Linked by Thom Holwerda on Mon 12th Nov 2012 23:01 UTC
"The abuse of push notifications is spreading across the App Store. As a result, users are starting to reflexively reject app requests to send push notifications. I always allow apps to send me push notifications, just so I can see what other app developers are doing. Here is a collection of valueless, invasive, and annoying push notifications that I've received recently." Perfect illustration of why one of the usual arguments for strongly curated application stores - quality control - is, as it stands now, pure nonsense. A decent quality control system would bar all these applications from the store. Similar stuff is going on in the Windows 8 application store: a never-ending stream of ugly, pointless crap nobody cares about. Heck, many of them do not even have a tile icon! The end result is that whether you go to Google Play or the App Store, 99.9% is crap. I would much rather have a very restrictive, quality-focussed store - but with an option to enable sideloading. The way application stores work today in no way leads to better quality applications than with plain-old internet distribution. In fact, I'd argue things have gotten worse, not better, due to application store spam.
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Member since:2010-06-09
You sadly have to blame the market somewhat, too. The number of "I don't buy apps" people I've come across is far more numerous than those that do. So while I too would prefer to shell out at least a few bucks to avoid adware, developers and publishers see me as the minority case.
Of course, I already get a bit leery about app stores. As a frequent user of open source software, I get a little antsy when I read the list of permissions apps want and know that no independent review has ever or can ever be done to ensure the app isn't abusing its allowances.
Member since:2005-11-29
I agree. I'd love to see clearer up front descriptions about the app in the Marketplaces.
At least on Windows this metadata is already available (for Advertising and In app Purchasing) so you can get a lot more descriptive than they currently are
"This app is paid + includes in app purchasing." or "This app is free + includes in app advertising"
Also, I'd love for a clear description on what upgrading from Trial does. This should be a hard requirement.
Features
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/21/13 21:38 UTC
At an event earlier today, Microsoft unveiled the next Xbox - the third model, but confusingly named Xbox One. The big focus was TV, integrated Kinect, and all the other stuff we all expected to be forced down our throats. I think it took them 25 minutes to actually come to what should be the core of the story: gaming. Nothing groundbreaking in the gaming department, except for how Microsoft intends to handle the used games market and borrowing games from friends: pay up, buddy!
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/20/13 11:29 UTC
The day has finally come! Jolla has finally announced the launch device for its Sailfish operating system - and by god this is a looker. It's decidedly different from other phones out there, but it has good specifications and carries a relatively reasonably price tag - EUR 399, and it's up for pre-order today, shipping in the fourth quarter of this year.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/18/13 21:33 UTC
Why does Google get so much credit in the technology industry? Why, despite the company's many obvious failings, do many geeks and enthusiasts still hold a somewhat positive view on the all-knowing technology giant? A specific talk at Google I/O this week provides the answer.
Linked by David Adams on 05/16/13 4:23 UTC
OSNews is a sponsor of this year's O'Reilly OSCON in Portland, Oregon, USA. A lucky OSNews reader will win a free three-day pass, including two tutorials days. To win the pass, post a comment on this story saying something about Open Source Software or OSCON. We'll pick a winner at random next week. If you don't have an OSNews account, you may email us your entry. Part of the conference is the 9th annual Open Source Awards, and today the 16th is the deadline for nominations. If you'd like to nominate an outstanding open source contributor, do it here. Read on for more information about OSCON. Update: The 20% discount code for OSNews readers is "OSN."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/11/13 21:41 UTC
"Windows is indeed slower than other operating systems in many scenarios, and the gap is worsening." That's one way to start an insider explanation of why Windows' performance isn't up to snuff. Written by someone who actually contributes code to the Windows NT kernel, the comment on Hacker News, later deleted but reposted with permission on Marc Bevand's blog, paints a very dreary picture of the state of Windows development. The root issue? Think of how Linux is developed, and you'll know the answer.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/08/13 14:22 UTC
This is one of those news items that's fun to write, fun to read, fun to comment on, and where no one will be able to say anything unkind. It's all just one big ball of awesome fluffiness. TuneTracker, the BeOS radio automation software, has just released something very special: TuneTracker System 5, the first version designed entirely and specifically for Haiku. In fact, it actually includes Haiku in the software package. Better yet, TuneTracker also unveiled several system-in-a-box products - which have Haiku and TuneTracker pre-installed.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/02/13 15:28 UTC
Exactly twenty years ago, a document was published that played a huge role in establishing the web as we know it today. Twenty years later, and this simple and straightforward document is proof of an irrefutable fact: while closed technologies can change markets, open technologies can change the world.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/29/13 21:06 UTC
Oh multitasking. That staple of computing that got thrown out the window with many modern smartphones. We got some rudimentary thing in its place - but even as multitasking on phone and tablets improves, its user-visible side remains cumbersome. Windows 8 has a neat implementation, and now it's time Android follows in it footsteps.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/24/13 22:24 UTC
They're here! Whether that excites you or not remains to be seen, but the Galaxy S4, which will most likely become the best selling Android smartphone of the year by a huge margin, has been reviewed by all the major sites, and there's lots of interesting conclusions in there - although I think most of you will get the gist.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/18/13 11:21 UTC
Nokia has posted its quarterly results for the first quarter of 2013, and just like the quarters that came before, there's not a whole lot of good news in there. The rise in Lumia sales still can't even dream of making up for the sales drop in Symbian phones, and when broken down in versions, the sales figures for Windows Phone 8 Lumias in particular are very disappointing. In North America, Nokia is getting slaughtered.More Features »
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Member since:
2005-11-13
Ya, pretty much. For me, rather than having a super-curated app store, I'd rather have one that is honest about whether the app is REALLY free or not.
Honestly, I don't mind paying for apps, but I hate downloading apps marked free, only to find that they're infected with adware, or you have to make an in-app purchase to get the full functionality. If it costs money, then just make me pay for the f**king thing up front, with a free trial preferable.
Point being, I blame app store vendors for a lot of this.