Google’s team of Chrome browser developers seem to be listening to users and their feedback.
According to the latest blog announcement by the tech giant, Google has disclosed that one of the main complaints by users relates to redirects that occur while browsing on Chrome.
The company has learned that this irritates a majority of the browsing public on its browser, and it has stated that the problem will be addressed in the next versions of the program, Chrome 64 and 65.
The solution will be rolled out in three distinct steps.
First: Redirects Will be Blocked
Once Chrome users have updated their browser version to Chrome 64, the moment an ad appears on a webpage and makes an attempt to do a redirect, the browser will stop it from doing so.
Instead, a toolbar will appear informing that the redirect has been blocked.
While this is aimed at making the browsing experience easier for the average user who is looking to access information by using Chrome, it will also help in eliminating malicious redirects that could occur due to such modules being embedded without the site owner’s knowledge.
Second Stage: A Reverse Pop-Up Cleanup
A more irritating phenomenon that occurs on Chrome is that while the browser is redirecting to a new webpage, the original page you had intended to reach is also replaced by another page you had no intention of reading.
Google hopes to have this fixed along with the new patches being introduced in Chrome 65.
In the succeeding stage, the company plans to put an end to this ploy by the advertisers to get around the pop-up blocker. A message will be displayed that Chrome took care of the attempt and that the ad has been removed.
Beyond this, Chrome 65 will also include improvements in the new versions of the browser to tackle the menace of phony play buttons, which start automatically playing a video even when you did not click on it specifically.
There are also invisible overlays within some webpages which prevent you from having a smooth browsing experience. All these will be addressed in new versions of the browser.
Lastly, the Feedback Report
The third new step being initiated by Chrome is to compile what it calls an “Abusive Experiences Report.” This report is meant for the website developing teams to learn what Google has found “offensive” in their web pages so that they can remove these sticking points from their websites.
A preliminary outline of the conditions has already been posted.
The developers will then be offered a 30-day window to clean up the undesirable modules from their websites.
If they fail to do so, Google will take the action unilaterally to block the particular site from opening fresh windows or tabs.
Will Chrome Go So Far as to Bring in an Ad Blocker?
Observers point out that Google has already made an announcement that it intends to bring in an ad blocking feature on Chrome.
Though the announcement indicated that this will happen by early next year, there has been no follow up report on that from the side of Google.
The current process of addressing the redirects issue is not directly related to the ad blocker per se.
However, on a broader level, Google wants to ensure Chrome browser users have a pleasant experience without having to contend with the bombardment of unwanted content on the pages they visit.
The steps outlined above will happen over a period of two months as indicated by the Chrome announcement.
That will probably take it into early January. For the same of the developers, the company will allow them to test their webpages on its beta version to verify that they are in compliance with the new changes being introduced.
Right now, Chrome 64 is in the “Canary” release stage. The beta stage will follow in some time.
Obviously, Google will keep the developers in the loop so that they can take the necessary steps when needed.
The company has expressed its desire to ensure that Chrome offers its users full safety at all costs.
Being a major player in the field, the tech giant often gets away by virtually dictating the very norms for even others to follow.
It has had its way with the search engine.
Now, with these steps, will it set the benchmarks for the browsers as well?