Microsoft Adds Buy Now, Pay Later Financing Option To Edge -- And Everyone Hates It (theregister.com) 76
Microsoft has decided to add "Buy Now, Pay Later" financing options to its Edge browser in the U.S. -- and the overwhelming response has been negative. The Register reports: The Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) option pops up at the browser level (rather than on checkout at an ecommerce site) and permits users to split any purchase between $35 and $1,000 made via Edge into four instalments spread over six weeks. The system is powered by Zip, previously Quadpay, and offers a Chrome extension for users who want to split their payments (interest-free if you make the payments on time, although Zip charges $1 per installment). Microsoft has now bundled the platform into Edge.
Feedback could charitably be described as negative so far, as demonstrated by the tags assigned to the post on Microsoft's Tech Community site. Comments (numbering 119 at time of writing) posted by visitors to the site can be pretty much summed up thusly: "This [is] a cheap and disgusting move from Microsoft and edge team to the browser users. You should be ashamed for pushing such crap to users. Listening to the users checkout flows, suggesting third party services. Bloating the browser. Seriously, be better and more responsible." "It's deeply shocking this is built into the base Windows OS on billions of devices," writes cybersecurity expert Kevin Beaumont in a tweet. "I feel like I should start a GoFundMe for Microsoft, or teach them how to beg bounty, as clearly they need the money."
Feedback could charitably be described as negative so far, as demonstrated by the tags assigned to the post on Microsoft's Tech Community site. Comments (numbering 119 at time of writing) posted by visitors to the site can be pretty much summed up thusly: "This [is] a cheap and disgusting move from Microsoft and edge team to the browser users. You should be ashamed for pushing such crap to users. Listening to the users checkout flows, suggesting third party services. Bloating the browser. Seriously, be better and more responsible." "It's deeply shocking this is built into the base Windows OS on billions of devices," writes cybersecurity expert Kevin Beaumont in a tweet. "I feel like I should start a GoFundMe for Microsoft, or teach them how to beg bounty, as clearly they need the money."
And like an abused partner (Score:5, Insightful)
People will chime in and make excuses for Microsoft.
Re:And like an abused partner (Score:5, Insightful)
Not on this site
Re:And like an abused partner (Score:5, Insightful)
And you just know they're going to drop non-subscription Office and eventually Windows, and lock consumer Windows to approved apps at some point.
But sure, let's hear more from
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No that was mostly just very aggressive windows phone fans that were pissed off once they realized they jumped on to a burning platform and nobody else did. That would include making angry posts on every website they could about the superiority of their phones, and yell at verizon employees because the store wouldn't sell phones that people usually just return anyways.
They went the way of the dodo a few years ago.
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Yes on this site. There's no shortage of people here who go around explaining how MS is allegedly not as evil as the old MS, their great contributions to the open source community, how great WSL is... Fuck that.
Don't take such a low IQ approach. A corporation is a massive beast that does different things at different times. You seem to be what they call a "hater" someone who hates someone because of who they are rather than being able to objectively analyse what they do.
All the things you've listed have been at times examples from Microsoft which have been objectively good. I would be one of the people who praise them for it. That's not making excuses for Microsoft, that's calling it what it is on their actions. W
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The issue with Microsoft's updates is twofold. I agree that automating them as much as possible is good because users can't be trusted, but
A) The updates always seem to interrupt my work, unlike say Chromebook or Firefox ones that are quick and let me continue exactly where I left off.
B) Microsoft pushes non-security related crap I don't want, and I don't just mean UI changes.
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MS is just MS, a corporation. You seem to be unable to separate the entity from their individual actions unlike other people on this site. No people here don't praise or make excuses for MS. The only people who pass judgement on the whole are people like you, and on this site that is universally negative.
Judging the entity by its actions makes sense, what else would be the measure? I think the defining trait is the behavior of the leadership, as these people make the big decisions and set the corporate culture.
The single best thing we have done for computer security is to take the ability for users to control updates out of their hands and leave it only in the hands of professionals (corporate IT running WSUS servers). We have 20 years of evidence showing that on the whole users are too stupid to be entrusted with their own security, and just as much evidence that power users blindly make recommendations that are not in their user's interests (such as attempting to disable updates altogether). You can mark me as on the record for "making excuses for Microsoft *about this action of theirs*".
That depends on your level of IT skills. For someone without deep understanding, you might be right. But Microsoft has also made its share of mistakes and sloppy updates. I think most IT professionals understand that and are rightly suspicious of Microsoft's products.
But they are also the ones who are
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what else would be the measure?
I judge Microsoft by the fonts they use. Comic Sans and Arial. They belong in prison for this.
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Judging the entity by its actions makes sense, what else would be the measure?
That's my point. Judge the actions. The people who say that Slashdot is full of MS excusers don't seem to understand that even the shittest of entities* sometimes do some good things. They are emotionally tied to the name of the entity and thus think any praise is unjustified, likewise here fafalone seems to think that even when MS does something objectively shit people will come to their defense.
*Except for Oracle. They've not ever done good things.
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MS is just MS, a corporation. You seem to be unable to separate the entity from their individual actions unlike other people on this site. No people here don't praise or make excuses for MS. The only people who pass judgement on the whole are people like you, and on this site that is universally negative.
MS is just a corporation that happens to hold monopoly power (yes, still) over desktop computing. I.e., not just a corporation. The investment of too many corporations on some critical piece of WIN32 software - not to mention 'standardizing' on MSOffice and Outlook, insures that that monopoly has and will continue to endure. There was no reason in hell that Microsoft had to build its own Chromium-based browser, but it did. Okay, there was a reason - to grab some share of Google's spyware business either
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So all we have is whatever stink we can raise.
Indeed, because nothing tells a corporation they should change their ways more effectively than criticising the good things they do equally as the bad. /sarcasm.
Stick to the facts, not the angry rants or the emotional hatred you hold for an intangible entity.
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Did I criticize the good things they do? I criticized their anti-competitive behavior - that's a bad thing, IMO.
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A corporation is a massive beast that does different things at different times.
It's an animal with a thousand legs and no conscience, especially Microsoft.
Microsoft does do different things at different times, but pretty much everything it does is nefarious.
You seem to be what they call a "hater" someone who hates someone because of who they are rather than being able to objectively analyse what they do.
Microsoft has done many shit things in the past, and Microsoft is still doing many shit things right now, some of which are the same and some of which are different. Conclusion, Microsoft does shit things always and really hasn't changed much, and not at all in the ways that matter most.
let's hear more from /. users about how the evil Microsoft of the 90s no longer exists.
If you think that's something people here say, then you may want to look at your own reading comprehension.
People don't say it no longer exists, but som
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but pretty much everything it does is nefarious.
I repeat, don't take such a low IQ approach. You're talking emotionally not objectively. Microsoft has done many shit things and will always do many shit things. That doesn't change the fact that they do objectively good things as well and get praised for it here.
but some people say that it isn't evil any more,
Absolutes are stupid and I rarely see them here. Most of the "it isn't evil anymore" are purely in a singular context of a thread discussing a particular action from MS. I'm on the record as saying "isn't evil anymore", don't ever quote me on that
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Chill and look for alternatives. I hope you are not locked into Windows by important software than can't be made to work under WINE.
I used to be upset about the same things, now I have migrated about 2/3 of my computer use to Linux (Xubuntu to be exact). This includes all the sensitive stuff like online banking. Windows 7 is still around for dual booting to run some games, but it is on the way out.
My next main PC won't come with a Windows installation at all. I might keep my current one around for playing s
Re:And like an abused partner (Score:4, Informative)
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I'm generally kinda pro-Microsoft these days but this is an abomination
I'm not pro-MS and they definitely deserve to be raked over the coals for this... I mean would deserve, if anyone actually used MS Chorme... erm... I mean Edge.
Microsoft is like my bank or my phone company... They're something in my life I have to deal with and find life gets easier the fewer interactions I have with them.
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I'm going to say it, and people may disagree, but it needs saying: Microsoft needs to bring back Gates.
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Bill Gates?
Bill Windows-ain't-done-till-OS/2-won't-run let's-kill-Dr-Dos I-don't-Like-NSP I-can't-make-something-beter-than-WordPerfect-so-let's-kill-that-now I'm-so-WISE Netscape-is-better-than-Internet-Explorer-I-know-how-to-fix-that You'll-pay-the-windows-tax-on-every-computer-even-if-it-doesn't-run-windows Microsoft-Bob Gates?
What possible difference do you think that is going to make?
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Even AppleWorks had a better spreadsheet.
Re: And like an abused partner (Score:2)
Microsoft needs to bring back Gates.
If for no other purpose because he remembers how restrictive the antitrust orders can be.
With this nonsense, store integration, search engine integration, "featured product", and so many more, the current executive team is racing towards another set of antitrust lawsuits.
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He possibly has more experience working around them, but it all boils down to lobyists so I doubt that he would make a difference anyway.
Re:And like an abused partner (Score:4, Insightful)
I don't use Edge.
I use FireFox. I try to limit my exposure to MS where possible.
Re: And like an abused partner (Score:2)
Microsoft is VERY POORLY MANAGED. (Score:2, Funny)
Not just Edge (Score:5, Informative)
Have not seen a way to change the default search for it, but they are really starting to push their web properties through desktop IP.
Re:Not just Edge (Score:4, Informative)
Was using Notepad the other day and when you highlight text then right click, there's an option to "Search with Bing". Have not seen a way to change the default search for it, but they are really starting to push their web properties through desktop IP.
You'll "love" this... The Settings page in Edge has a page for "Edge bar" noting:
"View a personalized news feed and search your favorite websites right from your PC desktop using Edge bar."
Thankfully, it looks like it can be (a) disabled and/or (b) installing the "Disconnect" extension also (effectively) disables it.
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Not enough. Kill it with fire, then nuke it from orbit. I shouldn't have to do extra work to disable an undesired feature that should not exist in the first place.
That said, I do wonder how many meetings were involved in the conception and implementation of that feature.
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Oh gees... "toolbars" are back. I thought we'd got rid of them - they were universally terrible and just took up screen space without doing anything useful. Apparently one-trick-pony MS wants them back - just like it wants clippy back. What's next? Browser popups?
As for searching based on highlights in notepad - oh gees again. Honestly, who's signing off on this stuff? Is this the "innovation" that's going to get people to flock back to Windows having used a Mac?
Back on topic - my personal view is a browser
andddddd it's gone (Score:4, Insightful)
You know, for a few months now I had been enjoying using Edge on the new laptops that I've had come through my hands and from what I had seen it was really fast and responsive. I had even installed it on a 1607 build of Windows 10 and it ran just fine and didn't complain about "being told."
And just like that, all that good will that MS had it just went out the window. Like the nice man from the bank of South Park once said....
Annnnd it's gone.
How is my comment too much like ascii art?!?!?!
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Slashdot's filters have become increasingly more retarded over the past two years in some cases blocking perfectly normal words (maybe not in English, but perfectly normal words none the less) with their ascii art filter. Recently I couldn't even post a URL I was using as a reference since it was a bunch of words with dashes in it which was too long for Slashdot's sensibilities.
Why is your comment ASCII art? I'm guessing your had 5 'n's in a row and therefore you were *clearly* drawing ASCII art. /s
Slashdot responds with post now and post again ... (Score:3)
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IS M$ trying to be like apple store lockin (Score:1)
IS M$ trying to be like apple store lockin in where they want an cut of all buys?
Re: IS M$ trying to be like apple store lockin (Score:3)
"Interest free" (Score:3)
The system is powered by Zip, previously Quadpay, and offers a Chrome extension for users who want to split their payments (interest-free if you make the payments on time, although Zip charges $1 per installment).
So, basically at least a minimal amount of interest, disguised as a per installment fee -- if paid on-time, otherwise it's more interest + the fee.
[Like those late-night infomercials promising a second whatever "free", just pay a separate service/handling fee -- which, I imagine, covers at least the product's *actual* cost+shipping.]
Re:"Interest free" (Score:5, Interesting)
Adding: User Jemma Scout on the techcommunity . microsoft . com site noted the following in the comments for that article in the /. summary:
Looks like you neglected to mention the $4 flat fee in the article?
On a $35 purchase, that's 11% of the purchase cost spread over one month. Annualized, that's an astounding 250% APY. Even the most predatory credit cards top out at around 40% APY.
All you've done is just baked predatory loans into your browser. Honestly, you should be ashamed.
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4 payments over 6 weeks is going to be 2 if you are paid monthly. Seems you would need to be in financial trouble to ever feel a need to use this "service".
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The really concerning part of this is not that Microsoft will do anything for money, but that enough people are desperate for short term predatory loans that they're worth Microsoft's time.
Man in the Middle Attack . . . (Score:5, Interesting)
Wow, they've really landed on their knees.
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I just read in the financial news that 24% of buy-now-pay-later users surveyed said they were using it because their credit cards were maxed out, compared to 12% in May.
Zip is publicly-traded Australian company, so they can just soak up a bunch of defaults and then fold. Insider ownership is still 22%, but all the big insider transactions have been sells, so they're doing their part to leave somebody's pension fund with the bag.
teledildonics (Score:2)
I hear that a Windows license now comes with a USB dildo so that Nadella can slip it in you any time he wants, and everyone at the same time.
The others (Score:4, Interesting)
Everyone on this site: Firefox sucks, the UI sucks. Apple did the Firefox UI but even worse! Google sucks all my data! I hate this browser.
Microsoft, hold my goddamn beer weaklings!
The web browser market has become either a race to the bottom or just rely on 2009 tech and an add on security model that can just never be of use for the masses. Paired with the complexity that is HTML5 and implementing it correctly, this will be the State of the Web forever. Even things like Pale moon and whatever derivatives of old Firefox understand, theyâ(TM)ll never be able to modernize the underlying engines they have. They just simply never will have the man power to rewrite the parts of 90s era Netscape that remain in their code base that prevents them from having a more modern engine. As much as Pale moon bangs the gong on their UXP, it is forever in beta and pace on working on it is glacial in the best of times. Heck, theyâ(TM)ve stopped offering builds and the new of active developers has tanked over the last three years. While Iâ(TM)m sure for many on Slashdot good enough is good enough, but being a minority only assures the main stream browsers and the lion share of users move on and leave those users behind. Already things like encrypted content moves past the good enough crowd and in time the browsers many here cling to, will just stop working. As HTML5 continues to evolve, things like Pale moon and others will ultimately get left behind.
Modern web is mainline corporate now. Long gone is the academic interest in development and pursuit of the advancement of the web. It now simply exists to sell you something and sell your data to someone else. Whatever technical nature that one sparked curiosity is all but gone from it now.
Great story! (Score:3)
Re: Great story! (Score:2)
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God I hate having to constantly find where to turn off today's new ad in Firefox is, and then do that on five different installs. When did choosing a browser become 'choose the least worst'?
Today's new ad? I use FF and I've never seen it.
Its Only Until Bill Gets His Farm Subsidies. (Score:1)
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640 should be enough for anyone!-a(TM)
I don't hate it (Score:2)
I don't see what the issue is. If you don't like it, don't use it. Why does it need to be a problem?
Shocking? (Score:2)
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Everybody hates it? Or just those that speak up? (Score:1)
I don't use windows myself, so I'm not personally affected. But I wonder if it's one of those things where a certain percentage really hate it and complain, and those that like it or don't care don't say anything. That may leave a false impression that it's unpopular.
platform (Score:5, Insightful)
The browser is a platform, a window into the Internet. It is supposed to be as neutral as possible, the way we expect our TV (the physical device) to not favour one channel, or highlight specific products whenever they are on screen. To this day, having a "Netflix" button on a TV remote bothers me (full disclosure: I don't even own a TV, but I travel a lot, and hotels seem to have those TVs quite a bit).
Putting the payment system of a specific company into a browser breaks that implicit contract. Suddenly that browser is not the impartial display system anymore (let's ignore if it ever was) and we need to be wary of it, distrust it. That's a massive shift in perception. My browser is not my friend anymore. Just like Facebook, now I need to worry where and to whom it is selling me out.
Then again, as I said before, what else are we expecting from Mickeysoft? The company that once decided that having ads on your desktop is what users want.
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This the new world: Now TVs and Windows have joined the "show ads and gather user data for money" train. It's disgusting and I'd pay money to avoid it but alas, the manufacturers don't seem
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I hear what you're saying... but at this point Netflix is effectively as ubiquitous as the "Guide" button... in fact, I bet a lot more people will press the Netflix button. I don't mind having a shortcut to something so many people used placed in a convenient spot.
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The usual "new MS feature" question (Score:2)
Can you turn it off, and if, how?
(no, I didn't RTFS. That question pops up automatically every time I read "new MS feature")
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Exactly. These days I spend hours turning off the "nice features" from every installation of fu*king Windows instead of just being able to use it from the get go. That's why I personally don't use it. Just nice and simple Debian Linux with MATE DE. F*ck Windows. Of course, I tell every client the advantages of using Linux, but the lot just won't budge. :( There's still that "Linux is hard to use" shit that all the Windows shills spread around. Personally, I find Debian with MATE the most friendly OS ever. Y
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I realise that many of the bad features are present on 10 but at least I have a less buggy, better performing and with more nice features (labels on taskbar buttons!) OS.
Ever since Windows 8 was released I've been wishing I could stay on earlier versions forever. Not a good sign if you ask me (Up until 7 I was pretty h
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I'd like to know this same thing. Thus far, all I've found is for their coupons. Not sure if it applies to this "buy now, pay later" thing as well, but it does seem like it might fall under the same umbrella.
For my domain, following their directions here https://docs.microsoft.com/en-... [microsoft.com]
1. Downloaded the policy templates file from https://aka.ms/EdgeEnterprise [aka.ms]
2. Added the admx files to my PolicyDefinitions folder in your SYSVOL folder under Policies
3. Opened up the Group Policy editor\Computer Config\Poli
Local Laws? (Score:2)
I'm curious if this will be rolled out to everyone and if not how they will decide. I have my locale and language set to a different country to where I live, but where I live *any* offer that involves term payments *must* come with a legally mandated disclaimer. I am curious as to Microsoft's compliance with this...
Re: Local Laws? (Score:2)
Personally I'm hoping they don't do that properly and end up liable for the resultant claims, similar to how the PPI mis-selling (https://www.ftadviser.com/regulation/2017/11/23/the-lessons-of-ppi-mis-selling/) scandal here played out. That'll learn 'em.
WTF is up with that? (Score:2)
No terribly surprising (Score:2)
Now that Microsoft has essentially stopped charging users for OS upgrades, they are looking at other ways to monetize their platform.
I already use another browser, but if I used Edge in the first place then this would make me stop.
Make it an optional add-on, like everyone else. I assume this is transmitting sales and browsing data without user consent by default---because some things never change.