In an interview with “The Verge”, the new Mozilla CEO, Enzor-DeMeo, IMHO hints that axing adblockers is something that, at the very least, was on the table in some form and at some point. From the article: > He says he could begin to block ad blockers in Firefox and estimates that’d bring in another $150 million, but he doesn’t want to do that. It feels off-mission. It may be just me, but I read this as “I don't want to 😜 😜 but I'll kill AdBlockers in Firefox for buckerinos 😂”. This disappoints and saddens me a lot, and I hope I'm wrong. I've been using Firefox before it was called that. Heck, I even used the Mozilla Application Suite back in the day. It was its commitment to open standards and the open web, and its powerful add-on system, that attracted me to its software. Honestly, that's what's been keeping me. I think that's also what's been keeping their loyal base of users with the project, the geeks and nerds that care about privacy. It's the same group of people who helped it get very popular at one point. Killing one of its advantages over the Chromium engine, being able to have a fucking adblocker that's actually useful, and that nowadays is a fucking security feature due to malvertising, will be another nail in the coffin, IMHO. The core community will feel disenfranchised, and this may have negative consequences for the project. You know why? Because these are some of the people that the _normies_ turn to when they want tech advice. For fuck sake, for-profit side of Mozilla, get a damn grip! #Mozilla #Firefox #AdBlocker #OpenSource #FOSS

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jonah: > I have additional thoughts about this new topic too, but I don’t really think we need to divert _every single topic that mentions Firefox_ into a conversation about whether Firefox should be recommended or not. Gee, I wonder whose fault is that? Firefox keeps shooting itself in the foot so often, its a miracle it hasn’t shot itself in its own head.

Critical_Crab5543: > You could say the same thing about Arkenfox You really can’t (in my opinion). The Arkenfox project is _a template and a guide_ , not a fork. It very intentionally _isn’t a browser_ , it doesn’t _intend_ or _pretend_ to be a browser, and it very intentionally stuck with upstream Firefox. It is a method of managing Firefox settings more systematically, and a configuration template with strong defaults _for Firefox_. Arkenfox = Firefox with different defaults, not a fork. With that said, I’d agree with your comparison between Librewolf and Zen, I think they fall into the same broad category (though Zen has less focus on privacy, and Librewolf has no focus on UI or features). I don’t believe PG should recommend either, but that doesn’t mean _nobody_ should use them, nor that PG should recommend _against_ using them unless there are concrete reasons to do so. TL;DR I think Zen should neither be a recommendation nor an anti-recommendation. Use it if you want.

**How the _Jeff_ is it July, already?! Blink-and-you-miss-it June flew by, but it did drop off a number notable Linux app releases (to act as blurred mile markers while we hurtle every-on).** Among them, the redesigned ONLYOFFICE 9.0 generated a lot of opinion; the Flathub debut for Linux TIDAL client _High Tide_ made waves with music lovers; and a slice of system-preserving options got added to _Raspberry Pi Imager_. We also got (as we always do) a new version of _Mozilla Firefox_ in Firefox 140, adding manual memory unloading for tabs, easier adding of custom search engines, and, yeah, sponsored suggestions in the address bar for UK users. _“Yay”._ But those weren’t the only Linux app releases of note in June 2025. If you hear about a notable app update I haven’t written about, sending me a news tip via the contact form (link in header) is a massive help. In my monthly _Linux App Release Roundup_ , I try to spotlight smaller software bumps that didn’t snag an over-engineered graphic and waffle fest of their own, but are nonetheless worth knowing about — even if only as a postscript. On to the recap! ### Plank Reloaded _Plank Reloaded_ running on Linux Mint 22.1 The revived _Plank_ dock app continues to see improvements. Across 11 iterative updates put out in June, the popular workflow aid picked up the following changes: * **Now shows custom workspace names** * **More reliable _Steam_ menu activation** * **Multi-monitor support via “On Active Display” setting** * **Docklet tooltip hovering logic tweaked** * **_Clipboard_ docklet handling improved** * **_Trash_ docklet now supports KDE Plasma** * **Animations for window minimise/restore improved** * **Misc gap-size related buffs, including updated barrier logic** _Plank Reloaded_ works across different desktop environments, despite initially being targeted at Cinnamon. It does not work under Wayland, only X11/Xorg. New versions can be downloaded as a DEB from the project GitHub releases page, or installed via a repo. ### Warp 2.0 A brand new version of _Warp_ was released and the 2.0 version number is rather symbolic since, like Web 2.0, it’s everything it was before, but _more_. No longer just a terminal emulator with AI features added on, Warp is now billed as an Agentic Development Environment (or ADE). Taking aim at generalised AI-infused IDEs and command-line coding tools with chatbot access bolted on top, Warp’s creators feel an end-to-end workflow able to handle any development task thrown at it is where the future is. _“What’s needed is a product native to the agentic workflow; one primarily designed for prompting, multi-threading, agent management, and human-agent collaboration across real-world codebases and infrastructure,”_ Warp CEO Zach Lloyd says in a blog post. _Warp_ 2.0 has four main components: _Terminal_ , _Code_ , _Agents_ , and _Drive_. The command-line accepts both natural language prompts to do something, as well as running a regular terminal commands. It’s… an approach — one that certainly “vibes” with the hype that developers are writing less code and more prompts. For those, an interface built around generating, viewing and managing code, rather than editing it manually will have more appeal. If you fancy seeing if the aims marry the claims, you can download _Warp_ for Ubuntu from the official website for free, though but _Warp_ is not open-source, free limits apply to AI features, there is a privacy policy to agree to, and accessing other LLMs subject to other privacy policies. ### QT Creator 17 The Qt Project announced the launch of _Qt Creator 17_ , the latest version of its cross-platform integrated development environment in June. IDEs aren’t my area of expertise (hence no dedicated post) but a skim over the changes revealed a few interesting features. QT Creator 17 uses a new theme by default (called “2024”, and covering both light and dark modes), alongside a “refreshed” icon set that marries to the look. Users can continue to pick from alternative appearances should the new ‘stock’ skin not suit. Selecting a Debug or Release build now automatically applies its corresponding run settings, and a new “Clone into This” control lets devs copy run parameters between profiles. CMake support is also improved so that, should a configure step fail because of any missing Qt packages, the IDE is able to offer to install them using the the Qt Online Installer (if that has been setup, which it may not be – more details in this blog post). Beyond that there come various buffs for devs working with Python (opening `pyproject.toml` based projects) and C++ (lots of fixes), new QML code formatting options, refined Git diff and tagging features, and more. For a more detailed run-through all of the changes, check out the official Qt Creator 17 announcement. ### Audacity 3.7.4 Open source audio editing software _Audacity_ continues inching closer to its next major release, Audacity 4.0, but before then is another bug-fix update in its current stable 3.7.x series. Audacity 3.7.4 changes include: * **New welcome/what’s new screen** * **OpenVINO effects are now available on macOS** * **Effect preview now works when the track is muted** * **Fixed crash when closing a large unsaved project** * **Fixed crash when using real-time effects and delay compensation** * **Fixed incorrect waveform rendering on clipped audio** A small but solid update for this audio producing staple. As ever, you can download _Audacity_ from the project website for Windows, macOS and Linux (provided as an AppImage). ### Darktable 5.2.0 _Darktable_ is one of those under-sung pieces of open source software. It’s powerful, featured, cross-platform and ever-evolving to meet the needs of modern photography. It’s both a virtual light-table and a darkroom for photographers. New features added to Darktable 5.2 include: * **Ability to view snapshots side-by-side with the current image** * **Metadata module is now ‘fully configurable’** * **New Raster Mask Import module** * **Sigmoid module is now the default tone-mapper selected on new installs** * **Export module supports multi-preset export** * **Zoom range widget replaced with a spin button** * **UI responsiveness improved** * **Read support for Cineon** (`.cin`) **and DPX**(`.dpx`) **images** * **Presets can be arranged in sub menus by inserting** `|`**in their name** * **45×35 aspect ratio added to _Crop_ module** * **Improvements to raster masks** Plus, a fair bit more. Read through the official blog announcement for more detail, and to find links to download the latest release of _Darktable_ for Windows, macOS and Linux (it’s available as an AppImage, but an ‘unverified’ Flatpak is also available). ## THE BETA ZONE ### LibreOffice 25.8 (Beta 1) The next major update to _LibreOffice_ —the office suite coming to Danish government departments—is due release next month, and the first beta build has been issued for testing and feedback. LibreOffice 25.8 includes a _vast_ number of changes (I’ll cover more of them in a dedicated blog post nearer to release) but a few highlights to catch my eye: * **New application-wide Viewer mode** * **Encrypted hybrid PDFs can be imported** * **Autofilters are now imported from MS Excel XML files** * **Ability to set language for some punctuation characters in _Writer_** * **Undo handling has been optimised in _Writer_** * **14 new functions adde to _Calc_** * **Faster opening of XLSX files in _Calc_** * **Embedded fonts in PPTX files are supported in _Impress_** * **Documents can now be exported to PDF 2.0** * **Layout interoperability of hyphenated DOCX files** * **Support for IAccessible2 “text-indent” attribute added** * **PIP now ships as part of LibreOffice core builds** More details in the official blog post, along with links to download LibreOffice 25.8 beta builds if you’re keen to help test and file issues for any bugs or major regressions you encounter. ### VirtualBox 7.2 (Beta 2) The VirtualBox 7.2 Beta 1 was issued last month (covered in last month’s roundup) with a major new addition: support for Windows 11 on ARM (both Guests and Hosts). VirtualBox 7.2 Beta 2 sees further work on the formative Windows 11 ARM support when running as a guest, including a new WDDM Graphics driver (for 2D mode only) and _Shared Folder_ feature. Beyond that, there’s improved x86_64 and ARM CPU feature reporting when using Windows Hyper-V as the underlying virtualisation engine, along with xsave/xrestor instruction handling and AVX and AVX2 extension on recent CPUs. VirtualBox 7.2 improves its UI with (not expanded on) “polished” _Preferences_ and _Settings_ pages; better handling of keyboard LEDs in the software keyboard; and the IO-APIC option in ARM VM settings has been removed. Though not yet released, VirtualBox 7.2 adds initial support for Linux kernel 6.16 for guest and hosts too. More changes, along with details on how to test the beta, can be found on the VirtualBox forum. ### FBReader 2.2 (Beta) If you’re a fan of the free (but no longer open source) _FBReader_ ebook reader, there’s a new beta build to get stuck in to. FBReader 2.2 beta adds support for OPDS 2.0 catalogues as well as full support for OPDS 2.0 features, such as groups, facets, and authentication. A large number of public library services use OPDS 2.0, and it will be the primarily API used in the _Readino_ e-book store. The _FBReader_ snap makes the beta available in the `--edge` channel. If you fancy flicking ahead a few pages to see what’s coming, run `sudo snap install fbreader --edge` for a sneak peek. * * * That’s it for this month’s roundup! This is not a comprehensive list of _every_ app update to sneak out in the past 30 days, but updates for apps that I have written about in the past, or that I know are of interest to many of you reading. _Until next month!_

Let’s go for my web review for the week 2025-52. This is the last one of the year, hope you all had a merry xmas. * * * #### Ethics _Tags: tech, ethics_ Indeed I wish our profession would have a strong and binding set of ethics like doctors or lawyers. That wouldn’t prevent all problems, but that’d tame some of the issues of our time. https://inessential.com/2015/02/26/ethics.html #### Is Firefox Firefucked? _Tags: tech, web, browser, firefox_ This is pretty much where I’m at as well regarding Firefox… Sad state of affairs. https://kevquirk.com/blog/is-firefox-firefucked/ #### I foretold that Mac app notarization is security theater _Tags: tech, apple, security_ Always hated this notarization with a passion when I had to target Macs… One reason being that it felt fairly useless, and it’s confirmed: it is pretty much useless. https://lapcatsoftware.com/articles/2025/12/5.html #### Flock Exposed Its AI-Powered Cameras to the Internet _Tags: tech, surveillance, privacy, iot_ There are just too many of those cameras deployed. The fact that they are badly secured are compounding the negative effects. https://www.404media.co/flock-exposed-its-ai-powered-cameras-to-the-internet-we-tracked-ourselves/ #### Generative AI hype distracts us from AI’s more important breakthroughs _Tags: tech, ai, machine-learning, gpt, criticism, ethics_ Add to this how generative AI is used in the totally wrong context… and then I feel like I could have written this piece. I definitely agree with all that. https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/15/1129179/generative-ai-hype-distracts-us-from-ais-more-important-breakthroughs/ #### History LLMs: training the largest possible historical LLMs _Tags: tech, ai, machine-learning, history, politics, culture_ Interesting research. Can it give insights on the pervasive views of the time? https://github.com/DGoettlich/history-llms?tab=readme-ov-file #### An initial analysis of the discovered Unix V4 tape _Tags: tech, unix, history_ Interesting historical work. It indeed went through a fast paced evolution cycle. https://www.spinellis.gr/blog/20251223/?ms261223 #### x-ray: A tool to detect whether a PDF has a bad redaction _Tags: tech, pdf, security_ Interesting tool. Indeed very often people send PDFs with useless redaction in them. Better check first. https://github.com/freelawproject/x-ray #### Passphrases That You Can Memorize — But That Even the NSA Can’t Guess _Tags: tech, security_ An oldie now but still the best way to create a passphrase. https://theintercept.com/2015/03/26/passphrases-can-memorize-attackers-cant-guess/ #### Go ahead, self-host Postgres _Tags: tech, cloud, databases, postgresql, self-hosting_ Things went too far with the cloud monoculture. It’s time to remember that it doesn’t always makes sense, and in the case of databases maybe it’s rarely worth it to go for fully managed options. https://pierce.dev/notes/go-ahead-self-host-postgres #### cargo-coupling: Visualizing Coupling in Rust Projects - じゃあ、おうちで学べる _Tags: tech, complexity, design, architecture, rust_ Interesting tool and I like the underlying approach. I wish we’d have good equivalent tools for other ecosystems. https://syu-m-5151.hatenablog.com/entry/2025/12/21/152559 #### Rust’s Block Pattern _Tags: tech, rust, pattern_ This is definitely a useful idiom. A bit like the immediately invoked lambdas in C++ but less verbose. This is nice to control intermediate variables locality and mutability like this. https://notgull.net/block-pattern/ #### Performance Hints _Tags: tech, performance, optimization, memory, c++_ Excellent resource for keeping an eye on performance issues in your codebase. It’s very C++ oriented but most of the insights can be generalised to other ecosystems. https://abseil.io/fast/hints.html #### `map::operator[]` should be nodiscard _Tags: tech, c++, api_ I definitely agree there. It looks like a missed opportunity to improve the API and nudge people in the right direction. https://quuxplusone.github.io/blog/2025/12/18/nodiscard-operator-bracket/ #### The Rule of Zero _Tags: tech, c++, memory_ Another explanation for the rule of zero in C++. We should definitely stick to it. https://blog.feabhas.com/2015/01/the-rule-of-zero/ #### Logging Sucks - Your Logs Are Lying To You _Tags: tech, logging, observability_ Lots of good advice on how to improve your logs. https://loggingsucks.com/ #### Refactoring with Loops and Collection Pipelines _Tags: tech, refactoring, data_ Pipelines are very widespread nowadays, still I don’t see them used much. Having a few refactoring ideas under our belt to replace loops with such pipelines might help. https://martinfowler.com/articles/refactoring-pipelines.html #### On Metastable Failures and Interactions Between Systems – Aleksey Charapko _Tags: tech, distributed, failure, reliability_ A good explainer on what metastable failures are and how to try to mitigate them. https://charap.co/on-metastable-failures-and-interactions-between-systems/ #### What Actually Makes You Senior _Tags: tech, career, leadership_ I think this is a good pick at a core skill for senior developers. Indeed removing ambiguity for the rest of the team is an important factor. https://terriblesoftware.org/2025/11/25/what-actually-makes-you-senior/ #### The Code Is Just the Symptom _Tags: tech, organisation, conway, architecture, quality, management, leadership_ This is very true. It’s not like whoever produced bad code is particularly stupid, in most cases it’s the context around which breaks the people. https://medium.com/@rubyghetto/the-code-is-just-the-symptom-c77f43b29320 #### Take Pride in Your Legacy (Code) _Tags: tech, legacy, quality_ The definition of legacy code is ambiguous enough. We generally mean “bad code” (the wrong definition to me…). What about seeing things differently and trying to leave a great legacy behind us? https://8thlight.com/insights/take-pride-in-your-legacy-code #### Well-factored architecture _Tags: tech, architecture, quality_ A good list of characteristics to aim for. Gives clue about the quality of your software architecture. https://jchyip.medium.com/key-practice-well-factored-architecture-b9d53f5549fb #### The cardinal sin of software architecture _Tags: tech, software, architecture, data, state_ It’s not the only factor leading to troublesome architectures of course. Still, if state and thus data is wrongly handled, you’re indeed on the wrong track. https://functional.computer/blog/the-cardinal-sin-of-software-architecture #### A Definition of Systems Thinking: A Systems Approach _Tags: tech, systems-thinking, complexity_ A nice little primer on what systems thinking is about. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877050915002860?ref=pdf_download&fr=RR-2&rr=7e18ecfcdd9e2916 #### Agile Software Guide _Tags: tech, agile_ Martin Fowler obviously wrote a lot on the topic. This is a nice guide pointing to some of the most interesting resources on his blog around the agil topic. https://martinfowler.com/agile.html #### How Pairing & Swarming Work & Why They Will Improve Your Products _Tags: tech, pairing_ It still something I don’t see happening often. I think it is unfortunate. https://www.jrothman.com/mpd/project-management/2014/07/how-pairing-swarming-work-why-they-will-improve-your-products/ #### Essential XP: Card, Conversation, Confirmation _Tags: tech, xp, tests, project-management_ Where are acceptance tests coming from? They’re generally the result of a conversation. https://ronjeffries.com/xprog/articles/expcardconversationconfirmation/ #### Story Slicing, How Small is Enough? _Tags: tech, project-management, agile_ A good justification of why you want to slice your stories finely. It definitely helps steering the project and reduces chances of bottlenecks. https://agilepainrelief.com/blog/story-slicing-how-small-is-enough/ #### 10 Tips to Get Your Agile teams Better at Story Estimation _Tags: tech, agile, estimates_ Nice list of ideas for stories estimations. I applied some of that with nice success. https://www.liminalarc.co/2014/01/10-tips-better-story-estimation/ #### Effective Standups around Kanban Board _Tags: tech, agile, kanban_ When teams grow the usual standup/daily meeting format doesn’t work anymore. What’s proposed here is a nice alternative. https://brodzinski.com/2011/12/effective-standups.html #### Seven Changes To Improve Flow In Your Software Development Process _Tags: tech, kanban, flow, project-management_ Indeed, people getting into lean processes tend to obsess over “eliminating waste”. Sure there might be some waste to clean up but it’s pretty much useless if you don’t focus on the flow of work. https://flowchainsensei.wordpress.com/2014/08/19/seven-changes-to-improve-flow-in-your-software-development-process/ #### Cross-Functional Collaboration in Agile: What It Does and Doesn’t Mean _Tags: tech, team, project-management_ Indeed, having generalists in teams is definitely what you want. Having only specialists will reduce the project efficiency. https://www.mountaingoatsoftware.com/blog/cross-functional-doesnt-mean-everyone-can-do-everything #### Hire generalists to help your specialists shine! _Tags: tech, team, project-management, problem-solving_ The other advantage of not relying only on specialists. You actually get teams better at solving problems due to the extra context and communication channels the generalists will bring. https://softwaredevelopmenttoday.blogspot.com/2014/01/hire-generalists-to-help-your.html #### Using Brainwriting For Rapid Idea Generation _Tags: knowledge, problem-solving, ux, business, strategy_ Definitely required more preparation work than brainstorming. That said it’s a nice alternative, maybe easier to get right. https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2013/12/using-brainwriting-for-rapid-idea-generation/ #### The Science Of Good Sleep: There’s A Reason You’re Always So Tired _Tags: science, biology, sleep_ Lots of insight and advice in here. Are you sure you’re having enough sleep? Of high enough quality? https://www.elitedaily.com/life/ways-to-get-better-sleep/974053 * * * Bye for now! And see you in 2026!