Mozilla Foundation lays off 30% staff, drops advocacy division (techcrunch.com)
from petsoi@discuss.tchncs.de to linux@lemmy.ml on 06 Nov 19:52
https://discuss.tchncs.de/post/24781226

#linux

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n3m37h@sh.itjust.works on 06 Nov 20:00 next collapse

Should have dropped the “AI” division instead

electricprism@lemmy.ml on 07 Nov 02:12 next collapse

Soon to meet the FirefoxOS fate

deafboy@lemmy.world on 07 Nov 14:54 collapse

Hope not. The new translation tools is great.

Pika@sh.itjust.works on 06 Nov 20:15 next collapse

their choices make it harder and harder to actually want to support their project. I haven’t seen a good PR release from then in ages.

kixik@lemmy.ml on 06 Nov 20:19 next collapse

This is sad, not just because it’s a trend on Mozilla, but because it shows how mozilla has embraced the corporative kind of mindset. The advocacy team was fundamental for net free principles.

Mozilla based browsers keep being the only practical alternative to web browser dominance, but it itself has degrading its status of resisting bad practices against users and the web in general. And emerging alternatives are also technical alternatives only, with no intention of net freedom advocacy, GPL sort of principles to protect the user and so on.

Sad days indeed, :/

greywolf0x1@lemmy.ml on 06 Nov 21:07 collapse

there’s nothing stopping the mozilla project from going closed source at this point, i hope Servo replaces it

eldavi@lemmy.ml on 06 Nov 21:46 next collapse

Servo

what’s servo?

halm@leminal.space on 06 Nov 21:51 next collapse

Exactly.

WreckingBANG@lemmy.ml on 06 Nov 22:00 collapse

It is a Browser Engine. This: servo.org

There is also Ladybird: ladybird.org

greywolf0x1@lemmy.ml on 07 Nov 05:34 collapse

servo has a browser built on it called Verso

drwankingstein@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 07 Nov 14:07 collapse

verso is a seperate project, it’s not built in, servo’s built in browser is more of a basic shell for usability and testing stuff.

EDIT: My bad, no glasses, misread on for in, there is also moto github.com/moto-browser/moto

p03locke@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 07 Nov 00:17 next collapse

I mean, that all depends on what the MPL allows.

kixik@lemmy.ml on 07 Nov 00:36 next collapse

Neither servo rendering engine (like gecko), nor verso (an actual rust based web browser based on servo) are quite ready for prime time. But I’m hoping they will be there sooner rather than later. I don’t use Firefox directly, but rather wrappers based on it, Librewolf for the desktop and Mull in part because I’m lazy (I prefer the ankerfox stuff and other to be done for me), and if I want to avoid chromium based browsers, dominating big time (MS browser edge is as well chromium base, electron is chromium in disguise, and now a days QT web engine underneath is chromium as well) well there’s no option yet.

On the other side, nothing guarantees servo and verso (or whatever other servo based browsers in the future) will care about net free advocacy, neither user freedoms, just be concerned about being better technical solutions, :( But I still have high hopes as you might…

Just being a good technical alternative is not good enough now days, :(

JustMarkov@lemmy.ml on 07 Nov 07:17 collapse

I hope that LadyBird could become a viable alternative as well.

theshatterstone54@feddit.uk on 06 Nov 20:25 next collapse

Of all the stupid money pit projects they could drop and focus on Firefox and Thunderbird… they drop privacy advocacy. Might as well drop the browser engine and MDN, to ensure Mozilla loses ALL positive impact on the world, yeah???

maniacalmanicmania@aussie.zone on 07 Nov 08:06 collapse

They fired many MDN writers a few years back.

MrQuallzin@lemmy.world on 06 Nov 20:54 next collapse

It’s likely prepping for loss of income from Google

DieserTypMatthias@lemmy.ml on 07 Nov 07:57 next collapse

They laid ground for Servo, let’s build new one from it.

deafboy@lemmy.world on 07 Nov 14:53 collapse

For a relatively long time I was under the impression that Servo is pretty advanced, but after the last weeks news, I’m not so sure anymore. <img alt="" src="https://lemmy.world/pictrs/image/db4a502a-38ed-4f7b-84bd-fac010c6e9d3.png">

prex@aussie.zone on 08 Nov 00:47 collapse

What is the x axis of this graph?
And why have I not heard of servo until today??

far_university190@feddit.org on 07 Nov 08:47 next collapse

The Mozilla Foundation is reorganizing teams to increase agility and impact as we accelerate our work to ensure a more open and equitable technical future for us all.

and you close group that make public impact?

advocacy is still a central tenet of Mozilla Foundation’s work and will be embedded in all the other functional areas

that mean they dilute group across mozilla?

We find ourselves in a relentless onslaught of change in the technology (and broader) world, and the idea of putting people before profit feels increasingly radical.

so not be capitalist asshole radical? why you not radical mozilla?

Navigating this topsy-turvy, distracting time requires laser focus — and sometimes saying goodbye to the excellent work that has gotten us this far because it won’t get us to the next peak. Lofty goals demand hard choices

if goal so high that need to layoff, maybe just set goal lower?

0x0@programming.dev on 07 Nov 10:50 collapse

putting people before profit feels increasingly radical.

OMFG they actually said that…

drwankingstein@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 07 Nov 14:07 next collapse

I am actually really glad to see this happen, Mozilla needs a massive refocus on what actually matters (Firefox, Thunderbird, new tech etc).

there was once a time when mozilla was at the fore front of tech development and they were churning out extremely cool tech one after the other. Servo, DeepSpeech, Firefox reality (wolvic is the successor in case anyone was wondering), a TV browser (Why did they have to kill this of all things off T.T) and others.

I want to see mozilla put more focus, and more importantly, a larger portion of the money they receive on actually doing things.

blackbrook@mander.xyz on 07 Nov 20:47 collapse

Seeing them phrase it in bullshit business-speak really increases my confidence.