Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon) • Hacker News Board

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#551

Post by caf » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:10 AM UTC

stevemk14ebr wrote: post #446

andrepd wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Honestly I'm pretty critical of the Signal app design: from the crypto nonsense, to the removal of chat bubble colors (used to be each person had a color, pretty useful in group chats), to the copious amounts of whitespace that have been linearly increasing for years, to the fact that the design has to change and break familiarity every 6 months or the devs have a stroke. But I actually like this decision. It makes t…

This issue for myself and many others is it makes something that used to be transparent, entirely unsupported. The UX is unambiguously worse. I could trust signal to upgrade my texts for me when possible, or not when my contacts were SMS. I don't care about always being encrypted 100% of the time. Signal was that perfect tradeoff between privacy, and ease of use, which is exceptionally rare. Providing this tradeoff i…

I know this because now I'm considering leaving myself.

I feel like I'm not leaving Signal; Signal is leaving me.

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#552

Post by caf » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:13 AM UTC

fluidcruft wrote: post #373

usrusr wrote: post #279

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If I want to message someone I open the contact and click on one of the messengers that are listed for the phone number. Why would I leave the memorizing to my brain?

Huh. I've never used contacts that way. I suppose it could work but that's a new extra step. My Contacts list is gigantic and full of bullshit I don't care about because it's sync'd from work and flooded with people I don't know. Usually I just find the conversation from the chronological list (which is more of how I remember things). Maybe there's some way to sort contacts by recent use? It just seems like that's le…

Usually I just find the conversation from the chronological list...

Bingo.

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#553

Post by caf » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:16 AM UTC

jcul wrote: post #379

_jsnk wrote: post #34

I'm very upset by this decision. I've been using Signal as my SMS app for a very long time. Messages that I would have sent via SMS currently will automatically get sent via Signal if the person I'm sending to has started using Signal without my knowledge. This has happened in several instances where I was pleasantly surprised to see a friend had started using Signal. Now that I'm forced into a separate SMS app, this…

Off topic slightly, but it amazes me how much SMS is used in outside my country (maybe just US?). I literally never SMS any personal contacts, usually WhatsApp. Even business stuff, sometimes initial contact may be SMS and then could often move to WhatsApp. I use signal with a small circle of friends, but no one I know uses SMS anymore.

I have WhatsApp installed for two different group chats, Google Chat for another couple of group chats, but apart from that SMS is the standard here (which means opportunistically iMessage / Signal). I'm in Australia, where SMS typically have no per-message cost (the only thing that's charged per use on most mobile plans here is data and international calls).

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#554

Post by j3s » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:21 AM UTC

signal handling sms feels so good and natural, I almost can't believe they're nuking it. ugh.

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#555

Post by caf » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:23 AM UTC

smeej wrote: post #529

caf wrote: post #490

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If they have to use 2 apps, they'll just end up communicating with me in the clear using their "default SMS" app on their phone. That's what this is going to result it...a reduction in overall message security due to people defaulting to what's easier...which is to _not_ have to remember which app to use for which "send a message" purpose. Fuck. Exactly right. In fact, I will be doing this too. Right now, I use Signa…

I've run into a related problem: I have (iOS-using) friends I have convinced to register their numbers with Signal...but they never check Signal. They do check SMS. This actually drove me away from using Signal for SMS on Android, because I couldn't send those friends SMS messages through Signal. They could only go out as Signal messages, and my friends never checked them. Fortunately, I only have a handful of friend…

You can send those people SMS through Signal (for now!) by holding down the send button for a moment - it opens out to let you choose "Insecure SMS".

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#556

Post by brational » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:23 AM UTC

dnebdal wrote: post #528

brational wrote: post #496

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given the bizarre backlash here from people that think sms comms are ok I reckon I’ll start a monthly contribution.

Oh no, the "did you remember to lock the door to the auditorium" messages I send to my boss may be unencrypted. The humanity. What do you purists use to talk to all the random people around you? Do you reply "I'm sorry, it's too insecure for me to answer that, you'll have to install Signal first" messages when more distant colleagues ask you if you're at your desk right now? Do you teach your grandmother to use Whats…

Whatever they prefer. Whatsapp, imessage, or regular sms (when it makes sense). Or slack honestly. I have friends and family all over the world I only push for Signal where necessary and I want it to be good for that.

This one app nonsense is asinine. You’ll never get global adoption of one thing.

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#557

Post by caf » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:25 AM UTC

Fatnino wrote: post #540

caf wrote: post #490

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If they have to use 2 apps, they'll just end up communicating with me in the clear using their "default SMS" app on their phone. That's what this is going to result it...a reduction in overall message security due to people defaulting to what's easier...which is to _not_ have to remember which app to use for which "send a message" purpose. Fuck. Exactly right. In fact, I will be doing this too. Right now, I use Signa…

I hope you're not too invested in Google making a chat thing work long term. There's an overwhelming mountain of evidence that says that ends poorly.

Becoming too invested in any instant messaging thing is a recipe for disappointment and woe.

As far as instant messaging services are concerned, I have let go my earthly tether; entered the void; empty and become wind.

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#558

Post by zeagle » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:28 AM UTC

My god, so much good will burnt in my family and friends circle switching to Signal and now this. As a plus I went to the google play store (in Canada) to install google messages to anticipate this change on my wife's phone and the top result is 'Messages' which is a 3rd party app with ads and 1 million + installs. It also has a blue icon similar to the official Messages app. Nowhere does it say it isn't by Google until you scroll the to bottom and click on Developer contact to learn it's made by some rando @ gmail.com...

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#559

Post by rektide » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:28 AM UTC

Signal has the worst product sensibility of any company I've ever seen.

Dropping the Chrome Extension was a major quality of life dip for me, made Signal far less usable across systems. Their insistence that they didnt feel it was up to their desired quality offered me no comfort; it worked, it was easy, and you tool it away.

Signal refusing to allow scripting, or an API, or any option at all for expanding user agency sucks.

They have voice messages but to my knowledge you cant preview the message at all. I dont even know if you can abort sending it once you start?

This company had such an early lead but they keep doubling dowm on the most detached, conceited ridiculous plans, few of which benefit the user. It's embarassing. It'd be so nice if there were some mandatory protocol in telephony that let people declare other systems they support; add someone's phone number and see their XMPP, email, irc, and mumble contact info. It's absurdly difficult for people to make known their contact info; Signals sms integration was a killer feature that seamlessly put them atop the telecomm heirarchy, but here the stupid fools are, killing that killer feature & what got them this marketshare.

Re: Removing SMS support from Signal Android (soon)

#560

Post by ece » Thu, Oct 13, 2022, 2:31 AM UTC

pornel wrote: post #547

pitaj wrote: post #383

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They can't implement RCS, because there's no Android API for it.

Because it's a carrier-owned upsell feature. It's nuts that people even consider a non-Internet protocol that applications can't implement, and users have to get permission to use — from the same carriers that charge for bytes of crappy size-limited MMS messages in the same ballpark as delivery of physical letters.

SMS is carrier owned and had an API. What you're saying doesn't surprise me, but I guess an RCS client written by Google and can't talk to iPhones isn't exactly an upsell.