Need help with Macbook Pro Early-2015 (Software Update)

[chscag]

That gives me another reason why I do not like Firefox. It was my go to browser back in the days when I was dual booting Windows and Linux. I think lately though there are too many hands in the pie at Mozilla.

 

[krs]

I would really like to understand why Firefox has a problem like that.
Makes one wonder what other sites come up totally different with Firefox.
I'm still on FF 80.0.1,the latest is 82.0.3, maybe that is the problem.

But I also have that type of problem with Brave where it gave me the result that fibre internet was not available at my location whereas all the other browsers I tried gave the result that it was......and it is - I'm using it.
With Brave I assumed that was just a 'glitch' since the browser is relatively new and the development team hadn't addressedall the issues yet - but Mozilla has been around a long time.

 

[Rod]

krs. Brave is just a browser what results you get in a search is dependent on your search engine. I use DuckDuck Go but I could just as easily use Google.
Handling web links on the other hand is a completely different matter. For Firefox it may be just a matter of changing some of its built in security settings.

 

[krs]

Yes Rod, I know Brave is just a browser.
But the problem I have with Brave (which I actually described in the forum a while back when many tried Brave) is similar to this issue with Firefox.
I start with the link to Virgin Internet, a Canadian ISP offering fibre connectivity.
First field that comes up is asking for my address - I type in my address and the message comes back, sorry, fibre is not available.
If I do the same thing using Firefox or Chrome, I get the message that fibre is available at my address
A search engine doesn't even enter the picture.
I assume the issue with Brave is related to their security settings - I notified Brave many months ago of this issue but the last time I checked, the problem was still there.
Bottom line is that I got the wrong information using Brave - same as here where one gets the wrong information using Firefox.

 

[ferrarr]

First field that comes up is asking for my address - I type in my address and the message comes back, sorry, fibre is not available.

I believe that is the definition of a search. What are the default search engines you use for each browser?

 

[krs]

Bob, I had to chuckle.
Yes, I suppose looking for an address to check service available from an ISP is a search but not in the sense of a search with a search engine like google.
The default search engine set up in the browser is the search engine that is used if a search is done via the toolbar - this search, if one can even call it that, is done on the ISP website.
But to answer your question - I just checked the default search engines set in Firefox, Chrome and Brave. They all show google as the default.

PS: I just tried it again - Firefox comes up with the message that internet is available, Brave still says it's not.

If you like you can try that yourself.
The link I start with is: https://www.virginmobile.ca/en/internet/index.html
The address I check (not my own btw) is:
812 Montcalm Court
Cornwall, ON
K6H6C4

 

[krs]

Just tried this with Opera and Safari as well - they also bring up the correct information.
So far only Brave does not.

 

[Rod]

Huh! What about if you just turn off or adjust the Global Shield Defaults?
PS. I didn't mean to lecture you about the differences between browsers and search engines.

 

[krs]

Huh! What about if you just turn off or adjust the Global Shield Defaults?

Well,yes...I could fiddle with the various default settings to see if changing one would give the correct results.
But that is not the point.
When I use a browser, any browser, I expect to get the proper results - maybe the detailed rendering of the page is slightly different, but I don't expect to get the opposite results.
I expect the information I get to be what the website provides.
Same for this issue with macOS downloads using Firefox.
I must have tried that dozens of times in the last few months, trying different ways, trying to rationalize why I kept getting the message it was not available at the US app store.
It never dawned on my or any member on this forum who tried to help me, that this problem was related to the browser that was used.
If I at least had received an error message of some sort I would have tried a different browser - but everything looked perfectly fine. Same as with Brave - there is no indication that the result provided is wrong.

PS: Had another closer look at the Brave options. Not actually sure what they all do so I tend to leave the default settings unless I specifically need to make a change.
But I also noticed that there was a new update, so I downloaded that and tried the Virgin Internet site again.
Happy to report that this issue is now fixed on Brave.
All my settings on Brave are still the same as before.

 

[MacInWin]

Tried Brave at that website and your address. Got this:



Is that the response you wanted to get?

 

[Rod]

WOOHOO!!! Well I guess we may never know what the problem was. I would like to add that your expectations of a browser are entirely reasonable, I would expect the same.
I have noticed though from time to time over years that there were sites that just would not work with Safari that did with Chrome and nowadays some sites that work on Safari that won't render on anything else especially secure or government sites. My wife had this problem with a Passport application just this week. Chrome would not load the page whereas Safari did. Obviously pays to have a few browsers on board. As for the reason I can only think it may be Chromium based?

 

[krs]

Tried Brave at that website and your address. Got this:
Is that the response you wanted to get?

Yes, an update of Brave fixed that problem as I reported in my last post.
Glad that they apparently listen and investigate feedback.

 

[krs]

My wife had this problem with a Passport application just this week. Chrome would not load the page whereas Safari did.

If a website doesn't load it's not so bad since it's obvious that something doesn't work right. So the first thing I always do is try a different browser.
But in the case with Firefox and the macOS downloads and also with the earlier version of Brave and Virgin Mobile - everything looks normal which I think is a bigger problem than an obvious failure.

 

[chscag]

Chrome would not load the page whereas Safari did. Obviously pays to have a few browsers on board. As for the reason I can only think it may be Chromium based?

It's unusual for a page not to load with Chrome. I have never run into that. Even the latest browser from Microsoft is based on the chromium engine. I have run into glitches before using Safari but not lately. Besides, Safari has a preference setting (from the develop menu) that allows it to emulate various browsers.

 

[krs]

It's unusual for a page not to load with Chrome. I have never run into that. Even the latest browser from Microsoft is based on the chromium engine.

The problem could well be with that particular website, not the browser.
I have run into that problem occasionally and it always seems to be with websites that provide some service that one absolutely needs. I guess they have no incentive to make sure their website is tested with all major browsers.

Besides, Safari has a preference setting (from the develop menu) that allows it to emulate various browsers.

I think you are talking about the "User Agent"
As far as I could determine (in the past when I occasionally had to use that) all that does is sent a string back to the website that the browser used is "Chrome" or what ever User Agent one selects - that setting doesn't actually emulate anything.
But if that is not correct, I would love to hear about it.
I haven't used the User Agent setting since the Internet Explorer days.