10-29-2011, 06:40 PM | #1 |
Wizard
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Dolphin Browser Add-Ons
For those who may be interested, a nice selection of Dolphin HD Add-ons can be found here:
http://androiddev.orkitra.com/downlo...olphin+add-ons Web2PDF is one of my favorites. Be patient, it may take about 10-15 seconds for the page to load. Add-on downloads are much faster. Last edited by obsessed2; 10-29-2011 at 06:50 PM. |
10-30-2011, 03:08 AM | #2 |
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Some not-so-good news about Dolphin HD has appeared in the last few days. Here is where it all started.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1319529 |
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10-30-2011, 09:04 AM | #3 | ||||
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10-30-2011, 10:19 AM | #4 |
Wizard
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I think the whole issue is blown out of proportion. In the quest to deliver a better mobile web experience many companies are using the very techniques Dolphin is being slammed for. People want mobile web browsing to be fast. A big part of this is the competition among browsers to be able to render the Web more quickly to mobile users. Dolphin redirects are basically to a proxy server checked against cached pages in Dolphin's Webzine server in an attempt to speed up the web-browsing experience. If the webpage can be delivered in Webzine format it is, otherwise it is redirected and delivered in mobile format. No PII is collected and although browsing habits may be tracked they are not necessarily attributable to any specific user. How many times have we been told and ignored the fine print when it comes to anything we agree to. Most people don't take the time to read what they are agreeing to. From the very last line in the VERY short EULA (5 sentences which takes the average reader about 1-2 minutes to read) displayed when installing Dolphin HD 6.0.0: By participating user experience analytics, you allow an agent running in the background of your browser. It will collect the user experience data and aid in future improvements. I personally like Dolphin's Webzine feature because it allows me to read hundreds of Magazines and Newspapers almost instantly and without advertisements. For those who have never tried it you may be pleasantly surprised. Here are a couple other examples of companies invading your privacy in the name of speeding up mobile web-browsing: Opera Mini connects to a central server which caches pages and delivers the content to your device, this way the browser is quicker or so it seems. Opera compresses a page and then delivers it in a markup language called OBML (Opera Binary Markup Language). This compression process makes transfer time about two to three times faster and the pre-processing also increases compatibility with web pages not designed for mobile phones. Opera is compressing the stream on the fly for Mini, which also means they have a very good insight into everything you do via the browser. I invite forum members to read the article linked to below. Care to take a guess what Unclassified probably is? Good thing Opera isn't tracking unclassified web-browsing to specific users because they would probably go blind. http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-...ra-mini-scoop/ The Amazon Silk browser hasn't even been released and it is already under scrutiny for privacy issues because they are trying to speed up mobile browsing using the same concept as Opera and Dolphin. http://www.informationweek.com/byte/...lets/231901560 Many private businesses use proxy servers to cache web content. I wonder if it is really possible to have online privacy in the Internet age? Google your name and see what pops up. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/17/te...17privacy.html I still think Dolphin is one of the better mobile browsers out there and in version 7.0.2 the Webzine feature is disabled by default and nothing is transmitted to their servers. http://apkbin.blogspot.com/2011/10/d...final-apk.html Last edited by obsessed2; 10-30-2011 at 06:41 PM. |
10-31-2011, 12:37 AM | #5 |
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I read about the Dolphin privacy/security problem on Ars Technica a couple of days ago: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/...or-android.ars. I thought the fact that the data was transferred in plain text was a big part of the problem. Very happy that they stepped right up with a solution.
I tried Googling my name . . . spooky! Luckily for me none of the links that popped up were really about me, just my namesakes in other cities. |
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10-31-2011, 11:00 AM | #6 | |
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Quote:
Dolphin was transferring web requests in plain text to a Webzine proxy server to see if a cached paged existed in an attempt to speed up browsing. Any secure socket connections would have resulted in no match to cache pages on the server and passed on to the secure website. What amazes about each and every one of these stories is peoples inability to read. Dolphin 6.0's VERY short EULA is only five sentences long and it clearly points out that the browser uses a background agent and will collect the user experience data to aid in future improvements. The EULA is written in very simple language, but apparently for some people it is still too difficult to comprehend or they ignore it. It's clear that no personally identifiable information is being tracked because in step 2 of the EULA it gives you an opportunity to setup an account with Dolphin and enter an e-mail address, which you can opt to skip. While I do agree Dolphin should have allowed an opt out (technically they did because you can decline the EULA), the lesson here is learn how to READ something before you agree to it. Ignorantia juris non excusat. Last edited by obsessed2; 10-31-2011 at 12:19 PM. |
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10-31-2011, 11:32 AM | #7 |
keeper of the cheese
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I prefer Dolphin Mini. I'm not a power-surfer on my PE, and it's lightweight and fast.
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