6 ms·

The Librem 5 isn't designed for people who use WhatsApp. Signal and some other actually private messengers should work as they already have official Linux clien

The Librem 5 isn't designed for people who use WhatsApp. Signal and some other actually private messengers should work as they already have official Linux clients. That said I currently don't plan on buying it, simply because right now I'm not heavily relying on the phone. It is however the first phone released in the last ~5 years that I'd call interesting and unique.

comex 7y ago
In many regions, using WhatsApp is not really a choice.
- gregknicholson 7y ago
  This is one of the problems the Librem 5 is designed to solve.
  - Freak_NL 7y ago
    How? If you are stuck in one of the countries where more than 90% of citizens use WhatsApp, your choices are not to use WhatsApp, or to get an Android or IOS smartphone. Individuals might be willing to contact you via other channels, but group chats won't move to another platform unless you are dealing with people who actually care about their privacy. I don't use WhatsApp (can't use it due to not having an approved smartphone, and not wishing to accept Facebook's terms of use), and I miss things. Not a lot, and nothing critical, but my partner and I do miss out on some social things.
    - wolfgke 7y ago
      > How? If you are stuck in one of the countries where more than 90% of citizens use WhatsApp, your choices are not to use WhatsApp, or to get an Android or IOS smartphone. So you decide for the former.
      - Freak_NL 7y ago
        That is fine, but it doesn't answer the question how Librem is purportedly solving that problem.
        wolfgke 7y ago
        > That is fine, but it doesn't answer the question how Librem is purportedly solving that problem. By not supporting WhatsApp, it forces the user to solve the problem that he/she makes a very bad decision with respect to his/her privacy.
        Freak_NL 7y ago
        I fully support that approach, but this effectively means accepting that the majority uses a tool you cannot or will not use. Librem is never going to be in a position with sufficient market share to counter the network effect of WhatsApp in countries that are hooked on it. Hence my question in response to gregknicholson's statement: >> This is one of the problems the Librem 5 is designed to solve. > How?
        gregknicholson 7y ago
        By providing a coherent set of easy-to-use, privacy-respecting alternatives. It makes it easier for those who _want_ to switch, but don't have the confidence/skill/energy to figure everything out on their own. Similarly, Disroot made it easy to switch away from Google, by providing a complete (for my purposes) drop-in replacement; Ubuntu made it easy to switch from Windows.
- Tepix 7y ago
  There was life before WhatsApp. I can confirm there is life after WhatsApp. Join us.
pjmlp 7y ago
Quite right, but they still need enough buyers to stay in business, which looking how things in FOSS hardware and software business go, that isn't a guarantee.
- alpaca128 7y ago
  Purism already sells 2 Linux-only laptop models and seems to be fine. Smartphones are definitely a different market, but I think they have higher chances than most past attempts. They're actually selling something unique, which already makes it more interesting than e.g. the Ubuntu phones or FirefoxOS phones back then. And because in theory you could run anything that runs on Linux the app support problem isn't quite as extreme.
- wolfgke 7y ago
  > Quite right, but they still need enough buyers to stay in business, which looking how things in FOSS hardware and software business go, that isn't a guarantee. The problem rather is that many FOSS advocates are not willing to pay a multiple of the money (i.e. they do not put their money where their mouth is). If FOSS advocates were a very financially lucrative clientel, companies would care a lot more for them.
  - Crinus 7y ago
    This is because the vast majority of "FOSS advocates" are really "i dont want to pay for stuff" advocates - or to put it differently, what they like is the "Free as in beer" with the "Free as in speech" being a convenient excuse that also allows them to be preachy about their choice despite its shortcomings.
    - ahartmetz 7y ago
      All those people who work in IT / development etc and advocate FOSS, do you really think that they couldn't pay for commercial software if they wanted? I certainly could.
      - 7y ago
ubercow13 7y ago
Signal's Linux client uses Electron. I wonder how well it will work on a resource-constrained phone.
- hedora 7y ago
  Also, Linux signal was missing video chat support the last time I tried it.

comex 7y ago

In many regions, using WhatsApp is not really a choice.

gregknicholson 7y ago
This is one of the problems the Librem 5 is designed to solve.
- Freak_NL 7y ago
  How? If you are stuck in one of the countries where more than 90% of citizens use WhatsApp, your choices are not to use WhatsApp, or to get an Android or IOS smartphone. Individuals might be willing to contact you via other channels, but group chats won't move to another platform unless you are dealing with people who actually care about their privacy. I don't use WhatsApp (can't use it due to not having an approved smartphone, and not wishing to accept Facebook's terms of use), and I miss things. Not a lot, and nothing critical, but my partner and I do miss out on some social things.
  - wolfgke 7y ago
    > How? If you are stuck in one of the countries where more than 90% of citizens use WhatsApp, your choices are not to use WhatsApp, or to get an Android or IOS smartphone. So you decide for the former.
    - Freak_NL 7y ago
      That is fine, but it doesn't answer the question how Librem is purportedly solving that problem.
      - wolfgke 7y ago
        > That is fine, but it doesn't answer the question how Librem is purportedly solving that problem. By not supporting WhatsApp, it forces the user to solve the problem that he/she makes a very bad decision with respect to his/her privacy.
        Freak_NL 7y ago
        I fully support that approach, but this effectively means accepting that the majority uses a tool you cannot or will not use. Librem is never going to be in a position with sufficient market share to counter the network effect of WhatsApp in countries that are hooked on it. Hence my question in response to gregknicholson's statement: >> This is one of the problems the Librem 5 is designed to solve. > How?
        gregknicholson 7y ago
        By providing a coherent set of easy-to-use, privacy-respecting alternatives. It makes it easier for those who _want_ to switch, but don't have the confidence/skill/energy to figure everything out on their own. Similarly, Disroot made it easy to switch away from Google, by providing a complete (for my purposes) drop-in replacement; Ubuntu made it easy to switch from Windows.
Tepix 7y ago
There was life before WhatsApp. I can confirm there is life after WhatsApp. Join us.

pjmlp 7y ago

Quite right, but they still need enough buyers to stay in business, which looking how things in FOSS hardware and software business go, that isn't a guarantee.

alpaca128 7y ago
Purism already sells 2 Linux-only laptop models and seems to be fine. Smartphones are definitely a different market, but I think they have higher chances than most past attempts. They're actually selling something unique, which already makes it more interesting than e.g. the Ubuntu phones or FirefoxOS phones back then. And because in theory you could run anything that runs on Linux the app support problem isn't quite as extreme.
wolfgke 7y ago
> Quite right, but they still need enough buyers to stay in business, which looking how things in FOSS hardware and software business go, that isn't a guarantee. The problem rather is that many FOSS advocates are not willing to pay a multiple of the money (i.e. they do not put their money where their mouth is). If FOSS advocates were a very financially lucrative clientel, companies would care a lot more for them.
- Crinus 7y ago
  This is because the vast majority of "FOSS advocates" are really "i dont want to pay for stuff" advocates - or to put it differently, what they like is the "Free as in beer" with the "Free as in speech" being a convenient excuse that also allows them to be preachy about their choice despite its shortcomings.
  - ahartmetz 7y ago
    All those people who work in IT / development etc and advocate FOSS, do you really think that they couldn't pay for commercial software if they wanted? I certainly could.
    - 7y ago

ubercow13 7y ago

Signal's Linux client uses Electron. I wonder how well it will work on a resource-constrained phone.

hedora 7y ago
Also, Linux signal was missing video chat support the last time I tried it.