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By a wide margin the many different projects for an open source phone OS. From GrapheneOS to PostmarketOS, from Ubuntu Mobile to Plasma Mobile.
I am sick and tired of corporations telling me how I can use my phone. I am sick and tired of corporations deciding what apps I can install, from where, and what data they are allowed to collect. I am done with enshittification and the gradual disappearing of all useful information, either behind a paywall, or replaced by monetized content.
The last straw was when Google Maps decided to replace the "gas station on the route" feature that sent you to the cheapest gas station to some other logic it didn't disclose, but that stinks of affiliate preference.
Absolutely, fully agree here. An Open Source widely applicable phone OS would benefit millions of people. Possibly billions.
The frustrating part of this is how much of the smartphone world is dependent on companies playing along.
I have a Venmo business account I use from time to time. I tried to log in on it from my laptop yesterday to check my balance. I was met with this:
We used to complain that apps are just worse versions of websites, but increasingly, you're being forced to install an app just to do basic things.
Is there any way to guarantee every app will be available on a linux phone? We can grab APKs at the moment off sketchy websites, but I don't know how much longer that's going to work after Google kills sideloading.
Can you not just log in on a mobile browser in desktop only mode?
No. This is literally from a desktop browser. That feature is only available on the app.
Ugh. Fuck those people. That should be a crime.
It really sucks, but at least there are alternatives to venmo. I've heard that in Europe, you're require to have an app to show your Id or use the bank or some such.
Thoughts on GNU TALER??
Is it what we should all be using? What are its flaws and shortcomings?
I really dislike the name is the main thing.
Nah. In Europe, Venmo is just not a thing, because bank transfers are free and fast. IDs are a plastic card, just like almost everywhere else.
Banking apps are a bit more problematic, because most people (and probably banks, idk) prefer if you use those not just if you have a smartphone and want to do banking on it, but also as a second factor for when you want to log in on your desktop.
There's plenty of alternatives (TAN readers, for example), but none as simple or seamless, unfortunately. But bank websites are fully featured (and usually more so than the app, actually).
You use an IBAN to send money. Yeah technically it's your bank, but it's a digital transfer without a middleman.
You can even put notes on it to pay invoices.
atm, if you're using Waydroid, you can use Aurora Store/ Droid. No shady websites needed!
Let alone open source!
Same!!!!
Can someone ELI5, why the phone landscape is so different from PCs? Why can I take a Linux iso and install it on basically any x86 pc from the last 25 years, but if I want to install anything on my phone, I need an image specially tailored for my specific model.
PCs have a BIOS/UEFI that provides hardware discovery and abstraction to the OS, while phones lack that and need the OS to know what hardware to expect.
20 years ago when the predecessors to modern smartphone hardware were being designed, there probably would have been meaningful costs to adding that kind of flexibility. There probably wouldn't today, but there's also no motivation for phone makers to do it.
Thoughts on /e/OS? Been thinking of giving fairphone 6 a go.
/e/OS is just another android rom, and unlike calyxOS or grapheneOS, /e/OS isn't very privacy focused. There's some weird stuff regarding a hidden "license id" and some of their services rely in openAI. You might as well just use a "real" privacy-first android rom if you're trying to get away from tech giants, their tracking and closed source software.
That's interesting. Where can I learn more about the lack of safety features and the connection to OpenAI? Seems pretty surprising, especially considering they tout safety and data privacy as their primary selling point.
My main source regarding the privacy/security stuff is this blog (in German). To be clear, /e/ isn't bad on that front, the alternatives are just better.
You can read mode on the OpenAI integration in the /e/OS forums and the fairphone forums.
Interesting stuff, thanks for sharing! Definitely concerning, especially the openAI stuff. I guess I will take a look at grapheneOS again, but I just hate the idea that I need to buy a google product in order to use it.
CalyxOS development is paused right now but it's still available and campatible with more devices. I wouldn't recommend a currently unsupported OS but personally I'm still using it on my Pixel 7a. I had some google integration issues in GrapheneOS, plus I prefer the focus on privacy instead of security.