I’m thinking of doing a thing, and was hoping for some feedback (and maybe it’ll change my mind):
- How do you define bloat in a browser?
- What are some examples of it, and what browsers have it?
So far I’m thinking bloat includes…
- Extra software that typically is standalone, like an email client or RSS reader
- Things that are not widely wanted in a browser, and could be extensions, like an AI toolbar or a cryptocurrency wallet
- Advertisements built directly into the browser
Are PDF readers bloat?
How about LibreWolf’s uBlock Origin?
And why/why not?
I’ve got some of my own reasoning in the list above, but I’m interested in others’ thoughts.
Without a PDF reader and uBlock, a browser is incomplete, and I would instead look for an alternative browser that does have those features, so they are not bloat. An AI toolbar is bloat imo, and so are the ads in new tabs.