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Here's a healthy habit: whenever an app abuses notifications, revoke its permissions to grab your attention. At a minimum, disable notifications on the lockscre

by drdrey 9y ago

Here's a healthy habit: whenever an app abuses notifications, revoke its permissions to grab your attention. At a minimum, disable notifications on the lockscreen. Consider disabling banner alerts if they are too disruptive or distracting. Hide the app in a folder in a faraway screen to avoid being trapped by the little red dot badge.

ersh 9y ago
The first thing to do for any new app: go to settings and switch off all permissions.
- JeremyBanks 9y ago
  But then you lose the benefit from the apps that don't abuse them, defeating the purpose of the above post's suggestion.
  - ilyanep 9y ago
    I'm not the person you're replying to, but I'd rather make the active decision that I want notifications from an app than passively deciding an app is allowed to until it annoys me.
    - rileymat2 9y ago
      But how do you know if the notifications are helpful if you have not seen them from a responsible app?
      - sgc 9y ago
        A large part of them can be inferred from the app's purpose. I don't need notifications from a game, pdf viewer, or photo editor, but I want them from my email client.
cma 9y ago
It isn't notifications, but.. Google has now updated Chrome on Android to constantly spam news stories at you every time you open a tab ("Stories for you"). You can't turn it off through any UI accessible to normal users.
- jimmies 9y ago
  Then don't use Chrome. Disable it. Use Firefox focus.
  - zargon 9y ago
    Firefox (not Focus) recently gave me an ad for Pocket as a notification. Mozilla continues to disappoint me.
    - mirimir 9y ago
      But at least it lets you remove stuff from the toolbar.
    - zaarn 9y ago
      Firefox is IMO still a better choice than Chrome on Android at this point, Firefox Sync also makes it very convenient to send pages to and from Desktop. And of course the ability to install and use Addons like uMatrix to get even basic ad- and scriptblocking
  - Shikadi 9y ago
    Or Opera mobile, it's basically chrome with ad block and a different UI
    - selectodude 9y ago
      Opera Mini has some awful ridiculous newsfeed on it now, too.
      - te0006 9y ago
jimmies 9y ago
I just don't install apps at all. I have a stock message app, a signal app, that's pretty much all I use for communication. No facebook, no instagram, no snapchat, no whatsapp, no slack, no bullshit. I'm sick and tired of having to find fucking "life hacks" and run through hoops to be not disturbed. I started somewhat care less about notifications and emails and messages and whatnot. Unless people are in an urgency which I will reply, but normally I just reply whenever I am free. I'm not more productive, I just feel less attracted to the phone.
- metaobject 9y ago
  I prefer to do everything I can from my browser. I think it's silly to have apps for evey single facet of life. Every time I go to a news/shopping/etc website, it wants me to open/install their app. What is the advantage of having multiple news apps, multiple social network apps, multiple shopping apps over just using a browser?
  - scottLobster 9y ago
    Often the app's interface is simply better than the mobile website. If you do a lot on your phone, the extra convenience adds up.
    - sgc 9y ago
      Or it's a lot worse and missing functionality, which has been my experience the few times I gave a website app the benefit of the doubt and installed it. But they get a free ad on your app/home screen and a shot at stickier use, which is all they really care about. I too just use a browser at this point.
kerkeslager 9y ago
I don't have any notifications on the lock screen, period. And the things that get to alert on my top nav bar are few (emails and texts only).
- andrepd 9y ago
  A good rule of thumb I've read a couple days ago was: only allow notifications that come from other people. This means allow notifications for texts, emails, calls, but absolutely refuse to be badgered by a computer, e.g. a notification for a new feature in an app, or to tell you x people liked your picture, or whatever.
  - stephengillie 9y ago
    From the product side, the obvious move is to lump user and computer notifications. On the user side, what are our options?
    - sgc 9y ago
      You are perfectly describing Google's strategy with maps. Lump together traffic updates and "rate this place" (even though I didn't rate the last 100 times), to create as much all around disgust for your brand as possible.
      - gman99 9y ago
        If you have Android Oreo/8.x, most (all?) google apps (including Maps) allow you quite fine grained control over notification categories (so you can choose to have traffic updates and nothing else, if you wish) Notification categories is not exclusive to google apps, of course (OS level feature as long as your app targets Oreo), but their apps tend to give you very good control over what it shows you. So, I'd disagree strongly that this is a google "strategy". It's more a problem that their apps tend to have a lot of features crammed in. Of course, I don't know how this works on iOS (I'd be surprised if it's not in the settings somewhere? It's in their interest that you don't disable all app notifications)
wycy 9y ago
This is basically what I do. I'll grant any app notification privilege, but the very first time it sends me something stupid, it gets notifications turned off completely. Unfortunately most apps hit this point quickly.
dkarl 9y ago
I wish more people did this. There are apps that are designed to basically always have notifications, and people reward those apps by opening them ten times a day.
amriksohata 9y ago
Agreed kilit before it kills you

by drdrey 9y ago

ersh 9y ago

The first thing to do for any new app: go to settings and switch off all permissions.

JeremyBanks 9y ago
But then you lose the benefit from the apps that don't abuse them, defeating the purpose of the above post's suggestion.
- ilyanep 9y ago
  I'm not the person you're replying to, but I'd rather make the active decision that I want notifications from an app than passively deciding an app is allowed to until it annoys me.
  - rileymat2 9y ago
    But how do you know if the notifications are helpful if you have not seen them from a responsible app?
    - sgc 9y ago
      A large part of them can be inferred from the app's purpose. I don't need notifications from a game, pdf viewer, or photo editor, but I want them from my email client.

cma 9y ago

It isn't notifications, but.. Google has now updated Chrome on Android to constantly spam news stories at you every time you open a tab ("Stories for you"). You can't turn it off through any UI accessible to normal users.

jimmies 9y ago
Then don't use Chrome. Disable it. Use Firefox focus.
- zargon 9y ago
  Firefox (not Focus) recently gave me an ad for Pocket as a notification. Mozilla continues to disappoint me.
  - mirimir 9y ago
    But at least it lets you remove stuff from the toolbar.
  - zaarn 9y ago
    Firefox is IMO still a better choice than Chrome on Android at this point, Firefox Sync also makes it very convenient to send pages to and from Desktop. And of course the ability to install and use Addons like uMatrix to get even basic ad- and scriptblocking
- Shikadi 9y ago
  Or Opera mobile, it's basically chrome with ad block and a different UI
  - selectodude 9y ago
    Opera Mini has some awful ridiculous newsfeed on it now, too.
    - te0006 9y ago

jimmies 9y ago

I just don't install apps at all. I have a stock message app, a signal app, that's pretty much all I use for communication. No facebook, no instagram, no snapchat, no whatsapp, no slack, no bullshit. I'm sick and tired of having to find fucking "life hacks" and run through hoops to be not disturbed. I started somewhat care less about notifications and emails and messages and whatnot. Unless people are in an urgency which I will reply, but normally I just reply whenever I am free. I'm not more productive, I just feel less attracted to the phone.

metaobject 9y ago
I prefer to do everything I can from my browser. I think it's silly to have apps for evey single facet of life. Every time I go to a news/shopping/etc website, it wants me to open/install their app. What is the advantage of having multiple news apps, multiple social network apps, multiple shopping apps over just using a browser?
- scottLobster 9y ago
  Often the app's interface is simply better than the mobile website. If you do a lot on your phone, the extra convenience adds up.
  - sgc 9y ago
    Or it's a lot worse and missing functionality, which has been my experience the few times I gave a website app the benefit of the doubt and installed it. But they get a free ad on your app/home screen and a shot at stickier use, which is all they really care about. I too just use a browser at this point.

kerkeslager 9y ago

I don't have any notifications on the lock screen, period. And the things that get to alert on my top nav bar are few (emails and texts only).

andrepd 9y ago
A good rule of thumb I've read a couple days ago was: only allow notifications that come from other people. This means allow notifications for texts, emails, calls, but absolutely refuse to be badgered by a computer, e.g. a notification for a new feature in an app, or to tell you x people liked your picture, or whatever.
- stephengillie 9y ago
  From the product side, the obvious move is to lump user and computer notifications. On the user side, what are our options?
  - sgc 9y ago
    You are perfectly describing Google's strategy with maps. Lump together traffic updates and "rate this place" (even though I didn't rate the last 100 times), to create as much all around disgust for your brand as possible.
    - gman99 9y ago
      If you have Android Oreo/8.x, most (all?) google apps (including Maps) allow you quite fine grained control over notification categories (so you can choose to have traffic updates and nothing else, if you wish) Notification categories is not exclusive to google apps, of course (OS level feature as long as your app targets Oreo), but their apps tend to give you very good control over what it shows you. So, I'd disagree strongly that this is a google "strategy". It's more a problem that their apps tend to have a lot of features crammed in. Of course, I don't know how this works on iOS (I'd be surprised if it's not in the settings somewhere? It's in their interest that you don't disable all app notifications)

wycy 9y ago

This is basically what I do. I'll grant any app notification privilege, but the very first time it sends me something stupid, it gets notifications turned off completely. Unfortunately most apps hit this point quickly.

dkarl 9y ago

I wish more people did this. There are apps that are designed to basically always have notifications, and people reward those apps by opening them ten times a day.

amriksohata 9y ago

Agreed kilit before it kills you