LiuChan Chinese pop-up for Chrome

[Manuel]

Hi all, I just thought I'd share this golden find, and the reason why I'm ready to ditch Firefox for Chrome:

 

LiuChan Chinese Popup for Google Chrome

 

Unlike Chrome add-ons Perapera and Zhongwen, which have been around for ages, LiuChuan works in text input boxes. That means you can paste or type Chinese into any text box, hover the mouse pointer over it and get a translation right there, effectively turning Chrome into a dictionary. The only pop-up dictionary that was able to do this was Mandarin Popup for Firefox, which hasn't seen any updates for ages and is pretty buggy. LiuChan is clean, instant, reliable, and quite customizable (e.g. custom pinyin tone colours). Go check it out!

 

[abcdefg]

Thanks, @Manuel -- I will have a look.

[Luxi]

It's very good, thanks! Clean and crisp, and I like being able to  move the pop up out of the way but keeping it open. The saving words list is not as good as Zhong wen's (which additionally can send one's lists to Skritter)

I wish someone made a similar extension for Chinese-Chinese!

 

It's a good time to look for alternative extensions, many old favourites in Firefox will stop working in the coming FF massive update. 

[Manuel]

Actually, many Firefox extensions have already stopped working after a recent update, Almost every Firefox update has broken at least one add-on for me. The add-on developer eventually catches up. Consider their share of the desktop browser market is far behind Chrome's, Mozilla really have shot themselves in the foot here: for many users, Firefox greatest strength was the availability of high-quality add-ons. The browser itself, in it's default configuration and without any add-ons, is ... bleh. A bit like the Windows vs Mac dilemma, both are average products but thanks to third-party software I am able to get windows to work more to my liking. Now that there are plenty of great Chrome extensions, there's little reason for me to stick with Firefox. The only thing I'm missing is multiple-row bookmarks bar and tab bar, and FoxyProxy (a Chrome version is available, but it's severely limited compared to the Firefox version).

[Publius]

The new framework introduced in FF 57 will allow you to use Chrome extensions directly in Firefox. So if it has a Chrome port or equivalent, no need to worry about it. For example, there is Perapera for Chrome. Zhongwen has also been ported to FF recently. You can continue to use Zhongwen or install the Chrome version of Perapera or use LiuChan after FF 57.

The real problem is many very useful FF add-ons now marked "legacy" don't have a Chrome port or a Chrome equivalent. Some are no longer maintained. Some because the developers don't like to rewrite everything or because the Chrome interface limits the functionality of the add-on so severely it's not worth it.

Now it's the user's dilemma whether to stick with FF 56 (like many people chose to do with FF 3.6 when Mozilla started the breakneck version upgrading frenzy with FF 4) or switch to Chrome (not really a good choice if you live in China) or find an alternative to Firefox such as Pale Moon or something.

I've been using Firefox since v1.05. It's really hard to say goodbye.

When I set up my new laptop at the beginning of this year, I learned that Firefox would have a big change in September. Now it's already November and FF 57 is still not here, probably because things aren't working out as Mozilla expected hehe.

[Shelley]

It'll be a cold day in..........  before I change from Firefox.

My experience so far has been that eventually the developers catchup and life goes on.

[Publius]

But... if Firefox becomes a skinned version of Chrome (like Opera did), will you still use it?

I felt really sorry for my friend who was a diehard Opera fan when it happened.

[Shelley]

I remember Opera and IE and  Netscape and  so on.

I am sure I will adapt and change as needed.

Just will hang on as long as is sensible.

[abcdefg]

9 hours ago, Publius said:

...or switch to Chrome (not really a good choice if you live in China)

 

That's my main concern here in Kunming. When I'm in the US, I use Chrome.

[Manuel]

On 11/5/2017 at 9:23 AM, abcdefg said:

...or switch to Chrome (not really a good choice if you live in China)

 

Using it right now in China, no problem. The only problem is the official online installer doesn't work. You will need the offline installer, which can be obtained from Google directly, which shouldn't be a problem if you already use a VPN or equivalent solution.

 

Fun fact: As we all know, the Chinese government actively block Google's services, and even the official Chrome online installer. However, a month ago I had to renew my work permit under the new Internet-based application system (effective from April 2017 I believe) and was having problems uploading document images in Firefox. When I read troubleshooting section, here's what I saw right at the top of the page:

 

(Source http://fwp.safea.gov.cn/lhCmsArticleDisController.do?cmsArticleContentPage&artId=bb7f31e65d323b20015d3644c6292e86)

 

That's right: the Chinese government recommend Google Chrome---the flagship product of the very company they spend millions of RMB every year to keep out of China---as their first choice for accessing their new super-duper work permit application system, and to add insult to injuery, these hypocritical rats steal the offline installer, slap it on their servers and provide a link to their local copy like it's their own. It might even be a "harmonized" version with spyware. It's very sad. Anyway, whatever you do, never get software from these dodgy third-party Chinese servers, even Baidu: they are all bending over for the Chinese government. Always get your veggies straight from the growers.

[Publius]

No problem? Lots of problems. The auto update process hangs in background. The Chrome Store doesn't open. You can't sign in to your Google account. Even if you sign in once, the sync won't work unless you keep the VPN running.