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Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

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Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#151

Post by dx034 »

ChrisArchitect wrote: post #82
eigenvector wrote: post #29

RCS is an improvement to SMS but it does not address the core limitations: it is owned and controlled by carriers, so your ability to contact someone is entirely dependent on that user's carrier. It is tied to a single, physical device. WhatsApp shot to popularity because it was the opposite of SMS: an entirely over-the-top service that everyone could use, on any platform, without the consent, extra billing or buggy…

WhatsApp, nothing more than another internet messaging app that requires data, shot to popularity because it fooled users into thinking it was somehow an SMS client because it used phone number as account.

No, because it was (and probably still is) the only messaging app that works with feature phones.

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#152

Post by reiichiroh »

nmcfarl wrote: post #122
scrooched_moose wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> unreliable Really? It's the only messaging format that works without a data connection and is an absolute godsend when I'm out camping, rural biking, or at large sporting events and the towers are absolutely swamped. I'm in a situation at least once a month where the only reliable communication method is SMS.

Wow - infrastructure varies. Here in Eastern Oregon the pattern is pretty reliably that data and signal drop out at the same time, at least on Verizon which is the carrier with the best coverage. I really thought the pattern that you describe, which I've seen plenty of in the past, had just died out over time and tower upgrades.

It all depends if there's a 2G network to fall back on if 3G+ data goes down. Most places have shut down their 2G.

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#153

Post by pilom »

moksha256 wrote: post #134

Didn't Google have messaging figured out with Google Talk? Everyone was on Gmail all day (as many still are) and people actually used it. Then they let it wither, came out with Hangouts, and it's been a downhill train wreck from there. Google Talk had the potential of being one of the biggest messengers in the world...they own Gmail and Android (!!!!!). Are you kidding me? There's really no good reason for them NOT t…

One of the best features of using Google Fi as my cell provider is that I can still use Google Talk. Still works amazingly well and I can send text messages directly from Gmail or from my android phone. I love it.

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#154

Post by SamWhited »

WhyNotHugo wrote: post #136
mynameisvlad wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Google Voice and Duo are not messaging apps. GTalk, Hangouts, and GMail Chat are the same thing at different iterations and were therefore fully compatible with one another. If you're going to criticize Google for this, at least be correct when doing it.

No, GTalk was XMPP-compatible and federated, Hangouts was siloed. So non-google XMPP users could speak to GTalk users, but not Hangouts users.

This was frustrating to say the least, if they'd just done a clean break it would have been annoying, but at least we all (I was using a third party client at the time) would have known what was going on, but they more or less silently broke it, but ony some of the time, and then strung it out for ages. I suspect it was a deliberate strategy to try and make the blame fall on the shoulders of third party clients instead of them for cutting it off, but who knows. I wish they'd just shut down the interop cleanly when they moved to hangouts, it would have saved me a lot of pain and debugging early on.

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#155

Post by heymijo »

bitL wrote: post #115
elvirs wrote: post #94

Its shocking how Google is embarrassing itself with these incompatible chat apps released one after another and abandoned right after the release. GTalk Gmail Chat Google Voice Hangouts Android Messages Allo Duo for fucks sake Google, just copy Whatsapp but make it stored on cloud, not on the device, like FB Messenger. Enable account recovery using email in addition to sms and enable usernames or email in addition ph…

That's what you get when you apply reinforcement learning company-wide and set rewards +500k +promotion for completely new, "revolutionary" products ;-)

"and set rewards +500k +promotion for completely new, "revolutionary" products ;-)"

Do you have a source for this? Not disputing you, but would like to reference.

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#156

Post by havetocharge »

stephenr wrote: post #84
dandare wrote: post #21

I don't see a single reason to invest myself into Google messaging product once again. I was adamant gtalk/hangout user but you can only fuck me over so many times.

You can take “messaging” out of that first sentence.

Bing and Apple Maps here we come?

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#157

Post by ibdf »

They don't get it. People don't want new apps, they want improved versions of the app they already have. It takes so much time to adopt and adapt to an app... nobody I know uses Allo. I have a google phone and I don't use it, because no one else uses. Allo has so many interesting features but I can't use them if no one else uses the damn app.

I don't have an iphone nor want one, but they got it right when it comes to building upon their core software. Same can be said to Windows/Microsoft. Yes, they are not perfect, yes sometimes behind everyone else when it comes to "the latest and greatest", but they have USERS! They know their audience and slowly improve their apps to keep them happy enough to keep using it.

I can't believe a company this big with so many resources doesn't have an attention spam greater than 6 months.

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#158

Post by owaislone »

elvirs wrote: post #146
dx034 wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I like the Whatsapp solution. Why does it have to be stored on cloud? Web interface with Whatsapp Web (via phone) works well.

you must have never tried migrating whatsapp from iphone to android, major pain in the axe

So the solution could be to make backups and migration easier

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#159

Post by chatmasta »

pilom wrote: post #153
moksha256 wrote: post #134

Didn't Google have messaging figured out with Google Talk? Everyone was on Gmail all day (as many still are) and people actually used it. Then they let it wither, came out with Hangouts, and it's been a downhill train wreck from there. Google Talk had the potential of being one of the biggest messengers in the world...they own Gmail and Android (!!!!!). Are you kidding me? There's really no good reason for them NOT t…

One of the best features of using Google Fi as my cell provider is that I can still use Google Talk. Still works amazingly well and I can send text messages directly from Gmail or from my android phone. I love it.

I can do this and I don’t have project fi. I’ve got a google voice number from a long time ago, and I can text from that number via Hangouts in gmail or on mobile.

Re: Google changes its messaging strategy again: Goodbye to Allo, double down on RCS

#160

Post by jcomis »

pilom wrote: post #153
moksha256 wrote: post #134

Didn't Google have messaging figured out with Google Talk? Everyone was on Gmail all day (as many still are) and people actually used it. Then they let it wither, came out with Hangouts, and it's been a downhill train wreck from there. Google Talk had the potential of being one of the biggest messengers in the world...they own Gmail and Android (!!!!!). Are you kidding me? There's really no good reason for them NOT t…

One of the best features of using Google Fi as my cell provider is that I can still use Google Talk. Still works amazingly well and I can send text messages directly from Gmail or from my android phone. I love it.

pushbullet (plus a few other apps) also recreate this functionality. Buggy and it's $5/month but I really use the hell out of it.
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