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Comment by subract | Hacker News Reader

Big fan of what Framasoft is working on here. It’s a shame to see that (edit: iOS) App Store restrictions have prevented browsing any instances not on a pre-blessed list. That all but eliminates its usefulness to me as a self-hoster.

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There’s a plus sign in the top right corner where you can manually add the URL of any instance.

It’ll work as long as the instance is sufficiently recent. My instance is too old. Guess I have some motivation for upgrading my PeerTube server to latest version now :D

I missed that, you’re right! I got confused by the blog post saying they only allowed browsing an approved list - I didn’t realize sites could also be added manually.

It's another (tragic) example of why the App Store cannot persist in a free market. It's sad, but Apple would prefer that you download YouTube from their store instead of a healthy alternative on your own terms. They have no qualms abusing their double-standard for publishing when it hurts the little guy, which is as monopolistic as monopoly abuse gets.

Europe got it right. Crush the App Store, and you kill every maligned incentive with it. Only through natural competition will Apple be forced to finally respect their users.

There are dozens of successful, competitive Android app stores in nearly every country where Google Play is blocked.

In countries where Google Play is allowed, Google Play has a monopoly because of Google's illegal monopolistic contracts with manufacturers.

What effect do you think sideloading and alternate app stores on the iPhone might have?

Wasn't that list optional, though?

Wait the App Store won’t let you browse instances arbitrarily? That is such an absurd degree of control and censorship. We need regulations fast for these abusive megacorps.

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