thank you for this knowledge.

Not a useful thread

I want to totally redo all the categories, I just renamed Off topic -> Hangout

so many things are redundant / ignored and could be combined, like most of the web or gaming ones lol

Also what's the difference between General and Hangout now? probably these can be merged as well

@Aries WHAT! Where did he say this? This shouldn't be how I learn this information!

The browser's change.org petition is in the top 8 for all Nintendo petitions on the site: https://www.change.org/decision-makers/nintendo-50

Also notably, some of these petitions have been resolved, eg. the Paper Mario one, without an official response occurring:

So although it's still rather unlikely for Nintendo to respond at this point, I'd still love to see a direct that announces a "normal" browser app. Because user demand could mean more sales and more money for them! And it could encourage a whole subset of "web apps" like in the Wii/DS days.

Also, instead of using alts to sign (Change.org removes these), the focus should be on spreading the petition, or a desire for a "real" browser, to other places. I would also say though, at this point, most people who want the browser have likely already signed. I like to focus on the reasons a browser is good, eg. in this blog post: https://vgmoose.dev/blog/debunking-criticisms-about-the-switch-browser-4535319561/

Regarding homebrew, I don't develop exploits! I don't have the skillset for it. My focus is on making user-facing apps, or websites like this one. An exploit is not a good fix to wanting a browser anyway though, because it would just be patched, and be a potential security concern on top of that.

I'm not bothered by these threads, and appreciate the enthusiasm, but it's also best to avoid creating repeat topics like this one. We can't do much about the Switch's limitations! There's a lot to be said about the Switch browser, workarounds, sites that work well, etc, however, if you have other discussion topics in mind (eg. an updated "How to" for using Google Drive on Switch 2).

Lastly, BrowseDNS is a generic service that supports other platforms, like Playstation, Apple devices, Android (including Peletons / fire TV / maybe some smart fridges), etc. Just pointing this out to underscore how the DNS itself is a networking configuration, and enabling the captive browser in this manner shouldn't be compared to something like a hacking exploit. I see these two use cases as distinct, with different sets of userbases.

I'm bumping this thread to reshare this old knowledge. Let's hope the Switch 2 has an actual browser this time around!

That's neat, but it requires the entire browsing session to be held on their servers, which is likely why they require you to pay for it.

There is this tool, which is similar and open source: https://github.com/ttalvitie/browservice Which can used from a computer on the network.

If we were to host it on behalf of users, it would probably need to be tied to BDNS accounts, and I'm not sure how well it would scale (or work in the first place).

But for purely using discord, you could try Discross: https://browsedns.net/topic/6438/discross-discord-on-switch-kinda

@pumaroar1 @Alastor @Todoroki Anybody try this out? Is it helpful / does it reduce the lag?

Alright, that was easier than expected, so starting now, if you use 45.55.112.11 (the BrowseDNS IP) while browsing the internet, there should no longer be ads.

Currently, using the following resource for the list of blocked domains: https://github.com/notracking/hosts-blocklists

I came across this reddit post on r/NintendoSwitch about why the Switch should have a web browser, and although the author's tone is a bit aggressive, the replies are even more so! A lot of people adamantly listing a lot of false reasons that the Switch shouldn't have a standalone browser app.

My responses to these reasons are as follows:

You are correct. This is an older thread, but I'm going to respond to some common stuff people have said here. Before I get into it, I want to lead with this change.org petition, which already has almost 14,000 signatures from other people who also want a standalone browser app on the Switch.

​

"It's a lot of development work that they won't maintain"

Actually, the development work is already done. The Switch already internally includes a webkit-based browser, and it is updated frequently. It can be accessed and used to browse other sites using custom DNS settings or through the social media applets. One such DNS server is 45.55.142.122 (Switchbru DNS).

​

"Browsers are a security problem, exploits could be released"

While it's true that browsers can be an attack vector, as previously mentioned, the Switch already includes a browser. It also uses the browser internally for the eShop, Hotel login, Social Media sharing, News apps, and in some games. If an exploit were discovered in the browser, it would not matter whether it were a standalone app or not, it already exists. Additionally, Nintendo is able to disable the browser remotely (the "Supernag"), and would do so if an exploit were discovered (This is something they did on the 3DS as well).

​

"Children could visit inappropriate sites"

This is all the more reason that Nintendo should implement parental controls and release an official browser app to protect it with. If parental controls are not deemed a solution to this problem, then Nintendo has no business selling Hentai games on the eShop. The parental controls could even go one step further and allow only access to educational or homework sites as well.

​

"Just use your phone or smart TV"

This is the argument that I find the most upsetting. Not everyone has access to their phone at all times. Phones can die, be forgotten, or not be affordable in some countries. That last point goes doubly for Smart TVs. Restricting this kind of stuff, when it already exists and works on the console, is inconvenient for a small minority of people. I find it especially ironic that some people considered your post a "first world problem"– Internet access in other parts of the world is not always so easy, but even just being able to get to Wikipedia or Google can provide crucial or time-sensitive educational information.

​

"There is no financial incentive for them to do so"

The web itself is actually filled with financial incentives. Even if it's not going to be the reason you buy your console, there could be a whole world of online games and Switch-specific websites that users could visit. Nintendo could work directly with web developers and expose Switch specific APIs (They did this on the Wii, Wii U, DS, and 3DS... actually the Switch's hidden browser already has some undocumented APIs!), and work together with advertisers to make additional money for both web developers and themselves.

It should also be noted that Xbox and Steam Deck provide web browsers on their consoles. PS3 and PS4 did, but PS5 no longer has one that's easily accessible. Sony chose to follow in Nintendo's footsteps in this regard. I believe this allows Nintendo/Sony to exercise more control over their platforms via the eShop/PS Store, and make more people need to buy games through then instead of using seeking comparable website alternatives.

For example, it may be hard to justify purchasing an old retro game if there's a free online or open-source clone found on the first few pages of Google.

​

"The Switch is too weak for a web browser"

This is plainly false, although I can see why it's said. It has roughly the specs of a 5 year old tablet, and it behaves like one online. If you browse using the DNS, you can see first hand that it handles a majority of modern websites quite well. Some more complicated websites can produce a (dismissable!) memory error, but these limitations could be addressed and further optimized relatively easily by Nintendo in an standalone browser.

​

"The Switch is a gaming console first and foremost"

I won't deny this fact. It does also, however, also provides YouTube, social media services, emulators (via NSO) and gaming news. I believe Nintendo's reasoning is more about making sure that legally speaking, the Switch remains seen as separate from a phone or PC, which allows them to have tighter control over their platform.

I don't doubt that varying degrees of some of the above reasons are false either. I am still hopeful that one day in the future, we will see a Switch browser. But we're going to need a lot more people that care about it, instead of how many of the replies here are treating the issue.

At the start of the post I linked a petition, if you made it to the bottom of the post, here's an update to the petition that was made in April 2022, which contains similar content to my post here. I think that 1. informing more people and 2. letting Nintendo know that there are a sizable chunk of interested users increases the chances of an official one being released.

Posting this info here may be like preaching to the choir, but I am looking for some comradery, I guess! Starting to feel like I'm shouting into a void– my comment was unfortunately deleted by a moderator for being against the subreddit rules.

It's upsetting that this topic can't be effectively discussed on r/NintendoSwitch as it does not involve an exploit to the system. My response to the moderation is less important, but can be read here. I hope that this rule changes in the near future, as it helps users understand more about the Switch, web devices, and what should be considered their own digital rights.

Until then, I'm going to keep being preachy and using whatever platforms I do have to try to keep the info on this topic accurate.

This topic contains a link to playboxie.com which has a few. You can also try googling around for "HTML5 games". Anything that doesn't require WebGL should work with the Switch's browser, and some even support the controllers.

@bludclat indeed

@betterthenyou if you have a homebrew'd Switch, BrowseNX allows you to use audio and video, and has no timeout. For this reason, I think the petition actually has a decent shot of getting Nintendo to allow these features. Like, they already have them, they're just disabled.

@maple I've thought about doing something like this, but running your own web mail seems difficult due to spam filters and other modern-day limitations. Let me know if you do pursue it. Some related reading: https://mailtrap.io/blog/email-hosting/

To underscore how difficult it might be, many hosting providers even explicitly block outgoing SMTP ports (25, 465, 587). It might not be possible to have a web client alone circumvent that with existing providers, but it would be interesting.

Maybe it'd be easier to try and get Switch support eg. in ProtonMail, if their web UI is open source, after debugging specifically where it breaks.

Does anyone have first-hand knowledge of a "good" email client website that works well in browsers like the Switch 1's?

I'm currently updating the landing page and it'd be nice to have an email client that actually works on there.

Found this article today: https://24ways.org/2012/unwrapping-the-wii-u-browser/

It's specifically about the Wii U browser, and it's from 2012, but it's fun to see how people were thinking and talking about non-phone, non-PC web platforms back then, and also how much Nintendo/Sony discouraged this kind of development and use-case through their decisions to make their web browsers harder to access.

On a technical level, the Switch and PS5 browsers are much more advanced than Wii U and PS4 counterparts. They are also kept up to date and can handle larger and more modern pages. Microsoft/Valve also have modern browsers on their consoles, but these are more readily accessible and embraced as features.

Also here's the link to the Iwata Asks interview mentioned in the article: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wiiu/internet-browser/0/0/

Is there a screen protector on it? That could be interfering with the taps if so.

iTunes actually sounds like a pretty good fix. Connecting a USB keyboard to the tablet might be an option too, depending on whether or not you have the right adapters to connect it, and then using that keyboard to enter the code instead.

Website: https://library.gamehistory.org

The Video Game History Foundation has officially thrown the virtual doors open to its massive digital library. Designed to be a free-to-access resource for researchers, historians, and video game fans, the VGHF Digital Library currently offers more than 30,000 curated files spanning 50 years of video game history. Demand is already pretty high, so at the time of writing, you might struggle to access the library.

The non-profit group says that visitors will find out-of-print video game magazines, never-before-seen game development assets, artwork, promotional materials, and more gaming relics here, with more than 1,500 of them being full-text searchable.

"We've been working on this project since we founded the Video Game History Foundation in 2017, so we're extremely proud to start providing access to our digital library and continue our mission to make video game history accessible to anyone," VGHF founder Frank Cifaldi said in a statement. "We believe that with the right tools, anyone can be a video game historian, and we can't wait to see what new stories our archive inspires. We also hope this inspires those in the video game industry to consider the importance of preserving their work and contributing to initiatives like ours."

(via GameSpot)

Just came across this website https://howdns.works/ that explains what a DNS server does with helpful illustrations!

When a device goes to connect to a specific website domain, it first asks the DNS server for the IP in order to make the connection. Through this manner, browseDNS is able to redirect, on some devices, an initial network connection in order to bring up a captive portal browser.

Here are some popular websites. If you're on a device with no address bar, these links can act as quick shortcuts:

Social

Reddit
Tumblr
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram

Information

Gmail
Wikipedia
YouTube
ZeldaDungeon

Search

Google
DuckDuckGo
Brave Search
Bing
Yahoo

Creative

DeviantArt
GitHub
Pixiv

Shopping

Amazon
Ebay
Micro Center