Comment by picafrost
1 year ago
Unfortunately I think it's just statistics killing browser diversity, not conspiracy or collusion.
The math doesn't care about our freedom of choice. Tech savvy users making alternative choices on their web experience are an extreme minority in the sum total of HTTP requests. But the outcome is the same: a narrowing web where only mainstream options function reliably.
The ironic part, as everyone here understands, is that those who actually understand technology enough to use alternative browsers or privacy tools are the ones getting locked out. We're punishing ourselves for our technical literacy by implementing these strategies at these companies. And it really does help the average person who does not think about their browser choices.
It is like the drunk man looking for his lost keys under the lamp because that is where the light is (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streetlight_effect). For-profit companies are only able to perceive bleeding edge javascript running browsers because that is their "light". They can't see you and you don't exist and certainly don't matter if you don't execute their code properly.
What I'm saying is that there are more people (who are not tech savvy) not using Chrome than you may think. But you'd never know from the statistics. The collection method for the statistics is inherently biased.