381–390 of 972 posts
I just switched my family to it, because that was the last reason for me to use WhatsApp.
I'm sad not to se it as an option.
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That page starts by claiming that Signal doesn't do backups which is false.
That page, is also an article from 2017 :-)
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Make it easier to switch, is the answer. That was my thought process evaluating alternatives this morning. Signal is apparently lauded by the privacy crowd, but I took one look at it and said "no way is Mum going to use this". I went with Telegram because the usability was good, WhatsApp-like functionality, and I saw a few people I know already on it - non-techies in particular, which is vital if we're going to disru…
What gripes did you run into with Signal? Most of my friends (tech or non-tech) use Signal, so I'm really curious.
When I tried Signal, I saw an empty list and had to add numbers / find people myself. Not much in the way of onboarding IMO. My complaints are likely met with "duh, that's how it works, idiot", I believe that's just how Signal is designed as it's a privacy-centric app.
I'm just looking for a non-Facebook WhatsApp alternative, rather than a complete focus on privacy and E2E messaging, so I don't think Signal is "bad" but it's not what I'm looking for. I just want Facebook out of my life and its grubby hands off my data.
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Make it easier to switch, is the answer. That was my thought process evaluating alternatives this morning. Signal is apparently lauded by the privacy crowd, but I took one look at it and said "no way is Mum going to use this". I went with Telegram because the usability was good, WhatsApp-like functionality, and I saw a few people I know already on it - non-techies in particular, which is vital if we're going to disru…
What gripes did you run into with Signal? Most of my friends (tech or non-tech) use Signal, so I'm really curious.
Where is the "Don't switch" option? Because as much as I hate that Facebook bought them, they're part of what I would call "critical social infrastructure." Asking to leave WhatsApp is like cancelling your contract with your ISP and going offline just because you don't like the company.
Well, I don't know where parent is located, but here in Brazil they are pretty much right. Everybody has WhatsApp... it's assumed that if you have a phone you have WhatsApp. A lot of financial transactions are conducted by doing a bank transfer and then sending the receipt via WhatsApp. The schools send essential messages to parents via WhatsApp. During lockdowns, stores were taking delivery orders via WhatsApp. What…
You can keep the unencrypted DB files.
Where is the "Don't switch" option? Because as much as I hate that Facebook bought them, they're part of what I would call "critical social infrastructure." Asking to leave WhatsApp is like cancelling your contract with your ISP and going offline just because you don't like the company.
I agree, all my friends and familly are on WhatsApp and they will definitely not switch. So from my point of view, I have to balance the cost between sharing data to Facebook and severely hampering communications with my love ones. I guess what I'm saying is that the network effect is just too damn strong (for me at least).
How do you know? Have you asked them?
Many of my family and close friends did install a new messaging app when I asked them. How do you think WhatsApp became so popular in the first place?
I use Telegram long before it became sort of mainstream and I haven't regretted that decision for a minute, minus their outages that started happening once every few months lately and are worrying. Tried Whatsapp once, hated it, never tried again. Viber is even worse. Telegram has been what an IM program should be, for years now (it gave me the vibe of my much beloved Miranda IM almost 20 years ago). I'd love it if t…
Telegram has a broken business model from the start. It doesn't make money and it's not sustainable. Somebody could take over telegram and start a pretty similar service to facebook since most of the chats are not encrypted. So if Durov were not to lead his vision of 100% free Telegram it might get really bad. A service ran on savings of the founder as philantropic as he is is not sustainable. They will either pivot…
Also, Durov has been strongly resistant both to censorship and takeover attempts so far. Which is more than I could say for your average SV startup.
I am siding with Telegram still. They have proven themselves many times over and I can only hope that this will continue.
The killer feature missing from all those is group video chat. This is what Messenger offers and why I will never be able to move my family away from it unless there is an equally smooth alternative.