Chromium Web Browser Installer?

[Neo_78]

Not sure if this has been discussed before (search function did not show relevant results), but would it be possible to add an installer menu option for Chromium web browser?

[jamesbond]

The website you referred has no "download" link.
It only has links to source code, which needs to be compiled etc before it can be used.
We don't have machines big enough to build Chromium from source.

Anyway, why do you bother with Chromium?
You might as well use Google Chrome, for which we include the installer.

[Neo_78]

That's the official link of the Chromium project. The package manager of most Linux distributions ships with Chromium rather than Chrome. Download links seem to be provided here:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involv ... -chromium/

What was the reason to include Chrome over Chromium?

I am fine with Chrome, I was just wondering.

[jamesbond]

That's the official link of the Chromium project. The package manager of most Linux distributions ships with Chromium rather than Chrome. Download links seem to be provided here:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involv ... -chromium/

Okay, I missed this. But still, see below.

What was the reason to include Chrome over Chromium?
I am fine with Chrome, I was just wondering.

Chromium is Chrome with its "proprietary component" removed. It's a test harness for Chrome; as Google develops it. Once they hit a particular milestone, or consider it to be "stable", then they add the juicy bits and release it as "Chrome". In other words, Chromium is Chrome, without the shiny parts, but with the extra bugs.

Chromium in itself is rather not interesting. Really the interest for Chromium is for anyone who wants to download the source code, and tweak it, and build something out of it. E.g "Electron". I'm talking about the app framework, not the one that orbits inside the atom.

Otherwise, if you are only interested in the browser, there are many Chromium-derivative browers that are more interesting because they offer you features you can't find in Chrome or Chromium (e.g. better security, no Google telemetry, and stuff like that). Check Ungoogled-chromium, SR Iron Browser, and many others. Or Vivaldi, for that matter.

[mikewalsh]

@Neo_78 :-

Unfortunately, Jim's right about this one. There is no such thing as a downloads page for Chromium, for "official", pre-built Chromium packages. It's never been offered like that.

The Chromium Project is effectively Google's R&D department for Chrome itself. It was set up at the same time as the Chrome alpha/beta test releases way back in the late summer of 2008, when the whole thing was getting under way. Google wanted to make the code open-source and publicly available to all.....unlike the incumbent at the time, Internet Exploder, which was very much closed-source & proprietary.

Most distros take the source code , compile their own builds of the browser, and offer it to their users through the package managers.

There IS a website where you can find pre-built packages, though these are all 3rd-party ones; usually built by individuals, who then make their packages publicly available:-

https://chromium.woolyss.com/

This is where I found the UnGoogled Chromium builds by "Marmaduke". This build includes all the necessary multimedia codecs'n'stuff, as well as current Widevine DRM, and support for VAAPI video hardware decoding is built-in. All Google stuff, however, is removed.

It's perfectly possible to add extensions, etc, from the Chrome Web Store, though it does entail a somewhat convoluted process; you're having to perform the same steps, manually, which Chrome itself performs automatically.

-------------------------------------------------------

Marmaduke offers this as a standard tarball, and also as an AppImage. The AppImage is what I build the Ungoogled_Chromium-portable package around, which just keeps all its config stuff self-contained within its own directory. Unlike some packagers, Marmaduke has got his AppImage spot-on, and it works everywhere. He's even taken a leaf out of Google's own book; although Chromium itself always expects the very newest of everything, Marmaduke's builds are compiled against a somewhat older kernel/glibc/deps combination, which makes it more widely usable by a greater number of people.

Not everybody religiously updates to the very newest versions of everything, the instant they become available..! Far from it. Most folks, if left to their own devices, would happily roll along with the same version of most items for years at a time. They simply wouldn't bother.....which is why Windows Update, for instance, does it totally automatically in the background. So you don't NEED to remember.

Mike.

[mikewalsh]

@rockedge :-

I'll move the above post over to the Chrome thread, and we'll take it from there.

Mike.

[Neo_78]

Thanks for your detailed explanation @jamesbond and @mikewalsh.

Do you know where the Chrome settings file is stored in FatDog that is used to save the user-specific browser configuration (settings, customizations, etc.)?

Vivaldi also looks like an interesting option with nice customization features.

[Feek]

Do you know where the Chrome settings file is stored in FatDog that is used to save the user-specific browser configuration (settings, customizations, etc.)?

If I´m not mistaken, the browser profile will be created somewhere in /home/spot or in /home/spot/.config after the first run.

Normally it is a hidden folder (with a dot in front of it).
To show hidden files or folders left-click on the eye button in rox-filer.

[Neo_78]

Yes, there is a google-chrome folder in /home/username/.config. I am not sure but it looks like settings are stored in~/.config/google-chrome/Default/Preferences in jason format.

Do you know if it is possible to manually export only the Chrome settings to another FatDog Chrome installation without having to sync and backup all data; ie. to exclude bookmarks, apps, history, passwords, etc.?

[Feek]

Do you know if it is possible to manually export only the Chrome settings to another FatDog Chrome installation without having to sync and backup all data; ie. to exclude bookmarks, apps, history, passwords, etc.?

I mainly use Firefox (Chrome only occasionally).

Firefox creates a profile with all the settings in a folder (~home/spot/.mozilla/.Firefox/.xxxxxxx) and I can manually copy the content of this folder (ctrl+a, drag´n drop).
In another installation of Fatdog (or Puppy), I will first start and quit Firefox (to create a profile folder on its right place), and then overwrite (copy) it with the above content with settings.
Theoretically, Chrome should work similarly.

In your place, I would do a clean installation of Chrome and then do all the required basic settings.
The Chrome profile folder should then contain what you want and it should be possible to copy and use it elsewhere.

Maybe someone smarter can advise .

[mikewalsh]

@Neo_78 :-

Yes, there is a google-chrome folder in /home/username/.config. I am not sure but it looks like settings are stored in~/.config/google-chrome/Default/Preferences in jason format.

Do you know if it is possible to manually export only the Chrome settings to another FatDog Chrome installation without having to sync and backup all data; ie. to exclude bookmarks, apps, history, passwords, etc.?

Try using my Chrome-portable package:-

viewtopic.php?t=146

The whole idea is that you have ONE copy of your config settings, bookmarks, extensions, etc., because the browser profile is located inside the portable's directory. This can be located externally to your various OSs - in a location accessible to all - then be 'shared' between multiple Puppies/derivatives.

These portable browsers can be run from Puppy's /mnt/home (sorry, I don't know FatDog's equivalent to /mnt/home), or from anywhere outside the OS itself. They run perfectly happily from a flash drive, too.

------------------------------

In the early days with Puppy, I used to install a fresh copy of every app to each new Puppy, along with all its config/setting stuff. It then occurred to me what a waste of disk space this was; duplicating the same stuff I don't know HOW many times, over & over again.....space that could be better used for the user's own personal data/work.

Initially, I did what davids45 recommended; set up an external filesystem on a remote partition, and sym-link everything I wanted or needed into each Puppy at the relevant locations. This was, however, very time-consuming, despite doing what I wanted. About 3 years ago, fredx181 came out with the 'portable' Firefox browser; everything self-contained in a single location, and run from a single launcher.

I've never been that keen on the 'zilla-based browsers, much preferring the Chromium-based ones instead. There followed a period of a few months when I was experimenting with getting Chromium 'clones' to work the same way; took some doing, but with assistance from Fred and a few others, we got there in the end. I 'portabilized' many other browsers, along with Thunderbird for e-mail.

I then turned my attention to trying to run other applications the same way. I'm still at it, because I happen to think the 'portable application' format is such a good fit for Puppy and related distros.....

The Chrome-portable now has an auto-check for new versions when you fire-it up; if it finds a new version, you then have the choice whether to install it or not.

--------------------------------------------------

You can find a list of everything I've given 'the treatment' to, here:-

viewtopic.php?t=5104

You see anything you fancy, follow the link to its respective thread, where you'll find the download link for it.....

Entirely up to you, of course.

Mike.

[Clarity]

Is this discusson about 'user-data-dir'?

[mikewalsh]

Is this discusson about 'user-data-dir'?

Not specifically, Clarity. TBH, it's quite some time since I saw anyone ask about that.

Why? Any particular reason?

Mike.

[Clarity]

Hi @mikewalsh: Yes. Maintenance of user's data across reboots/upgrades.

[smokey01]

That's the official link of the Chromium project. The package manager of most Linux distributions ships with Chromium rather than Chrome. Download links seem to be provided here:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involv ... -chromium/

Okay, I missed this. But still, see below.

What was the reason to include Chrome over Chromium?
I am fine with Chrome, I was just wondering.

Chromium is Chrome with its "proprietary component" removed. It's a test harness for Chrome; as Google develops it. Once they hit a particular milestone, or consider it to be "stable", then they add the juicy bits and release it as "Chrome". In other words, Chromium is Chrome, without the shiny parts, but with the extra bugs.

Chromium in itself is rather not interesting. Really the interest for Chromium is for anyone who wants to download the source code, and tweak it, and build something out of it. E.g "Electron". I'm talking about the app framework, not the one that orbits inside the atom.

Otherwise, if you are only interested in the browser, there are many Chromium-derivative browers that are more interesting because they offer you features you can't find in Chrome or Chromium (e.g. better security, no Google telemetry, and stuff like that). Check Ungoogled-chromium, SR Iron Browser, and many others. Or Vivaldi, for that matter.

@jamesbond the ungoogled-chrome in FD903 doesn't appear to work very well. It keeps crashing/disappearing. This is the spot version. Running it --no-sandbox seems to work ok.
The other issue I have now it's uninstalled is removing the menu entry. There is no desktop file in /usr/share/applications. Could there be one hiding somewhere else. It doesn't display the icon either.

[smokey01]

There is no desktop file in /usr/share/applications. Could there be one hiding somewhere else. It doesn't display the icon either.

I found the desktop file in: /root/.local/share/applications

[rockedge]

I found the desktop file in: /root/.local/share/applications

in this location the .desktop files if customized will not be over-written during updates and will only appear in this case, in the root user menus

With user spot it is possible to utilize the location /home/spot/.local/share/applications for .desktop files specific to the menus of the user spot

/root/.local/share/applications/*.desktop files will take precedence over /usr/share/apllications/*.desktop files.