Due to ethical concerns, Natsumi now intentionally does not support Midori Browser. This changes the Natsumi support level for Midori from "unsupported" (due to an incompatible Firefox base) to "intentionally unsupported".

When a browser is "intentionally unsupported"

When it comes to changing Natsumi's support status for a browser to "intentionally unsupported" (like I did with Zen, though that's a completely separate case), it must meet any of the three following criteria:

1. The browser or/and its developers have values that go against Natsumi's. I want browsers to share the same open source and free (as in freedom) spirit that Natsumi has, so there's much less friction working on maintaining support for the browser.
2. The browser has significant security and privacy concerns. If a browser does not respect user privacy and security, then I don't want Natsumi to support it so I don't end up endorsing an unsafe browser to the Natsumi community.
3. The browser or/and its developers have significant ethical concerns. This may seem like it overlaps with criterion 1 and 2, but this is more about the developers' actions and the browser's features and direction. If a browser's developers do things that are unethical or/and add features that do/can possibly do harm to users, then it's best to not support it.

However, a browser, given it does not meet any of the three criteria above, is not classified as "intentionally unsupported" if, for example:

• The browser does not meet technical requirements for support. For example, if a browser is based on Firefox ESR 128 or older, then Natsumi cannot support it as it requires a newer Firefox base. However, this will not lead to Natsumi intentionally blocking it, as the browser can always update to a newer version at any given time.
• The browser hasn't been tested for support. In this case, a browser may receive an "unsupported" or "partially supported" status instead depending on how well it is expected to work with Natsumi. I usually tend to test and improve support for such browsers, so that they can be upgraded to a "fully supported" status.
• The browser changes too much that it makes compatibility infeasible. Such browsers don't have any ill intentions, but implementing compatibility let alone maintaining it would just be a nightmare. These browsers will receive an "unsupported" status.
• The browser is not in the official compatibility list. Just because a browser isn't in the official compatibility list doesn't mean it's unsupported (unless it's Chromium-based, of course)! This usually means I haven't learned about the browser yet, so if your browser isn't on the compatibility list, feel free to reach out so I can test it and give it a support status. Until then, you can assume it is "unsupported" or "partially supported".

Once a browser is classified as "intentionally unsupported", Natsumi will not support it even if it meets the minimum technical requirements for support (such as being based on Firefox 136 or newer, as of writing this post). If a user tries to use Natsumi on an intentionally unsupported browser anyways, they will be shown a warning message that the browser is not supported and Natsumi should not be used with it.

Why this was done

There's three main reasons why this decision was made:

1. Misleading statements: Midori claims on its website that it is "3x faster than the average browser in speed tests". However, this is just simply very unlikely, if not impossible, unless the tests were done on an environment more optimized than that for the "average browser" (which, obviously, would create an unfair comparison).
2. Web3/Cryptocurrency support: As subjective as this may be, I believe cryptocurrencies aren't really something worth supporting in a browser mainly due to the many concerns around cryptocurrency as a whole. Besides, Midori also claims to offer the "fastest transfers" and "lowest fees" with its Wallet service, which, just like their claims on speed, doesn't seem believable whatsoever.
3. Open source license violations: Many of Astian's projects, such as Astian Cloud, Amelia (build system for Midori) and MidoriVPN, seem to be using open source software with minimal changes other than branding. Upon further investigation, Amelia, the build system for Midori, appears to be a fork of Surfer (Zen Browser's build system) with no attribution or credit given to the Zen team, making it a possible violation of the MPL.

Will Natsumi support Midori?

For the time being and foreseeable future, Natsumi will not support Midori Browser. If Astian, the parent company and developers of Midori, sorts out the misleading statements (or provides sufficient evidence backing them up), removes cryptocurrency support (or demonstrates that they can implement it responsibly without making outrageous claims that can't be backed up) and resolves any open source license violations, then I may reconsider this decision.

When a browser is intentionally unsupported, this is not done out of spite, but rather to uphold the project's values and prevent endorsing questionable or/and unsafe browsers to the community. I do not intend to harass or attack Midori or its developers whatsoever.

Note for the Natsumi community

Please do not harass the developers and community of Midori.

This post is purely an informative message announcing a change in Natsumi support status for a browser as well as the reasons behind this decision. Please do not use this as a way to defame, harass or attack Midori and Astian.

Thank you for understanding.