Firefox 64: direct removal of extensions

Martin Brinkmann
Nov 9, 2018
Firefox
|
18

Mozilla plans to roll out a number of changes in Firefox 64 that are extension related. The organization plans to roll out an update to about:addons that changes the design of the page.

The redesign introduces a card-based interface but does not remove or change functionality on the page.  The one downside to the new interface is that it requires more space to display the same information on the screen.

Firefox users who experience display issues can zoom in or out of the page to display all options and information at once.

Another extension-related change that Mozilla plans to introduce in Firefox 64 is the ability to remove any extension directly.

Remove Extensions

firefox remove extension

Just right-click on any extension icon displayed in the Firefox interface and select the new "Remove Extension" option to start the process.

Firefox displays a prompt when you select the uninstallation option from the context menu to verify that this is the desired action.

remove extension

Select the "remove" option to complete the uninstallation of the selected extension or cancel to keep the extension installed.

Extensions can be removed on about:addons as well or by removing them directly from the Firefox profile folder.

Google implemented a similar feature when it launched extensions support in Chrome years ago. Chrome users can right-click on extension icons and select "remove from Chrome" to uninstall extensions in the browser.

Google Chrome displays a prompt as well to verify the action. The prompt includes an option to report the extension to Google.

Other extension related changes in Firefox 64

extension notification

Firefox 64 makes extension installation notifications stick on the screen until the user interacts with the prompt. If you install a browser extension in Firefox 63 or earlier, you will notice that it goes away automatically when you navigate to another tab; this changes in Firefox 64 to make sure that users see the notification in the browser.

The notification goes away when you close the web browser.

Firefox's Notification Permissions page highlights in version 64 if an extension controls the setting. The browser displays an option to disable the extension if that is not desired by the user.

Closing Words

The ability to remove extensions directly from the Firefox toolbar is a much requested feature. It is useful to users who install and remove a lot of extensions, and in situations where users want to uninstall extensions quickly.

The planned release of Firefox 64 is December 11, 2018.

Now You: What is your take on the planned redesign and functionality change in Firefox 64?

Summary
Firefox 64: direct removal of extensions
Article Name
Firefox 64: direct removal of extensions
Description
Mozilla plans to integrate an option in Firefox 64 that enables users to remove any installed extension directly from the right-click menu.
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Ghacks Technology News
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Comments

  1. Easypeasy said on November 13, 2018 at 1:35 am
    Reply

    Quick access to all add-ons –> Ctrl + Shift + A

  2. Alex said on November 11, 2018 at 12:59 am
    Reply

    So, this kind of thing is now such a significant change to warrant a version number bump, from 63 to 64?

    What’s next, typo fixes?

    1. Tom Hawack said on November 11, 2018 at 1:09 am
      Reply

      @Alex, the article doesn’t mention that direct removal of extensions would be (it’s only planned) the only change! They’ll be more, some we’ll like, others we’ll dislike, as always.

  3. haha said on November 10, 2018 at 3:06 am
    Reply

    They should allow extensions on the toolbar to be Disabled, not only Remove.

  4. PD said on November 10, 2018 at 12:20 am
    Reply

    Should be “Uninstall”, not “Remove” as remove could be confused with just wanting to get rid of the extension’s icon from a toolbar.

  5. Denizhan said on November 9, 2018 at 9:12 pm
    Reply

    big if true

    firefox finally getting the basic features

  6. Mike Harris said on November 9, 2018 at 8:41 pm
    Reply

    “Damn it, we’re going to look like Chrome if it KILLS us. Which it will.”

  7. ULBoom said on November 9, 2018 at 7:13 pm
    Reply

    Is Mozilla doing any old thing users complain about? The ability to remove extensions exists and has existed for a long time in the add ons tab. Wow, Firefox now has a meh feature chrome already had. I know it takes so much effort to open a tab but…

  8. Dilly Dilly said on November 9, 2018 at 6:27 pm
    Reply

    I think FF and Chrome are moving to give websites the ability to flash a popup for stupid users to remove an extension with a single click. The way FF and Chrome keep encroaching into your operating system and surfing habits is getting pretty creepy. They also seem to be making it increasingly more difficult to defend yourself from these tactics. An example is a standard user’s ability to update the browser, add or remove extensions. IMO this should only be possible for a user with admin rights.

  9. Paul(us) said on November 9, 2018 at 5:46 pm
    Reply

    Personly I am not quite sure that even its a requested function by people who are changing quite often their web extensions that its a really good thing?

    This because when removing (think settings which are integrated with the extension) your also losing all of the tweakings, who you so diligently, in most cases, put in place.
    Could it not be that because of the extra step you have to take you not thinking once but twice about, what you’re really doing?
    And is also the change of you by accident deleting your WebExtension (and tweakings), not become 50 % larger?

    Not even mentioning right now the extra space this function needs on the already crowded toolbar, in mine specific case!

  10. John Fenderson said on November 9, 2018 at 5:26 pm
    Reply

    “The redesign introduces a card-based interface”

    *sigh*

  11. Weilan said on November 9, 2018 at 3:15 pm
    Reply

    Chrome has had this since 2008. Welcome to the future, Firefox. xD

  12. Tom Hawack said on November 9, 2018 at 2:32 pm
    Reply

    1- Add-ons Manager (about:addons) card-based interface :

    “The one downside to the new interface is that it requires more space to display the same information on the screen.”

    One downside one and IMO no advantage, visual improvement. IMHO : nonsense.

    2- Ability to remove any extension directly :

    Not all extensions have a toolbar button hence, IMO, this is nonsense as well. Unqualified Firefox users may remove an extension from within its toolbar button and search later on how to remove another extension which has no toolbar button. This is not coherent and anything which is not coherent is confusing for newbies. IMHO : nonsense

    People get actually paid at Mozilla to lay such nonsense?

    1. amar0k said on November 12, 2018 at 8:17 am
      Reply

      what seems nonsense to you, may make sense for others? doesn’t cross your little mind?

      1. Tom Hawack said on November 12, 2018 at 10:31 am
        Reply

        @amar0k, of course it may make sense for others which is why I insisted on IM(H)O.
        An interesting dimension of dialogs is to consider “I don’t like it” or “IM(H)O” rather than “It’s no good”. That’s what I try to respect without too much effort given it’s my very nature to consider differences as a condition to progress.

        But dialog is also your point of view and it could be interesting to know why you consider that it makes sens. Of course this requires that you do have an opinion.

    2. Oriol said on November 10, 2018 at 10:01 pm
      Reply

      I implemented the “Remove Extension” context menu.

      > Not all extensions have a toolbar button hence, IMO, this is nonsense as well.

      Sure, this won’t help for extensions without a toolbar icon, but they can still be removed in about:addons. A feature that can be helpful in most cases (even if not all of them) is not nonsense.

      > People get actually paid at Mozilla to lay such nonsense?

      No, I did it as a collaborator because I wanted such a feature. I’m not a Mozilla employee.

    3. John said on November 10, 2018 at 2:39 pm
      Reply

      >People get actually paid at Mozilla to lay such nonsense?
      yes, minorities, feminist sjw and refugees get paid to reinvent the wheel and make FF worse and worse.

    4. ULBoom said on November 9, 2018 at 7:23 pm
      Reply

      Well, Chrome makes it easy to remove extensions because they interfere with their browser based user data collection app, aka, Chrome. Their words, not mine.

      Gotta wonder what percent of Chrome users tweak it for the tiny amount of privacy that can be gained; almost no one, I’d think. Could be many more FF users turn off spying and Mozilla’s trying bit by bit to regain access to more user data. About:config settings are constantly being added, removed, renamed, moved.

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