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Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

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Re: Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

#201
post #151

How can I install Matrix on an android phone without using the Google Play store?

F-Droid is the best way for open source apps, but also most APKs are available outside of Play Store via websites like https://www.apkmirror.com/ . It's a bit of a risk to load apps like that, though.

How do push notifications work when it's not intergated with Google Play?

Re: Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

#202
post #168

I hope more apps start allowing to directly download an .apk file from their website. I don't have Google Play Services or the Play store installed on my phone nor do I want to install them. Yes, it's my responsibility to update the app, whatever, just give me the file.

Then how do you get instant messaging notifications?

Both Signal and WhatsApp work fine. It requires workarounds from the app developers, but it's not impossible to implement.

Re: Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

#203
post #151

How can I install Matrix on an android phone without using the Google Play store?

F-Droid is the best way for open source apps, but also most APKs are available outside of Play Store via websites like https://www.apkmirror.com/ . It's a bit of a risk to load apps like that, though.

It's a shame EV certs are so hard to get. APK signatures use certificates and we could use the already existing CA infrastructure to make app stores unnecessary but stuff didn't work out that way.

Re: Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

#204
post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not funny. Do you think the riots are leading to better society/life ?

Riot is the name of another Matrix client.

I'm pretty sure Riot was the original name of Element until 2020.

Re: Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

#205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

...and doesn't care about deplatforming. "We need more than deplatforming" https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2021/01/08/we-need-more-than-d...

Don't pretend like you're patronizing them. You're using a free browser. There's nothing they've done or can do to affect your experience within the browser, and it still remains an open browser. There's no moral hangups here beyond the ones you imagine for yourself.

If I'm not patronizing them, who is? Why would a browser want to get into the censorship business?

Re: Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

#206
post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then how do you get instant messaging notifications?

I think I don't. Sometimes I get notifications, sometimes it may take hours for me to get the notification. I rarely use instant messaging for important things, and when I do, I make sure to check my phone often so I don't miss the messages. Is this stupid? Maybe, but I'm not going to install Google's closed source crap on a device that I carry almost everywhere. If that means I become a social pariah, then so be it.

I think they should be forced to allow apps running in the background to connect to an arbitrary server, to subscribe to notifications

Re: Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

#207

I hope more apps start allowing to directly download an .apk file from their website. I don't have Google Play Services or the Play store installed on my phone nor do I want to install them. Yes, it's my responsibility to update the app, whatever, just give me the file.

Is there a standard that could verify an apk against a certificate? ... or an I just describing building an alternative play store?

This is a (mostly) solved problem in linux. Your package manager has a central repo, but also can have 3rd party repos added. You'd add the matrix repo and it would automatically update it with everything else. It means everything still gets updated and verified against the keyring.

Re: Element (Matrix chat app) suspended from the Google Play Store

#208

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It's sad that your quality of life depends on Google or Facebook services. Quality of life is not a binary, where you either 'have' it or not, so I don't think it makes sense to say "your quality of life DEPENDS on google or Facebook" Many things make your quality of life a bit better, and some things make it a bit worse, but no one says they can't have a quality life without Facebook or google. The person is sayin…

I understand that. I still maintain it's sad that removing Facebook/Google can have any significant drop in your quality of life. And by significant, I mean one where you're willing to debate about it. I like to keep my happiness as far as possible from the services that some soulless multinational provides.

My happiness depends on all sorts of multinational. I depend on quick access to all sorts of medications, gasoline, shampoo, shipping, industrial food production, airplanes, and more. Why should technology be different?
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