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Comment by ddevault | Hacker News Reader

I'm very excited about the Digital Markets Act. Some things that excite me which are definitely in scope:

- Interopability between walled gardens like messenger apps

- Side-loading software on your devices

I'm also hoping that we see this specifically lead to the following:

- Installing your own operating system on any electronic device

- Third-party video games running on proprietary consoles without the vendor's approval

Also

- Less tech-savvy folks side loading viruses

Can’t wait for all the calls for help from my parents and friends. It’ll be just like the good old days.

Give them some credit, they are not as stupid as you think they are. All my relatives use Android and not a single one "side loaded a virus".

I bet Apple will include a switch (off by default) to allow side-loading. Less tech-savvy folks will not even know how to enable side-loading.

I agree, and I also feel we should stop using the term sideloading.

It has a very negative connotation, like you are doing something odd, out of the ordinary, unorthodox, even semi-forbidden.

In reality it's just: installing and running the software of your choice on a device you own.

Will it also lead to: Installing your own OS on your car's infotainment? Because that would be really interesting.

We have a Tesla and I hate that I can't run something like Android Auto on it without inferior web-based workarounds, so this would be pretty nice.