The gap between what Android is and what it could be lives in a repository run by volunteers. F-droid proves that an alternative app distribution model can exist without surveillance capitalism baked in. Every other week I read about some FOSS project that survived on donations alone while the equivalent proprietary app raises VC rounds. Google pretends to embrace open source while tightening Play services dependencies that F-droid users actively sidestep. Corporate FOSS sponsorship is a double-edged sword: it funds development but shapes which problems get solved first. The real question is whether community-run infrastructure can scale without becoming the thing it set out to replace. #FOSS #Privacy #Android #TechLiberation #OpenSource

  • Retail4068@lemmy.worldEnglish
    627·
    3 days ago

    Fdroid and the ecosystem are trash. They don’t have the manpower.

    Yes they have a good mission and I appreciate and use the work, but it’s grade A garbage compared to the ecosystem and functionality.

    Don’t conflate the two and accept the reality and get others to help fix it.

    • usernameunnecessary@lemmy.zipEnglish
      17·
      3 days ago

      I’ll take any app that isn’t polished, over any other app that serves more ads than actual useful content on its homepage and search results.

    • calm.like.a.bomb@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      11·
      3 days ago

      Ignore the f-droid app… consider the f-droid idea and check other clients, such as Droid-ify which are more polished. The idea is that f-droid is simplistic, won’t use your data and won’t show you tons of ads.

      • Retail4068@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        2 days ago

        I actually haven’t tried other clients. Maybe the default one is really just that broken 🤷‍♂️

      • ApertureUA@lemmy.todayEnglish
        3·
        3 days ago

        The actual F-Droid app (exl. the shit new v3 alpha) is the lightest one. It doesn’t require me to wait for loading anywhere.

    • undrwater@lemmy.worldEnglish
      2·
      2 days ago

      How are you defining “the ecosystem” in this context?

      F-droid is not “glossy commercial”, but in general that’s why it’s great.

      I agree it’s clunky, and could use a facelift, and a good UI redesign. I would never call it trash though. It’s far better than Play or App Store in terms of protecting the user.