Remember?
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Remember? "Sideloading" is here to stay, and won't go away, they said? Don't be afraid, they said? Something something "we heard you"? Suuuure! Who would ever doubt it!
Attached the copy of a mail developers with apps in the PlayStore CURRENTLY receive. Please, read the text in the red box carefully:
"Apps not registered by September 2026 WILL NO LONGER BE INSTALLABLE ON CERTIFIED ANDROID DEVICES in select countries."
See an exception there? I don't.
@IzzyOnDroid They pioneered this with me a year and a half ago. They locked me out of the "Play" [sic] store and made me unable to update my decade+-old app because I wouldn't give them a lock of my hair. https://jwz.org/b/ykcj
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@IzzyOnDroid And this is why I've turned off system updates on my Samsung and sticking with Android 15.
@webkitten TBH, and this is my personal voice here (though shared by some of our team for sure): this is one of the reasons I enjoy my SHIFT phone for. Android 15 (currently), no Google (by choice; they support two variants of their ShiftOS: with, or without Google – I've chosen the latter). And the libre ROM with full sopport from the device vendor
They support their community, at SHIFT 
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@IzzyOnDroid it's very disturbing that so many people took google announcing the "advanced flow" for "sideloading" apps as a victory
announce something extremely bad, then make the conditions a little better while not addressing your proposal's root problem, and the general sentiment becomes "welp, this is fine, it could be worse" instead of "we need to keep fighting because our activism is working"
so yeah, keep fighting, you do an amazing job
@synnef the thing is: that mail does not even mention the possibility of an "advanced flow" – it simply says "sign or die". As if it has been dropped again.
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Remember? "Sideloading" is here to stay, and won't go away, they said? Don't be afraid, they said? Something something "we heard you"? Suuuure! Who would ever doubt it!
Attached the copy of a mail developers with apps in the PlayStore CURRENTLY receive. Please, read the text in the red box carefully:
"Apps not registered by September 2026 WILL NO LONGER BE INSTALLABLE ON CERTIFIED ANDROID DEVICES in select countries."
See an exception there? I don't.
@IzzyOnDroid There are though.. but I agree this is not ideal at all for an "open" system. Apps will still be installable, whether you sideload or push from pc. There will just be pretty annoying hurdles to go the sideload route. Had me worried there!! My projects app folder was about to be deleted.
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@IzzyOnDroid so motorla is working to bring a @GrapheneOS device (as far i know). @jolla could be also been an alternative. My shity unrootable Nokia works, but if I can't install my apps anymore, my new device must be somthing with Graphene. I don't want an american controlled device without controll. Will fight against this decision, but if google don't allow sideloading I need something more secure.
@kasiandra There are more candidates even: Murena with /e/OS, @shiftphones with ShiftOS-L, and if I remember correctly, Fairphone also has several options. The Linux ones might catch up soon as well with mainstream readiness (thinking of postmarketOS here). Hopefully I forgot some more here, as there cannot be enough
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The option of "sideloading" without hassle, was years ago (and sofar) the argument for me to go to Android.
But looks like FDroid and alike stores do something right
so google wants to protect their market positions. 🤬@steppl by "alike stores" you mean @IzzyOnDroidOrg and others I guess? 🥰 Yes, I hope we're doing something right. We give our best!
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@webkitten TBH, and this is my personal voice here (though shared by some of our team for sure): this is one of the reasons I enjoy my SHIFT phone for. Android 15 (currently), no Google (by choice; they support two variants of their ShiftOS: with, or without Google – I've chosen the latter). And the libre ROM with full sopport from the device vendor
They support their community, at SHIFT @IzzyOnDroid I'm currently trying to debate whether or not to get a Pixel just to put GrapheneOS on it.
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@IzzyOnDroid They pioneered this with me a year and a half ago. They locked me out of the "Play" [sic] store and made me unable to update my decade+-old app because I wouldn't give them a lock of my hair. https://jwz.org/b/ykcj
@jwz luckily you know at least two places accepting you and your apps without doxxing you. We don't want your personal data – and I mean that: what we don't have, we cannot loose. We need to know it's really you? OK, there's always GPG & friends ("sign your commits"). But of what interest to us is your private data?
️ But then, we make no money with our "store". We do not sell ads (or data). We runs things because we love to do stuff with and for the community. Support is of course welcome -
Remember? "Sideloading" is here to stay, and won't go away, they said? Don't be afraid, they said? Something something "we heard you"? Suuuure! Who would ever doubt it!
Attached the copy of a mail developers with apps in the PlayStore CURRENTLY receive. Please, read the text in the red box carefully:
"Apps not registered by September 2026 WILL NO LONGER BE INSTALLABLE ON CERTIFIED ANDROID DEVICES in select countries."
See an exception there? I don't.
@IzzyOnDroid @neil Countries that are not the "Select Countries" is where the exception lives. The likely translation here is that consumers in a market without functioning consumer protection bodies / law will be the "Select Countries" where those apps can't be loaded.
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@niedlichenacktschnecke Google certified (i.e. "ships with GApps etc"). If you're running a libre ROM without GApps, you're liberated from that.
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Remember? "Sideloading" is here to stay, and won't go away, they said? Don't be afraid, they said? Something something "we heard you"? Suuuure! Who would ever doubt it!
Attached the copy of a mail developers with apps in the PlayStore CURRENTLY receive. Please, read the text in the red box carefully:
"Apps not registered by September 2026 WILL NO LONGER BE INSTALLABLE ON CERTIFIED ANDROID DEVICES in select countries."
See an exception there? I don't.
@IzzyOnDroid I've been on Android since the beginning, but that ends next time I'm buying a new phone.
"Don't be evil" silently disappeared ... -
@IzzyOnDroid@floss.social And because what? They want to have more control over Android akin to how Apple does with iOS? Google's pathetic.
Because google thinks we are morons. They think that we are not smart enough to use our devices responsibly. They also think we are stupid enough to buy their bullshit excuses.
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@synnef the thing is: that mail does not even mention the possibility of an "advanced flow" – it simply says "sign or die". As if it has been dropped again.
@IzzyOnDroid yeah that's weird, my first assumption is that it's just clever writing to scare developers into signing up for the verification program, because the advanced flow has already been clearly announced and explained
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@IzzyOnDroid I've been on Android since the beginning, but that ends next time I'm buying a new phone.
"Don't be evil" silently disappeared ...@Sir_Limpalot Just the first word disappeared, actually…
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@IzzyOnDroid yeah that's weird, my first assumption is that it's just clever writing to scare developers into signing up for the verification program, because the advanced flow has already been clearly announced and explained
@synnef If it has been clearly announced and explained, why isn't it even mentioned there in a footnote – but the opposite stated? I'd expect at least a small hint then. Instead, an absolute claim.
Honestly: if I bought something, it should be mine – and my decision how I deal with it. I don't need a sugar daddy watching me, and telling me how I should behave. If I want security measures, I want to choose them by my own terms, sorry.
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@Sir_Limpalot Just the first word disappeared, actually…
@IzzyOnDroid @Sir_Limpalot ... and not silently: they made an announcement when they decided to change their bye-line.
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@synnef If it has been clearly announced and explained, why isn't it even mentioned there in a footnote – but the opposite stated? I'd expect at least a small hint then. Instead, an absolute claim.
Honestly: if I bought something, it should be mine – and my decision how I deal with it. I don't need a sugar daddy watching me, and telling me how I should behave. If I want security measures, I want to choose them by my own terms, sorry.
@IzzyOnDroid @synnef They maybe omitted it to push as many developers as possible to do as they're told?
And I totally agree with you!
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@IzzyOnDroid @synnef They maybe omitted it to push as many developers as possible to do as they're told?
And I totally agree with you!
@Numerfolt Maybe they don't reach the "critical mass" fast enough?
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@Numerfolt Maybe they don't reach the "critical mass" fast enough?
@IzzyOnDroid True, if nobody did that, they couldnt implement it without loosing lots of money. I like the way you think
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@ki @IzzyOnDroid doesn't the same ruling still allow apple to require apps to be notarized, even if they are distributed on 3rd party app stores? this is basically the same.
@EdyBolos @ki @IzzyOnDroid I expect Google to just block "notarizing" for apps they don't like, like Apple recently blocked an app from third party stores, under the argument of "security": https://torrentfreak.com/apple-revokes-eu-distribution-rights-for-torrent-client-developer-left-in-the-dark/
