Why the hell does Android even exist anymore? | Hacker News Reader

Why the hell does Android even exist anymore?

fireborn.mataroa.blog

I've been thinking about what's keeping me on Android in recent years. For awhile it was things like swipe typing and USB-C, but those are gone. Then it was sideloading and a maps app that isn't garbage, both of which Google is trying their damnedest to eliminate.

I don't know what's left.

swipe typing is gone? Part of Gboard, use it every day

I think he meant that iPhones didn't have them, and they have both of those now.

Because since OpenMoko no one managed to make a phone that mainstream public feels like using, or the typical corporate developer feels like targeting, that is why.

I know right now there are some privacy-focused distros of Android, but it might be time to just have a fork that moves off in a different direction. I think the only way to have success is create a distro that is very friendly to developers. If you get enough devs creating software for the fork, you can start to get users. I imagine the fork would only be popular with enthusiasts and devs at first.

I think as per the article this couldn't be installed on Android devices though?

The people who decide platform support for major apps are usually business people, not developers. Businesses want control, which is toxic to the user. So, the only way for a new OS to get enough software support to get off the ground is to take away even more control and allow more abuses by app owners. If an OS has no user base and has pro user anti app owner security design, then very few app owners will provide apps. This problem applies both to android forks and novel systems.

> If you get enough devs creating software for the fork, you can start to get users.

Why would devs invest effort into developing for a new platform? You've hit the issue of bootstrapping two-sided markets

Most users don't know or care about this side-loading issue, and when they are informed about what it means, they definitely like the idea that the app can be traced to a real human who has been validated by their phone provider. Not having those things sounds like malware and hacking to them.

The reason for Android remains mostly same as ages ago: flexibility and customization without barriers. The countless things one can do without having to think twice about what workaround will be needed to go thru weird Apple hoops. Being about to do simple things like transfer files to a laptop without having to use any third party apps. Having a homescreen with just the icons you want and some added information and stuff without a ton of work, no problem (a third part launcher, acknowledged). If iOS isn't trying to stop you from finding a way with it's limited UI, there is always some other trick or workaround required to just go about your day doing things. With android for years now just never had to even run into any of that. Never a reason to switch.

Because these phones are cheaper.. I plan on using iOS in the future where I'm required to use government/banking apps, but I have to start saving money right now since iphones are considerably more expensive than low-end android phones.

You can get $25 iphones from old generations. Old iphones don't give status symbolism SK they're cheap

But they can't run recent iOS versions which are required for those banking apps.

Agree with every word of this. It's the open-ness that's kept me on Android all these years. I'm less of a phone-tinkerer than I was a decade ago, but I still use dozens of those side-project, non-commercial F-Droid / side-load apps all the time.

If (looks like when) I lose those, I'll be (sigh) buying an iPhone. There isn't any other point to Android, for me.

Yeah, this is exactly how I feel. I recently bought a new phone, and considered an iPhone for the first time. The sole reason I am still using Android is that so many of my favorite apps are only on F-droid. In my experience, open source software is far higher quality than the proprietary counterparts, but many of them are exclusively on F-droid.

I'll stay with GrapheneOS until they can get their paws on the updates and patches. Possibly 6+ more years. Then we'll see.

Same here, but I'm willing to try a Linux phone before buying an iPhone

i have said this for years, what the original Android team did was revolutionary until they got acquired by google. They should have stayed independent and licensed their software. Same with youtube it was technically a public entity by its purpose well before google acquired it, another reason it should have stayed independent.

How will the requirement affect alternative Android distributions like Lineage? Will they still be able to run unsigned apps?

Most likely yes.

https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/26337-android-developer-ver...

This is a necessary condition for CBDC goals (now being marketed as Stablecoins).

Why the hell does iOS even exist anymore? Android is useful precisely because it is not iOS. Yes it's useful even without side loading.

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