Increased focus on Opera extensions and ending support for Unite applications, Widgets and Voice

Readers' comments

Comments left by My Opera members under the original post: the first 50, as archived.

• Robson CordeirorobsonpcTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:03:50 PM

  Uoww....
  
  Edit: Opera Link is not working?
  32bits

• Christophchristoph142Tuesday, April 24, 2012 3:12:33 PM

  IMHO that's a good decision. I'm pretty sure usage statistics have revealed that a really small group is using them and moreover, this extension-widget-Unite-apps-djungle was definitely not understandable for the average user

• minhoTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:14:27 PM

  Two builds today??

• eonblueTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:17:12 PM

  Please don't turned off Opera Unite! Unite it's great.

• Surferz WorldsurferzworldTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:18:21 PM

  It is a wise decision. Testing now..

• Christophchristoph142Tuesday, April 24, 2012 3:20:27 PM

  Originally posted by eonblue:

  Please don't turned off Opera Unite! Unite it's great.

  Read it again! They don't turn it off completely, but disable it by default. You'll be probably able to get it back via opera:config.
  Dropping official support frees resources for more important things

• QuHnoTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:22:18 PM

  I'll miss Unite and Widgets.
  Who writes an extension that can replace the Unite UJS Manager with all it's functionality?
  Who writes an Extension that works like the DynDNS Widget?

• ПавелGemorrojTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:23:40 PM

  >> Hide Unite, Widgets in Opera 12 beta
  hahaha)))) very good))

• Jan StandalThinkTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:25:29 PM

  @QuHno http://my.opera.com/community/forums/topic.dml?id=1374852

• ПавелGemorrojTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:26:09 PM

  QuHno, UJS is impossible to write a extension. Extensions do not have access to file system =(

• Danieledarklink88Tuesday, April 24, 2012 3:26:24 PM

  It' a good decision. I don't care about widgets but I'm sorry for Unite, the idea to create an user-centered web, instead of a server-centered one...it was a real ambitious and revolutionary project!
  I hope that you will be able to re-use some of that technology to improve extensions API!

• Bryan KirkZero3KTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:27:14 PM

  Originally posted by Gemorroj:

  QuHno, UJS is impossible to write a extension. Extensions do not have access to file system =(

  
  
  I think that can still happen in a later version of Opera.

• Patrick H. LaukepatrickhlaukeTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:28:39 PM

  is this post set to be visible to logged-in users only? it doesn't seem to show up on the blog homepage (unless it's just taking its time to update, or something)

• NeXaenTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:29:37 PM

  sometimes opera loads this url like the photo linked below :
  
  http://narenji.ir/
  
  http://pictat.com/i/2012/4/24/18504untitled.jpg
  
  win Vista x86
  
  any confirmation ?
  

• Christophchristoph142Tuesday, April 24, 2012 3:30:08 PM

  Originally posted by Gemorroj:

  Extensions do not have access to file system =(

  Actually, the API gets updated and extended atm, so let's see where it'll end up
  

• Alexodius PrimeAleksODTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:32:00 PM

  Good decision, in my opinion.

• PuneachTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:33:24 PM

  I cannot turn the hardware acceleration on using this (1386) and previous (1385) builds. Changing value of "Enable Hardware Acceleration" to 1 and restarting opera does nothing (opera:gpu page still says Hardware acceleration is Disabled). Hardware acceleration works on build 1383.
  Ubuntu 12.04, 64 bit build, ATI Radeon HD4890, fglrx 8.960.

• minhoTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:33:27 PM

  Press F11 to fullscreen and press it again to back to normal mode...
  Pinned tabs...
  http://files.myopera.com/minho/albums/3631672/pinnedtabs.png
  
  When I put mouse pointer on the pinned tabs, the problem disappers.
  
  Ubuntu 12.04 beta 2, x64 build. no HWA

• eonblueTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:36:14 PM

  I can't install any application of http://unite.opera.com/applications/ with this build. Opera Unite was a great plus on my browser, is a philosophy when i want share. I detest this decision.

  Originally posted by christoph142:

  Originally posted by eonblue:

  Please don't turned off Opera Unite! Unite it's great.

  Read it again! They don't turn it off completely, but disable it by default. You'll be probably able to get it back via opera:config.
  Dropping official support frees resources for more important things

  Can you explain my how? Sorry my bad english CrunchBang 10 “Statler” R20120207 32bit

• Christophchristoph142Tuesday, April 24, 2012 3:40:40 PM

  Originally posted by eonblue:

  Can you explain m[e] how?

  click here -> enable it

• Patrick O'Reillypaddy2kTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:40:45 PM

  I'm sad to see both of them go. I really thought Widgets was a fantastic product, it was the first product that really drove home with me how web technologies could be used to build fully featured applications.
  
  As for Unite, although I liked the concept I never really used it. However I'd always envisioned that it would be more useful if it was added on to Opera Mobile for mobile devices with their always on 3G connections. The same goes for Widgets.
  
  RIP

• jasmin9782Tuesday, April 24, 2012 3:42:22 PM

  Opera Ended Unite and Dropbox intoduced it today.
  (Dropbox introduced simple sharing with link !!!! and got big press coverage)
  (Opera had this and much more since long time.........)
  What a coincidence ???
  What to say?

• BS-HarouTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:45:05 PM

  Voice - OK
  Unite - understandable + the API can be merged with extension in future (or at least I hope so)
  Widgets - this is sad, I really like widgets

• JiříaipheeTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:45:45 PM

  Crap, i need Opera Unite.
  I use it as PHP server with this:
  http://unite.opera.com/application/272/
  because i dont have public IP adress cant see any other solution.

• Surferz WorldsurferzworldTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:46:16 PM

  I'm getting the following message on opera:gpu page.
  Hardware acceleration status
  Hardware acceleration Disabled
  OpenGL
  Blocklist status
  Blocklist version 1.0.5
  
  I had the same message with the previous build(#1385) too. FYI, I've already enabled HWA i.e. Status: 1
  -----
  Ubuntu 12.04, 64 bit, ATI FirePro 3800 (FireGL) Graphics card, ATI/AMD Proprietary FGLRX graphics driver

• Ide StoutjesdijkCrimiTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:48:30 PM

  trolling removed
  

• CyroTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:56:09 PM

  Please don't release the beta until drag and dropping is fixed (i.e. Google Maps)

• Joonas LehtolahtigodjonezTuesday, April 24, 2012 3:59:01 PM

  About time to get rid of them. Maybe Opera has some hope after all.
  
  And great to see more fixes, as well as having that known issue listed for those vocal commenters

• OPERATORGÖKTÜRKTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:01:08 PM

  Unite unite :/

• SteveKongTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:01:20 PM

  Wow, two snapshots on one day!
  However, I think you can add DSK-360741 to the list of fixed issues - I am not asked for permission by OS X's firewall with this build anymore. Thanks!

• Christophchristoph142Tuesday, April 24, 2012 4:02:02 PM

  Originally posted by Penge4:

  1. They make a great innovation.
  2. They make big campaign ("reinvent the web") and then give a very buggy alpha with an immature technology.
  3. After the final/bugfix they're screw up the marketing.
  4. They abandon the whole project.
  5. They realize that the users don't use the abandoned feature.
  6. They kill the feature.

  There's a time, when you have to admit, that a technology has no future and drop it or go down with it in the end!
  

• CristiancristianerTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:03:36 PM

  Finally...... Thanks team!

• MossManTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:06:26 PM

  Originally posted by christoph142:

  Originally posted by eonblue:

  Please don't turned off Opera Unite! Unite it's great.

  Read it again! They don't turn it off completely, but disable it by default. You'll be probably able to get it back via opera:config.
  Dropping official support frees resources for more important things

  Read it again!

  The two Add-on platforms will be completely removed in a later release expected before the end of this year.

• nimu_channimuchanTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:06:28 PM

  Thanks a lot!!

• ImuraiTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:06:33 PM

  about damn f*ing time! Should have done those extentions in the first place.

• Christophchristoph142Tuesday, April 24, 2012 4:08:52 PM

  Originally posted by MossMan:

  Read it again!

  I did read that ^^ But he feared, that it was gone right away

• ChocimierchocimirTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:09:58 PM

  If it means Unite functions will be moved to extensions, I can understand. But if you going to remove Unite, you should think about it again.

• Anton DiazAntonDiazTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:11:01 PM

  Teh drama

• MossManTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:12:06 PM

  Have to say it's kind of funny and sad at the same time - Unite and Widgets were two of those things that were kind of pushed on the (reluctant) users with much fanfare about why we should want them... then they sort-of dropped off the radar... then support began to degrade... and now they're being dropped.
  
  Seems a shame that Opera wasted their (and our) time with all the hoo-hah at introduction. Remember all that fuss about the widget UI design back in the day... (widget toggle at top of screen? interface within the browser ("no because they're not supposed to be part of the browser experience")? etc. etc.)
  
  I always felt voice support could have been given a bit more exposure as well... it was *there* but I never really knew what to do with it (apart from reading out some long text a couple of times while I made a cup of coffee).

• 123nieznajomywwaTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:12:15 PM

  debug skin doesn't work

• XenoAntaresXAntaresTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:15:06 PM

  Too bad you didn't care enough about Widgets and Unite. The catalog had required a lot more of attention! There were a lot of Widgets, that didn't work correctly after Opera updates and API changes; same goes for Unite.
  
  And that frustrates the more impulsive user. I fear for the same regarding Extensions! There ought to be a kind of quality assurance – or at least an API versioning approach.
  
  
  For what it's worth, Unite-API might be capable to be integrated into the Extension's API, but functional equivalence would not be achievable without infrastructure on Opera's side of the web, ie without Opera's man-in-the-middle proxies to ensure NAT traversability.
  
  I'd miss Unite a lot. (Always waited to be finally able to finish my implementation of a (net-to-localhost) forwarding http-server, but the TypedArray or Blob APIs have not been fully implemented on Unite-API's XHR-like interface until now… :( )
  
  All in all I wouldn't as much blame the users for not adopting the features, than blame Opera for not putting in enough effort.
  
  
  ETA: Re Voice – looking forward for a state-of-the-art (3rd party) Voice implemetation! ;p

• Falcon777Tuesday, April 24, 2012 4:17:43 PM

  http://s1.ipicture.ru/uploads/20120424/ZbW9UiVX.png
  
  Missing button names in Extension list

• MaximSailorMaxTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:25:01 PM

  New trash-icon is bad Like in Firefox, and the same is not clear...

• Rafał KłysWhutTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:25:32 PM

  Here is checkbox to uncheck to make Widgets back, at least for now:(
  
  opera:config#Widgets|DisableWidgetRuntime
  
  Here is checkbox to CHECK to make Unite back, at least for now:(
  
  opera:config#UserPrefs|EnableUnite

• eonblueTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:28:29 PM

  Originally posted by christoph142:

  Originally posted by eonblue:

  Can you explain m[e] how?

  click here -> enable it

  
  
  Thks

• eonblueTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:29:42 PM

  Originally posted by MossMan:

  Originally posted by christoph142:

  Originally posted by eonblue:

  Please don't turned off Opera Unite! Unite it's great.

  Read it again! They don't turn it off completely, but disable it by default. You'll be probably able to get it back via opera:config.
  Dropping official support frees resources for more important things

  
  
  Read it again!
  
  

  The two Add-on platforms will be completely removed in a later release expected before the end of this year.

  
  

  The end of Unite, and i don't understand the reason.

• eonblueTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:30:59 PM

  Originally posted by jasmin9782:

  Opera Ended Unite and Dropbox intoduced it today.
  (Dropbox introduced simple sharing with link !!!! and got big press coverage)
  (Opera had this and much more since long time.........)
  What a coincidence ???
  What to say?

  Someone on the team can explain it?

• earlnuclearTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:41:32 PM

  http://www.eveonline.com/universe/spaceships/ Doesnt work, just black screen. Works on other browsers with webgl support. So not sure whats going on.

• Gousti FruitGoustiFruitTuesday, April 24, 2012 4:49:45 PM

  I think you took the right decision. Widgets and Unite are/were good technological innovations, giving Opera some focus in the press, maybe giving you new challenges and a base for you to develop new ideas/concepts, but they add little value for the usual end user of a *browser*.

• Johann AntonioJohann-7Tuesday, April 24, 2012 4:53:43 PM

  What???? really????
  it's a joke, no?
  Maybe turned off by default for new users, but never removed please.
  They will lose users, probably.
  Please, if you want to hide them around and join (panels off) but never never removed.
  I will be able to use few, but they use it a lot.
  That is, remove the mail client?