[tbb-bugs] #27476 [Applications/Tor Browser]: Show main browser window alongside Tor Launcher UI

[Tor Bug Tracker & Wiki]

#27476: Show main browser window alongside Tor Launcher UI
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     Reporter:  arthuredelstein      |      Owner:  tbb-team
         Type:  defect               |     Status:  new
     Priority:  Medium               |  Milestone:
    Component:  Applications/Tor     |    Version:
  Browser                            |   Keywords:  tor-launcher tbb-
     Severity:  Normal               |  performance ux-team
Actual Points:                       |  Parent ID:
       Points:                       |   Reviewer:
      Sponsor:                       |
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 Right now, the Tor Launcher runs, and takes seconds or minutes to
 complete. The Tor Launcher window, though it says "Tor Browser" on the
 first screen is not recognizably a web browser, which may be confusing or
 scary to first-time users.

 Then the Tor Launcher window disappears, and then, before a browser window
 appears, there is a gap of varying length where no window is visible at
 all. On slow computers, this gap can be as much as tens of seconds and
 during that time there is no easy way to tell that Tor Browser is still
 running.

 Often users, mistakenly guessing that Tor Browser has crashed, will
 double-click the Tor Browser app icon a second time and get messages like
 "Tor Browser is already running, but is not responding" or "Tor
 unexpectedly exited".

 How can we solve this problem? I can think of a few possible solutions:
 1. Don't hide the Tor Launcher window until the main browser window is
 visible. (Build the browser window hidden during the launch process so
 that it can appear fast as soon as the launch process is done.)
 2. Show the main browser window below the Tor Launcher window while it
 launching process is running. Keep the Tor Launcher window modal (always
 on top) until it is finished.
 3. Embed the Tor Launcher UI in the main browser window. Allow the user to
 enter a URL in the URL bar even before Tor is fully launched.

 I favor (3) as having the best UX. But it is also the most difficult to
 implement.

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Ticket URL: <https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/ticket/27476>
Tor Bug Tracker & Wiki <https://trac.torproject.org/>
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