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Developer Preview of Android O

android-developers.googleblog.com

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Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#31

Post by digi_owl »

tacomonstrous wrote: post #28
Razengan wrote: post #16

So they will be introducing picture-in-picture support? If they start allowing YouTube to work with the PiP feature on iPads (which it always could with third-party workarounds, but not in the official app [1]) after this, then it'll be confirmed that they purposely disabled the feature on iOS only to retain artificial parity with Android, which would be a very scummy behavior. [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/apple/comm…

YouTube hardly takes advantage of already existing features on Android, so I very much doubt this is what's holding them back.

I suspect that on the app side Google have much the same problem as Facebook struggled with until they demanded employees start carry and use Android devices.

Basically the apps are developed by much the same people that are doing the web dev. And those are very much Mac/iPhone users.

Thus they are barely aware of what is going on with Android.

Hell, the Allo boss basically made claims that made zero sense for why it didn't integrate SMS into the message timeline.

This while Android users have been screaming for a Google brand messenger that integrate SMS, and Android provides a SMS backend that any app can talk to.

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#32

Post by [deleted] »

digi_owl wrote: post #20
hehheh wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I look at these previews as an example of things to come 3 years from now. I keep hoping that Google will figure out a solution to that (restrict access to Play Services, say). Until then, I guess I'll continue targeting API 16.

That would just make them look for alternatives asap. The basic problem is that updates are an expense once the SKU starts shipping, while spending the same money on a new SKU is an investment. Apple get around this because they own the whole stack. Thus keeping a device going longer means more exposure to their stores. Never mind that even though they release a new iOS in name, major new features are left out for th…

[deleted]

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#33

Post by endorphone »

hehheh wrote: post #5
italophil wrote: post #4

Too bad the OEMs don't keep up. Only 2% of devices have Android 7 (N). http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/android-distribution-new...

I look at these previews as an example of things to come 3 years from now. I keep hoping that Google will figure out a solution to that (restrict access to Play Services, say). Until then, I guess I'll continue targeting API 16.

Until then, I guess I'll continue targeting API 16.

I started targeting API 19 (4.4, KitKat) over a year ago and have never looked back. That encompasses the vast bulk of Android users (>85%) and encompasses almost all of the significant developer improvements. Even using the absolute latest fun such as multiple windows is an absolute breeze from the development side, regardless of many users not supporting it yet.

As a side benefit, the devices that get excluded are often older, often abandoned devices. I previously tried desperately to support all of those older devices and the reward were a barrage of low ratings by people on poor performing old devices.

Android has a planned obsolescence thing. I've gotten use to it.

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#34

Post by endorphone »

digi_owl wrote: post #31
tacomonstrous wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

YouTube hardly takes advantage of already existing features on Android, so I very much doubt this is what's holding them back.

I suspect that on the app side Google have much the same problem as Facebook struggled with until they demanded employees start carry and use Android devices. Basically the apps are developed by much the same people that are doing the web dev. And those are very much Mac/iPhone users. Thus they are barely aware of what is going on with Android. Hell, the Allo boss basically made claims that made zero sense for why it…

>Thus they are barely aware of what is going on with Android.

This seems like quite a profound stretch. I'm not even sure what the parent is talking about regarding YouTube hardly taking advantage -- it takes great advantage. The Android platform is absolutely its benchmark implementation. And it's completely native, so this isn't a group of iPhone devs doing it on the side.

This notion of the forgotten Android implementation from a bunch of Apple fans seems almost quaint now. While it was true years ago, at this point any shop that does that sort of thing is guaranteeing themselves doom. It isn't an after thought.

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#35

Post by epoch1970 »

italophil wrote: post #4

Too bad the OEMs don't keep up. Only 2% of devices have Android 7 (N). http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/android-distribution-new...

It can't help that Google hasn't released a phone comparable in spirit to the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 4 and Nexus 5 phones.

We're talking about phones that have a practical size, reasonably good specs, and a $300-$400 price tag.

The Nexus 6 and 6P were impractically sized for many users. Even the 5X was too large.

The Pixel's sizing is perhaps more tolerable, but the price tag is much too high.

People hanging on to a Nexus 5 are out of luck, since it isn't getting Android 7 and beyond. Those with a Nexus 4 are even worse off.

While I'd like to use a newer version of Android, I've yet to find a suitable device on the market. Google filled this niche a few years ago, but their recent offerings are no longer suitable.

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#36

Post by Razengan »

digi_owl wrote: post #31
tacomonstrous wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

YouTube hardly takes advantage of already existing features on Android, so I very much doubt this is what's holding them back.

I suspect that on the app side Google have much the same problem as Facebook struggled with until they demanded employees start carry and use Android devices. Basically the apps are developed by much the same people that are doing the web dev. And those are very much Mac/iPhone users. Thus they are barely aware of what is going on with Android. Hell, the Allo boss basically made claims that made zero sense for why it…

> Basically the apps are developed by much the same people that are doing the web dev. And those are very much Mac/iPhone users.

So why cripple PiP on iOS and bury it on macOS?

• On macOS, you have to have to menu-click on the YouTube web player TWICE to bring up the PiP option [1]; why not include it in YouTube's own menu or control strip?

• on iOS, you could access PiP by visiting YouTube in a browser, or pasting a YouTube link into certain sites [2], but they seem to be actively locking down on this. There are third-party apps that let you view YouTube in PiP, so why is it not in the native player?

[1] http://imgur.com/a/n8b1l

[2] http://ctrlq.org/youtube/pip/

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#37

Post by mavendependency »

Razengan wrote: post #16

So they will be introducing picture-in-picture support? If they start allowing YouTube to work with the PiP feature on iPads (which it always could with third-party workarounds, but not in the official app [1]) after this, then it'll be confirmed that they purposely disabled the feature on iOS only to retain artificial parity with Android, which would be a very scummy behavior. [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/apple/comm…

High end samsung firmware has PIP support, can confirm that (samsung) PIP works perfectly with youtube. Apple might need to communicate better with the youtube folks.

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#38

Post by ClassyJacket »

epoch1970 wrote: post #35
italophil wrote: post #4

Too bad the OEMs don't keep up. Only 2% of devices have Android 7 (N). http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/android-distribution-new...

It can't help that Google hasn't released a phone comparable in spirit to the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 4 and Nexus 5 phones. We're talking about phones that have a practical size, reasonably good specs, and a $300-$400 price tag. The Nexus 6 and 6P were impractically sized for many users. Even the 5X was too large. The Pixel's sizing is perhaps more tolerable, but the price tag is much too high. People hanging on to a Nex…

Also the Pixel updates are still held back by phone companies. If they cared about updates or security they would update their phones directly like Apple.

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#39

Post by threeseed »

digi_owl wrote: post #20
hehheh wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I look at these previews as an example of things to come 3 years from now. I keep hoping that Google will figure out a solution to that (restrict access to Play Services, say). Until then, I guess I'll continue targeting API 16.

That would just make them look for alternatives asap. The basic problem is that updates are an expense once the SKU starts shipping, while spending the same money on a new SKU is an investment. Apple get around this because they own the whole stack. Thus keeping a device going longer means more exposure to their stores. Never mind that even though they release a new iOS in name, major new features are left out for th…

> Never mind that even though they release a new iOS in name, major new features are left out for the version pushed to the older devices.

This is simplistic and largely wrong. Only when there is a lack of appropriate hardware e.g. noise cancellation in the A5 chip or inadequate RAM has Apple decided not to port to those older devices. It's not a deliberate policy especially since they have been selling older devices alongside the newer ones.

That said for developers it's been about 99% of features available on all devices.

Re: Developer Preview of Android O

#40

Post by threeseed »

mavendependency wrote: post #37
Razengan wrote: post #16

So they will be introducing picture-in-picture support? If they start allowing YouTube to work with the PiP feature on iPads (which it always could with third-party workarounds, but not in the official app [1]) after this, then it'll be confirmed that they purposely disabled the feature on iOS only to retain artificial parity with Android, which would be a very scummy behavior. [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/apple/comm…

High end samsung firmware has PIP support, can confirm that (samsung) PIP works perfectly with youtube. Apple might need to communicate better with the youtube folks.

It's just an API to implement. But YouTube for iOS in general is a dreadful piece of software so not surprised they haven't done it.
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