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cmccaff1

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Everything posted by cmccaff1

  1. cmccaff1
    Not by default, but thanks to the Mycroft Project, you can! If you go to https://mycroftproject.com/google-search-plugins.html you'll get a whole collection of Google search plugins to choose from. Just click on the one you like best, and it'll take you to a plugin installation page. Click on the icon on the left-hand corner of the search bar, and it should give you a pull-down menu with an option to add it as a search engine. From there, you can go into the Preferences menu and set it as the default! These plugins focus on web search. Alternatively, here are two more links to consider: https://mycroftproject.com/all-google-search-plugins.html (covers all Google search results, including image and map search) https://mycroftproject.com/dlstats.html (lists the most downloaded plugins from the Mycroft Project site--Anon's !Google is ranked #1)
  2. cmccaff1
    That's great news...I'm definitely looking forward to the new binaries! Thank you again for everything you do, Roy! You are a legend around here, brother! Please forgive my ignorance, but just out of curiosity, once the sync is complete, will SP55 be able to achieve equal web compatibility to UXP while still retaining the greater stability of the original SP55 engine? Or are there still some things unique to the pure UXP browsers which can't be completely translated to SP55? I believe the last 'original' SP55 release was 2022-02-26, and 2022-03-26 was the first with backported UXP elements. I used SP55 for a while before going back to SP52, and eventually to New Moon 28. All of your browsers are great & worth using, but it's just a matter of personal preference for me (I like the old-school New Moon interface, and I don't really use the extra features in Serpent).
  3. cmccaff1
    As a longtime XP user, I'm already preparing for the worst, and fully expect that I will have to upgrade in the future (my immediate upgrade plan is Vista with the extended kernel, though 7 is definitely an option also). I have no illusions about what the future may hold--honestly, I am VERY grateful to still be able to use this legendary OS after so many years. For now, I am extremely happy that there are still some truly solid browsing options for XP users, and the introduction of MyPal 68 opens up a world of possibilities. I'm still keeping 29.3.0 around (the final Pale Moon-derived version) as a reminder of all the hard work @feodor2 put into it over the years, and an appreciation for what he was able to accomplish before Matt Tobin and 'friends' rained on his parade. I like the idea of having a thread devoted to MyPal 68! I'm definitely on board with it. Hopefully Feodor will be able to use the thread to share valuable insights and information as he sees fit. To get the ball rolling, here is the GitHub page for downloading the browser and following its development: https://github.com/Feodor2/Mypal68/ Searching for "feodor2 mypal68" on Google does not offer this as the first search result yet: that is still the original (and now abandoned) MyPal page on GitHub (which itself links to the current MyPal page). Hopefully within the next week or two, that will change!
  4. cmccaff1
    Roy, thank you for all of your hard work! You have made an absolutely tremendous effort in helping to maintain the browsers you've shared with us, and I appreciate it very much. You're one of the good guys, without any doubt. I hope you'll have a safe and happy week, brother. Best wishes to you and everyone else here at MSFN!
  5. cmccaff1
    You're welcome! This should be a good workaround for older browsers that can't render the Dropbox page correctly due to not supporting the bloated junk JS/HTML5 code that is becoming prevalent in modern web design (RetroZilla, Presto Opera, IE8, etc.) but is also convenient for modern browsers because once a file is uploaded to Dropbox, you can download it without going onto the site itself. It's also good for older PCs that are stuck with old browsers, either for speed or because processor/OS limitations prevent upgrading from a certain plateau. Many sites have been overhauled in such a way that a browser that could have handled it just fine 5 years ago now struggles with it, if it works at all. To make matters worse, many sites no longer offer graceful fallback options that make it possible for older browsers to still use them. (Gmail and Facebook are among the very few sites that still offer a fallback option.) Planned obsolescence is one thing. Intentionally adding bloated code and changing design elements to force out old browsers & OSes is quite another. There's no reason I shouldn't still be able to use Opera 12.18, or Chrome 49, in 2022 just as efficiently as I was using them back in 2016. In any event, I am very grateful to @NotHereToPlayGames and @Humming Owl for their individual efforts in maintaining 360EE builds for our enjoyment and daily use. You can't go wrong with anything they do, as far as I'm concerned...it all comes down to your preference. A NHTPG build provides features you can't find in a HO build, and vice versa. You can flip a coin and pick the one you want, and fully expect to have a good experience. (Just remember the Esc trick on first-time startup for HO's builds, and make sure to adjust the settings to your liking, and you'll be fine!)
  6. cmccaff1
    Honestly, I wouldn't know what to tell you. Actually, 13.0 isn't too unstable compared to 13.5, and I can see why some would have better luck with it. It really is a "pick 'em"--you can flip a coin, because 13.5 didn't offer any notable improvements over 13.0 aside from some stability fixes. Having tried both, I haven't really had much trouble with either of them, except for occasional YouTube crashes (13.5 fares better in this regard). In my personal experiences, 13.5 has never crashed my PC, but I have had the VERY occasional freeze on startup where the browser locks up completely, and I have to close the browser and load it again (after that, it has no problems). I didn't know the first-time startup 'Esc' trick for Humming Owl builds until very recently (I always resorted to using the Task Manager), and I'm not sure why it happens, but at least they work fine afterwards! 12.0 definitely performs better than any 13.x version, but it occupies this awkward middle ground where the rendering capabilities are better than 11.0 but the performance is closer to 13.x (meaning some sites run slower on it, especially media-rich sites like YouTube; I can't have a YouTube video playing in one tab and do something in another without there being some stuttering and skipping--this can happen in 11.0 too, but the odds of major stutters/skips are FAR less). Being based on Chromium 78, it is also starting to run into compatibility issues with some websites that use more cutting-edge 'features', but it's still a perfectly fine (actually, quite good) choice for general use if your PC can handle it. Actually, all 360 browsers are good depending on your preference--you can go older for speed, newer for compatibility--but in an ever-changing Wild Wild Web, they will begin to run into unique challenges as time goes on. (I still believe web technologies peaked in the HTML4 days, and that there's no reason why website designers now shouldn't still be building off of the best aspects of pre-2008 web design, or why any site [even YouTube] shouldn't still be usable even on old PCs and ancient browsers, but that's another topic altogether...)
  7. cmccaff1
    Thank you! I'm glad I was able to be of assistance! All of the 360 builds you've shared are quite great, along with Humming Owl's builds. I'm sticking with your ungoogled 13.5 (for future-proofing purposes and because it's a bit more stable than 13.0), but it probably helps that my PC has 4GB of RAM. My rule of thumb is: - 4GB or more of RAM = use 13.0 or 13.5 (your choice) -more than 2GB but less than 4GB of RAM = use 12.0 -2GB or less of RAM = use 11.0 (if even 11.0 is slow, you can try turning JavaScript off where possible or try Humming Owl's 9.5 build) Of course, having a good processor helps, and since I'm still using a 2.8GHz Pentium D, I also keep an ungoogled 11.0 around because it performs better on processors of that time period (for the sites it still works well with, it performs far better than 13.5, especially when it comes to media-rich sites like YouTube). On VERY old (but still SSE2-capable) computers that would struggle even with 11.0, Humming Owl's 9.5 build still seems to work well (better than the aging Chrome 49, which throws up connection errors on many HTTPS-based sites now), but is more limited these days as it does not appear to support TLS 1.3 (or at least, I've never been able to get it to properly work).
  8. cmccaff1
    If it helps anyone, I discovered a very simple trick that allows me to directly download Dropbox files without going directly to the website. You copy the link address of the Dropbox file you want to download, then put ?dl=1 at the end. So, for example, if you want to download the latest update of @NotHereToPlayGames's ungoogled 360EE 13.5, this is how the link should look: https://www.dropbox.com/s/glulv6r8sce6xpy/360ChromePortable_13.5.1030_rebuild_6_ungoogled.zip?dl=1 This trick should make it possible to download Dropbox files in most browsers, even very old ones that can't render the site correctly (such as RetroZilla). Typing this reply from Mypal 68, but I also have Serpent 52 open and have verified the trick there to make sure it works.
  9. cmccaff1
    I am writing this reply from Mypal 68 too! Haven't posted here in months, but I just wanted to write in to say that on my old Pentium D, it's running extremely well. A little bit less stable than trusty Serpent 52 (which I am still keeping around, along with 'ungoogled' 360EE 13.5), but everything I've tried works fine! Of course, I am sure that later updates will have vastly improved stability. I'm definitely excited and hopeful for future breakthroughs in getting modern browsers working in XP. Between Serpent 52/Mypal 68/360EE 13.x, the modern web still seems to be quite manageable, but things change frequently these days. Also, many thanks to @feodor2 and @roytam1 for all of their hard work in helping to keep XP useful after all these years!
  10. cmccaff1
    With your builds, I use the custom theme you've included by default (which is amazing, and a throwback to the good old days of early Chrome). With Humming Owl's builds, I use the 'classic' theme. Some sites are optimized to use a dark interface if they recognize you using a dark browser theme. It seems they can read the dark theme in 360EE (at least in Humming Owl's builds), and for certain sites such as YouTube and Twitter they'll display a dark interface while you are browsing those sites. I'm not sure how much the Google monopoly ties into that, but as I rarely if ever use the dark theme I wouldn't know for sure. It's a nice touch, but again I stick to the 'classic' theme in Humming Owl builds and the custom theme in your builds. I prefer the old-school look over the overly simplified feel of modern browser aesthetics.
  11. cmccaff1
    I have tried the dark theme in v12 and v13 and can confirm that it does affect certain pages, as long as those pages are optimized to display a dark version. For most pages it has little to no effect...though the dark theme and dark pages are easier on the eyes (especially at night), I've been sticking to the classic theme, simply because it feels more 'sane'.
  12. cmccaff1
    No worries! I just like to be helpful whenever possible, and the timing was incredible because I was actually considering going back to NM26 (but upon further testing found that NM27 suits my needs more). Hopefully those old Mypal repositories have been backed up somewhere, because Feodor did some damn good work on it over the years...and I'm sure whatever he does next will also be fantastic. It seems he may be planning to try and get post-Rust (Quantum) Firefox working in XP--if he pulls it off that would be a massive feat. 'Secret' updated builds of Mypal 27/28 (or if nothing else, one-time 'final' builds of his last updated codebases for 27/28 to port over the cubeb overflow fix) may also be a possibility, though I doubt this will happen anytime soon.
  13. cmccaff1
    @ClassicNick - If you'll forgive me for speaking up (and of course I'm always glad to hear @ArcticFoxie's input on these sorts of topics), I actually tested Roy's most recent build of New Moon 26 (the first version with the cubeb overflow fix), and found it still works very well for a fair number of sites. However, I wasn't able to get this forum to display properly in it (I couldn't even load the message box to type and send a reply), and YouTube videos won't work because YT seems to have deprecated VP8/WebM support some time ago (Invidious doesn't work in NM26 either). Since NM26 lacks MediaSource, lav dlls can't be added, but they do work with NM27. NM27 works with YouTube and with this forum; it's the only browser Roy maintains which has four optimized builds (Win32, Win64, SSE and IA-32), meaning it will run on literally ANY XP compatible hardware (even pre-MMX Pentium, which is the bare minimum for XP). For what very little it's worth, NM27 also displays emojis properly (NM26 uses black-and-white fallbacks, even if you natively install the Twemoji font to XP). NM28 will work with more sites overall due to its more advanced UXP engine, but NM27 targets older hardware better by loading mobile versions where applicable for some sites (and additional custom user agents for certain sites can be established in about:config). There is an SSE-optimized version of NM28, and I doubt it would run that much slower overall, but you will get a speed boost with NM27 (in fact, I'm going back to NM27 myself due to the superior speed overall). Both NM27 and NM28 should work fine if you keep JavaScript turned off as much as possible, but NM27 will use your 512MB of RAM better than NM28...it is the oldest browser I've tried, after tons of testing, that can still keep up with the modern web fairly well. At one time I would have recommended Opera 12.18, but it is showing its age and while it can still be used with a fair number of sites, you will not have a great user experience because the web has changed too much for its aging Presto engine to consistently manage. If you want more compatibility, NM28's your best bet, but if you need speed NM27 still has good compatibility and a faster engine. I hope this helps!
  14. cmccaff1
    Thank you for another fantastic release! They truly get better and better with every update...I'm using the latest v11 right now with no issues to report. If I should end up using a newer PC (or need to use a certain site that won't function properly even with workarounds) then I'll absolutely be making the leap to v12 or beyond, but for now v11 is still performing like a champ!
  15. cmccaff1
    Thank you for all of these great releases! I was using the 2021-06-06 release for several months...your mplayer builds are truly rock-solid and well optimized for fantastic performance. It uses only twice the RAM as TCPMP to play a 1080p mp4, while having no audio or video glitches (meaning everything plays perfectly), and plays a TON of other formats flawlessly too. As an XP user, I'm grateful for your efforts!
  16. cmccaff1
    Whatever happens from here on out, I will continue to support @roytam1 in whatever he decides to do with his browsers going forward. MCP seems hell-bent on destroying anyone and anything that tries to get in the way of their 'vision' for their browsers. The way I see it, they're on a road to self-destruction...their browsers are going to fade further into irrelevance, while people will continue to follow Roy and many others and support their hard work. MCP and their browsers are going to become more and more the reflection of everything they were once fighting against, everything they had tried so hard not to have their browsers be or to themselves become. It is a shame that they could be so arrogant not only to XP users but users of the 'regular' Pale Moon and Basilisk, so greedy about the source code, and so selfish in not allowing people to take their work and build upon it. And yet, without Mozilla they would have had nothing to build from, no starting point to begin with. They were (and are) nothing without Mozilla, much as Atlas in Teen Titans was nothing without the mechanic who did maintenance (see the episode "Only Human"). When the mechanic abandoned Atlas he was battered into spare parts...and as people abandon MCP and/or if Mozilla themselves should see fit to abandon them, they too will be battered & broken. Thank you, Roy, for all of your hard work--I appreciate you and your efforts VERY much. It ain't over 'til it's over!
  17. cmccaff1
    The TLS 1.3 flag...there is a drop-down menu in chrome://flags which allows you to pull up your preferred option. I did a simple CTRL+F search for "tls 1.3" and selected "Enabled (Final)" from that list. (This only applies to v11, as the TLS 1.3 flag was removed from v12 and v13 [since those browsers have TLS 1.3 fully integrated and activated out of the box].) EDIT: The name of the specific flag is #tls13-variant and the specific option is Enabled (Final).
  18. cmccaff1
    Thank you--that works perfectly! It even works in v9.5, too, but I'll be sticking with v11 because of the TLS 1.3 support. I appreciate your help and testing!
  19. cmccaff1
    Actually, yes! I did try to access the site with a Chrome 92 user agent, and it still wouldn't load the article. v12 and v13 work just fine with Time.com...thank you for your help!
  20. cmccaff1
    I tried to activate all of the flags, but none of them worked. Not sure if it's an XP issue or not, but even then I've actually upgraded back to v12. Time.com does not seem to work properly in v9.5 or v11--the homepage does load and you can access articles, but an article I tried to read would not load properly. I was able to read it in v12. I'm still going to hold off on v13 unless there's a site I need it for, but for now v12 gets the job done flawlessly.
  21. cmccaff1
    @Humming Owl - Sorry for not saying anything sooner...I became inactive from the forum for a few days as far as posting, and that was so I could do some more browser testing. I tried all kinds of browsers, including older versions of Opera, Firefox, classic Chrome 49, and even the Otter Browser (unstable and crash-prone--I don't recommend it unless you need an Opera 12-esque browser with more modern capabilities). After a lot of trial and error, I've settled on New Moon 28 and your build of 360 v11. 360 v9.5 seems to have the capability of using experimental drafts of TLS 1.3, but I couldn't get them to work. On the other hand, v11 has the final draft of TLS 1.3 included, though it's not activated by default (a quick trip to chrome://flags solved that issue). v12 is also fairly snappy on my old Pentium D, but v11 runs faster...it basically feels like a more advanced version of Chrome 49, similarly fast but more future-proof thanks to having TLS 1.3 and other modern features. v9.5 is still a great option for ancient SSE2 processors (early Willamette-era P4, for example), but v11 is my favorite of the bunch for sure. I will be using v11 from now on, but if I use a more powerful PC in the future and/or need to access a certain site that doesn't work well with v11 I'm always open to upgrading. Thank you for all of your hard work...I'll be following your future releases closely!
  22. cmccaff1
    Opensearch is a perfect solution on Firefox-compatible browsers...in fact, @RainyShadow kindly reintroduced me to the Mycroft Project, which I had used long ago and forgotten all about. It's a great alternative to downloading search plugins from the Pale Moon or Basilisk websites--in fact, I'm currently using the "!Google" (Google NCR) engine from the Mycroft website, their #1 offering out of the top 100. Ah, okay! I understand now...thank you very much!
  23. cmccaff1
    Same here, pretty much! I tried antivirus software for a while, but haven't used an antivirus in years because most of them eat up CPU and RAM like it's going out of style & because I'm not too fond of having to get permission from one program to run another program. So I've been taking my chances since then, and in my lifetime it has only happened ONCE that a virus from a spyware site wiped out my OS, way back in 2010 (when I was a lot younger and dumber than I am today). On older machines with 512MB of RAM or less Opera 12.18 used to be the king, but now I think NM27 has stripped it of the crown (because Presto Opera is losing compatibility with many modern sites--while most still work well, it has issues displaying many others [including this very forum]). Based on my own experiences, this is as good as I can make a recommendation: for machines with 512MB of RAM or less and/or a processor that doesn't have SSE, go with NM27. If you have more than 512MB of RAM and/or a processor with SSE, go with NM28. In both cases, the more you can keep JS/animated images turned off, the better your overall browsing experience will be.
  24. cmccaff1
    Ah, okay...so you'll be 'setting up shop' at another website. If you can DM me and others, or provide basic instructions here on where to find and obtain your future binaries, I'll definitely be grateful. And no worries--I'll keep it 'hush-hush'. You're very welcome! NM28 is more convenient because it has everything you need built-in. NM27 you have to configure a bit (lav DLLs and such), but once you've got it up and running it is nice and fast. NM28 isn't much slower than NM27 on my Pentium D...in fact, it runs very well (especially when I keep JavaScript and animated images turned off). The choice is yours, and on your hardware NM28 should be fine! NM27 is a great choice for older machines, though.
  25. cmccaff1
    Turning off JavaScript and animated images makes a big difference towards making the overall web experience faster...while some sites don't work properly without JS, the ones that are excessively JS-heavy are in most cases not really worth visiting, to me anyway.
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