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'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

theguardian.com

181–190 of 870 posts

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#181
post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That doesn’t solve the problem of having to spend time deleting photos and later restoring them back from the archive.

plug in USB cable, drag and drop entire directory from one drive to another with file explorer, is the only reasonable way to manage photos. Get everything off the device at the end of each day. Why would you ever put things back on the phone?

Because I want to be able to search for and show or send photos to other people on the go.

A smartphone is like a little computer you can use on the go, in case you weren’t aware.

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#182
post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That doesn’t solve the problem of having to spend time deleting photos and later restoring them back from the archive.

plug in USB cable, drag and drop entire directory from one drive to another with file explorer, is the only reasonable way to manage photos. Get everything off the device at the end of each day. Why would you ever put things back on the phone?

If only phone vendors didn't try to break this functionality.

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#183

I think this article is city-centric. I am in a rural area in the US and I have only had a smart phone for 2 years and have never installed any apps beyond Mumla that I use for my own self hosted uMurmur server. I have never browsed the web from the phone. My life today is just as it was in the 1970's in that regard. All the businesses here have printed coupons. There are local printed newspapers. I have zero depende…

In the US large companies in rural areas also often use apps in the same way as they do in the city (at least they did the last time I visited) and at least all the people I know in rural areas have had smartphones for a long time and use apps a lot (though maybe the fact that the area I know well is near a major university has made it a bit techier). The smaller local stores don't use apps so even in Chicago most pl…

People here do have smart phones and I'm sure some have apps installed. What I am saying is none of that is required today. Nobody here is penalized for not installing some app.

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've stopped submitting all electronic forms for medical purposes. I simply don't want to chatbot my health concerns to anyone. So I don't. I also stopped signing anything in the waiting room.

What are you going to do when they refuse to provide care because you won’t fill out or sign forms?

they took an oath not to refuse.

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#185

I never install apps, and I don't have any problem with private companies offering discounts or whatever via apps. The market will do its thing. But where I have a big problem is when my local government requires me to install apps to do basic things like parking. It would almost be okay if the apps were developed in house and were open source. But of course they're not. And anyway there's no reason they can't just b…

> The market will do its thing.

Markets' "thing" is concentration of capital and the whittling of service/product providers until just a few major ones, or a single one, is left, and then they collude on pricing, bypassing/preventing regulation, psychological manipulation of customers etc.

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do a little reverse engineering/analysis on the app, to parallel-construct the claims of 'fifticon (as to not require them to leak internal info or become a whistleblower). If it's as bad as it sounds, go to press. Or just dump an expose on Twitter/X to maximize public awareness. > who is even "the user" here? The doctors and their patients. If it's as bad as it sounds, it actively degrades the ability of doctors to…

People should instead just vote with you feet and dollars. That'll be inconvenient, but if it bothers you enough, you'll make the effort. A crucial part of this approach is to let your doctor know exactly why you're leaving. If they're losing business over it, they'll look for alternatives. And if the EHR company loses money, they'll look to make changes, too.

Yea, I wouldn't put up with a doctor that required me to interact with him through an app. I'd switch doctors, and hopefully find a way to let the old doctor know why I'm switching. That's often the hardest part--actually finding an owner who is harmed when a customer leaves.

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What are you going to do when they refuse to provide care because you won’t fill out or sign forms?

they took an oath not to refuse.

Doctors take an oath to do no harm. With few exceptions, they are not required to treat patients.

If you were correct, you could get cosmetic surgery for free and with no prerequisites, assuming it wouldn’t harm you.

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#188

People are writing this off, but it eventually becomes impossible not to own a smartphone; an expensive device, with an expensive monthly plan, and an absolutely terrible privacy record. Eventually more businesses will require smartphone usage just to use their services. There could even be a time when government services require it.

The UK is an incredibly competitive and well-regulated market. If you're in receipt of welfare benefits, you can get a tariff with unlimited 5G data for £12 ($15) per month. If you're a light user, you can get a tariff with a few gigabytes of data for as little as £5 ($6.50) per month.

https://smarty.co.uk/social-tariff

A cheap but perfectly useable phone costs less than £100 new from a brand like Xiaomi, Motorola or TCL; on any high street, you'll find a shop selling second-hand phones for as little as £30. I cannot think of any object in human history that provides so much utility for so little money.

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#189

I’m fascinated by this phenomenon of apps proposing solutions that are far worse than the previous existing solutions. For example: 1. Parking apps are worse than parking meters. 2. Tinder is worse than IRL speed dating. 3. Duolingo is worse than language classes. 4. Airline apps that are worse than just printing a boarding pass. 5. Etc It really makes me frustrated as someone who builds software and generally thinks…

I've seen good airline apps and bad airline apps. The good ones allow you to do things like checking your own bags and dropping off bags without talking to anyone. The bad ones simply are slow and have missing features: you may be able to buy a ticket but changing it requires calling a number. (Of course if you are the type to prefer human customer service, these won't appeal to you.)

Re: 'The tyranny of apps': those without smartphones are unfairly penalised

#190

I think this article is city-centric. I am in a rural area in the US and I have only had a smart phone for 2 years and have never installed any apps beyond Mumla that I use for my own self hosted uMurmur server. I have never browsed the web from the phone. My life today is just as it was in the 1970's in that regard. All the businesses here have printed coupons. There are local printed newspapers. I have zero depende…

Don't worry... The 21st century should reach you too, eventually.
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