Open Bug 452258 Opened 16 years ago Updated 2 years ago

Ask whether to make Firefox the default browser on shutdown rather than on startup

Categories

(Firefox :: General, enhancement)

Product:
Firefox
Component:
General
Version:
3.0 Branch
Type:
enhancement

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()

People

(Reporter: gerv, Unassigned)

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(2 files)

IE "error" with the subtext as text
83.58 KB, image/png
Details
ask in about:home, draft
32.10 KB, image/jpeg
Details 
Currently, the first-use experience of Firefox is spoiled by a honking great dialog box which says "Firefox is not your default browser. Do you want to make it the default?"

The correct UI would be a button which said "I don't have a flipping clue, you haven't given me a chance to try it yet."

We could either provide such a button or, alternatively and perhaps better, ask at shutdown rather than at startup. This would be much better - having finished a Firefox browsing session which you enjoyed, and when you are full of happy memories, Firefox asks you "Do you want to use Firefox as your default browser in future?" and you say "Yes, of course!"

Gerv
Maybe a task of the notification bar? With "Not now" (default), "Make Default Browser" and a button with a list of other browsers that are installed. If people want to change their default browser, they do.
IE uses an error icon, and I wonder if that doesn't compel the user to be more agreeable than our use of the question icon (snarky screen shot attached of how I think this dialog box is processed by the average user).  It's not that I condone these tactics, but I think we need to think carefully about how this decision will effect our market share.  For instance, a notification bar (which are really tab related not app related) would drastically reduce the number of people who switch their default browser.

Overall I think I it makes more sense to ask during the installation process and getting this out of the first run experience entirely.  If the user doesn't like Firefox after the first run, they can go back to IE and it will throw an error when opening to help them switch back.
(In reply to comment #2)
> Created an attachment (id=336601) [details]
> IE "error" with the subtext as text
> 
> IE uses an error icon, and I wonder if that doesn't compel the user to be more
> agreeable than our use of the question icon (snarky screen shot attached of how
> I think this dialog box is processed by the average user).  It's not that I
> condone these tactics, but I think we need to think carefully about how this
> decision will effect our market share.  For instance, a notification bar (which
> are really tab related not app related) would drastically reduce the number of
> people who switch their default browser.
> 
> Overall I think I it makes more sense to ask during the installation process
> and getting this out of the first run experience entirely.  If the user doesn't
> like Firefox after the first run, they can go back to IE and it will throw an
> error when opening to help them switch back.
iirc, IE doesn't check by default after the first run on Vista.

We do provide an option to set as default in the installer on Win32... there is bug 433249 to provide an option not to prompt for the new user profile if the user unchecks the box.

It would be great to do the same on Mac. It is doubtful it will happen on Linux since it no longer has an installer.
btw: my primary concern regarding just making the app default without an option to not set as default in the installer is for nightly users. Often they will download older builds and install into a different directory to try to narrow down regression windows. If there isn't an option to not set as default I highly suspect we will have less testing of the installer by nightly users which are the ones that do the most QA.
Alex: good points about market share.

All I am suggesting is to have exactly the same dialog box, but pop it up when the user closes the last window rather than when they open the first window.

-------------------------------------
We hope you enjoyed using Firefox.

Make Firefox your default browser?

[ ] Don't ask again

[ Make Default ]  [ No, Thanks ]
-------------------------------------

Gerv
Showing the dialog on exit seems indeed more useful than showing on startup but I still wonder if Firefox's market share wins by forcing insufficiently funded solutions. I still think that quality sells itself. And people did the effort to download and install the Firefox browser after all, so they were sufficiently motivated, and I really wonder if extra pushes in the back work. I would think: why are they trying so hard? what do they gain? is this in my interest? And be highly irritated that automatically hitting the enter key changes my Windows settings.
>btw: my primary concern regarding just making the app default without an option
>to not set as default in the installer is for nightly users.

It seems like nightly builds simply shouldn't be setting themselves as default (either by asking or otherwise).

Asking on exit does seem both more logical and humane, but we really need to run these ideas past the drivers. These are huge decisions.

One argument to ask during start up is precisely because it is annoying.  For instance Safari on Windows throws a modal dialog with "Yes" as the default whatever button, probably in hope that you will just try to quickly get it out of the way so you can continue on with your actual task.
(In reply to comment #7)
> One argument to ask during start up is precisely because it is annoying.  For
> instance Safari on Windows throws a modal dialog with "Yes" as the default
> whatever button, probably in hope that you will just try to quickly get it out
> of the way so you can continue on with your actual task.

I know (?) you were being tongue-in-cheek, but lest anyone take this idea too much to heart, I don't think we should have any interest in "tricking" users into making us the default.  That is profoundly weasely, imo.

We've been around the block a couple times on this - iirc, one of the main arguments against doing anything at shutdown is that it is really annoying for an app to interrupt you when you've told it to go away.  You're about to get up from your computer, or reboot, or get back to whatever other thing you are now focused on.  Having us interrupt to say "Don't you love us?" is less than entirely palatable, though I appreciate it's at least a more informed time for the user to make that decision.

I also seem to remember discussions around doing it on second launch, "Welcome back, if we're going to keep meeting like this, should we make it more official?"  I remember liking this idea, though if I strain my recollection to the limit, I believe the concerns raised were that if we weren't default after the first shutdown, novice users might never find us again.  They might be clicking on link shortcuts, or using the XP/Vista default-browser-goes-in-start-menu habits, and misplace their (otherwise loved, and preferred) Firefox install in the process.
>I know (?) you were being tongue-in-cheek

My point was that this is probably the logic used by people who start with a modal dialog (like Safari on windows), not that we should adopt that reasoning ourselves.  The use of the warning icon (both IE and Safari) is in my opinion particularly devious.
Has there been any progress made on this topic?
Google Chrome currently uses a notificationbox to ask users if the want Chrome as their default browser.
I think in that case the risk that a users chooses "Don't ask again" is not that high because the box barely interrupts the workflow.
You can easily run Chrome a few times before finally making a choice. Still, you are always hinted at the possibility.
In Firefox, the dialog is much more annoying. Also, there is no easy way for novice users to set Firefox as default browser once they got rid of the dialog.
Is it okay to use a notificationbox in Firefox, too? (The suggestion has been in here already.)
There already are notificationboxes for "Know your rights" and performance data though.
How about adding a question to the bottom of about:home, with the possibility of not showing it again? (Or would it clutter up the page too much?)
Having a less annoying way of asking the user would (reduce the need to) fix bug 433249.
I created it because I found it interesting to try it
Type: defect → enhancement
Component: Shell Integration → General
Severity: normal → S3
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