Google is a mess. Really sad to see they're doubling down even further on invading user privacy, never mind the encryption that isn't even enabled by default. Pathetic.
Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
331–340 of 543 posts
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#332The useless predictive reply stuff makes it feel more like a tech demo than an actual product. Why on Earth would I want a machine actually expressing sentiment for me, even if it's really cool that it can?
> Why on Earth would I want a machine actually expressing sentiment for me, even if it's really cool that it can?
My old 'phone came with a bunch of pre-prepared SMS messages to make replies quicker, like "OK", "Sorry, can't talk now", etc.
One of them was "I love you too".
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#333Not sure how common this is, but everyone at both school and work these days shifts seamlessly from mobile to dekstop and back. This has been one of the main reasons we tend to use WhatsApp and Slack, even for corporate communications as silly as that sounds -- because you can type long messages on it on the keyboard/desktop but also have access to it on the go. What I don't understand is -- given Allo had a blank sl…
People keep saying mobile is the future, however, I just can't imagine desktops leaving us anytime soon. If I'm on the go, then sure I want it on my mobile device, but 99% of the time when I'm at work I want quick and easy access either through an app or the browser on my desktop. If a service I use doesn't have a desktop app, then it likely won't receive any of my attention until I'm out of the office.
Either you are misinterpreting those people, or they are wrong. The point is we were doing 100% of everything on desktop. However it turns out mobile is a better platform for >50% of tasks, that's why it's king.
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#334Boo. All the shiny bells-and-whistles in the world aren't going to cover the fact that this should be end-to-end by default. I suspect at least some of the folks working on it feel this way too, so I imagine it's really shitty for some of them to have it work this way. If WhatsApp is already end-to-end by default there's no reason at all that a new app trying to enter that already saturated space shouldn't be. Sincer…
If it were end-to-end encrypted by default, how would Google Assistant work?
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#335Earlier quoted context omitted.
This is exactly why so many of my friends and family use Hangouts née Gmail Chat. We can use it in the browser at work just by keeping Gmail open in a tab. No IM applications to install or concerns about whether we're running Windows, OSX, or whatever. Then the conversations follow when you log off whatever desktop or laptop you're on via the mobile app. About half of us use Android so it either comes standard or you…
My lord, why isn't Allo just Hangouts 3? They had an established userbase, a name, a brand, and useful cross-platform tools already. I get the desire to start fresh, but that's a lot of established traction in a very crowded market to just throw away.
That is what I think also.
One possible explanation: internally Google eats their own dog food. When I was a contractor there, everything ran on gmail, gooogle docs, and hangouts. Perhaps they wanted something better for internal use, and now we get to use it also?
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#336Not sure how common this is, but everyone at both school and work these days shifts seamlessly from mobile to dekstop and back. This has been one of the main reasons we tend to use WhatsApp and Slack, even for corporate communications as silly as that sounds -- because you can type long messages on it on the keyboard/desktop but also have access to it on the go. What I don't understand is -- given Allo had a blank sl…
This is exactly why so many of my friends and family use Hangouts née Gmail Chat. We can use it in the browser at work just by keeping Gmail open in a tab. No IM applications to install or concerns about whether we're running Windows, OSX, or whatever. Then the conversations follow when you log off whatever desktop or laptop you're on via the mobile app. About half of us use Android so it either comes standard or you…
I use Google Voice for a second phone number on my iPhone and yeah, it worries me how little attention it seems to get.
It took Google forever to update it to match the iOS 7 "flat" look. And to this day it's missing a pretty obvious feature: search! Yes, there is no search functionality in the Google Voice app on iPhone. Apple's Messages and Facebook Messenger both have it.
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#337Earlier quoted context omitted.
Without brand it's hard to stand out in the crowded messaging space.
Honestly crap like this is devaluing their brand. At this point I have 0 faith that Google will stick to any of their random products (Google Wave, Buzz, Reader, Code, Google+) and therefore I avoid using them.
I really miss Google reader.
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#338Earlier quoted context omitted.
As much as people like a good conspiracy, that would be a pretty pointless one. There are tens of thousands people at google who could look at the source code, many of them with a left-wing/civil liberties attitude. To get all of them to stay silent, and to evade analysis of the binary is, if not impossible, simply not worth whatever they could get out of reading my messages (esp. considering their uninterrupted stre…
Yeah right. http://www.theverge.com/2016/9/21/12994362/allo-privacy-mess... "Allo messages will still be encrypted between the device and Google servers, and stored on servers using encryption that leaves the messages accessible to Google’s algorithms." [....] "The decision will also have significant consequences for law enforcement access to Allo messages. By default, Allo messages will now be accessible to lawful w…
> all non-incognito messages
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#339So now google has Voice, Messenger, Hangouts, Allo, and Duo all with overlapping functionality? I wish they would just focus on making Hangouts work really well.
There was a NYtimes article a few years ago, which I thought perfectly captured the fundamental difference between Apple and Google's product planning process. Apple runs on Intelligent Design. You have a room full of geniuses who decide what to build, make sure it fits perfectly into their overall product portfolio with minimal overlap or cannibalization, spend years in a dark secret room building it until it's perf…
The flip-side of the coin of "brand confusion" is the user's perspective of cognitive overload, technical frustration from UX churn, and being left behind after adopting a dead-end "product".
Re: Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app
#340Earlier quoted context omitted.
Google really has nailed usability with Duo. It's clean and fast and easy to use. The potential is there. If I was optimistic, I'd say their strategy will be to force their way into the market by integrating it into the OS via Contacts or maybe even lower. Of course Hangouts had potential too. And then Slack came along and ate their lunch on the business side. It's really kind of ridiculous that every single organiza…
Huh.. I had never looked at Duo and I scrolled down the landing page and saw "Preview incoming video calls before accepting them" and now I want FaceTime and Skype to immediately integrate that.. That's a killer feature..
Why? Are you going to decline calls based on the preview? How do you explain that to the other person?