182045 - Prefs->Privacy->History should offer to clear download manager

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Toolkit :: Downloads API, enhancement)

Description

[Philip White]

I recently realized that pressing the two buttons in preferences to clear the
history and the location bar is not enough to clear your tracks -- you also have
to open the download manager and manually clear your downloads.

The preferences window should have the option to clear Download Manager's
history with the press of a button -- otherwise it's a privacy issue.  This is
an enhancement, but because of privacy issues I'm nominating it a minor severity.

Comment 1

[Andreas Kunz]

Bug 132755 is about various preferences concerning the download history.
Bug 132755 comment #37 and #43 also mention what this bug is about.
So this bug is not exactly a duplicate, but might be fixed by that other bug.

Comment 2

[Paul Rubin]

I agree with this and would go further.  Records of past downloads are part of
the browsing history.  Clearing the navigation history should clear the download
history as well, by default.  I don't even see any need for an option to NOT
clear the download history when the navigation history is cleared, but if people
want such an option, I guess it's ok.

Comment 3

[Philip White]

I am bumping the severity because, first, the user doesn't even KNOW that their
downloads are logged unless they know about the Download Manager, and second, a
history of downloads can be much more harmful than a history of visited websites
-- there's no excuse that it was an accidental visit.

It's critical that the download list can be cleared without jumping through hoops...

Comment 4

[Ian Neal]

Enhancement

Comment 5

[Philip White]

Since Firefox now offers the option of clearing the download list once per
session or even immediately after each download, I think that this enhancement
is unnecessary.

However, because it already has one vote, I won't be too hasty with resolving it
invalid.  If anyone shares my opinion, please close this bug.  (Or let me know,
and I'll close it.)

Comment 6

[Andreas Kunz]

Philip, please don't confuse Firefox bugs with Browser/Suite/Seamonkey bugs. 
Ok, you are the reporter in this case, but if you resolved it, someone else
would have to file an identical bug...

Comment 7

[Philip White]

Ah, my mindset has already been fully Firefoxized.  Sorry.  We'll keep this bug
open until someone picks it up or refuses it.

Comment 8

[Patrick]

Following up on a discussion in bug 141998, is this a request for the "CLEAR
ALL" feature in the suite [similar to firefox] or for the CLEAR DOWNLOAD MANAGER
HISTORY feature from firefox.

According to comment 0 i would guess the latter, and that would mean that this
bug and bug 141998 aren't dupes of each other, but that this request is asking
for a superbutton clearing ALL user tracks in a single sweep. Please confirm if
that interpretation is correct and [we'll] adapt the summary accordingly.

Comment 9

[Philip White]

Yes, it is the latter.  I request a button to clear download manager history,
which would then be tied to the "Clear All" button of Firefox.  The Mozilla
suite is not relevant to this bug, although it would be good if it had the same
functionality.

Comment 10

[Andreas Kunz]

(In reply to comment #9)
> The Mozilla suite is not relevant to this bug

Philip:
May I remind you of comment #6?
This bug is not filed under the Firefox component and no Firefox developer will
look at it.
The fact that its assignee is Blake and its email adress includes "firefox"
means nothing. It's like that because he once wrote the (suite!) download
manager and therefore was default assignee for download manager bugs when you
filed this bug.

Comment 11

[Philip White]

Refiled.  Sorry for the confusion.

Comment 12

[Patrick]

Philip, shouldn't you update the summary then as well?

Comment 13

[Philip White]

Sure.

Comment 14

[Klaus P. Kuhlemann]

*** Bug 241777 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 15

[Mike Burkett]

Attachment: Pref/Privacy window screenshot

Comment 16

[Mike Burkett]

sorry... I attached this to the wrong bug... not sure how to (or if I can) delete it. Will be more careful next time.

Comment 17

[Phil Ringnalda (:philor)]

Time to put a stake in this massively morphed bug's heart: comment 0 wanted a one stop place to clear history and download history, and we've got that in Clear Private Data. If, while looking at the current state of things in either Firefox 2a1 or Firefox trunk, someone still thinks that the Privacy tabs for History and Download History should be combined, they're welcome to file a new and narrowly focused enhancement bug on just that, though I suspect it would be wontfixed since Clear Private Data already meets the need.