Peppermint OS Builds Single-Site Browsers for Debian Systems (linux-magazine.com) 14
They create a dedicated desktop icon for your favorite web-based application — a simplified browser that opens to that single URL. Yet while Linux usually offers the same functionality as other operating systems, "Peppermint OS's Ice and its successor Kumo are the only free software versions of Site-Specific Browsers available on Linux," according to Linux magazine.
"Fortunately for those who want this functionality, Peppermint OS is a Debian derivative, and both can be installed on Debian and most other derivatives." Since SSBs first appeared in 2005, they have been available on both Windows and macOS. On Linux, however, the availability has come and gone. On Linux, Firefox once had an SSB mode, but it was discontinued in 2020 on the grounds that it had multiple bugs that were time-consuming to fix and there was "little to no perceived user benefit to the feature." Similarly, Chromium once had a basic SSB menu item, Create Application Shortcut, which no longer appears in recent versions. As for GNOME Web's (Epiphany's) Install Site as Web Application, while it still appears in the menu, it is no longer functional. Today, Linux users who want to try SSBs have no choices except Ice or Kumo.
Neither Ice or Kumo appears in any repository except Peppermint OS's. But because Peppermint OS installs packages from Debian 12 ("bookworm"), either can be installed to Debian or a derivative... To install successfully, at least one of Firefox, Chrome, Chromium, or Vivaldi also must be installed... Because both Ice and Kumo are written in Python, they can be run on any desktop.
The article concludes that Site-Specific Browsers might make more sense "on a network or in a business where their isolation provides another layer of security. Or perhaps the time for SSBs is past and there's a reason browsers have tried to implement them, and then discarded them."
"Fortunately for those who want this functionality, Peppermint OS is a Debian derivative, and both can be installed on Debian and most other derivatives." Since SSBs first appeared in 2005, they have been available on both Windows and macOS. On Linux, however, the availability has come and gone. On Linux, Firefox once had an SSB mode, but it was discontinued in 2020 on the grounds that it had multiple bugs that were time-consuming to fix and there was "little to no perceived user benefit to the feature." Similarly, Chromium once had a basic SSB menu item, Create Application Shortcut, which no longer appears in recent versions. As for GNOME Web's (Epiphany's) Install Site as Web Application, while it still appears in the menu, it is no longer functional. Today, Linux users who want to try SSBs have no choices except Ice or Kumo.
Neither Ice or Kumo appears in any repository except Peppermint OS's. But because Peppermint OS installs packages from Debian 12 ("bookworm"), either can be installed to Debian or a derivative... To install successfully, at least one of Firefox, Chrome, Chromium, or Vivaldi also must be installed... Because both Ice and Kumo are written in Python, they can be run on any desktop.
The article concludes that Site-Specific Browsers might make more sense "on a network or in a business where their isolation provides another layer of security. Or perhaps the time for SSBs is past and there's a reason browsers have tried to implement them, and then discarded them."
Windows could easily do it. (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Windows could easily do it. (Score:5, Informative)
On Debian you can use:
for a kiosk user.
systemctl --user status web-widget@https:--slashdot.org
Re: (Score:2)
It's surprisingly tricky to make a good kiosk-style application.
Re: Windows could easily do it. (Score:1)
This guy kiosks
Re: (Score:2)
Windows works in basically the same way, other than the fact that the binaries are in different locations.
Web browsers should do this already (Score:3)
Browser wrapper (Score:5, Informative)
>"To install successfully, at least one of Firefox [or Chrom*] must be installed... Because both Ice and Kumo are written in Python, they can be run on any desktop."
So it is not a browser, it is just something that calls a browser to launch a site with no browser menus. Yep, you can already do this in Firefox with a shell script. I suppose it might be a useful feature, although I don't have much use for it, myself.
Anyway, direct info: https://peppermintos.com/guide... [peppermintos.com]
Can it distinguish internal link vs external link? (Score:3)
A proper web app wrapper shall allow internal website links to remain in the wrapper, while external links be opened by standard browser outside.
If Peppermint OS tool can distinguish that and act accordingly, then good news for them and everyone shall learn from therm. If not, well, as others here have said, there are a lot of ways to run browser in kiosk mode and they are just one more.
No thanks, world does not want (Score:2)
We had a whole OS based around this concept. Well, an Ubuntu flavor anyway. It was called Jolicloud. It was only ever popular on ASUS EEE notebooks (including the 701!) because it was the most trouble-free distribution for them at the time.
Single site web apps are crap because inevitably you wind up needing to open a link to another site, and you really just want it to open in a tab but then it opens in a window, and so on. Just accept that you open multiple things through your browser, and learn to use it
What are the use cases? (Score:1)
Am I missing something here? (Score:3)
You can do this in Chromium 120.0.6099.109 on FreeBSD, and I presume it is the same on Linux.
If your website has a suitably configured WebManifest, which many sites do, then you get an icon in the address bar to install it as a PWA.
If it doesn't, then Menu | More tools | Create shortcut...
Enter the name you want to give it, and tick "Open as window".
Older versions of Chrome were the same, in the most recent versions, it has moved from "More tools" to "Save and share"
Industry has moved on to apps (Score:3)
It is beginning to not even matter if we sandbox our browsers. Industry has moved on to apps where they can get you to execute whatever they want on your most personal device, the mobile phone, which has utterly terrible sandboxing (that contact list is literally shared by every single app).
I can't find a bank any more that requires you to use their app for anything other than the most basic services - such as even contacting customer services - which they refuse to provide on their website.
Industry is forcing you to use their app for a very good reason: they control you. The era of being able to protect ourselves against nefarious websites running dangerous code or sharing private data over shared cookies is over. Because companies are no longer providing useful websites when they can regain control and invade your privacy with apps to which you're stupid enough to give all the permissions they want.
Re: (Score:2)