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Zen Browser: A New Privacy-Focused Browser(Firefox) (techwavearena.com)

submitted 1 day ago by dl007@lemmy.ml to c/opensource@lemmy.ml

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[-] Jinni@sh.itjust.works 4 points 2 hours ago

Been using zen for the last month or so and it has been pretty good. I went from using super locked down librewolf to using zen. It is not as private by default but can still be tighten down and with proper support for profiles you can compartmentalize it.

It does break and change a lot since it is in alpha but I used to be an arch user so honestly it doesn't bother me too much.

[-] plz1@lemmy.world 3 points 2 hours ago

I'm on LibreWolf. What made you switch?

[-] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 4 points 8 hours ago

Great, it breaks all the interface conventions. How convenient.

[-] tetris11@lemmy.ml 5 points 3 hours ago

I don't think the sarcasm is warranted here, it offers a standard interface too but augments it with split browsing as an option

[-] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 4 points 3 hours ago

It starts with a full screen window, no window controls... so sorry, it pretty much breaks the expected interface.

[-] tetris11@lemmy.ml 2 points 3 hours ago

I was going to write a snarky comment about how that can't possibly be true.... but then I tried it, and well, yep, really not ideal for non-tiling window managers. I liked the general look and feel, but the fullscreen by default does seem to be a big "no" from me.

[-] finestnothing@lemmy.world 3 points 2 hours ago

signature look of bspwm superiority

[-] irotsoma@lemmy.world 6 points 10 hours ago

The split view seems really useful. I was actually just fiddling with that on my laptop with two browser windows.

How does this compare to LibreWolf or other Firefox derived projects?

[-] Lemongrab@lemmy.one 1 points 3 hours ago

It is not security hardened from what I can tell. Most of Librewolf's patches could be applied to build Zen with security hardening. Alternatively, patch Zen browser with Arkenfox user.js (upstream project to Librewolf's security hardened default profile)

[-] 7oo7@lemmy.dbzer0.com 53 points 1 day ago

When developers consider their project at "alpha" stage, users should really be wary of the consequences.

So much hype around this browser and everyone touting it, but then, if something breaks and their profile is messed up, then people lose their mind and start cursing the devs.

tldr; It's an alpha build software, and users should treat it as such. Latest build is Alpha build - 1.0.1-a.17 (2024-10-31)

[-] Imprint9816@lemmy.dbzer0.com 33 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

I'm always skeptical when something is called privacy focused and the article lists no privacy features.

Does this actually provide any new unique privacy features or is it something akin to arkenfox where it is just getting everything upstream from firefox?

[-] wwwgem@lemmy.ml 12 points 1 day ago

When I first heard about Zen, I've tested it with EFF like I do for all web browsers I experiment with (from most mainstream to most unknown). Unfortunately, it doesn't offer a full privacy.

Not everyone cares, but if this is something important for you, Librewolf has been the only one to come up with a full privacy protection result. Maybe you could achieve a good result if you use Arkenfox with Firefox... I didn't try it.

[-] gwilikers@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 day ago

This is fantastic. Thank you. I didn't know EFF provided this service.

[-] bruhsoulz@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 day ago

Shoutout librewolf i b on that whenever the site i want loads lol

[-] wwwgem@lemmy.ml 3 points 1 day ago

Some sites don't load because of some features disabled in Librewolf. You can enable them and have the sites load, but it defeats the purpose of the Librewolf configuration choices. Nonetheless this is still an option :)

[-] jjlinux@lemmy.ml 1 points 12 hours ago

With the current browsers panorama, it's important to use more than 1 browser. My main browser is Librewolf, then Brave for work, and Mullvad for all the rest. The reason being that almost every site is made to work first on Chrome and everything else is an afterthought (so I use Brave for those).

[-] IrritableOcelot@beehaw.org 1 points 1 day ago

Neat, wasn't familiar with cover your tracks, super useful!

[-] RmDebArc_5@sh.itjust.works 20 points 1 day ago

Privacy wise it very much is still Firefox with different defaults (telemetry disabled, do not track enabled), the changes to upstream are mainly the UI and some performance enhancements

[-] camilobotero@feddit.dk 28 points 1 day ago

I am using it as my main browser right now, and I really like it. It replaced Arc Browser on both windows and macOS.

[-] tkk13909@sopuli.xyz 16 points 1 day ago

I'm liking it but I'm fully ready to jump back to my faithful Librewolf if Zen proves untrustworthy.

[-] camilobotero@feddit.dk 15 points 1 day ago

How to prove that you can trust the browser? I’m genuinely asking. It is open source, and people can review the code on GitHub.

[-] Neon@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago

But do they?

No.

[-] tkk13909@sopuli.xyz 6 points 1 day ago

Generally they don't and I'm still wary of Zen but as long as they're staying on the latest FF version and not adding any telemetry of their own then I'm gonna use it.

[-] fl42v@lemmy.ml -2 points 1 day ago

So, the whole xz backdoor saga was merely a figment of my imagination?

[-] Interstellar_1@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Check out the official website, it explains many more features https://zen-browser.app/

[-] quaff@lemmy.ca 11 points 1 day ago

Would be great if there was an arm64 Linux build 🥲

[-] giddy@aussie.zone 3 points 1 day ago

Been using this as my daily driver for a couple of months now. I really like the vertical tabs for home use (not work where I have far more tabs)

[-] theshatterstone54@feddit.uk 1 points 1 hour ago

I find vertical tabs to be more useful specifically when I have more tabs. Currently using vertical tabs on Vivaldi and I can see 28 and a half tabs without scrolling, which is pretty alright if you're asking me. And Workspaces are quite helpful for the same reason.

For anyone curious, I currently have 2 workspaces at 8 tabs, 1 at 20, 1 at 25 and one at 82, which comes up to 143 tabs , plus 1 more tab in the default Workspace Vivaldi creates, coming up to 144 tabs.