Disabling auto updates
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johnsmith888 last edited by
I want to disable auto updates but can't find any way to do it. Help pages say "From the menu, go to Settings > Preferences > Advanced Preferences > Security." However I don't see those options. under Settings I have Browser, websites, Privacy & security and Opera help. I have gone through all of these and there is no mention of updates anywhere.
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lando242 last edited by
That helpfile is for a very old version of Opera. To disable updates in the current version you have to remove the Opera Update scheduled task from the Windows Task Scheduler and fine the Opera Updater executable and rename it. Yeah, its a pain but Opera has gung ho about making sure everyones using the latest version.
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szenz last edited by
On another hand I want to have all my programs up to date, but that's really annoying!
- The partner search engines override my settings I've been using for ages. Of course I know the workaround but I'm tired to do it. You may say that I can change the keyword (actually I did) but there's no guarantee that one day they will override other keywords as well!
- Speed dial always adds stupid links which are not relevant for me at all. Not a big problem of course, but I guess their next step would be disabling 'X' button for them, trust me. I would also like to have a grid for speed dial and not a ribbon. It used to be like that in the old versions a few years ago and it was just great as I could easily group the links by columns. Another story but let it be
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blackbird71 last edited byOn another hand I want to have all my programs up to date, but that's really annoying! ... The partner search engines override my settings I've been using for ages. ...
Speed dial always adds stupid links which are not relevant for me at all. ...The partner search engines and update-added speed dials provide a revenue stream to Opera that helps offset their costs of providing a 'free' browser. The object isn't to annoy you, of course, but to defray costs. If you were a company paying for favored placement in a browser, you'd also want the browser to present your material as soon as possible after your contract was signed, and updates are a way to deliver that. There is always a cost somewhere behind "free", and for Opera, these are the ways they deal with it. Other free browsers employ similar or even worse methods (sometimes hidden) of covering their costs, unless they're underwriting their costs as a labor-of-love or a charity. TANSTAAFL applies here, as elsewhere.
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digiface last edited by
I don't mind those added speed dial entries. They are easy and quick to remove.
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A Former User last edited by
TANSTAAFL
Who's that?
As for speed dials, I assume there are extensions similar to the one I use in my Firefox (which has appeared fairly customisable etc.).
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blackbird71 last edited by
TANSTAAFL
Who's that?
TANSTAAFL means: There ain't no such thing as a free lunch
It's an expression that was popularized around 1966, and has found its way into fairly common usage when discussing economic realities.
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A Former User last edited by
The partner search engines and update-added speed dials provide a revenue stream to Opera that helps offset their costs of providing a 'free' browser. The object isn't to annoy you, of course, but to defray costs.
I used to pay for Opera. Now I don't have any way to even donate.
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blackbird71 last edited by
... I used to pay for Opera. Now I don't have any way to even donate.
In a world where your 'competitors' are giving their browsers away for 'free', it's awfully difficult to survive as a businesses by charging for your browser. It would have to possess a large number of extraordinary and not-easily-copied features to attract even a modicum of paying users; surviving on donations is likely to garner far less income.
This is a 'culture' thing - the vast majority of Internet users have become accustomed to not paying for anything, other than a computer and their Internet connection. In a marketplace, goods always move by a process of exchange: ordinarily, 'buyers' exchange money for goods/service. In the Internet universe as it's come to be, users exchange personal data or 'eyeball time' for goods/services - hence tracking, ads, preferred placements, and so on. That culture has become so universal and entrenched that it's unlikely to change much, if at all, until something very major occurs.
Donations are now used generally to support just labor-of-love freeware. Even then, it's hard to begin covering even simple software development costs from the trickle of conscientious user donations.
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A Former User last edited by
I agree and, as a member of a number of FOSS communities, I'd also outright state that it is a problem. I donate, I donate a lot. I'm in a position to do so but I don't expect everyone to be. I expect there are far more who should seriously consider it because they benefit greatly from free software. As you said, it's a cultural thing. Too bad, really.
It would be kind of interesting to see what kind of response someone the side of Opera got if they had an optional (non-nagging) donation button or some way to pay for features to be added. Right now the dev time's spent on catering to the lowest common denominator. I'd offer to help push code back but, well, if you'd ever seen my code you'd be grateful I'm not offering.
I'd not expect them to go full donationware. Not at all. Much like the other browsers are not, they still make money by having default buttons and default search engines as well. The Mozilla Foundation, for better or worse, is one such example.
My most recent issue was one I where I just found a way to work around it. I've set up a cron job and now keep my dictionaries synced between my devices as it's coupled with DropBox. I'm not sure the average user will want to go through the effort. However, it worked for me. I should probably learn the API and actually just make an extension.
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szenz last edited by
Well, I perfectly understand why they do it. What I want is to have a way to disable it (even paying for browser) or have an easy way to change settings. With Speed Dial entries I have a way, why can't I change search engines? Moreover, in my case I started hating their partners and surely won't use them, so Opera played bad trick to them.
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lando242 last edited by
Nobody likes the commercials that play on TV either but the fact of the matter is they are paying for the sows you watch. Public TV works, barely, as does pay TV stations like HBO. The internet is a very different place though. Its very difficult to get people to pay for things that are otherwise free. Look at YouTube with their Red service. This is the third time they have tried something like this and each time they have gotten a lot of doubting press and it has eventually fallen apart.
That said, if you are willing to deal with a much less stable product, there is always Vivaldi.
