Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Do not download the app, use the website

idiallo.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

721–730 of 760 posts

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#721

Post by owebmaster »

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.

You already can do that with Firefox. When you start playing something, lock the device and turn on the screen it shows media controls and you can listen to the audio. It works for youtube, for example.

Meaning the Web App experience is actually better than the native app

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#722

Post by owebmaster »

ryao wrote: post #32
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.

I have done this to videos on my iPhone using extensions called baking soda and vinegar. I then put the video into Picture in Picture mode, turn off the phone, turn it on, press the play button and turn it off again, with the audio still playing. It is not as convenient as the YouTube application, but I cannot copy and paste text from paused videos in the YouTube application or in YouTube comments either.

It works without extensions in Firefox + Android doing exactly the same thing (besides the picture in picture mode).

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#724

Post by owebmaster »

SJC_Hacker wrote: post #707
everyone wrote: post #548

Asking as a software dev, is is better to have a website or an app? I would just assume that a website is better for getting new users cus of the lower bar to entry, theres no install, a lot of peoples phones are full. Also you can go from QRcode or clicking 1 link directly to the app. Whereas with an app, you have a link or QRcode that goes to the correct store, then install on the store, and then open. I get that a…

You can write your app in Flutter and target both at the same time. Even a desktop-native version if you want :-)

Flutter is on its way to Google Graveyard tho

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#725

Post by trinsic2 »

W3zzy wrote: post #460
tgsovlerkhgsel wrote: post #396

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My guess would be that it's because (as the above poster says) "app users are much more engaged than website users" and only "half our" moved without nudging - the sites would like more engagement from all users. That said, the harder you "nudge" me, the more I want to avoid the app and the whole business . Especially if you have any other dark patterns - I will assume you want me to download your app just so you can…

My wife and daughter seem to be very receptive to dark patterns. It's about education and understanding but you also need to care. They don't. Alas.

Same here. I did spark some interest in my family when I sent them this UI Test [0]

We talked about it on hacker h news awhile back[1]

[0]: https://games.productartistry.com/games/dark-patterns

[1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42737778

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#726

Post by singpolyma3 »

judah wrote: post #380
singpolyma3 wrote: post #219

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not apple lover, but safari support for PWAs is pretty good. What do you think is missing?

I work on PWABuilder, Microsoft's open source dev tool that packages PWAs for app stores. I can say with certainty Apple has been hostile to PWAs. Unlike Google Play and Microsoft Store, iOS App Store doesn't allow publishing PWAs. (You instead have to build a native web view app to load your PWA.) And many of the PWA features just don't work on mobile Safari.

Which "many" features don't work?

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#727

Post by W3zzy »

distances wrote: post #679
W3zzy wrote: post #669

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You need to update the app on your device. That's automated for a lot of users but not all. A web app should be maintained by the developers and should be updated to the latest stable version at all times. A web app shouldn't depend on your OS either so it would also run on OS'es that aren't supported anymore.

That's fair, but the number of people who don't have automatic app updates is clearly miniscule, not really relevant for this consideration. I do grant that web is likely more up to date. But only because they can ship immediately, without the app store review process. Technically web could also be slower to release, nothing guarantees web freshness.

It's old stats and - coming from Android authority - the response group is literate when it comes to Android phones but from their 2020 survey 35% claimed to have auto updates of.

https://www.androidauthority.com/auto-update-apps-google-pla...

Then, on a worldwide scale, you can see that a lot of people are running unsupported Android versions.

https://gs.statcounter.com/os-version-market-share/android

Yes, there is no guarantee they a web app is more secure or up to date but tge likelyhood is far greater as it's a developer's responsibility and not the end consumer.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#728

Post by frollogaston »

Mehuleo wrote: post #270

I think for companies, the main advantage of an app is the opportunity for uncontrolled data ab/use. Let me explain. Say you order food online — you’d want a notification to update you, instead of having to manually refresh a webpage. So you prefer using the app. But what’s the guarantee the company won’t also send you marketing notifications? You give contact permission to access just one contact, but what’s stoppin…

It's more the other way around. If the app is on iPhone app store or maybe Google Play, they have rules to follow. Either way you have to accept push notifications, so if you do, nothing stops the website from spamming with those. Most users also won't automatically know how to disable push for a particular website, unlike an app where they just delete it worst case.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#729

Post by frollogaston »

WWLink wrote: post #331
Mehuleo wrote: post #270

I think for companies, the main advantage of an app is the opportunity for uncontrolled data ab/use. Let me explain. Say you order food online — you’d want a notification to update you, instead of having to manually refresh a webpage. So you prefer using the app. But what’s the guarantee the company won’t also send you marketing notifications? You give contact permission to access just one contact, but what’s stoppin…

> Say you order food online — you’d want a notification to update you, instead of having to manually refresh a webpage Browsers have a notification feature where websites can send you notifications, and it's usually enabled by default.

It has to ask for permission for that

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#730

Post by dylan604 »

charcircuit wrote: post #682
thfuran wrote: post #503

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then what was your claim?

That the mobile app is providing value to people. So companies paying to make the app are also providing value to people.

if the website already provides the value, there is no need for the app. instead, they cripple the website to push people to the app. why? it is more profitable for the company because of the data they can get from the app. doesn't matter if the UX is worse for the user. they only need to make it just usable enough
Post reply on HN