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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RE[2]: Then just switch notification off
by henderson101 on Tue 13th Nov 2012 11:57
in reply to "RE: Then just switch notification off"
Member since:2006-05-30
I'm sorry, but since at least iOS 6.0 (but possibly the last iOS 5.x release) every app you install will ask "Xxxx want to send you push notifications, accept?" or similar on first start up. At this point you are perfectly able to click "no". You therefore get no push notifications from that app ever.
iOS 6.0, open settings: Notifications is the second item in the second block on my phone. Clearly visible. The list of apps is pretty clear - "In notification centre", "Not in notification centre". All the user needs to know is what "Notification centre" is. You can argue all you want that the average user will know what that is, but Apple have it all over their product announcements, and so I don't think it is a stretch to believe that many non-techie users know/can work out what the term means from the context.
RE[3]: Then just switch notification off
by karunko on Tue 13th Nov 2012 12:23
in reply to "RE[2]: Then just switch notification off"
Member since:2008-10-28
I'm sorry, but since at least iOS 6.0 (but possibly the last iOS 5.x release) every app you install will ask "Xxxx want to send you push notifications, accept?" or similar on first start up. At this point you are perfectly able to click "no". You therefore get no push notifications from that app ever.
You are correct, yet you are missing the point.
As stated above (and by the linked post) according to section 5.6 of the App Store Review Guidelines "Apps cannot use Push Notifications to send advertising, promotions, or direct marketing of any kind”. It's as simple as that. At least in principle, that is.
RT.
Features
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.
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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
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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
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/24/13 22:24 UTC
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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.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/16/13 9:29 UTC
The day has finally come: Google has started shipping Google Glass to the lucky few early adopters. Now that it's shipping, Google has also unveiled a lot more about the API and the specifications of the device itself. While the company had already given out substantial details at earlier occasions, there are still a few surprises here.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/15/13 22:44 UTC
Almost exactly three years ago, I wrote about why OSNews was no longer OSNews: the alternative operating system scene had died, and OSNews, too, had to go with the times and move towards reporting on a new wave of operating systems - mobile, and all the repercussions that the explosion of smartphones and tablets have caused. Still, I was wondering something today: why aren't we seeing alternative operating systems on mobile?More Features »
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2008-10-28
The article says: "most non-technical users do not know that these settings exist, or don’t understand the settings if they do happen to stumble across them."
The fact that you can (and know how to) disable push notifications on a per app basis is not the point. The point is that the behaviour of these apps appears to be in violation of section 5.6 of the App Store Review Guidelines:
“5.6 Apps cannot use Push Notifications to send advertising, promotions, or direct marketing of any kind”
Still, these apps have been accepted and rest assured that they're not going to be removed, which means that that a curated app store doesn't automatically translate to quality apps and it's really a way to decide who gets invited to the party and who stays home.
RT.
Edited 2012-11-13 09:05 UTC