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Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

theverge.com

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Re: Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

#2

Post by imgabe »

I'm pretty happy with my decision to keep Facebook apps off my phone. I'll check the mobile site once in a while to see the news feed, but that's it.

Of course I have google backing everything up, so maybe that's not much better. Time to write a little script to routinely backup photos from there to my own hard drive.

Re: Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

#3

Post by jaitsu »

They seem to go about these things in the wrong way. Take Messenger for example, there was no good reason to remove access to this via a browser on mobile devices. I don't want to have to install an app for something that was previously available in a browser. If you can't provide me with all of the features of messenger in the browser then that's fine. I thought we were meant to be progressing towards a truly open web accessible to all, regardless of device.

This is just another example of Facebook doing whatever they please just because they can. I wonder how long that will last until people start moving away from the platform.

Re: Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

#4

Post by witty_username »

imgabe wrote: post #2

I'm pretty happy with my decision to keep Facebook apps off my phone. I'll check the mobile site once in a while to see the news feed, but that's it. Of course I have google backing everything up, so maybe that's not much better. Time to write a little script to routinely backup photos from there to my own hard drive.

Google Takeout might help: https://takeout.google.com/settings/takeout

Re: Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

#6

Post by vwcx »

jaitsu wrote: post #3

They seem to go about these things in the wrong way. Take Messenger for example, there was no good reason to remove access to this via a browser on mobile devices. I don't want to have to install an app for something that was previously available in a browser. If you can't provide me with all of the features of messenger in the browser then that's fine. I thought we were meant to be progressing towards a truly open w…

I've never installed Facebook Messenger and only access facebook through a mobile browser. What functionality am I missing out on?

Re: Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

#7

Post by swiley »

imgabe wrote: post #2

I'm pretty happy with my decision to keep Facebook apps off my phone. I'll check the mobile site once in a while to see the news feed, but that's it. Of course I have google backing everything up, so maybe that's not much better. Time to write a little script to routinely backup photos from there to my own hard drive.

Synching is great for backing things like photos up. Although that sounds like a one way thing that you could do with rsync.

Re: Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

#8

Post by Spooky23 »

vwcx wrote: post #6
jaitsu wrote: post #3

They seem to go about these things in the wrong way. Take Messenger for example, there was no good reason to remove access to this via a browser on mobile devices. I don't want to have to install an app for something that was previously available in a browser. If you can't provide me with all of the features of messenger in the browser then that's fine. I thought we were meant to be progressing towards a truly open w…

I've never installed Facebook Messenger and only access facebook through a mobile browser. What functionality am I missing out on?

A recent TechCrunch article reported that the functionality that you use is going away.

It's a hamfisted move. They abuse these apps to do something -- my wife tried the messenger app and discovered a noticeable loss of battery life. I think she uninstalled it within 24 hours.

Re: Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

#9

Post by lewiscollard »

swiley wrote: post #5

Go ahead! I don't keep anything on Facebook that I don't have locally.

That's nice. What about the millions of non-techies who are about to have their stuff deleted because Facebook decided, on a whim, to railroad them into the Moments app?

Everyone on HN knows not to trust Facebook with anything of of value, but as technical people our collective response to a corporation deleting the stuff of people who don't should not be "I'm okay, I have backups".

Re: Facebook threatens to delete synced photos if users don't download new photo app

#10

Post by tikhonj »

vwcx wrote: post #6
jaitsu wrote: post #3

They seem to go about these things in the wrong way. Take Messenger for example, there was no good reason to remove access to this via a browser on mobile devices. I don't want to have to install an app for something that was previously available in a browser. If you can't provide me with all of the features of messenger in the browser then that's fine. I thought we were meant to be progressing towards a truly open w…

I've never installed Facebook Messenger and only access facebook through a mobile browser. What functionality am I missing out on?

Facebook chat. They're disabling it on the mobile website to push people towards Messenger. It's only a problem if people you know use that to chat.
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