[fr] Update the extension to use Manifest v3 (MV3)

[g-a-c]

As of Jan 2023, extensions with version 2 manifests will no longer be allowed to run in "regular" Chrome browsers (enterprise users can set exceptions) per the Manifest v2 Support Timeline

Since this extension still uses Manifest v2 if this isn't addressed then I believe the extension will likely stop working for a considerable number of its users.

[Gitoffthelawn]

Thanks for posting this. It's funny, I was just about to post about manifest v3 compatibility when your post appeared.

From what I've read, I concur that Chrome will be terminating manifest v2 support in Jan 2023. Boo for Google. 👎🏾

Manifest v2 will continue to be supported by Firefox. Yea for Mozilla! 👍🏾

Firefox will also support manifest v3, but without some its most troublesome downsides. Double-Yea for Mozilla! 👍🏾 👍🏾

So all everyone needs to do is switch to Firefox. 😄

I'm sure some people will switch to Firefox, but given the cash-laden advertising juggernaut that is Google, I somehow doubt Chrome will disappear.

(Please no back and forth from the peanut gallery regarding Firefox vs Chrome, Chocolate vs Vanilla, or Lamborghini vs Ferrari. But, for the record, the correct answers are (a) Firefox, (b) Chocolate, and (c) as long as it's painted red and the top can come off, I'll take either one. 😃 😃 😃 )

Ideally, we will have 1 version of Redirector that will work in all browsers. So let's plan for manifest v3 unless we will lose functionality in Redirector.

Here is a good Mozilla add-ons developer blog post describing Mozilla's plans for manifest v3:
https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2021/05/27/manifest-v3-update/
And here is an update from Mozilla a couple months ago:
https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2022/05/18/manifest-v3-in-firefox-recap-next-steps/

What do you perceive to be the possible losses for Redirector with a switch to manifest v3? What about possible gains?

[Abhinav1217]

Just to add on this, While google chrome is completely ditching version 2 in favor of version 3, Brave [1][2], opera[1], vivaldi[1] all have adopted the firefox route ( or have a similar approach). So basically only google-chrome and chromium, and edge are only big browser that is moving to v3, therefore this extension is targeting the larger mass (so to speak).

In case of opera and vivaldi, they are not clear about their stand in future, They have a personal benefit adopting v3 because this will allow them to make their own inbuilt adblocker only thing that actually works. There was a discussion on brave maintaining a patch for chromium which other chromium based devs can merge with their own copy, to maintain support of v2 at some extent.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/opera-brave-vivaldi-to-ignore-chromes-anti-ad-blocker-changes-despite-shared-codebase/

[Gitoffthelawn]

@Abhinav1217 Thanks so much for posting that info and link. It's all very useful and informative.