4 ms·

> I'd encourage you to reconsider. Apple could fix this issue. A few vigilantes can't Apple aren't going to fix the issue without it being a problem for them.

> I'd encourage you to reconsider. Apple could fix this issue. A few vigilantes can't Apple aren't going to fix the issue without it being a problem for them. I'm making it a problem by poisoning the review well in my own little way. I think this is a considered response - it's literally the only push-back that users have against the practice. My preferred outcome would be a complete ban on asking for reviews. Edit: my initial post was a bit abrasive, edited. But I'd like to end with a question: What's your preferred user response to the practice of seemingly every single app begging for reviews? An actual, actionable response. Two-star reviews? Three?

SomeCallMeTim 10y ago
>What's your preferred user response to the practice of seemingly every single app begging for reviews? An actual, actionable response. Complain to Apple for having a broken system, but don't hurt the developers of the very apps you're F-ing using. As OP said above, Apple could fix this issue. Maybe weight recent reviews more, but don't just wipe the history for every upgrade. The profound sense of entitlement that users express is really frustrating to app developers. We can either never ask for reviews and watch as 1 in 100 people EVER review our app (and THOSE reviews are skewed to the people who have a complaint, so the review average is typically crap), meaning that we barely get any downloads and can't actually make a living selling apps, or we can ask for reviews and have people complain with 1-star reviews because the app they continue using for free annoyed them once. And entirely because of Apple it needs to annoy them more than once in order to stay relevant. Here's what I'd love to do: Make it so that, if you rate an app 1-star, or even 2-stars, you can't use it any more. If you rate it that low and you still use it, you're lying to other users and harming the creator of the app that you're using for free. Give me a developer API to know what users rated the app how, and I'd implement that in a minute. People could still rate it 1-star if it sucked. Because if it sucked they wouldn't want to use it. Drop the review to 4 stars if you're annoyed by it, but know that the developers really, really have no choice. You're basically telling them to commit economic suicide for your minor convenience.
- jackvalentine 10y ago
  > that you're using for free Rude assumption. I always, as a matter of principle, buy the "remove ads" IAP if I use an app regularly. Even if I didn't it wasn't my choice to charge nothing for the app. That's on the developer. Apple doesn't owe you a living, I don't owe you a living. The state of the app store has been known for years now and you've had a long time to decline to participate. Your problems with Apple are not my problems as a user.
  - jclardy 10y ago
    They are user problems in a way, but indirectly. Without user reviews new apps are buried even when searched with exact names. So the exact app you need for a niche task will never be found in the first place. The only real solution is for Apple/Google to not wipe the slate every app update. You have to see the user benefit to that - apple right now literally has a direct disincentive to updating an app.
    - jackvalentine 10y ago
      > They are user problems in a way, but indirectly. Without user reviews new apps are buried even when searched with exact names. So the exact app you need for a niche task will never be found in the first place. So as a user my problem with Apple is that search is crappy. Is this best fixed by the search being improved or app developers begging for reviews? I'm sympathetic to developers for the problems of discoverability and customer support and think Apple could probably do a lot better for them. But by the same token I completely reject having it pushed back on to me via the annoying review popup every damn time I update something. I'll continue to express my displeasure with one-star reviews. > The only real solution is for Apple/Google to not wipe the slate every app update. As I understand it Google don't wipe reviews between versions, and this is still a problem.
    - SomeCallMeTim 10y ago
      Google doesn't wipe the slate, to my knowledge. Has that changed?
  - 10y ago

SomeCallMeTim 10y ago

>What's your preferred user response to the practice of seemingly every single app begging for reviews? An actual, actionable response. Complain to Apple for having a broken system, but don't hurt the developers of the very apps you're F-ing using. As OP said above, Apple could fix this issue. Maybe weight recent reviews more, but don't just wipe the history for every upgrade. The profound sense of entitlement that users express is really frustrating to app developers. We can either never ask for reviews and watch as 1 in 100 people EVER review our app (and THOSE reviews are skewed to the people who have a complaint, so the review average is typically crap), meaning that we barely get any downloads and can't actually make a living selling apps, or we can ask for reviews and have people complain with 1-star reviews because the app they continue using for free annoyed them once. And entirely because of Apple it needs to annoy them more than once in order to stay relevant. Here's what I'd love to do: Make it so that, if you rate an app 1-star, or even 2-stars, you can't use it any more. If you rate it that low and you still use it, you're lying to other users and harming the creator of the app that you're using for free. Give me a developer API to know what users rated the app how, and I'd implement that in a minute. People could still rate it 1-star if it sucked. Because if it sucked they wouldn't want to use it. Drop the review to 4 stars if you're annoyed by it, but know that the developers really, really have no choice. You're basically telling them to commit economic suicide for your minor convenience.

jackvalentine 10y ago
> that you're using for free Rude assumption. I always, as a matter of principle, buy the "remove ads" IAP if I use an app regularly. Even if I didn't it wasn't my choice to charge nothing for the app. That's on the developer. Apple doesn't owe you a living, I don't owe you a living. The state of the app store has been known for years now and you've had a long time to decline to participate. Your problems with Apple are not my problems as a user.
- jclardy 10y ago
  They are user problems in a way, but indirectly. Without user reviews new apps are buried even when searched with exact names. So the exact app you need for a niche task will never be found in the first place. The only real solution is for Apple/Google to not wipe the slate every app update. You have to see the user benefit to that - apple right now literally has a direct disincentive to updating an app.
  - jackvalentine 10y ago
    > They are user problems in a way, but indirectly. Without user reviews new apps are buried even when searched with exact names. So the exact app you need for a niche task will never be found in the first place. So as a user my problem with Apple is that search is crappy. Is this best fixed by the search being improved or app developers begging for reviews? I'm sympathetic to developers for the problems of discoverability and customer support and think Apple could probably do a lot better for them. But by the same token I completely reject having it pushed back on to me via the annoying review popup every damn time I update something. I'll continue to express my displeasure with one-star reviews. > The only real solution is for Apple/Google to not wipe the slate every app update. As I understand it Google don't wipe reviews between versions, and this is still a problem.
  - SomeCallMeTim 10y ago
    Google doesn't wipe the slate, to my knowledge. Has that changed?
- 10y ago