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Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

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Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#291

Post by redwall_hp »

permo-w wrote: post #259
mmaunder wrote: post #23

You’re angry. I’ve felt this in a trademark lawsuit. You think the world should get behind you and change the corrupt system. My advice is to immediately rebrand as gracefully and effectively as possible and use all that activist energy to effect the transition. They kind of have a point which doesn’t make them right, but they hold all the cards and you will lose this one and regret the wasted bandwidth.

Caffeine would be an easy answer to the rebranding question

Caffeine was the old application that Amphetamine replaced. It was a long-standing utility that went unmaintained after Apple switched to the retina displays.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#292

Post by sudosysgen »

aardvarkr wrote: post #241
blatherard wrote: post #142

I thought I should look at the App Store and see what this app is doing in comparison to similar apps. The logo is basically a big pill and the tagline "Powerful keep-awake utility" which is clearly alluding to the drug. https://imgur.com/a/RJXHaBa This was consistent with the feedback the author received: "[the] app appears to promote inappropriate use of controlled substances. Specifically, your app name and icon i…

"1.4.3 Apps that encourage consumption of tobacco and vape products, illegal drugs, or excessive amounts of alcohol are not permitted on the App Store. Apps that encourage minors to consume any of these substances will be rejected. Facilitating the sale of marijuana, tobacco, or controlled substances (except for licensed pharmacies) isn’t allowed." Taking this literally, is an amphetamine an illegal drug? It’s a clas…

It's not illegal, it is perfectly legal, but like driving a car you need to go through a process for it that not everyone can clear.

For example, if you have issues staying awake from narcolepsy it's possible to legally obtain amphetamines, and our society generally accepts this to be a good thing.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#293

Post by jethro_tell »

drivingmenuts wrote: post #235
bserge wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[Sorry, I'm a bit hyped up at the moment] This is all ridiculous and I don't like where we're headed as a society.

There are lots of software that I won’t touch simply because if I ever had to explain the name, I would immediately be put on the defensive, regardless of how useful they may be. It’s a conversation that would waste my time. Similarly, I would avoid naming something potentially weird or offensively for much the same reason, no matter how appropriate or funny it might seem at the time. While rebranding might be a pain…

I'd set up a mastadoon server but I don't want to tell my friends to check out my toots.

Hehe your fucking five, but then it just gets annoying.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#294

Post by dempseye »

Angostura wrote: post #226
tgsovlerkhgsel wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They kind of have a point They don't (the claim is the app promotes drug use, which it doesn't), and it's quite likely that it's a reviewer mistake that will be overturned once the stink on social media gets big enough to reach the right person.

> the claim is the app promotes drug use, which it doesn't You don't think it could reinforce the idea that Amphetamines could be a useful tool to preserve wakefulness?

They are. Militaries around the world agree. So do doctors who prescribe them for narcolepsy and other disorders. I think it is a good name.

The fact remains that in most places amphetamines are an illegal drug when acquired without a prescription.

I think he should just rebrand. A name change is not a big deal, given the app has low name recognition in the first place. News of the rebrand will be the first Google result for people who are unaware of it.

Apple holds all the cards here. There is little to be gained if he wins, and if he loses he will have to rebrand anyway after much wasted effort.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#295

Post by floatingatoll »

matsemann wrote: post #141
floatingatoll wrote: post #92

I couldn’t have guessed the purpose of the app from this name, and now that I know what it does, I would specifically avoid giving money to it due the name alone. I’m glad someone made an alternative to Caffeine.app but “they’re both drugs” doesn’t weaken my personal objection to the choice of name. I am glad that Apple is compelling the name to be changed, and I hope the author complies. This is where “universal fre…

Why should your "personal objection" be a reason for someone else to change? You do you and choose an app based on naming if you want, but don't go pushing your puritan views on everyone else.

My personal objection is shared by others, unpalatable as that may be to some. Thankfully, my celebration of this outcome is wholly irrelevant to Apple's decision-making process, as I neither work for Apple, influence Apple, nor participate in any app store review processes on behalf of Apple, or any other either. So you may take comfort that had I exerted any effort to push my view — which I haven't — it would have meant just as much to the outcome as our discussion here in this thread: Absolutely nothing whatsoever.

Demeaning me with the phrase "pushing your puritan views" is is tasteless and inappropriate, and makes incorrect assumptions not only about the root of my objection but also about the belief systems surrounding it. You are wrong about both.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#296

Post by smnrchrds »

incongruity wrote: post #252
smnrchrds wrote: post #234

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aren't HOAs widely hated?

As are dentist visits and prostate exams - but even those things ultimately add value. HOA’s arguably do so as well even if they’re often hated.

But do most people consider them as such, i.e. painful but necessary/beneficial? My understanding was that they are widely regarded as parasitic organizations full of busybodies who are there to advance their personal agenda and to feel a sense of power over people at the expense of all the reasonable people who just want to live their lives; they are considered the polar opposite of live and let live.

I personally have never dealt with an HOA, so my understanding of their popularity is shaped solely by what I have read online. I must say your comment is the only one I have ever seen that has put them in a positive light.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#297

Post by jkmcf »

smnrchrds wrote: post #234
warent wrote: post #219

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my mind maybe this is something like an HOA. Sure, your friends might love your house parties, but your neighbors have to deal with the consequences

Aren't HOAs widely hated?

The HOA stereotype definitely is, but all HOAs are not the same. My HOA is generally hands off but you do need to ask permission for structural or cosmetic changes -- the neighborhood doesn't want to look like an amusement park. But, no one is going around measuring the height of your grass or other overly strict things I've read about.

However, I did just get a nasty gram to take down my political "Giant Meteor for 2020 - just end it already" yard sign.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#298

Post by webmobdev »

freehunter wrote: post #279
bambax wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I’m not offended by the word “fuck” but I don’t really want to buy products that are named that. Then don't. How is this relevant? They say the app has been downloaded 500,000 times, so many people are fine with the name. These stories keep coming; they should remind us that nothing is more precious than the open web, and all those stores or walled gardens, their "rules" and vague TOS are the ennemy.

I download and use the app despite the name. I’m not okay with it, but I need the features it offers and there isn’t a better alternative with a better name. There used to be (called Caffeine) but it disappeared from the store and I’m not sure why. Just because people use the app doesn’t mean they like the name.

But do you believe Apple should be the ultimate arbitrator of such silly things like the name of an app you create?

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#299

Post by Technically »

wasdfff wrote: post #237
rgovostes wrote: post #25

Well-written argument for the app reviewers to get bent, especially the highlighted examples of other apps that show the rule is clearly applied inconsistently. Apple's App Store moderation is embarrassing. They routinely fail to catch harmful junk—I've shut down a few top-grossing bogus antivirus apps for Mac, and the publisher of Untitled Goose Game routinely posts screenshots of clones that are trying to make mone…

It seems like they just act when their PR team feels worried.

I imagine both the US and Chinese government have immense sway as well.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#300

Post by mcpherrinm »

freehunter wrote: post #279
bambax wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I’m not offended by the word “fuck” but I don’t really want to buy products that are named that. Then don't. How is this relevant? They say the app has been downloaded 500,000 times, so many people are fine with the name. These stories keep coming; they should remind us that nothing is more precious than the open web, and all those stores or walled gardens, their "rules" and vague TOS are the ennemy.

I download and use the app despite the name. I’m not okay with it, but I need the features it offers and there isn’t a better alternative with a better name. There used to be (called Caffeine) but it disappeared from the store and I’m not sure why. Just because people use the app doesn’t mean they like the name.

(edited due to inaccuracy)

There is a command line tool called caffeinate that ships with Mac OS. Maybe Apple didn’t like somebody using something so similar their system utility name.

Originally I thought it was the same name, so this seems much less likely now that they're merely similar.

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