screenshot below). Don't forget to "Save" at the end of that section before exiting.

This is great, thank you!
Has anyone gotten this tweak to allow you to sign into Overdrive (online library) websites? New York Public Library's Overdrive page, nypl.overdrive.com still won't let me sign in, even with both TLS 1.1 and 1.2. For the record I think I'm still actually on firmware 1.1.0

jptiger said:
This is great, thank you!
Has anyone gotten this tweak to allow you to sign into Overdrive (online library) websites? New York Public Library's Overdrive page, nypl.overdrive.com still won't let me sign in, even with both TLS 1.1 and 1.2. For the record I think I'm still actually on firmware 1.1.0
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was the second thing I tried. No joy. Unfortunately there is zero information in a logcat of my unsuccessful session, almost as though the system was ignoring the browser activity entirely, so nothing to work with there.
Out on a limb here, but it could be a case of no contact with systems older than the oldest one to still support an Overdrive app (2.3, I think?). When I encounter a site that still won't connect with Opera Mobile, despite the addition of TLS 1.2, I think that's similar. Such an old browser (and OS) is seen as a security issue. Now exactly how the determination is made, that I don't know. It seems unlikely that it's something as simple as the User Agent string, as I have two NSTs, one running 1.2.2 and the older one with 1.2.1. I'm pretty sure I have not done anything with the UA string on the 1.2.2 device (it's a beast to type in) but I know I altered the other one to match the original stock browser on the device. I'll have to run down both values to see if there's something about the OS in there.
If the sites have a way of querying the system to recognize whether it is "safe" or not, then there's not much to be done. There was that one older version of UC Mini Browser which was able to negotiate a login at one time, but even if you could get into the library's Overdrive section, the closest you would come to a book is downloading the acsm file and then what? AFAIK there is no way to deal with it on the device itself. It would have to be processed on a PC and then transferred to the NST.
Login would allow you to checkout Kindle books and even confirm the download at the Amazon site (painful as that is), but I don't see how to make the epub thing work solely on the device any longer short of a new OS. That's way beyond my pay grade. I'm curious about it but recognize that it's not something I'm going to pick up at this stage of my life. Too bad the few projects directed at that weren't more modest in their goals. A change to just Gingerbread would have made a huge difference, although even with that, the handwriting is surely on the wall.

but even if you could get into the library's Overdrive section, the closest you would come to a book is downloading the acsm file and then what?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Open the file with Aldiko! I actually used to do this all the time, it was the main way I used to interact with Overdrive for years. Worked great... until I wasn't able to log into Overdrive sites and access my holds any more.
You might need a specific old version of Aldiko, I'd bet I found it on these forums somewhere. I'm writing this on my phone on a subway, otherwise I'd link here. Moot point atm anyway.

jptiger said:
Open the file with Aldiko! I actually used to do this all the time, it was the main way I used to interact with Overdrive for years. Worked great... until I wasn't able to log into Overdrive sites and access my holds any more.
You might need a specific old version of Aldiko, I'd bet I found it on these forums somewhere. I'm writing this on my phone on a subway, otherwise I'd link here. Moot point atm anyway.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There may yet be a magic version of Aldiko that can do this, but I think the operative word in your response might be "used" to interact with Overdrive.
I don't know why but I decided to look at this issue again and stumbled on @straygecko's post re: Overdrive and Aldiko here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=35917607&postcount=2
I scrounged around for a "2.0" version of Aldiko and came up with 2.00.081 (maybe close enough?). Anyway, it does install and the first few steps of the procedure @straygecko outlines actually work great, even the sign in with Adobe--which I found shocking. I was able to painfully add my local library's Overdrive URL to the "My Catalogs" section and actually "browse" to the URL, if you can call it that. If we think Opera Mobile is antique, think more along the lines of the stock NST browser. Mostly floating text appears here and there, lots of broken images, and Search does not seem to work. Oh, and scrolling up the page? LOL! If you can get lower on the page to something like "available now", the screen will not update. It may not be absolutely necessary but while I was chortling and grimacing I also tried the "sign in" option. In little tiny letters across the top of the screen comes the "oops! something went wrong" message, all too familiar.
I hope, I really do hope that there is another version of Aldiko 2.0 that would work. But the post by @straygecko was from 2012 and while at my age that seems not so long ago, in the world of Android, it might as well be 500 BCE.
For your entertainment, I attach the version of Aldiko I was able to scare up. YMMV.

Odd. I think you might be trying to make Aldiko do a different part than I was referring to. Here was my usual workflow after installing Aldiko and logging into my Adobe ID on it:
1 open opera mobile
2 navigate to my library's overdrive page
3 sign in (not currently working)
4 browse and check out an epub ebook
5 download the ascm file
6 when prompted about what to do with it open it aldiko
7 Aldiko then downloads the epub using your Adobe ID and shows it in your library until it expires
If those are the steps you're following, where do you hit the unreadable text? After the book downloads?

jptiger said:
Odd. I think you might be trying to make Aldiko do a different part than I was referring to. Here was my usual workflow after installing Aldiko and logging into my Adobe ID on it:
1 open opera mobile
2 navigate to my library's overdrive page
3 sign in (not currently working)
4 browse and check out an epub ebook
5 download the ascm file
6 when prompted about what to do with it open it aldiko
7 Aldiko then downloads the epub using your Adobe ID and shows it in your library until it expires
If those are the steps you're following, where do you hit the unreadable text? After the book downloads?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right, those were not my steps. On my local library Overdrive site it is not possible to check out an eBook without eventually signing in. Catch-22.

nmyshkin said:
It's time to show a little more love for arguably the best browser for the NST/G
I've been reading up on the whole TLS 1.2 thing and bemoaning the gradual eroding of the NST/G internet capabilities as various apps wink out of usefulness due to the recent change. I felt the same way about Opera Mobile 12.10, especially when I had finally figured out an app for Google News, only to find that many of the external links could not be opened, presumably due to this new security protocol.
Imagine my surprise today when I revisited the configuration screen for Opera Mobile and saw that even on this nearly prehistoric app there is an option for TLS 1.2!! Once I had selected that I could suddenly navigate to all kinds of sites that were previously snubbing me! Woo-hoo!
The procedure, in pictures, below. Love live Opera Mobile (at least until TLS 1.3).
Edit: I should mention that this has nothing to do with the recent NST/G update to 1.2.2. B&N only added TLS 1.2 handshaking for their own purchasing system, not anything else. I have one device running 1.2.1 and one updated to 1.2.2. They are identical in their need for and response to this change in settings for Opera Mobile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow. I have tried every other browser. This is definitely the only one that works. Thanks so much for the info.

lz199366 said:
Could you share your Opera Mobile.apk? I can't get opera 12.1.0 install on my NST(firmware1.1.2).
Besides, which app did you use to take screenshot in Black&White color ? I tried screenshot ER before. It is good but producing shots in colors only.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Opera Mobile: https://ftp.opera.com/pub/opera/android/mobile/1210/
For screenshots, I made two apps. The original produces slightly gray b&w images. The second gives better quality color images. Here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/nook-touch/themes-apps/app-screenshot-t3648855. When I post images I always convert to greyscale anyway since that's what will be seen on the device.
That older firmware may be a problem. B&N did actually have reasons to update firmware now and then. If the Opera Mobile will not run you might try Opera Classic. Some people said it worked for them.

Some additional discoveries
Just a bump to bring this post back up again. I've done some additional tests with different settings lately and have improved the connection success rate quite a bit. Changes reflected now in the original post.

Since you're bumping the thread maybe you can help me with a problem? I think I've tried this APK on my last three Nooks (Glowlight Plus, NG3, and now Glowlight Plus 7.8) and every time I launch Opera Classic from my launcher I get a short splash screen that says "Opera Mobile" and then it immediately dies. Nothing shows in my "running process" screen either (so it's not just hidden in the background).
Any idea where to start looking as far as logs, etc. go? I've never really had much use for a browser on a Nook before, but with the 7.8" display my interest is somewhat piqued again...

spedinfargo said:
Since you're bumping the thread maybe you can help me with a problem? I think I've tried this APK on my last three Nooks (Glowlight Plus, NG3, and now Glowlight Plus 7.8) and every time I launch Opera Classic from my launcher I get a short splash screen that says "Opera Mobile" and then it immediately dies. Nothing shows in my "running process" screen either (so it's not just hidden in the background).
Any idea where to start looking as far as logs, etc. go? I've never really had much use for a browser on a Nook before, but with the 7.8" display my interest is somewhat piqued again...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mmm.....first, this is Opera Mobile 12.1, not Opera Classic, although I don't think that is the issue. Not sure about the Glowlight Plus, but I think the others run at least KitKat? My first suspicion was that Opera Mobile (or Opera Classic) might be too old for those devices, but I just tried installing it on my SIM-less KitKat "phone" and it did just fine.
So maybe screen density? It's hard to know. Like @Renate NST says, a logcat might reveal the cause of the crash--or not. Meanwhile I should think that with a KitKat device there must be a number of more modern browsers that would work OK. I recommend Via Browser. Slick and simple, small footprint. Requires Android 2.3 and up (too bad the NST just missed it...). I run it on my Oreo 8.1 tablet and love it.

nmyshkin said:
Mmm.....first, this is Opera Mobile 12.1, not Opera Classic, although I don't think that is the issue. Not sure about the Glowlight Plus, but I think the others run at least KitKat? My first suspicion was that Opera Mobile (or Opera Classic) might be too old for those devices, but I just tried installing it on my SIM-less KitKat "phone" and it did just fine.
So maybe screen density? It's hard to know. Like @Renate NST says, a logcat might reveal the cause of the crash--or not. Meanwhile I should think that with a KitKat device there must be a number of more modern browsers that would work OK. I recommend Via Browser. Slick and simple, small footprint. Requires Android 2.3 and up (too bad the NST just missed it...). I run it on my Oreo 8.1 tablet and love it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah yes, I forgot that the original NGP was where the jump to KitKat occurred which opened up more options for apps. I'm going to give Via a try - thanks for the quick response!

First problem:
Our (at least my) /system/lib/libgui.so does not have
status_t GraphicBuffer::lock(GGLSurface* sur, uint32_t usage)
The Opera libOS15.so requires it
Eclair had this function, I don't think KitKat has it.
I think this Opera "Opera_Mobile_12_1_Generic_Opera_Armv5v7.apk" was designed for Eclair and uses stuff no longer in KitKat.
You need to find a different APK.

@myshkin Once again, you've answered one of my questions before I asked it! I am going to use an NST to interact with my online scheduler for a sweet e-ink, easy on the eyes, scheduling unit.

First I want to thank for well written guide how to set things up to make any browser (in this case obviously Opera) working on NST. I read several threads about browsers and wondered how those could be solved. It seems to me that some of those problems could be solved using web grabber or offline browser or some of those plugins that redirects to cached version of the web page on Wayback machine (Brave browser is gone incorporate that option so I have been told). Naturally that might work for reading cached content on NST inside your browser if it supports page rendering and so. Still for pages that need user/reader interaction that won't solve anything. Would application like Gapps browser resolve at least some of the issues you experience? It should run on Eclair but I am not sure will it run on NST. That need to be tested.

SJT75 said:
First I want to thank for well written guide how to set things up to make any browser (in this case obviously Opera) working on NST. I read several threads about browsers and wondered how those could be solved. It seems to me that some of those problems could be solved using web grabber or offline browser or some of those plugins that redirects to cached version of the web page on Wayback machine (Brave browser is gone incorporate that option so I have been told). Naturally that might work for reading cached content on NST inside your browser if it supports page rendering and so. Still for pages that need user/reader interaction that won't solve anything. Would application like Gapps browser resolve at least some of the issues you experience? It should run on Eclair but I am not sure will it run on NST. That need to be tested.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had never heard of Gapps browser but I can tell you now that it does not work properly on the NST. It never gets past a partial, immobile screen of Google News. None of the other options do anything at all.
While I still prefer Opera Mobile for general browsing and value its ability to open local HTML files (something I have exploited in a number of my news apps), Opera Mini 7.6.4 also functions on the NST and can skirt around some of the SSL issues because the pages are initially picked up by Opera's up-to-date servers, rendered, and then passed on to the user. However, sites with complex constructions and modern WebView requirements will not display properly, if at all. Opera Mini also has a "picker" that will allow you to open media files (like videos) in an external player. This is something Opera Mobile will not do. It just refuses to deal with them at all.
On the whole, the browser issue is the proverbial straw for the camel's back when it comes to older Android OS. I have seen this working with KitKat ROMs where already many sites cannot be accessed because of the outdated WebView. Lollipop, which is the first OS version with a WebView that can be updated, is a little better. But custom ROMs (or ROMs like on the NST) that are not properly updated for SSL are never going to be able to hold on forever in this regard.

Thanks for thorough reply. I fear that it is not only updates of the software that is hampering factor but very nature of e-ink devices that hold us back. Even Kindles from Amazon have the issues in that regard and it is certainly not from lack of funding that firm can provide to solve the problem. That is why I mentioned web grabber approach. As last resort someone might try to print some web page as PDF for later reading but that would not solve problems like logging in some web services etc. I even considered text based browsers as alternative. My friend who is proficient in programming, web administration and computer related stuff said me the same thing as you did that Opera is by far best browser for mobile device.

Need help finding my ideal browser.

So here is the deal. I stopped using Chrome quite some time ago in favor of FF Beta. I like it quite a bit, but would like something a little more considerate of my privacy. I found FOSS Browser on F-Droid and loved it, until I found out it doesn't preserve your open tabs. I looked at Brave browser and really liked the look of that, but it doesn't seem to support sync on mobile and I can find no info on if you can back up it's data and if so what. Kiwi would also be an ideal solution I think if it supported sync or backups.
Sync is not an absolute requirement for me if I can back up my tabs and bookmarks.
I don't care about password storage as I use a separate password database.
I want the ability to have multiple tabs and have them preserved.
Privacy is important, but I don't need one of those always incognito types as that would not preserve my tabs and such.
Again FOSS would be perfect if it just preserved my open tabs. It seems the dev is not worried about that feature, so I am not going to hold my breath for it either. If someone has experience with Brave and can confirm I can do backups with it, even if it isn't built in and ADB backups of it work well, that would probably be good. Especially since they will eventually add sync.
TIA for your thoughts!

have you tried BRAVE browser? its based on chromium - I use that mostly
---------- Post added at 05:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------
p33l05 said:
have you tried BRAVE browser? its based on chromium - I use that mostly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just re-read your post... apologies.. it does have a beta sync feature although I haven't tested that yet

p33l05 said:
have you tried BRAVE browser? its based on chromium - I use that mostly
---------- Post added at 05:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------
I just re-read your post... apologies.. it does have a beta sync feature although I haven't tested that yet
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem! I'm happy to get any input even on the ones I mentioned. I may test the beta sync out. I am very interested in Brave anyways.

dragunbayne said:
So here is the deal. I stopped using Chrome quite some time ago in favor of FF Beta. I like it quite a bit, but would like something a little more considerate of my privacy. I found FOSS Browser on F-Droid and loved it, until I found out it doesn't preserve your open tabs. I looked at Brave browser and really liked the look of that, but it doesn't seem to support sync on mobile and I can find no info on if you can back up it's data and if so what. Kiwi would also be an ideal solution I think if it supported sync or backups.
Sync is not an absolute requirement for me if I can back up my tabs and bookmarks.
I don't care about password storage as I use a separate password database.
I want the ability to have multiple tabs and have them preserved.
Privacy is important, but I don't need one of those always incognito types as that would not preserve my tabs and such.
Again FOSS would be perfect if it just preserved my open tabs. It seems the dev is not worried about that feature, so I am not going to hold my breath for it either. If someone has experience with Brave and can confirm I can do backups with it, even if it isn't built in and ADB backups of it work well, that would probably be good. Especially since they will eventually add sync.
TIA for your thoughts!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung Internet
Samsung Internet Beta
3 times in 3 months I had to use chrome, ****ty sites not the browser's fault!
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A

My main Android browser is Opera I have almost 70 tabs open all the time and most of them in Desktop user agent. I tried many browsers but always return to Opera. Give it a try.

sullytrny said:
Samsung Internet
Samsung Internet Beta
3 times in 3 months I had to use chrome, ****ty sites not the browser's fault!
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung internet is not really good for my privacy. It reports back everything to Samsung and who knows what they do with it. Also I don't trust their backup for the browser I tried it once and when I redid my phone there was no backup.
liamR said:
My main Android browser is Opera I have almost 70 tabs open all the time and most of them in Desktop user agent. I tried many browsers but always return to Opera. Give it a try.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will look into it. I used to be an Opera user way back. They had the best (maybe only ) browser for my Walkman flip phone!

sullytrny said:
Samsung Internet
Samsung Internet Beta
3 times in 3 months I had to use chrome, ****ty sites not the browser's fault!
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I upvote both Samsung Internet and Beta. I especially like the beta as it allows S-Pen functionality like single click to navigate backwards and double click to navigate forwards. I use Kiwi for any crappy site that has issues loading; but I think I've used it once in the last year for that. Samsungs dark mode in their browsers and ad blockers are top notch; you cannot go wrong with them.

mtweisenbarger777 said:
I upvote both Samsung Internet and Beta. I especially like the beta as it allows S-Pen functionality like single click to navigate backwards and double click to navigate forwards. I use Kiwi for any crappy site that has issues loading; but I think I've used it once in the last year for that. Samsungs dark mode in their browsers and ad blockers are top notch; you cannot go wrong with them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I may look into how to block the browser from communicating with Samsung too much. I do see it recommended a lot and from what little I have used it, it seems good. I especially like the S-Pen functionality, that sounds cool.

I'm closer to being sold on Samsung Internet after seeing you can use disconnect with it now. Still looking into how and what it reports back to Samsung.

all this time I was sitting on a little gem! Thanks to all who recommended Samsung browser, it's really good!

rusty.gh said:
all this time I was sitting on a little gem! Thanks to all who recommended Samsung browser, it's really good!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just make sure you get the adguard and disconnect add-ons. They will speed things up and keep you safer. I am switching to it for now and am surprised at how fast and smooth it is.
Oh! Also go into settings>privacy and security and turn off customization service to turn off the Samsung tracking and turn on do not track.

Which ad blocker addon for Samsung Internet browser do you guys find the best?
---------- Post added at 05:03 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:23 AM ----------
I've been enjoying the old version of Samsung Internet beta that still has the built in video assistant:
https://www.sammobile.com/apk/samsung-internet-beta/samsung-internet-browser-beta-8-2-01-2/

Ps. Get a VPN imo IMO exspressvpn
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A
---------- Post added at 12:31 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:29 AM ----------
p33l05 said:
Which ad blocker addon for Samsung Internet browser do you guys find the best?
---------- Post added at 05:03 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:23 AM ----------
I've been enjoying the old version of Samsung Internet beta that still has the built in video assistant:
https://www.sammobile.com/apk/samsung-internet-beta/samsung-internet-browser-beta-8-2-01-2/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I actually use 3 of them, try them all!
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A

With Samsung Internet is there any way to do the double tap and pull zoom method? I use that all the time to zoom with one hand and it doesn't seem to work on Samsung but it does in Chrome

Just an opinion if privacy/data collection/trackers/cookies/scripts are an annoyance try reading this. It's called Orfox browser and is built with privacy in mind & is a modified version of Firefox. If you are wanting even more privacy run it with orbot. I could go into depth with all the possibilities but maybe reading for yourself would help you understand how it all works better than me trying to describe how it works. Orfox browser is the Firefox based privacy browser and orbot is basically a VPN that hides your IP by bouncing your connection through many other people, countries & such making it very hard for anyone to track it back to you. Your internet habits, location, cookies, trackers and so on are just pieces of the bigger data collection picture. I suggest that you don't visit the darknet or websites that end in .onion but regular websites ending in .com or .ca or .org or .net for example. You may run into some pretty explicit, violent, depraved, sick, drugs, weapons, & anything illegal you can imagine, and then some. If privacy is a HUGE concern maybe search videos on Orfox & Orbot Privacy on YouTube. If you just want the browser for privacy here is the link & info. Be warned, never use sensitive data such as email addresses, passwords, bank/credit card info, or anything personal on the darknet or sites ending in .onion because any of the many middle servers re-routing your traffic can see your info if they have the knowledge. I'd stick to just Orfox, & when sending sensitive data, just check and hope the site begins with https:// not just http:// and avoid Orbot with Orfox combo. Everything we do is being watched by "big brother" & it makes me sick. Maybe one day we will not have to take extra measures to keep our business our business & not a commodity to be traded & sold. One last note, turning anything dealing with your location to off in the settings does nothing. Google can still see where you are, buildings you enter, they know if you are walking, driving, cycling, your speed, elevation & much more. Only way to not have your location tracked is to power your phone completely off if you wish to not share all of that info. Kind of defeats the purpose of having a phone if we have to resort to keeping it off. How do we receive calls then? Big thanks to Google.com, Samsung, Android, & all those that buy trade and sell our very personal info. Lmfao. Like they care. $$$
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=info.guardianproject.orfox

Try Kiwi browser. Chromium based but privacy centric and has bottom toolbar option and inbuilt adblock ?

TWiiTCH said:
Just an opinion if privacy/data collection/trackers/cookies/scripts are an annoyance try reading this. It's called Orfox browser and is built with privacy in mind & is a modified version of Firefox. If you are wanting even more privacy run it with orbot. I could go into depth with all the possibilities but maybe reading for yourself would help you understand how it all works better than me trying to describe how it works. Orfox browser is the Firefox based privacy browser and orbot is basically a VPN that hides your IP by bouncing your connection through many other people, countries & such making it very hard for anyone to track it back to you. Your internet habits, location, cookies, trackers and so on are just pieces of the bigger data collection picture. I suggest that you don't visit the darknet or websites that end in .onion but regular websites ending in .com or .ca or .org or .net for example. You may run into some pretty explicit, violent, depraved, sick, drugs, weapons, & anything illegal you can imagine, and then some. If privacy is a HUGE concern maybe search videos on Orfox & Orbot Privacy on YouTube. If you just want the browser for privacy here is the link & info. Be warned, never use sensitive data such as email addresses, passwords, bank/credit card info, or anything personal on the darknet or sites ending in .onion because any of the many middle servers re-routing your traffic can see your info if they have the knowledge. I'd stick to just Orfox, & when sending sensitive data, just check and hope the site begins with https:// not just http:// and avoid Orbot with Orfox combo. Everything we do is being watched by "big brother" & it makes me sick. Maybe one day we will not have to take extra measures to keep our business our business & not a commodity to be traded & sold. One last note, turning anything dealing with your location to off in the settings does nothing. Google can still see where you are, buildings you enter, they know if you are walking, driving, cycling, your speed, elevation & much more. Only way to not have your location tracked is to power your phone completely off if you wish to not share all of that info. Kind of defeats the purpose of having a phone if we have to resort to keeping it off. How do we receive calls then? Big thanks to Google.com, Samsung, Android, & all those that buy trade and sell our very personal info. Lmfao. Like they care. $$$
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=info.guardianproject.orfox
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why avoid orbot and how do you use orfox without it?

p33l05 said:
Why avoid orbot and how do you use orfox without it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can use orfox just like you would use Firefox. It is more geared towards safety and you can read about it on the developer's website and come up with your own conclusion. It has options such as turning off Scripts and different security settings from low to high depending on how secure you wish your connection to be in terms of trackers and such. When you first launch orfox it will ask you to install Orbot but you can click cancel and use it just as a browser but it is much safer than most of the standard browsers. And the only reason I recommend avoiding Orbot is because it usually ends up leading curious people to the dark web and can very easily lead to your credit card numbers or bank accounts or passwords to email accounts or many other things being stolen because the way it works is it bounces your connection through a whole bunch of other people's PCS and phones and whatever they will be running Orbot on and that's why it is so hard to track somebody when they are using it. I didn't mean for people not to use it just that it is easy to get taken advantage of and even easier to run into things that are mostly illegal and could get someone in serious trouble even if they unintentionally happened upon these sites. I felt the need to give the warning so someone doesn't come back and say you told me this was 100% safe. If you read my post I recommended them to read on the topic and check out YouTube videos before they decide to use Orbot and Tor Fox together.

I'm not sure why you're not using Firefox? I keep going back to it because mostly for the amp link remover. I use Google news and they're all amp links with lots of ads. I need my brother to convert amp pages to regular. Brave didn't have that capability.

p33l05 said:
have you tried BRAVE browser? its based on chromium - I use that mostly
---------- Post added at 05:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------
I just re-read your post... apologies.. it does have a beta sync feature although I haven't tested that yet
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From wikipedia:
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brave_(web_browser)#Business_model)
Brave Software has announced that it is developing a feature allowing users to opt in to receiving ads sold by the company in place of ads blocked by the browser.[8][9][10] Brave intends to pay content publishers 55% of the replaced ad revenue. Brave Software, ad partners, and browser users would each be allocated 15% of the revenue. Users would be able to donate their revenue share to content publishers through micropayments.[11]
In a testing version of the browser, Brave targets web ads by analyzing users' anonymized browsing history.[12]