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Do not download the app, use the website

idiallo.com

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Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#41

Post by crazygringo »

I just despise the constant popups "The experience is better on the app, click here to download!"

I read news sites I pay for by scrolling through the home page and opening stories I want to read in new tabs, and then slowly reading and closing them throughout the day. Your app can't do that. Your app doesn't support tabs. It also doesn't support basic things like letting me zoom in on an image. And sometimes it crashes when I try to load comments.

I'm a paid subscriber, and I still get constant nagging every single day to use the app instead that is worse in every way.

And I don't even know why. They're just news sites. They don't ask for any permissions to slurp up my data. I honestly don't have the slightest idea why they keep pushing the app.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#43

Post by yownie »

VoidWarranty wrote: post #16
markbao wrote: post #7

Don’t agree, but to each their own. The native app experience for every app noted in the article is better and smoother than the mobile web version, in my opinion. Lots of people hate Electron apps, which suggests to me that my preference for native apps isn’t unique. Web apps can ask for your location or microphone the same way native apps can. Just reject it, there’s nothing that says you have to accept on either p…

The reason I believe the web experience is inferior is because companies put more resources into apps at the expense of the web. Apps break often. They need a lot of support. Everything must be constantly updated. You never know when Samsung or Apple will push an update that breaks things because of some esoteric policy shift or setting change. But the web? If you do it right, maintenence is much easier. If things do…

>I can't be the only one who _never _ updates software on my phone until I absolutely have to.

right there with you brother

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#44

Post by montroser »

markbao wrote: post #7

Don’t agree, but to each their own. The native app experience for every app noted in the article is better and smoother than the mobile web version, in my opinion. Lots of people hate Electron apps, which suggests to me that my preference for native apps isn’t unique. Web apps can ask for your location or microphone the same way native apps can. Just reject it, there’s nothing that says you have to accept on either p…

The author is not contesting that the app experience is better. Yeah, the web experience is worse -- because the product people are treating the entire web presence as a _marketing surface_ for the app. So, the web version is basically an ad for the app. This is true of Reddit, Yelp, and others. How could it not be worse?

It's too bad because it's not like the web is incapable of providing a beautiful ux for those products. But then so why do you think these companies employ massive teams of devs, for Android, and then again for iOS, reimplementing their functionality on every platform? All that to provide you with that sweet extra smooth native "feel", 2% nicer than the web could do? No, it's not for you...

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#45

Post by quickthrowman »

rickcarlino wrote: post #25

I dream of developing mobile sites that can play audio with the screen off and use the same media controls as apps (think: music player apps while driving). A lot of the things that make mobile sites second class is the lack of screen-off functionality.

iOS Safari does this, at least on bandcamp and SoundCloud.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#46

Post by hsbauauvhabzb »

I’ve added pages to my ios home screen which almost appears as a native app with some success. The thing is when the app doesn’t implicitly show a back button either via bread crumbs, a ‘cancel’ button or similar, navigation becomes more tricky. It beats installing random things on my phone though.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#47

Post by nomel »

josephcsible wrote: post #40

I wish Apple and Google would make rules to the effect of "if your app's entire functionality could be done in a regular website or PWA, then you can't put a native app on our stores".

> if your app's entire functionality could be done in a regular website or PWA, then you can't put a native app on our stores

A very silly threshold, since this would knock out probably 95% of the app store, including games, since "websites" are extremely capable these days, with full 3d graphics, etc. Then, each time safari added a new modern browser feature, more would get knocked out.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#48

Post by kingo55 »

josephcsible wrote: post #40

I wish Apple and Google would make rules to the effect of "if your app's entire functionality could be done in a regular website or PWA, then you can't put a native app on our stores".

Given how much it seems Apple detests PWAs, I don't ever see this happening. One can dream.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#49

Post by hsbauauvhabzb »

teagoat wrote: post #21
urbandw311er wrote: post #8

Don’t forget the ability to send push notifications. I think that’s one of the main reasons — it turns your whole relationship with a product on its head: you lose control over when you’re engaging, instead they can literally push their services and ads on you.

You can get push notifications to your phone from a website through the browser, even when that website isn't still open. But presumably developers have more control over app notification look & feel vs browser notifications?

Browser push isn’t enabled by default which ime is a huge difference.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#50

Post by yownie »

markbao wrote: post #7

Don’t agree, but to each their own. The native app experience for every app noted in the article is better and smoother than the mobile web version, in my opinion. Lots of people hate Electron apps, which suggests to me that my preference for native apps isn’t unique. Web apps can ask for your location or microphone the same way native apps can. Just reject it, there’s nothing that says you have to accept on either p…

it doesn't seem like you even read the relatively short post since:

"The native app experience for every app noted in the article" doesn't make any sense, the article lists none.

"Lots of people hate Electron apps, which suggests to me that my preference for native apps isn’t unique."

again......what does this have to do with the article at all? Aren't you merely reinforcing the articles point?

" Just reject it, there’s nothing that says you have to accept on either platform, so to say that’s a negative for native apps is odd."

Except that most app's would stop working if anyone confined them to the minimum amount of data required, case in point any scooter app that won't let you rent unless you have google location services turned on vs just regular GPS.

OPs point is that app are a walled garden of functionality that lock users in because of expedience for living life.

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