Microsoft releases Web Activities extension for Chrome

[The AchieVer]

Microsoft Officially Brings Windows 10 Timeline to Google Chrome 

Microsoft has just announced a Google Chrome extension that enables Windows users to access their Windows 10 Timeline activities in Google’s browser.

Previously, Timeline was only supported in Microsoft Edge, and users could expand it to Google Chrome with an unofficial extension that was rolled out in late 2018.

However, with the new extension, called Web Activities, Microsoft makes it possible for all browsing history to be synced between devices and show up in Windows 10 Timeline for seamless transition even if you use Google Chrome.

What’s more important is that your browsing data in Chrome also syncs with Microsoft Launcher on Android, so it’s not just Timeline.

“See your browsing activities across all your devices in surfaces like Windows timeline and Microsoft Launcher for Android,” the extension description reads. “With this extension, your browsing history will appear across all your devices in surfaces such as in Windows timeline and Microsoft Launcher for Android. Just sign in with your Microsoft account, select a site you’ve recently visited, and pick up where you left off.”More apps coming to TimelineIn a post for insiders, Microsoft explains that the target for Timeline is to expand it in a way that more apps could be supported. Google Chrome is just one of the first, with many more to come, Microsoft promises.

“As we move into planning for future development, we are focusing on yet another Insider request: add support for more apps in Timeline. Browser support was especially high on our Insider’s wish list — which lead the recent introduction of our Chrome extension. Now, Timeline can now bring together even more activities,” it says.

You can download the new Google Chrome extension from the web store. No ETA has been provided as to when more apps could be added to Timeline, but expect more news on this front in the coming months.

 

 

Source

[Karlston]

Microsoft released a new extension for Google Chrome recently called Web Activities. The new official extension integrates Windows timeline functionality in Google Chrome so that the browsing activity is shared across all user devices that support Timeline functionality.

 

Microsoft introduced Windows Timeline in preview builds of Windows 10 in 2017 and integrated the feature fully in Windows 10 in 2018 (in the Windows 10 April 2018 Update).

 

Timeline was designed as a way for users to access their activity on devices that support it. Users could access previously opened websites in Microsoft Edge, documents or spreadsheets in Office applications, or information provided by certain apps that support the feature; all of that across different Windows 10 devices at the time.

 

The feature has been extended to mobile applications in the meantime. The Chrome extension marks another milestone for the feature; Chrome is the first third-party web browser that gets official Timeline support.

 

An unofficial Timeline extension for Chrome and Firefox is also available.

 

Why Chrome? It is explained easily. Chrome has the biggest marketshare. Another reason may be that Microsoft plans to migrate the Edge browser to using Chromium as the powering engine instead of Microsoft's own engine. It should be easy to port the extension to the new version of Edge or integrate Chrome extensions support to support all Chrome extensions.

 

 

Web Activities requests permissions to read and change the browsing history. It adds an icon to the Chrome toolbar that you need to click on to start the initial setup.

 

A click on the sign in button starts the sign-in process. The extension requires that you sign-in with a Microsoft Account; options to create a new account are provided.

 

The browsing history syncs across all devices that support Timeline functionality. If you use a recent version of Windows 10, it appears in Windows Timeline, and if you use the Microsoft Launcher, you find it there as well.

 

The extension collects the data but it does not make it available. It is like a one-way sync extension that pushes the data to the account and from there to apps and devices that support it fully.

 

 

The only option that the extension provides is to select the browser that new browsing opens in. It is set to the default browser of the system by default but can be switched to Microsoft Edge if Windows 10 is used. I did not check on devices that Edge is not available on.

 

You may interact with the icon at any time to sign-out and stop the sending of the browsing activity to the account.

 

The extension lacks a pause option and any other feature such as blacklist support that users might like to see.

Closing Words

Some users may find the Web Activities extension useful as they may access sites visited in Google Chrome using Timeline on the same or on other devices. That's not that different from using Chrome Sync to do so unless you use Timeline with other programs and prefer that the activity is in one place.

 

The extension is too bare bones in my opinion. It should feature a pause and blacklist option, and maybe even an option to access the activity right from there as well.

 

Now You: Do you sync browsing data or use Windows Timeline?

 

Source: Microsoft releases Web Activities extension for Chrome  (gHacks - Martin Brinkmann)