(props to morganvachon for figuring out that you can use OneNote, but omg)
I think it actually was specifically to save files, before content types, and saving binaries as raw text was unreliable at best.
I didn't expect the same to be true 20 years later.
Only option is to highlight it and save it using another program.
Go to the file. Then try to save it. Don't argue with a scenario that I'm not talking about.
HN adds that link, but not all links come from HN. I know this is asking a lot, but, maybe, just for the sake of argument, try to pretend like you were given the URL somewhere else that doesn't automatically hyperlink and that I didn't just make this up. Hell, pretend that you got it on a piece of paper and actually had to type it in like a caveman. Now save it.
> There is usually a link to whatever file you want to download.
If I understand correctly, what you're saying is that in some cases you just cannot save the file, and that in all other cases you just cannot save the file while looking at the file without knowing that you need to go...somewhere nebulously else? That's what I said too. I'm glad we're on the same page now.
It doesn't seem to be possible to download a file you already have open in Edge that you have no link to, but how often does that happen, really? I'm sure you can come up with lots of other scenarios that you can't do with Edge either, or Chrome.
You told how to download something referenced by a hyperlink within the browser, a problem that I did not say I had. We call that moving the goalposts. It's very frustrating and I wish you would stop.
> If you really need to type in the URL yourself, just type in into Notepad's open file dialog and save it from there.
I 100% agree that the solution to a web browser not being able to do the 2nd most important function of a web browser is to use a different program. Suggesting Notepad instead of a more capable browser seems a tad strange though.
> but how often does that happen, really?
Why bend so far backwards to try to poke holes in my problem? Are you responsible for the decision to disallow saving documents? If I don't use Edge does your favorite nephew lose a toe? If you want to use Edge that's fine. Knock yourself out. I won't, and I gave my reason why.
In all seriousness, it is definitely a glaring omission in Edge. Though, I can see the OneNote integration being useful on a tablet.
msSaveOrOpenBlob currently silently fails in Edge extension content scripts.
My first workaround of creating an invisible objectURL download link from the document body text (trying to not re-download the file) and then programatically clicking it only partially works, because Edge currently ignores the download attribute value on links so you can't set the default file name and you get a disgusting GUID as the default filename instead. This is sadly the best option so far.
My second workaround of re-transferring the file using the document URL directly, again with injecting a hidden automatically clicked <a> tag, also only partially works. This is in fact worse than the first workaround, because it doesn't even prompt to save or choose a file name. It just pops the file open in Notepad with the right file name but the wrong file extension, changing, for instance, "constants.js" to "constants.txt".
And now I'm tired of this exercise. Back to just not caring about Edge.
That's one reason, I guess. My reason for not using Edge is that Edge still, after all this time, can't save files from the internet. That's, like, the second thing that I expect a web browser to be able to do after looking at files from the internet.
( You can test this at home. Go to visit some arbitrary text file in Edge. Let's say https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Microsoft/vscode/master/LI... for example. Now save it. File menu? Nope. Ctrl+S? Nope. Right-click? Nope. )