Why I will never update my 4.4.8.1000 browser unless serious changes occur


Recommended Posts

I have been using Maxthon 4.4.8.1000 for a few years now and found it better than the majority of browsers out there. Even though there are newer versions of Maxthon out now I don't plan on updating because of these points (number 1 being the most important) and may even ditch this one altogether because of point 4:

1. Print function now hidden in a sub menu (at least it was in the first version of 5) - really, really dumb move. I don't care that pressing Ctrl+P will bring up the print dialogue box. I don't use keyboard shortcuts and probably never will. Plus it is OUTSIDE the norm of what most 100% of menus look like. I don't want to have to keep remembering that.

2. The enormous amount of 'extra' crap that tries to be foisted on me (it even happens in my version). I want a browser and NOTHING else. I can't remember the annoying stuff that came up offering to enroll me in a bunch of stuff that I didn't need, want, never asked for, etc. But there was a LOT. So I just got rid of that rubbish by using the browser as a guest.

3. Video playback was awful - videos had sound that had constant clicks and pops in it. Also jerky playback.

4. Nags to update the browser. I will NEVER UPDATE. Why should I trust a bunch of guys that made buggy software? If it works the first time then it works. Period. The update will be buggy too. The majority of 'security' problems are created by those that make the software - some unintentionally but how many do it intentionally? Quite a few. Believe me. I know. I have seen it happen with my own eyes.  Especially those that are 10x cleverer than their peers. They will put shit into programs that only they know about and which will not be discovered, so that when they leave to 'move on to better climes' they can then take advantage of that code they put in. So STOP putting nag code in there, OK? You are not my mother or grandma so stop acting like one.

And if I have taken the time to vent my frustrations at least have the decency to post this. Otherwise I have a venue that I can post this to that receives 55 million people a month. I don't want to have wasted my time in writing this.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, judgedredd007 said:

1. Print function now hidden in a sub menu

Access it from the context menu. Single level and less mouse travel.

1 hour ago, judgedredd007 said:

using the browser as a guest.

Yep that's the way to do it for a standalone system. Unless you want features like syncing on other devices etc...then you sort of have to use the account option.

1 hour ago, judgedredd007 said:

Video playback was awful

speak for yourself, no major problems here. MX has it's issues, but i've seen no consistent video problems except when pages download in the background where there's some stuttering for a fraction of a second.

1 hour ago, judgedredd007 said:

Why should I trust a bunch of guys that made buggy software? If it works the first time then it works.

So you're ok with a V1 product, but not subsequent updates? That makes no sense whatsoever. Why do you trust the V1 product? Who's to say that version doesn't have all the nefarious additions you mention? In fact seeing as "If it works the first time then it works", why did you update past MyiE let alone all the way up to the final version in the 4.4.x series of Maxthon? or even Windows V1?

While there's the possibility of issues being introduced with later versions thanks to refactoring or new features, bug/security fixes, most of the time they are beneficial. Eg, updates to the browser core or security fixes for exploits which seem to be announced all the time these days.

The fact is people like what they're used to and don't like change, which is fine. But don't assume that just because you think that particular version is the pinnacle of Maxthon development, that it actually is. A print option an extra level deep which you aren't forced to use, an account option which you aren't forced to use, alleged playback issues which may or may not be system related and accusations of additions of nefarious code are poor excuses to justify your desire to not update.

If you're happy living in the past and 4.4.8.1000 works for you with the sites you visit, then i don't see the point of this thread. If on the other hand it's causing issues due to being so old, then you may have to forgo some of your concerns and move to something newer. Which based on my replies none are valid, except for maybe #4 depending on your level of trust in the code since the apparent gold standard of web browser development that was Maxthon 4.4.8.1000.

1 hour ago, judgedredd007 said:

And if I have taken the time to vent my frustrations at least have the decency to post this. Otherwise I have a venue that I can post this to that receives 55 million people a month

It's going to be posted, but i think you won't like the responses. Although i'm not sure what the threat about posting elsewhere with 55m people/month is about.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

LOL one of my favorites versions of maxthon of all time is 4.4.8.2000! a great version not really that stable but in that time it was stable as hell, with a lot of awesome features that I missed, I totally understand why you don't want to change, maxthon 5 has it's pros and cons, for example what they did to the maxnote (in those versions I think is called "skynote" is just awesome, I used it practically everyday, but you loss the one click botton of the adblock, the awesome layout of the new tab, and the compatibility of a huge amount of extensions XD 

but I find the maxthon 5 versions more stable than the mx4, when I started using maxthon back in 2014 I remembered having at least 5 crashed daily, now I have just one or twice :v is an improvement.

The implementation of the cloud experience was actually better on the mx4 than in mx5! that's for sure cloud tabs were just awesome, and the history was in the cloud as well, so all the maxthon browsers on all the devices had for sure the same information, you could send images, text and link to one device to another and a lot of awesome stuff, I've actually made a post about it a few years/months (can't remember), you might want to check it out

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for posting my post and your response 7twenty and also to DaveMax for his response.

7twenty by ‘context-menu’ do you mean a right-click of the mouse on the page? As to living in the past look at what DaveMax wrote.

ALL software started off as innovative but ends up as bloatware many years down the road and that's because of people (who tend to not be the ones who created the software in the first place but came along later) trying to add more stuff because 'competitors are doing it' or something along those lines, or trying to 'make it better'. This has happened to Avast, Avira, AVG, as an example in the anti-virus field and to Chrome and FireFox in the browser field.

I actually didn’t use anything but the 4.4.8.001 version so I didn’t upgrade from anything earlier and I continued to use it because of the reasons DaveMax said – reliability and innovativeness. That's also why I used it. It worked. But instead of getting it to work better as it was, more features were added.

When I tried upgrading to MX5 the first thing I noticed was all the ‘extra stuff’ that MX tried to foist on me. That was REALLY annoying, especially after I had to use it as a guest to get rid of all that crap. Then when it was installed and I checked to see how the menu look and could not find the print function I got really pissed. I tried to live with it but then a few days later when trying to play a YouTube video the playback was bad. That was when I uninstalled it (which happened to also uninstall the earlier MX version I had, which I had to then reinstall).

Let me ask you this 7twenty - WHO thought up the added features? WHO decided that it would be a good idea to change the location of the print dialog? It is outside the norm to what nearly 100% of programs have and for Maxthon to think that it was a good idea reflects poorly on the company.

Was there a survey done of the users who actually made your browser popular? I can bet a dollar to a donut that no survey was done. Don't you think it would be prudent to ask WHY people were turning to Maxthon instead of the other browsers and then make those features better? A survey does not mean or include requests for new features that get posted on the forum or get emailed into the company. Instead some young arrogant know-it-alls say, 'let's add this that and the other' and then persuades everyone else to go along with him/her. Amazing, how screwed up that is.

All that ‘other stuff’ needs to be created as separate modules so that people have a choice as to whether they want to add different features or not.

After a major update another survey would have given you feedback on whether the updates were liked or not by the users.

And on the feature of nag windows/announcements to update and whatever other BS is there that pops up to nag people, that is treating your users with a tremendous amount of disrespect. Apple were one of the first ones to do it with their stupid white numbers on red background on the apps themselves. You HAD TO update or those numbers would stay there. I did an update of the OS itself once and the entire user interface changed for the worse. Instead of those nice shiny 3D style icons one now had flat, boring looking icons and one couldn’t go back. It seems now that everyone is copying them in one way or another.

I might try the latest version of Maxthon but if the print function is not where it has been in MX 4.4.8.00 (within the top right corner menu) then I won’t bother.

And if the nag notification starts to increase in frequency then I might just uninstall it altogether and go to another browser like Maxthin.

And accusing me of ‘living in the past’ is extremely disrespectful and derogatory, especially when there are idiots in Maxthon doing stuff ‘just for the sake of doing it’.

While I have been putting this post together another user, Eddy Ficio, has come along and said how version 4.4.8.2 is his favourite. Are you going to accuse him of living in the past too? You see its not only me that has these issues. There are others out there too. So far 2/2 reiterating what I am saying.

So it would be prudent for you to get a survey together and post it for everyone – one of the questions should be ‘What is/was your favorite version of Maxthon’ and the follow up question would be ‘Give you reasons why it was your favorite’.

If you find that people like the earlier versions it is not a question of living in the past but of Maxthon making errors in what they thought people wanted. All that Maxthon then has to do is get rid of features that people don't like, get MX5 working the way people want and make those features that people like more robust. It would also include thinking about adding new features as modules and not as part of the browser install itself (i.e. as extensions or add-ons). That would all depend on the sorts of responses that are received to any survey done.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Maxthon do surveys or have in the past and then ignore the input - they ask for input for new features or old features to be added back and ignore that as well

they know best what we the user wants or think they do - again its how it works - if thats not for you then move on - nothing will change - it never does in a dictatorship

icons where you want them is another matter - many [most] things are possible with the UI but thats up to you to work out how to change the UI with a skin - or look for one that has what you want - unfortunately there are few skins these days as most who did them have moved on 

Tony     -  Vivaldi 4 on Windows 10 64Bit
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

7twenty by ‘context-menu’ do you mean a right-click of the mouse on the page?

Yes

 

6 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

As to living in the past look at what DaveMax wrote.

ALL software started off as innovative but ends up as bloatware many years down the road

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, it doesn't mean it's right. There's things i don't like about the browser as well... just look at the stickies on the front page of the forum. But i deal with it because, for me it's still the best browser that does what i want.

6 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

I actually didn’t use anything but the 4.4.8.001 version so I didn’t upgrade from anything earlier

So how can you say that 4.4.8.1000 is the best, when it took countless iterations to get to that point? It may be the first version that you used and liked, but many users were in the same position in each and every release till then dealing with things that may have changed/moved/were updated to get to the "perfect browser". MX5.5.2.3000 could very well be the next "perfect" version, but that will never happen unless the constant updates and changes occur.

6 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

Let me ask you this 7twenty - WHO thought up the added features? WHO decided that it would be a good idea to change the location of the print dialog?

The devs? Jeff, the owner/original creator? i'm not sure. Print dialog was either a designer choice, OR they had data showing that many people don't use it regularly, so they moved it to a sub-menu to clean up the main menu.

6 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

I might try the latest version of Maxthon but if the print function is not where it has been in MX 4.4.8.00 (within the top right corner menu) then I won’t bother.

It's not, but i don't understand the lack of desire to use the context menu option.. .as stated, it's always there, top level AND easier to access. I can't think of one reason why you wouldn't use this... outside of muscle memory and being used to the old way. And frankly, that's not a good reason.

 

On 10/13/2018 at 1:59 AM, DaveMax said:

IMO Maxthon isn't changing for the better. It used to be innovative, fun to use, reliable and useful.

That's quite a subjective comment. Browsers have come a long way since MyIE, there's only so much you can add to the browser that's useful anymore. As for being fun? it's a browser, not a game, be it v1 or 5 i don't think it was ever "fun", it just did it's job. Reliability seems to be different for everyone; some people post here every other day with issues, others like me rarely have an issue.

On 10/13/2018 at 1:59 AM, DaveMax said:

Change should be for the better, not make things worse by not allowing third party cookie blocking and introducing nag screens.

True, but that's something that Maxthon has always done. Remove/change options for some unknown reason then add them back at some stage. Now that you mention the TP cookie thing, i'm also a little annoyed.

If there's things to complain about with Maxthon, i think it's biggest failure is not giving enough user control to various options such as cookies (ability to delete by date/site), thirdparty cookies, granular control of plugins/cookies per site (it's always enable or disable everywhere), lack of disabling media auto play on sites, access to advanced options (like chrome://flags).

The "issues" the OP mentions are all without merit and basically come down to not wanting to deal with change because they're comfortable with what they have.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's quite a subjective comment. Browsers have come a long way since MyIE, there's only so much you can add to the browser that's useful anymore. As for being fun? it's a browser, not a game, be it v1 or 5 i don't think it was ever "fun", it just did it's job. Reliability seems to be different for everyone; some people post here every other day with issues, others like me rarely have an issue.

I admit it could be perceived as subjective. As a whole there are still some very useful features on Mx. When I said it was fun I was essentially referring to the skin customisation, which although still exists to a point, in previous versions there was far more inbuilt choice. I recall being able to make the GUI appear like IE or even something totally different. Only Palemoon now really has this capability. I can live without the vastly different skins though as they were just cosmetic or an aesthetic. I can even live with the 'Win 8' style flat 'Fisher-Price' GUI design. Reliability has definitely changed for me though. For seven or eight years I rarely had even a slight glitch with Mx. I've run Mx as a portable for years, it was invaluable for me at work. Now I can't even get my bookmarks 'Favourites Bar' to work properly. I fire up the portable, put my password in and get my bookmarks from about 2010. WTF?

 

True, but that's something that Maxthon has always done. Remove/change options for some unknown reason then add them back at some stage. Now that you mention the TP cookie thing, i'm also a little annoyed.

It's not rocket science, the reason is as plain as a Soyuz nosecone: monetisation.

cookies.png

If there's things to complain about with Maxthon, i think it's biggest failure is not giving enough user control to various options such as cookies (ability to delete by date/site), thirdparty cookies, granular control of plugins/cookies per site (it's always enable or disable everywhere), lack of disabling media auto play on sites, access to advanced options (like chrome://flags).

In my subjective opinion; Mx's biggest failure is now putting monetisation and its own agenda before its user base. Development of the browser is now more rapid, but some basic security problems (flash plug-in update) have never really been addressed. Perhaps prioritising known bugs would be more productive than releasing new versions so quickly. 

leaks.png

cryp.png

 

The "issues" the OP mentions are all without merit and basically come down to not wanting to deal with change because they're comfortable with what they have.

Possibly, but I think Mx's changes and  improvements are generally being undermined by a corporate style attitude that is alienating many long time users. I understand it is expensive to develop a browser, but disabling third party cookie blocking and using irritating nag screens are not the way to ameliorate development expenditure. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You make some good points.

MX does have it's issues, i've mentioined it countless times and posted threads about them - to me in some respects it comes across as amateurish, if only due to the constant issues with translations. But adding things like exploits that take longer to fix due to the delayed core updates, non-existent flash update options, syncing options that seem to cause more grief than positives, it doesn't come across great. But there's plenty of users that don't want or need or use these features and Maxthon works well for them.

I tested the crypto thing, and Defender quarantined the suspect file and I got a protected smiley face for my system. While that shouldn't be a pass for Maxthon, most people shouldn't be affected by this if they have even a basic level of AV protection installed. Especially since around Win7/8, Defender or some equivalent has been available.

8 hours ago, DaveMax said:

Possibly, but I think Mx's changes and  improvements are generally being undermined by a corporate style attitude that is alienating many long time users.

No doubt about it, but it's been like that for a long, long time...Going back to MX3 to varying degrees if you ask me.

But looking back to the OPs issues, I fail to see how any of that is related. 1 & 2 are personal preferences in what/how they want to use the browser, 3 is an issue related to an (early?) MX5 version with no information to verify it was an actual MX5 issue. 4, well enough has been said about that...

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The trouble is that the issues in question seem to be ignored in favour of ever more rapid development. The internet is less secure now than it was ten years ago. There are far more exploits in the wild and other browsers (even Chrome) have responded to these threats with various preventative measures. 

I'm not entirely sure how relevant the cryptojacking test was, especially as on Windows most people should be running an AV, but the only other browser I've tested on that page that fails is K-Meleon. And K-Meleon is basically abandon-ware. 

I think Mx 4 was when a lot of things started to change. Some changes were good, although whereas other browsers started to make an effort with security hardening, Mx didn't.

Sorry, a lot of this probably isn't related to the OP's original issues. Except maybe one; I have a portable version of v4.9.5.1000 basically as a back up for when the new Mx version inevitably borks. 

MaxthonSnap20181015151319.png

It's not unusual to get a Maxthon pop-up informing me that the browser is out of date. Which is odd as I thought that 4.9.5.1000 was the latest official release of Mx4.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, DaveMax said:

I think Mx 4 was when a lot of things started to change. Some changes were good, although whereas other browsers started to make an effort with security hardening, Mx didn't.

I could be wrong here, but i believe much of these fixes are to the Blink core, which Maxthon tweaks, but doesn't get into the security side as much. Most Chrome clones seem to be essentially skins with some mods, so when there's a Blink update they can just update the core and release a new version with the updated core with the security fixes.

For some reason Maxthon seems to use a different system, so the core updates are longer between each (most of the time there's 7-10 Blink updates between each MX blink core update), for that reason any security fixes don't show up in Maxthon for some time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, 7twenty said:

I could be wrong here, but i believe much of these fixes are to the Blink core, which Maxthon tweaks, but doesn't get into the security side as much. Most Chrome clones seem to be essentially skins with some mods, so when there's a Blink update they can just update the core and release a new version with the updated core with the security fixes.

For some reason Maxthon seems to use a different system, so the core updates are longer between each (most of the time there's 7-10 Blink updates between each MX blink core update), for that reason any security fixes don't show up in Maxthon for some time.

I know that Mx switched from a WebKit based core to a Blink based core. It could explain some lag in security updates but I think that there hasn't been an emphasis on security updating with Maxthon as much as with other browsers. This really needs to be addressed. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On Sunday, October 14, 2018 at 2:23 PM, 7twenty said:

The "issues" the OP mentions are all without merit and basically come down to not wanting to deal with change because they're comfortable with what they have.

That is your opinion.

Thanks DaveMax for your contributions. I wouldn't mind getting my hands on 4.4.8.2000 and the 4.9.5.1000 portable to check them out. Getting hold of them is another matter....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 minutes ago, judgedredd007 said:

That is your opinion.

True, in the same way that a moved menu item is a browser breaking bug.

In summary,
1. a workaround for the sub-menu issue has been given
2. it's simple to ignore all the extra "crap"
3. video playback isn't an issue as far as i'm aware, otherwise there would be a lot more complaints
4. use portable and you'll never see a nag to update.

Where's the problem?

13 minutes ago, judgedredd007 said:

I wouldn't mind getting my hands on 4.4.8.2000 and the 4.9.5.1000 portable to check them out.

http://dl.maxthon.com/mx4/maxthon_portable_4.9.5.1000.7z

http://dl.maxthon.com/mx4/maxthon_portable_4.4.8.2000.7z
 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

That is your opinion.

Thanks DaveMax for your contributions. I wouldn't mind getting my hands on 4.4.8.2000 and the 4.9.5.1000 portable to check them out. Getting hold of them is another matter....

You're welcome. Incidentally, you can run the portable from a directory folder on the C-Drive rather than a thumb drive. You can see I run both v 4 and v5 versions. I have two v5 versions as most updates are borkers these days and I can quickly revert to the earlier release.

mxport1.png

 

 

When you run it directly from the C-Drive you can actually make a desktop shortcut. 

 

mxport2.png

 

Good luck.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

Thanks DaveMax. By the way, I did try 4.9.4 and video like YouTube runs worse than in 4.4.8.1000 so I will uninstall and go back to the earlier version. I will give 4.9.5 a go, though I'm not holding my breath :( .

Personally I think Google keeps changing YouTube's coding. It might not all be Maxthon's fault lol. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

video like YouTube runs worse than in 4.4.8.1000

a little more clarification as to the actual issue would be handy.

Stuttering? no video? no sound? wrong frame rate? wrong aspect ratio? wrong colours? Dropped frames?

What resolution are you using? is it a 60fps video?

Can you provide a link to a video that exhibits the issue?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 10/13/2018 at 10:25 AM, 7twenty said:

Access it from the context menu. Single level and less mouse travel.

Yep that's the way to do it for a standalone system. Unless you want features like syncing on other devices etc...then you sort of have to use the account option.

speak for yourself, no major problems here. MX has it's issues, but i've seen no consistent video problems except when pages download in the background where there's some stuttering for a fraction of a second.

So you're ok with a V1 product, but not subsequent updates? That makes no sense whatsoever. Why do you trust the V1 product? Who's to say that version doesn't have all the nefarious additions you mention? In fact seeing as "If it works the first time then it works", why did you update past MyiE let alone all the way up to the final version in the 4.4.x series of Maxthon? or even Windows V1?

While there's the possibility of issues being introduced with later versions thanks to refactoring or new features, bug/security fixes, most of the time they are beneficial. Eg, updates to the browser core or security fixes for exploits which seem to be announced all the time these days.

The fact is people like what they're used to and don't like change, which is fine. But don't assume that just because you think that particular version is the pinnacle of Maxthon development, that it actually is. A print option an extra level deep which you aren't forced to use, an account option which you aren't forced to use, alleged playback issues which may or may not be system related and accusations of additions of nefarious code are poor excuses to justify your desire to not update.

If you're happy living in the past and 4.4.8.1000 works for you with the sites you visit, then i don't see the point of this thread. If on the other hand it's causing issues due to being so old, then you may have to forgo some of your concerns and move to something newer. Which based on my replies none are valid, except for maybe #4 depending on your level of trust in the code since the apparent gold standard of web browser development that was Maxthon 4.4.8.1000.

It's going to be posted, but i think you won't like the responses. Although i'm not sure what the threat about posting elsewhere with 55m people/month is about.

Hmm I think the videoplayback was an issue for me too. It would also freeze up in 720p60fps or higher. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On video playback...

I click on any youtube video and these are the things that occur:

Video is jerky in that the frames jump so it is not smooth. The audio is fine - as audio is going the video stutters. Not sure what the framerate it is - when viewing settings I see it is at 360p (which I changed a few days ago to). Since I am not sure of technical terms I have to describe what I am seeing - dropped frames? Posssibly. It will freeze for a few seconds then pick up and play further along the timeline without showing what was missed. All these can describe what I am seeing: dropped frames, jerky, stuttering playback. I am playing these videos on a screen resolution of 1280 x 800. There is nothing else that is wrong with playback - color is fine, aspect ratio is fine, not sure about frame rate (I thought 30fps was the norm). 

In the past the maximum that I could play for a downloaded video was 720p. Anything above that and there would be issues with playback - stuttering, artifacts, dropped frames, etc. Some of that is the amount of memory my system has which is a maximum of 2GB.

As a rule of thumb I have to switch to Chromium to watch online videos or streaming videos without problems.

I also have Adobe flash installed which is 10.0.9 and I won't go beyond that as it causes CPU load to go to a constant 100% (Adobe has been aware of this issue for the last 10 years at least but refuses to fix it [it is a memory leak], which is why Apple banned flash on its devices in that Safari does not have it pre-installed and also why H264 was created).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Flash no longer works on Youtube. It's HTML5 only. Remove Youtube Centre extension or script; that no longer works either. Keep your User Agent updated http://forum.maxthon.com/index.php?/topic/21587-updated-user-agent/ and use Unicode (UTF8) encoding. If your using MX4 delete the flashplayer32xxxxxxxx.dll file in maxthon/core/webkit/npplugins.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 10/19/2018 at 11:19 AM, judgedredd007 said:

I also have Adobe flash installed which is 10.0.9 and I won't go beyond that as it causes CPU load to go to a constant 100% (Adobe has been aware of this issue for the last 10 years at least but refuses to fix it [it is a memory leak], which is why Apple banned flash on its devices in that Safari does not have it pre-installed and also why H264 was created).

Flash should have no bearing on video playback (depending on the site), but especially Youtube. As above, i believe they went to HTML5 back in 2015/16.

I doubt the issues are Flash/memory leak related; given that there's no issue using Chromium it's odd that it won't work in MX, although could be related to the older core. Also I think Chrome/ium auto update Flash, or at least used to, which means it may have been running on a more recent version than your v10.0.9 possibly affecting playback.   Not sure how i got onto this, because as above it shouldn't affect anything due to HTML5.

That said, MX does/did(?) lack some hardware acceleration options which may be a problem depending on the specs of the device in use. Given the 2gb RAM, chances are the CPU/GPU combo isn't great either, add on software video decode, it probably isn't a great platform for smooth video playback depending on what else is going on.

On 10/19/2018 at 11:19 AM, judgedredd007 said:

[it is a memory leak], which is why Apple banned flash on its devices in that Safari does not have it pre-installed and also why H264 was created).

You may be mixing up HTML5 & h264. H264 is a compressed video format, one that Flash supports and can happily play. Flash is to some degree a container format that can contain video/audio/animation/3D content and allows user interactivity, which is what HTML5 also does.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, 7twenty said:

Flash should have no bearing on video playback (depending on the site), but especially Youtube. As above, i believe they went to HTML5 back in 2015/16.

I doubt the issues are Flash/memory leak related; given that there's no issue using Chromium it's odd that it won't work in MX, although could be related to the older core. Also I think Chrome/ium auto update Flash, or at least used to, which means it may have been running on a more recent version than your v10.0.9 possibly affecting playback.

That said, MX does/did(?) lack some hardware acceleration options which may be a problem depending on the specs of the device in use. Given the 2gb RAM, chances are the CPU/GPU combo isn't great either, add on software video decode, it probably isn't a great platform for smooth video playback depending on what else is going on.

You may be mixing up HTML5 & h264. H264 is a compressed video format, one that Flash supports and can happily play. Flash is to some degree a container format that can contain video/audio/animation/3D content and allows user interactivity, which is what HTML5 also does.

I would like to add that Flash is approaching its End-of-Life in a little under 440 days, Dec. 31, 2019, when Adobe is pulling the plug and ceasing support.   YouTube has moved to HTML5.  Some commercial stations that previously used Flash are now using HLS for streaming videos.  Maxthon stopped including a Flash player in Maxthon in response toAdobe's formal request.  I have never encountered a "missing Flash" download warning for any video I wanted to watch.  So sitesI may visit haveaccomadated to the Flash EoL.

@judgedredd007, you might try disabling tha FlashPlayer extension by renaming it (aadd some latters to the beginning/end so they're easyto remove.)

                             <<SL>>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So, is V4.9.5.1000 up to date or not?

 

updatebollocks.png

Because according to this 'nag bar' suggesting I should upgrade to the latest and better experience, it is.

justbollocks.png

Nowhere on the page above does it state that this browser is obsolete and I'm not getting 'the full experience'. Surely anyone downloading this version would know that this hadn't been updated since 2017. Do I really need a 'Nanny State' dropdown reminder to inform me about something I already know? 

If  V4.9.5.1000 is 'too old' surely this should be mentioned on the download page itself? Maybe it's me that's long in the tooth, I just don't know anymore. Will there be a nag screen for that? ROTFLMAO

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks guys to all your posts. 

I am peeved at the moment because I found out just now that another useful tool of MX4.4.8.1000 is no longer available - the split tab/split screen utility that was accessed through the menu in the top right. In 4.9.4.xxxx it is no longer there and there is not even an extension so later tonight I am uninstalling 4.9.4.xxx and re-installing 4.4.8.1000 and putting up with the crap nag screens. 

Even Firefox had an extension that allowed multiple screens/tabs to be seen at once. Whereas in MX4.4.8.1000 it only allowed the screen to be split in two, in Firefox you could have as many as you wanted - just limited by how much memory one's machine had.

Anyway, pretty fed up with the way software developers arbitrarily remove stuff or move stuff around (print dialog) after its been in a program for some time. Print dialog is the worst though - different to just about ALL other programs out there. I will be looking at other browsers, or when finances allow hire someone to hack MX4/5 and recreate the browser the way I want it. I really don't care if it will cost 100k or 200k or more.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I got fed up with the Maxthon browser in the end and found a better one in Vivaldi. It is more customizable and works far better than Maxthon and does not come with all the crap. So after using Maxthon for quite a number of years I have ditched it. Not an easy thing to do but, really, changing things around just pissed me off no end. The tab tiling disappearance was 'the straw that broke the camels back' so to speak.

Even at Version 1 Vivaldi is NICE! Menus where they should be and though slightly different, are actually recognizable from the layout of many windows programs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, DaveMax said:

Because according to this 'nag bar' suggesting I should upgrade to the latest and better experience, it is.

For all the talk of hand holding etc, apparently now we need a great big banner stating that MX4 is obsolete, even though there's a link to "Maxthon5", MX4 hasn't been updated for over a year, the release notes menu shows both MX5 and MX4.9 and almost everyone after kindergarten knows that 5 comes after 4.

2 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

Print dialog is the worst though

I'm sorry, I still think this is the flimsiest excuse for dumping the browser. Considering there's a better option to access print in as many clicks on the context menu, i can't see why this is still the thing that puts you over the edge.

2 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

the split tab/split screen utility that was accessed through the menu in the top right

Was disabled in 4.9 as it was the precursor to the MX5 branch. They started from a much revised platform requiring some things to be re-built/fixed to make it work properly.

The new window option was still available, allowing you to tile windows using the default windows options (drag/drop, drag to corners, WIN+Left/right etc.)

But if you're going to criticise Maxthon, having crap window/tab management is a valid one. You couldn't drag out a tab to a new window till MX5.1.x.

2 hours ago, judgedredd007 said:

or when finances allow hire someone to hack MX4/5 and recreate the browser the way I want it. I really don't care if it will cost 100k or 200k or more.

Good luck with that.

Had you mentioned it earlier, creating a skin with the Print option in the top level menu is a all but trivial. Send me the 200k and i'll happily do it for you :wink:, and add the print option to as many places as you like.

But seriously good luck with Vivaldi. It's a great browser that does many things very well. But like with you, there's some things that just don't work for me, namely crappy support for super drag&drop and popup video... but that was a while ago, things may have changed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.