I cannot believe that we're on Opera 25 and still don't have CUSTOM DEFAULT SEARCH ENGINE

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by admin

All the people in this topic are failing to realize that doesn't matter where the setting is hidden, leaving the file exploitable would allow third-party malware to hijack and change Opera's search engines leaving it as vulnerable as Chrome and Firefox. The other thing you don't analyze is what kind of fairness it'd be if Opera charges Google, Microsoft, Yandex, etc, to include their search engines in the browser but would include DDG and other options for free = it doesn't exist, it's a request that doesn't make sense.

Please read:

About the reason for the limit, the pending anti-hijacking protection.

A few bits more about the default search engine deals.

[namal23]

namal23 last edited by

All the people in this topic are failing to realize that doesn't matter where the setting is hidden...

I know a good solution for this. MS Windows should only allow IE as default browser. Problem solved. You would be happy with IE as default browser, wouldn't you?

[Deleted User]

Deleted User last edited by

Too busy wrecking speed dial and other things that arent broken.

[lem729]

lem729 last edited by

I agee, misteromar, busy wrecking the Speed Dial that isn't broken. Now that's aggravating and crazy.

As for the search engine, between the extensions (such as DDG for Opera), keyboard shortcuts (that easily open them), typing one letter at the search bar before a query, f8 as an option too, to get instantly into the search bar, for me, the limitation in default engines is not a big deal, if Opera concludes it's safer for the user, AND the other pieces of the browser are there and working. On the other hand, i recognize that everyone has different priorities.

@leushino, the ability to use a keyboard shortcut to open an extension is useful for more than just that DuckDuckGo for Opera extension.

[radarnyan]

radarnyan last edited by

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

Love it!
:lol:

[garbagelol]

garbagelol last edited by

Chropera is utter crap. There's much better browsers out there. Just use one of those. The good version of Opera is never coming back.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

I'm pretty sure there some business decisions why you cannot change default search engines. Too bad.

[gregorw]

gregorw last edited by

Here is what I would change given the option:

Google. Use .com instead of the local version, HTTPS and encrypted.google.com for additional privacy. Append &nfpr=1 to turn off auto-correction that keeps second-guessing me ("Showing results for ...", "Did you mean ...").

Wikipedia. Same here, use en.wikipedia.org instead of the local version.

Yahoo. Reassign the "y" keyword to YouTube. I have been using this for years with the old Opera. Tried to get used to "yt" but still unintentionally end up at Yahoo several times a day.

This is not simply about typing a second or different letter, but being forced to unnecessary, tedious, and error-prone relearning. As if someone had decided that swapping Ctrl+T and Ctrl+W was a good idea.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

Google. Use .com instead of the local version...
Wikipedia. Same here, use en.wikipedia.org instead of the local version.

:yes:, but I'm guessing if it's actually up to Google - to трахtrack or not to трах us. X(

[lem729]

lem729 last edited by

Opera says it's a safety issue. I have no basis to doubt them. Maybe it's a little of both -- business and safety. On the Firefox New Tab page, you get a Google Search bar. Money is a reality, too, I guess, when you're trying to produce a free browser.

[radarnyan]

radarnyan last edited by

What is Opera?

Opera is a fast and free alternative browser, made to discover.
(official statement at opera.com)

What keeps your system safe&clean from virus/malware?

Antivirus or anti-virus software (often abbreviated as AV), sometimes known as anti-malware software, is computer software used to prevent, detect and remove malicious software.
(via Wikipedia)

In what case a user's browser settings like default search engine would be hijacked?

1. You ignored or your browser / OS / antivirus software failed to notify you about a unsafe download.

2. Your antivirus software fails to warn you when a unsafe executable be launched and fails to protect your system from it.

When the antivirus software fails to protect the system, which means in that case your system would contain some malware or virus, would you really trust a browser to protect you when your system is insecure?

So you mean a browser shouldn't consider security at all?

Of course NOT. A browser could (and should) keep user safe when surfing the internet, which includes (but not limited to)

1. Suspend connection and notify user about bad certificate, to secure SSL connections
   (but still, provide user a way to access it)

2. Warn user about a known unsafe site that may contain malware
   (but still, allow user to access it anyway and prevent danger scripts to harm user's system, that's why we have sandbox in Chromium)

3. Warn user about a unsafe download, for example when it's a known malware
   (but still, if user decide to run it anyways, it's antivirus software's job to prevent system from being damaged)

And what about locking the default search engine?

When your system is insecure, locking the default search engine means nothing.

Locking the default search engine means NOTHING

(I said it twice since it's important)

The attacker could, for example, change your DNS server to attacker's without you even know it. In that case, when you're trying to access a site (let's say Google.com) it could be resolved to attacker's site. It's not hard for the attacker to add his own certificate as trusted, so in this case https can't protect you. Your connection would be still be encrypted, but not to Google's server, to attacker's server.

Is it necessary to have some protection on search engine?

Absolutely yes. But NOT like what Opera does.

Let's take a look at what Google Chrome does about search engines:

1. There are build-in search engines. But you can edit them, remove them (all) as you wish.

2. You can add your own custom search engine, and set it as default.

So how does Google Chrome prevent unwanted change to search engine?

1. A extension could add a search engine, but may not override the default settings without user knowing it.

2. A extension couldn't be installed without user knowing it.

3. A extension doesn't come from Chrome Web Store will be disabled at every startup of browser (on stable/beta channels only)

In short: Google Chrome prevents search engine settings being changed without user knowing it while using the browser.

In conclusion, a browser, should offer user a safe Internet experience, but should never try to protect user's system outside the browser - We have antivirus softwares to do that.

But... but they said it's about safety

They might be trying to do so, but it's a completely pointless, meaningless move.

[lem729]

lem729 last edited by

Maybe. For myself, I have to defer to the experts on this. If Opera believe and asserts there's a safety issue, I have no reason to doubt it. I'm not a software technician. And the workarounds for using alternative search engines are adequate for me.

[Deleted User]

Deleted User last edited by

What a tempest in a teapot. It's simply another tactic to accuse Opera of not catering to the whining squad. We've provided workarounds. If they don't float your boat, too bad.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

...you need an extention to browse the Internet.

[lem729]

lem729 last edited by

Now come on Joshi. Actually The version 25 Opera browses the Internet faster than version 12, and and is better able to read/access sites. So maybe version 12 of Opera is the one that needs an extension.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by admin

Not yet. But it was a joke

[namal23]

namal23 last edited by

What a tempest in a teapot. It's simply another tactic to accuse Opera of not catering to the whining squad. We've provided workarounds. If they don't float your boat, too bad.

Who are "we"? Are you officially speaking for opera here? If trolls like you are working for opera then I can stop wondering why opera is going downhill.

[xantares]

xantares last edited by

Just to help regarding the topic: You can well make Opera 15+ use your very own search engines.

To do so, just edit the SQLite database called "Web Data" in your profile (– after making sure Opera is not running, after backing it up, blabla…). Therein you find a table called ´keywords´ – that's the table you want to work with. The columns in that table are pretty self-explaining.

If you are looking for a suitable SQLite db editor – free, for Windows – you may find hints here: https://vivaldi.net/blogs/entry/a-fine-sqlite-editor-for-opera-15-opium

[gregorw]

gregorw last edited by

@xantares: Custom search engines can already be edited at opera://settings/searchEngines. Default search engines, which this topic is about, are not part of that keywords table.