Poll: Switching from WhatsApp • Hacker News Board

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#541

Post by mschuetz » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:44 PM UTC

rglullis wrote: post #228

From the listed alternatives, only Matrix is the one that actually solves the issue of not having to trust our communications to any single monopolistic entity. You could add XMPP there as well, but it really doesn't matter. What does matter is for us to start pushing for openness and start evangelizing/helping others to adopt anything that puts us back in control of our communication. This is the one thing to fix, a…

Matrix, or at least Element, has terrible UX, though, and I'd never recommend it to my family. It opens three message boxes every single time I open the web client, and I can't disable these boxes permanently. Oh, and I have to login again every time because it doesn't remember logins.

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#542

Post by molszanski » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:44 PM UTC

Telegram seems to have the best client applications for all platforms. Very fast, very light, low memory footprint. Personally, this is my favorite of all the messaging apps / clients I've used

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#543

Post by pmlnr » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:44 PM UTC

ValentineC wrote: post #235

dustinmoris wrote: post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You uninstall WhatsApp and tell your closest family and friends that they can only reach you on Signal. Because you are so important to them, they will install Signal as a backup/secondary app. Other people will do the same, and it will snowball into everyone having Signal installed and at some point people will realise that the network effect is gone.

> You uninstall WhatsApp and tell your closest family and friends that they can only reach you on Signal. Because you are so important to them, they will install Signal as a backup/secondary app. I'll be the one friend that'll insist on SMS/email. I’ll even offer to use some other supposedly encrypted method like Keybase or Matrix. If that doesn't work as a fallback, then I guess we can agree to disagree, and someone…

> I refuse to use Signal because it doesn't offer chat sync

Install Pidgin with signald ;)

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#544

Post by TheRealSteel » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:44 PM UTC

agd wrote: post #530

apexalpha wrote: post #155

Where is the "Don't switch" option? Because as much as I hate that Facebook bought them, they're part of what I would call "critical social infrastructure." Asking to leave WhatsApp is like cancelling your contract with your ISP and going offline just because you don't like the company.

> Critical social infrastructure At least for the UK, this is not at all the case. It’s perfectly feasible to socialise and do business without going anywhere near WhatsApp.

I live in the UK and this is absolutely 100% not true, you cannot function in society here without WhatsApp. In Australia the same is true for Facebook. In every country there's something, and almost all of them outside China are owned by Facebook.

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#545

Post by ha1zum » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:44 PM UTC

jbotz wrote: post #283

apexalpha wrote: post #155

Where is the "Don't switch" option? Because as much as I hate that Facebook bought them, they're part of what I would call "critical social infrastructure." Asking to leave WhatsApp is like cancelling your contract with your ISP and going offline just because you don't like the company.

Well, I don't know where parent is located, but here in Brazil they are pretty much right. Everybody has WhatsApp... it's assumed that if you have a phone you have WhatsApp. A lot of financial transactions are conducted by doing a bank transfer and then sending the receipt via WhatsApp. The schools send essential messages to parents via WhatsApp. During lockdowns, stores were taking delivery orders via WhatsApp. What…

Indonesia is almost like that as well. Whatsapp has replaced SMS almost everywhere.

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#546

Post by behnamoh » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:44 PM UTC

jbotz wrote: post #283

apexalpha wrote: post #155

Where is the "Don't switch" option? Because as much as I hate that Facebook bought them, they're part of what I would call "critical social infrastructure." Asking to leave WhatsApp is like cancelling your contract with your ISP and going offline just because you don't like the company.

Well, I don't know where parent is located, but here in Brazil they are pretty much right. Everybody has WhatsApp... it's assumed that if you have a phone you have WhatsApp. A lot of financial transactions are conducted by doing a bank transfer and then sending the receipt via WhatsApp. The schools send essential messages to parents via WhatsApp. During lockdowns, stores were taking delivery orders via WhatsApp. What…

> When I delete my account I'm going to lose old conversations, but that doesn't bother me anymore because I already recently lost them once when I switched from Android to iOS... WhatsApp has no way of keeping your history in that case.

This is a huge issue which I've had to come to grips with as well. I use both Telegram and WhatsApp (among other things) and I can't believe WhatsApp and Messenger, despite being supported by a FAANG such as FB, fall short on features - including the one you mentioned - whereas Telegram, a much smaller firm has been able to constantly provide useful features at a reasonable rate (not so fast and not so slow, so that users have time to adapt to changes).

Right now I cannot use Telegram that much because my network is all on WhatsApp and Messenger, but I do miss the good features such as being able to transfer all chats to other devices and use a desktop client without having to authorize it every single time (WhatsApp sucks at this...), literally send/receive any file format and being able to send messages to yourself - which acted as a private __cloud__. I think the fact that Telegram is moving towards ads could actually be a good signal that their main revenue is going to depend on ads, and not so much on selling users' data, but we shall see.

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#547

Post by TinkersW » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:44 PM UTC

I use signal and ~like it, but I do wish it didn't require a phone #, and tie everything to that #, when I switched phones I had to make a new signal account & make new group chat rooms.

Also signal needs group video chats..

I've never used WhatsApp so I don't know what is so special that so many people seem to use it.

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#548

Post by pbhjpbhj » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:44 PM UTC

rhacker wrote: post #537

fahadkhan wrote: post #345

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I find it interesting to that people don't use WhatsApp at all. Many posts here are claiming not using WhatsApp is impossible. Grandparent's experience demonstrate that it is.

I'm 41 and I have heard of whatsapp but I have never used it. Never heard of anyone else (that I know) using it. just anecdata for you. Edit: US - sorry I was just catching up on the rest of this giant thread and it looks like SE Asia S America are the main usage places.

Where do you live, not much data without that as a minimum.

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#549

Post by nicolas_t » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:45 PM UTC

kuriho wrote: post #417

Seb-C wrote: post #381

Here in Japan literally everyone uses LINE and it is far better than WhatsApp. Way more features, it's independent and the business model is sane and clear. I just switched my family to it, because that was the last reason for me to use WhatsApp. I'm sad not to se it as an option.

LINE seems to be the predominate messenger in all of Asia. I find it highly interesting to see even the Japanese rely on this Korean Plattform. Do they not fear a service blockage based on their countries political relationship?

It was created in Japan though by employees of Naver's Tokyo branch.

Re: Poll: Switching from WhatsApp

#550

Post by prytzie » Thu, Jan 07, 2021, 3:45 PM UTC

More and more companies are integrating with Whatsapp and building on the assumption that the majority has or will install it. And as they continue layering on the convenience of being a payments platform alongside Libra/Diem, it becomes another WeChat, and eventually you may require it to do everyday purchases, company interactions, bookings, etc. This is especially true in emerging/unbanked regions. Signal/Telegram/etc are focused on being messengers, while Whatsapp is part of a broader, increasingly indispensable platform and network, with social hooks. I worry the choice will be made for us as to whether we install it or not, since only a minority care about privacy.