I haven’t run Java on my Macs in some time as it like my other least favorite piece of software Adobe Flash is a popular attack vector for hackers of all stripes. But now Oracle is looking to make some extra cash by changing the crapware that it bundles with Java. If you’re not familiar with the term, crapware is useless software that comes either with a new computer or with other software that you need to use. Oracle has latched on to the latter by inking a deal with Yahoo to bundle Yahoo Search with Java starting with the next Java update:
Begining with the next Java update, Yahoo! will replace the current invitation to make Ask your default search engine. Instead, you’ll be asked if you want to make Yahoo! the homepage and default search engine for Chrome and Internet Explorer, and have the firm’s site load every time a new tab is opened in Chrome. (Yahoo! is already the default search engine for Firefox.)
As with the Ask offer, the checkbox to allow these settings changes arrives pre-ticked, so if a careless user simply clicks on “Next,” the changes will be made automatically. Changing the browser settings back is likely to be a pain, based on past experience.
“We have definitely made sure that our onboarding process is one that is highly transparent and gives users choice,” a Yahoo! spokesman told the Wall Street Journal.
No you haven’t made the onboarding process transparent. It’s an opt out process which means that people will inadvertently install Yahoo when they were not meaning to. But of course, that’s the idea as Yahoo is going to get a big boost to its share of the search engine market by going this route. And I will get a few phone calls from clients of mine asking me how to reverse this.
A pox on both their houses.
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This entry was posted on June 30, 2015 at 8:26 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Java, Oracle, Yahoo. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Oracle Bundles New Crapware With Java
I haven’t run Java on my Macs in some time as it like my other least favorite piece of software Adobe Flash is a popular attack vector for hackers of all stripes. But now Oracle is looking to make some extra cash by changing the crapware that it bundles with Java. If you’re not familiar with the term, crapware is useless software that comes either with a new computer or with other software that you need to use. Oracle has latched on to the latter by inking a deal with Yahoo to bundle Yahoo Search with Java starting with the next Java update:
Begining with the next Java update, Yahoo! will replace the current invitation to make Ask your default search engine. Instead, you’ll be asked if you want to make Yahoo! the homepage and default search engine for Chrome and Internet Explorer, and have the firm’s site load every time a new tab is opened in Chrome. (Yahoo! is already the default search engine for Firefox.)
As with the Ask offer, the checkbox to allow these settings changes arrives pre-ticked, so if a careless user simply clicks on “Next,” the changes will be made automatically. Changing the browser settings back is likely to be a pain, based on past experience.
“We have definitely made sure that our onboarding process is one that is highly transparent and gives users choice,” a Yahoo! spokesman told the Wall Street Journal.
No you haven’t made the onboarding process transparent. It’s an opt out process which means that people will inadvertently install Yahoo when they were not meaning to. But of course, that’s the idea as Yahoo is going to get a big boost to its share of the search engine market by going this route. And I will get a few phone calls from clients of mine asking me how to reverse this.
A pox on both their houses.
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This entry was posted on June 30, 2015 at 8:26 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Java, Oracle, Yahoo. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.