503

The poll is over, and the result is clear: (berlin.social)

submitted 1 month ago by mina@berlin.social to c/firefox@lemmy.ml

74 comments fedilink hide all child comments

The poll is over, and the result is clear:

#FireFox users have very little interest for Chatbot integration into their browser.

I am very much aware that the people, who voted in this poll are hardly a representative sample, but more than 2.4K people is a better size than many "professional" opinion polls.

@mozilla & @firefox should take people, who actually care about their #browser choice, seriously.

I still seriously believe that #Mozilla's fate matters,

https://berlin.social/@mina/113102817500429735

1/3

top 50 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old

[-] superkret@feddit.org 163 points 1 month ago

If I want to use a chatbot, I'll access a website that provides one.
My browser is supposed to be a program that lets me access the internet, and nothing else.

[-] sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 51 points 1 month ago

Or I'll have one installed as a separate app, which will have access to data on my system.

So either it's a separate app, or it's a website. I don't see a need for my browser to be that app.

[-] veroxii@aussie.zone 23 points 1 month ago

And if I really really really wanted one in my browser (which I don't but for the sake of argument) I'll look for an add-on.

Same reason I don't want my browser to filter or ban my content but I totally use unlock origin.

[-] cmgvd3lw@discuss.tchncs.de 6 points 1 month ago

Couldn't be more accurate.

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] cmeio@lemmy.world 105 points 1 month ago

Eventhough I am not pro chatbot, such a poll is unfortunately completely worthless. Only random samples (or at least representative ones) allow to say something about a group.

If we go into an AI fanboy forum and ask the same question, we may find 3000 people saying the exact opposite. It just means nothing whatsoever.

[-] xlash123@sh.itjust.works 35 points 1 month ago

100%. I feel like the broad fediverse community is not a fan of generative AI

load more comments (2 replies)

[-] Vincent@feddit.nl 11 points 1 month ago

There's also the fact that it's a false dichotomy.

[-] mina@berlin.social 7 points 1 month ago

@cmeio

Yes and no.

Obviously, the people questioned here, are not representative for the entire FF user community.

However: The Fediverse at large is a community of mostly tech-savvy people, who do care about independence from major corporations.

These are, in fact, also the people who are the core users and developers of FOSS software.

Whilst the exact percentage means nothing, the tendency is so clear that it should, at least, be taken into consideration.

Did you read part 2 & 3?

[-] biscuitswalrus@aussie.zone 15 points 1 month ago

https://johnmjennings.com/an-important-lesson-from-bullet-holes-in-planes/

The responses needs to be contain representation at least equally to non Firefox people who no longer care to answer a poll about a product that they don't use. Why? Only current users are going to answer the poll, not the people with the cuts and pain that forced them back to Chrome or safari. Asking survivors how to reinforce survival actually doesn't solve for why do many people off board Firefox.

Frankly you should ask people like my 60-70yo parents why chrome not Firefox. You'll learn more from that than the corrected responses of people who loudly have preferences but at the end of the day would stay either way. My parents tried Firefox, but then left it. Although they only tried from insistence from their son.

PS: I agree with the poll. I don't want a chat bot either. If I did, I'd install a plugin that integrates once of my own choosing. Given the availability, privacy, and ease of lmstudio I'd rather leave it in its own place outside the browser and network. I don't know how those like my parents feel about a bot that can probably answer their questions. I also doubt they care. Maybe it would help them ask questions they're too embarrassed to ask friends and family for. Usually how to questions they've asked dozens of times. But that's super dangerous.

[-] answersplease77@lemmy.world 78 points 1 month ago

We want lighter and faster browsers that load up less features, block all unnecessary data collection and spying and java scripts, consume less hardware resources, and don't choke and heat up 8-gb ram laptops just because I openned 1 tab.

I don't want Siri in my internet. I don't even like it when it automatically searches and returns suggetions for mere typing anything in address bar. If I wanted a chatbot, I know how to visit chatgpt or any site myself.

[-] KarnaSubarna@lemmy.ml 15 points 1 month ago

It's just an integration with LLM services and not AI baked-in the browser code. You can even self-host any such service (Ollama) and integrate Firefox with it. That will make sure your query is not leaving your network.

[-] echodot@feddit.uk 10 points 1 month ago

Just a minor nit pick but it's JavaScript, not Java Scripts (javascript and Java are massively different things).

Also blocking JavaScript on the web in 2024 is really not practical. Nothing will really work without it.

[-] swag_money@lemmy.world 45 points 1 month ago

aw man i missed the poll i would have voted "fuck no" to chatbot integration

[-] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 13 points 1 month ago

Would you rather have a AI or have your browser 2x slower?

That is the kind questions that were asked

[-] dessalines@lemmy.ml 22 points 1 month ago

lol. I'd take a browser that's 10x slower as long as it has no AI or crypto.

[-] example@reddthat.com 5 points 1 month ago

I like having TLS in my browser

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] Vincent@feddit.nl 10 points 1 month ago

No that was a different poll. This one asked "do you want 'enhanced privacy' or a chatbot in the sidebar" which, of course, is a false dichotomy.

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] el_abuelo@programming.dev 40 points 1 month ago

Asking mastodon users whether they'd choose AI over Privacy is like asking Elon Musk if he'd rather end poverty or buy another mega yacht.

load more comments (5 replies)

[-] Buddahriffic@lemmy.world 35 points 1 month ago

A representative 300 sample would give a more accurate result than a biased 2.4k sample. Bigger number doesn't mean better results.

That said, I'm not sure how to get representation from certain subgroups of the population, like the "never engages with polls" or "lies specifically to fuck with your data" subgroups.

[-] mina@berlin.social 8 points 1 month ago

@Buddahriffic

Yes, It was easier to do truly representative polls, when people loved answering questions and everybody had a landline.

[-] Buddahriffic@lemmy.world 6 points 1 month ago

I remember a time when the phone or doorbell would ring and I would get excited to know who it was.

Now I seriously consider setting up a series of mirrors so that I can see who is at the door without giving up my ability to pretend like no one is home and my phone ringing causes an emotion somewhere between worry and rage.

[-] mina@berlin.social 5 points 1 month ago

@Buddahriffic

Same!

But isn't it a bit sad, we've all become so paranoic whilst at the same time being total oblivious to sharing lots of data, just because we want to know what the kitten did to the alligator?

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] EuCaue@lemmy.ml 32 points 1 month ago

I mean, I don't have anything against the chatbot feature, but this is coming before the tab group functionality...

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] AntEater@discuss.tchncs.de 30 points 1 month ago

I wish Mozilla would just strip all the extraneous junk from Firefox aside from what is truly necessary for web browsing. No crypto, no Pocket, no chatbot integration, nothing AI related, etc. Any and all additional features should be implemented via optional plugins. They could rename the project something like Phoenix or Firebird or something like that.

[-] Facebones@reddthat.com 13 points 1 month ago

I bet they wouldn't be so dependent on that google money if they stopped trying to chase every tech trend that pops up regardless of interest or popularity.

My perception of Firefox users is that most of us use Firefox for a reason, and thats usually some variation of moving away from big tech bullshit. I COULD be wrong but I certainly dont think so lol.

load more comments (3 replies)

load more comments (2 replies)

[-] DudeImMacGyver@sh.itjust.works 26 points 1 month ago

No shit

[-] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 16 points 1 month ago

Its shocking how out of touch they are

load more comments (2 replies)

[-] Zak@lemmy.world 25 points 1 month ago

computer scientists: we have invented a virtual dumbass who is constantly wrong

tech CEOs: let's add it to every product

Borrowed from here

[-] Lettuceeatlettuce@lemmy.ml 20 points 1 month ago

why can't we just have a fast, reliable browser with a clean UI that is fairly customizable with really solid extension support?

Extensions/plugins were supposed to provide the framework if users wanted a bunch of bells and whistles.

and I refuse to believe that a company with the resources of Mozilla cannot do that.

Minecraft is basically that in game form. A powerful voxel engine that has a massive amount of support for mods and plugins.

[-] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 month ago

Minetest is probably a better comparison

[-] Lettuceeatlettuce@lemmy.ml 4 points 1 month ago

Eh, fair point. Minecraft early on was more like what I was describing. For years now the devs have added a ton of content to the base game.

Still, most people I know play with at least a few mods, even if it's just texture packs and some QoL mods for better UI/UX.

[-] mina@berlin.social 5 points 1 month ago

@Lettuceeatlettuce

I guess, that is what most people want.

[-] mina@berlin.social 18 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

as being a prominent and established way of accessing the internet without using a product owned by one of three three tech giants.

No niche browser can play the same role.

To me, hopping onto a running train doesn't seem to be the way to go when it comes to creating and keeping trust:

People, who think that cars are a terrible way of getting people around in cities, don't want another Tesla, they want a good bike.

Here we have a problem, common to many non-profits:

2/3

@mozilla @firefox

[-] mina@berlin.social 16 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Fake Professionalism!

I don't believe that CEOs, who demand a 7 digit salary, have the ability to understand the soul and heart of a collective of people (in the case of many #FOSS projects: some of the world's most skilled and talented programmers), who donate lots of their time and energy for a project they believe in, and hence lack the credibility and skills necessary for making them thrive in the long term.

Firefox's ever falling market share proves that.

3/3

#RFC

@mozilla @firefox

[-] fruitycoder@sh.itjust.works 17 points 1 month ago

Why not just PWA to side bar extension support? If users want that side bar to a chatbot. Boom easy. If they don't or any other option its there too.

If they really want to support local ai specifically focus on the web3 API stuff for it.

Just be a web browser dammit lol

[-] imnotfromkaliningrad@lemmy.ml 14 points 1 month ago

please for the love of god almighty dont ad a chatbot or any other kind of gipity! even if one disregards all the concerns about privacy, software bloat and energy usage (climate change), one has to remember the purpose of firefox, or any other browser for that matter: loading websites. nothing more nothing less.

[-] something_random_tho@lemmy.world 11 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

I don't want an AI chatbot in the sidebar, but if it gives Mozilla a new, substantial source of revenue outside the Google search deal--and I can disable it--then I'm all for it.

[-] CosmicTurtle0@lemmy.dbzer0.com 9 points 1 month ago

I don't want an AI chatbot in the sidebar, but if it gives Mozilla a new, substantial source of revenue outside the Google search deal--and I can ~~disable it~~ enable it if I want to --then I'm all for it.

Ftfy

load more comments (4 replies)

[-] tomtrottel@mastodontech.de 10 points 1 month ago

@mina @mozilla @firefox the absolut las thing I need in Firefox is a freaking Chatbot :) :) :) :)

[-] Eiri@lemmy.ca 10 points 1 month ago

Okay someone has to say it.

The second F in Firefox is NOT capitalized.

[-] mina@berlin.social 4 points 1 month ago

@Eiri

Oh fuck!

I'm way too used to CaMelCase, it seems.

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] _haha_oh_wow_@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 month ago

Firefox user here: Fuck no I don't want a chatbot built into my browser.

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] jangdonggun@lemmy.ml 5 points 1 month ago

Can this poll be considered official ? I clicked the link and it looks like a Twitter poll or something.

[-] mina@berlin.social 14 points 1 month ago

@jangdonggun

Of course, it's not official.

I made this poll, as just a normal Fedi user.

It got more attention than I had anticipated, though.

[-] JackbyDev@programming.dev 6 points 1 month ago

This post is confusing because I recently did take an official Firefox poll involving AI features (and others).

load more comments (2 replies)

[-] ColdWater@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 month ago

I can't wait for other browser engine to caught up with Firefox

load more comments

this post was submitted on 09 Sep 2024

503 points (100.0% liked)

Firefox

17849 readers

65 users here now

A place to discuss the news and latest developments on the open-source browser Firefox

founded 4 years ago

MODERATORS

k_o_t@lemmy.ml