The CEO of Mozilla has hit out at Microsoft for making it more difficult for users to change their default browser in Windows 10.
Chris Beard voiced his criticisms in an open letter to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, branding the new process a “very disturbing aspect” of the operating system.
“The update experience appears to have been designed to throw away the choice your customers have made about the Internet experience they want, and replace it with the Internet experience Microsoft wants them to have,” he wrote.
“It now takes more than twice the number of mouse clicks, scrolling through content and some technical sophistication for people to reassert the choices they had previously made in earlier versions of Windows.
“It’s confusing, hard to navigate and easy to get lost.”
When a non-Microsoft browser, such as Firefox or Chrome, prompts you to choose it as the default browser over Edge, Windows 10 takes you to a new settings page, which again requires you to pick your default browser of choice.
It’s hardly impossible to navigate, but seems like an unnecessary step designed to make the process more long-winded and confusing.
Microsoft, however, is sticking to its guns for now.
“We designed Windows 10 to provide a simple upgrade experience for users and a cohesive experience following the upgrade,” the firm told The Verge. “During the upgrade, consumers have the choice to set defaults, including for web browsing.
SEE ALSO: How to install Windows 10
“Following the upgrade, they can easily choose the default browser of their choice. As with all aspects of the product, we have designed Windows 10 as a service; if we learn from user experience that there are ways to make improvements, we will do so.”
Windows 10 has generally gone down very well amongst consumers, and we think it’s far superior to Windows 8. Cortana and the revamped Start Menu are particularly impressive.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
