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“It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

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Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#161
post #116

Most businesses, consumers, and developers universally continue to ignore the primary reason that iMessage is a closed platform, rather than an app on every platform as iTunes is: Apple is using device serial numbers for anti-spam, supported by a fully-authenticated hardware and software stack that does not allow user modification. This permits Apple to simply “console ban” any Apple device that spams on iMessage. Th…

I'd rather live in a world with spam than a world where corporations get to decide what I run on my devices, and cripple a bunch of critical applications if I decide I want to, y'know, actually do whatever I want with the hardware I own. I'm not unsympathetic to Apple's difficulties and goals here (assuming this spam problem is actually the reason, though I'm skeptical that there aren't also self-serving reasons that…

> I'd rather live in a world with spam than a world where corporations get to decide what I run on my devices, and cripple a bunch of critical applications if I decide I want to, y'know, actually do whatever I want with the hardware I own.

It’s really oppressive that Apple doesn’t let you install WhatsApp, Secret, Telegram, FB Messenger or any other communications app beyond their own.

While it’s all sweetness and light that Google got into bed with the phone carriers to develop this new “standard” tied to a phone number subscription that brings along all the retrograde privacy nightmares of Big Telecom since the bell system broke up.

The points you want to raise are crucial, but this is far from the hill to die on.

Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#162
post #131
post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What? I don't even notice the difference in color except that I know not to use the tapback stuff when I'm texting an Android user. Does the green on white actually bother anyone? This seems like grasping at straws to me.

I've never heard this issue ever raised by anyone in real life. I've only seen it brought up in internet tiffs about how Apple is using green message bubbles to "shame" non-Apple users. Which is similarly straw-graspy.

Given how cruel and capricious children tend to be, it would not surprise me in the least that iPhone-using US teenagers ostracize peers with Android devices because of the green bubbles.

Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#164
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everyone in the US (if there is at least one android user in the chat)

US here. On the old end of "millennial", if that matters. More than 95% of my personal communication with other humans I know (remote communication, that is, not in-person, obviously) is in WhatsApp. The rest is phone and SMS and that's all older family. SMS, like email, is mainly for machines to talk to me.

That sounds horrible to be so locked-in.

Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#165

> iPhones make texts with Android phones difficult to read, by using white text on a bright green background. Wow. I can't really come up with anything creative to blame Google for this one. Whatever you want to say about Google's messaging mess and RCS - Apple seems to go out of their way to make it inconvenient to text with Android users. Also it doesn't sound like Google's asking Apple to give up iMessage - just t…

The Green is historical, not a specific decision by Apple to hinder reading texts. Before iOS 5, and the release of iMessage, all messages on iOS were green. That Google is painting this as something else speaks to how disingenuous this whole conversation has gotten, in all corners.

But it turns automatically green when you text a non iPhone device.

You have no idea how much of a hot topic this is I modern bullying

Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#166
post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With blue bubbles?

Remember, the color of the bubbles only changes for messages YOU send, not messages you receive. Received messages are always black on grey.

> Received messages are always black on grey.

What on Earth are you talking about?

Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#167
post #88
post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most operators do cellular over wifi now (because 4G/5G sucks indoor). Not all of them though.

I’m curious about how this works, can you link me someplace where I can read more about it? I tried searching for “cellular over wifi” but wasn’t about to find anything promising. EDIT: I searched harder and found “VoWiFi”. It looks like this can support SMS and is supported by iOS. TIL.

Bingo. My carrier offers it as Wifi Calling. It worked surprisingly well.

Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It really is god-awful. RCS is a technology that benefits mobile operators, not users. Also, Google really aren't in a position to lecture anyone on this topic, given their N+1 approach to messaging services.

Speak for yourself; I LOVE texting my fellow-Android-owners with RCS. My photos don't get squashed a la MMS, sending multimedia Just Works, and typing/receipt indicators are lovely. Maybe the mobile operators are getting far bigger wins, but as an average person texting my friends, it's great.

[deleted]

Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#169

> iPhones make texts with Android phones difficult to read, by using white text on a bright green background. Wow. I can't really come up with anything creative to blame Google for this one. Whatever you want to say about Google's messaging mess and RCS - Apple seems to go out of their way to make it inconvenient to text with Android users. Also it doesn't sound like Google's asking Apple to give up iMessage - just t…

This is the most trivial complaint I've ever read. I'm in my 50s and I have zero problems reading green bubbles - it just means that it hasn't been sent via iMessage - if I send to an iPhone and sending falls back to SMS it looks just the same. I can't believe people get that upset about green v blue.

That’s very ableist of you.

About 1 in 12 males are colorblind. I’m in this group.

I find white text on a bright green background very difficult to read.

Re: “It’s time for Apple to fix texting”

#170
post #116

Most businesses, consumers, and developers universally continue to ignore the primary reason that iMessage is a closed platform, rather than an app on every platform as iTunes is: Apple is using device serial numbers for anti-spam, supported by a fully-authenticated hardware and software stack that does not allow user modification. This permits Apple to simply “console ban” any Apple device that spams on iMessage. Th…

I'd rather live in a world with spam than a world where corporations get to decide what I run on my devices, and cripple a bunch of critical applications if I decide I want to, y'know, actually do whatever I want with the hardware I own. I'm not unsympathetic to Apple's difficulties and goals here (assuming this spam problem is actually the reason, though I'm skeptical that there aren't also self-serving reasons that…

I hear you believe me.

But in the past five years, I have received so much call spam that I just don't answer my phone anymore. Imagine that, the primary use of a phone and it's all cocked up.

Imagine what happens to imessages if they leave it open.

Blame the cretins that spam people.

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