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I can download an APK from anywhere. Out of curiosity, do you (or any Android users reading this) find yourself doing this with any frequency?

by GHFigs 16y ago

thwarted 16y ago
I'll often use the barcode reader app to read QR codes for apps, some of which take you to the market page, others are links directly to apk files.
jsankey 16y ago
I have indeed installed apps this way. I admit that most apps I've installed are from the market, although that's missing the point. Frequency doesn't matter as much as the actual ability to make the choice independent of Google (or indeed any single corporation). If you think this doesn't matter in practice, consider Apple vs Google Voice on the iPhone. Apple rejected (or "didn't approve") voice, leaving iPhone users with no way to access it. Users would be better off if Google could have hosted a Google Voice package external to the app market.
shill 16y ago
Only to keep SL4A updated. It hasn't made its way to the marketplace yet. http://code.google.com/p/android-scripting/ http://code.google.com/p/android-scripting/
Osiris 16y ago
I've done it for beta apps and some other things I've found on websites. Often there's a QR code to scan to download the file that's not in the market. Swype keyboard is an example of an app that's not in the market but can be installed via APK. For most users, it's not a big deal, but I think that's mostly because the Market has far fewer rules than the AppStore, so even apps that require root access can be uploaded to the Market.
slowpoison 16y ago
That's how I installed Fennec.
- nkassis 16y ago
  Same here, also couchdb and a few other apps I've found that were available as APK and o'reilly books.
harry 16y ago
Quite a bit.
biafra 16y ago
Yes. Last example: Angry Birds It wasn't in the Market at first. And many seem to do it since getjar.com was down some hours after Rovio announced via twitter that you could get it there. I host pre-beta versions of my Apps on my own servers and give friends (and their friends) access to it. This would be impossible with iOS. I would have to know and register the hardware IDs of all devices in advance.
steveklabnik 16y ago
I've never done it.

I can download an APK from anywhere. Out of curiosity, do you (or any Android users reading this) find yourself doing this with any frequency?

by GHFigs 16y ago

I can download an APK from anywhere. Out of curiosity, do you (or any Android users reading this) find yourself doing this with any frequency?

thwarted 16y ago

I'll often use the barcode reader app to read QR codes for apps, some of which take you to the market page, others are links directly to apk files.

jsankey 16y ago

I have indeed installed apps this way. I admit that most apps I've installed are from the market, although that's missing the point. Frequency doesn't matter as much as the actual ability to make the choice independent of Google (or indeed any single corporation). If you think this doesn't matter in practice, consider Apple vs Google Voice on the iPhone. Apple rejected (or "didn't approve") voice, leaving iPhone users with no way to access it. Users would be better off if Google could have hosted a Google Voice package external to the app market.

shill 16y ago

Only to keep SL4A updated. It hasn't made its way to the marketplace yet. http://code.google.com/p/android-scripting/ http://code.google.com/p/android-scripting/

Osiris 16y ago

I've done it for beta apps and some other things I've found on websites. Often there's a QR code to scan to download the file that's not in the market. Swype keyboard is an example of an app that's not in the market but can be installed via APK. For most users, it's not a big deal, but I think that's mostly because the Market has far fewer rules than the AppStore, so even apps that require root access can be uploaded to the Market.

slowpoison 16y ago

That's how I installed Fennec.

nkassis 16y ago
Same here, also couchdb and a few other apps I've found that were available as APK and o'reilly books.

harry 16y ago

Quite a bit.

biafra 16y ago

Yes. Last example: Angry Birds It wasn't in the Market at first. And many seem to do it since getjar.com was down some hours after Rovio announced via twitter that you could get it there. I host pre-beta versions of my Apps on my own servers and give friends (and their friends) access to it. This would be impossible with iOS. I would have to know and register the hardware IDs of all devices in advance.

steveklabnik 16y ago

I've never done it.