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PowerUOC - TenFourFox Web Browser Project For The New Decade

Appleuser201

Appleuser201

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 12, 2018
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Who’s ready for a new refreshed browsing experience for ppc based macs?

On an earlier thread, someone mentioned the name PowerFox would be a good iceweaselppc name replacement as Iceweasel was the Debian version of Firefox and is trademarked. That got me thinking about a new tenfourfox based browser to replace iceweaselppc.
I’m hoping we could all contribute to a new tenfourfox based browser (like iceweaselppc) that would implement the PowerUOC experience. I can provide browser icon ideas, (got a friend who is willing to help design some icons). I’m certain there are lots of other things you would all like to see in this project.

It’s about time we all get a new custom browser implementing the best tweaks and addons, a new logo icon, a new name, a new refreshed browser to reflect the future of our PowerPC based Macintoshes, the ultimate browsing experience on any PowerPC Mac.

See the earlier thread for PowerUOC: https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...ce.2209108/page-2?post=27989212#post-27989212

Who’s ready for an awesome refreshed fast browser to start the new decade?
 
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Iceweasel isn't trademarked. My only point is just that we didn't come up with the name, and for the purpose the browser serves, it isn't a very accurate (or relevant) title as it could be. That's all.

If PowerUOC was to be built-into the application as a defaults file, we would need to come up with a way to stop the browser from blowing off certain parameters so that a user.js isn't required. However, if there's another, deeper way to implement default preferences, that may work. Otherwise, the browser would need to be updated every time PowerUOC was updated. Instead, the browser should be offered alongside the preferences file, which would perhaps come with an install script to automatically prepare everything for you, which would be doable.

It should keep addons to an absolute minimum, as they are not a one-size-fits-all, and can also lengthen initialization time...

But what I'd like to see is an optional specialized hosts file offered alongside the two, which would naturally fill the need for adblockers, cutting down on resource usage (plus installed addons).

...I also think the amount of cruft deselected to compile into PowerFox should be slightly more aggressive than what was done in IceweaselPPC...

Also, the icon doesn't necessarily need to come from one source. Like how Debian and Ubuntu chooses default wallpapers, we could hold an icon contest where everyone artistically-inclined fires up GIMP / Photoshop and creates an image (or three) that they think would be a fitting face to the ultimate PowerPC Web browser. Then everything gets posted by a deadline, we hold a vote, and use the winner. :)

Another thing I've been thinking about is that like how TenFourFox is split into differing processor versions, and similarly to how AuroraFox was Leopard-only, PowerFox should split into two versions for Tiger and Leopard, both compiled to leverage the latest technologies either offers. So, regardless of whether Leopard supports WebGL or not, the 10.5 version should ship with it enabled, alongside multiprocess and GPU-accelerated windows (again, regardless of whether or not the OS supports them; we don't want to take any chances here).

Therefore, the availability map should be something like:

DL 1: PowerFoxG3 - Tiger Edition

DL 2: PowerFoxG4/G4e - Tiger Edition

DL 3: PowerFoxG4/G4e - Leopard Edition

DL 4: PowerFoxG5 - Tiger Edition

DL 5: PowerFoxG5 - Leopard Edition

Or something to that effect, anyway.

-

What's truly encouraging about this prospect is that everything you listed has already been done in all their glory, albeit in a fragmented manner. All we need to do now is wait for TFF's EOL, then just bring them all together - simple as that, nothing to it.

Of course, when all the dust has settled, someone should definitely get Dr. Kaiser on the line. He'll get a kick out of it all. :)
 
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z970mp said:
Iceweasel isn't trademarked. My only point is just that we didn't come up with the name, and for the purpose the browser serves, it isn't a very accurate (or relevant) title as it could be. That's all.

If PowerUOC was to be built-into the application as a defaults file, we would need to come up with a way to stop the browser from blowing off certain parameters so that a user.js isn't required. However, if there's another, deeper way to implement default preferences, that may work. Otherwise, the browser would need to be updated every time PowerUOC was updated. Instead, the browser should be offered alongside the preferences file, which would perhaps come with an install script to automatically prepare everything for you, which would be doable.

It should keep addons to an absolute minimum, as they are not a one-size-fits-all, and can also lengthen initialization time...

But what I'd like to see is an optional specialized hosts file offered alongside the two, which would naturally fill the need for adblockers, cutting down on resource usage (plus installed addons).

...I also think the amount of cruft deselected to compile into PowerFox should be slightly more aggressive than what was done in IceweaselPPC...

Also, the icon doesn't necessarily need to come from one source. Like how Debian and Ubuntu chooses default wallpapers, we could hold an icon contest where everyone artistically-inclined fires up GIMP / Photoshop and creates an image (or three) that they think would be a fitting face to the ultimate PowerPC Web browser. Then everything gets posted by a deadline, we hold a vote, and use the winner. :)

Another thing I've been thinking about is that like how TenFourFox is split into differing processor versions, and similarly to how AuroraFox was Leopard-only, PowerFox should split into two versions for Tiger and Leopard, both compiled to leverage the latest technologies either offers. So, regardless of whether Leopard supports WebGL or not, the 10.5 version should ship with it enabled, alongside multiprocess and GPU-accelerated windows (again, regardless of whether or not the OS supports them; we don't want to take any chances here).

Therefore, the availability map should be something like:

DL 1: PowerFoxG3 - Tiger Edition

DL 2: PowerFoxG4/G4e - Tiger Edition

DL 3: PowerFoxG4/G4e - Leopard Edition

DL 4: PowerFoxG5 - Tiger Edition

DL 5: PowerFoxG5 - Leopard Edition

Or something to that effect, anyway.

-

What's truly encouraging about this prospect is that everything you listed has already been done in all their glory, albeit in a fragmented manner. All we need to do now is wait for TFF's EOL, then just bring them all together - simple as that, nothing to it.

Of course, when all the dust has settled, someone should definitely get Dr. Kaiser on the line. He'll get a kick out of it all. :)
Click to expand...
And I like the idea of maybe opera mini becoming the os9 Classilla replacement if it can be ported properly. I agree with the seperate add on file, some users don't even want their browser tweaked.
I also think the browser icon contest and vote is a great idea, we can all have a say in the next great PPC browser.

with a combination of powerUOC and our own tweaks we will have one great browser built to be the "true" PowerPC web browser.
Now let's make it TenFourHappen
 
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Appleuser201 said:
And I like the idea of maybe opera mini becoming the os9 Classilla replacement if it can be ported properly.
Click to expand...

It's not Opera Mini that needs to be ported. It's a newer version of Java Opera Mini can run on.
 
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Amethyst1 said:
It's not Opera Mini that needs to be ported. It's a newer version of Java Opera Mini can run on.
Click to expand...
Could that still be possible? And does mini have a render desktop site option? Or is there a way to get it to load desktop sites to hopefully get YouTube to work on it.
 
Appleuser201 said:
Could that still be possible? And does mini have a render desktop site option? Or is there a way to get it to load desktop sites to hopefully get YouTube to work on it.
Click to expand...

Not impossible but not likely - again, we have no professional coders as far as I'm aware in this forum - at least not willing to dedicate a huge chunk of time for writing apps for PPC.
No, there is is no desktop option for Opera Mini - that's the whole point - Opera servers feed it converted pages suitable for mobile devices. It could play youtube (as it attempts to) if someone wrote the java player to make calls on OSX apps like QuickTime or RealPlayer in this case.
 
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Appleuser201 said:
Could that still be possible? And does mini have a render desktop site option? Or is there a way to get it to load desktop sites to hopefully get YouTube to work on it.
Click to expand...
The source code to Opera Mini is not public as far as I can see, so porting would need to be done by Opera Software AS. And chances of them porting it to OS 9 are zero. You wouldn't really want to watch YouTube videos using it anyway since the compression would kill the quality, as you have seen. As @Dronecatcher says, it would need to pass the untouched video file to an external player.
 
Amethyst1 said:
The source code to Opera Mini is not public as far as I can see, so porting would need to be done by Opera Software AS. And chances of them porting it to OS 9 are zero. You wouldn't really want to watch YouTube videos using it anyway since the compression would kill the quality, as you have seen. As @Dronecatcher says, it would need to pass the untouched video file to an external player.
Click to expand...
Just here, hoping for a way to hope for YouTube on Mac OS 9 again. Or at least a decent browser. The browser doesn’t need to be ported, a more modern version of java has to be ported.
 
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