12 ms·

Bandcamp's app is no longer listed on Google Play

210 points by trynewideas 5y ago

DennisAleynikov 5y ago
oof
christhecaribou 5y ago
Why?
- dathinab 5y ago
  It seems no one known for now.
echelon 5y ago
I know we don't know what's happened yet, but this is why the DOJ should force Apple and Google to enable web downloads and installs of apps. The world should not rely on these two companies for distribution, given that they've captured the entire mobile computing industry and all of the commerce that happens there. Ford doesn't get to control where you go, and they don't tax the restaurants you visit. (They're also not a duopoly, but that's another issue.)
- dangero 5y ago
  Web downloads work fine on Android
  - realusername 5y ago
    Not really, you have to enable some scary settings and they are no update or auto-update mechanism for web downloads on Android yet. It's technically "there" but not good enough to be a reliable form of distribution.
    - yorwba 5y ago
      If the app knows its own download address, it can just periodically check for a new version, download it, and prompt the user to install it. I have multiple apps installed that use this update mechanism, there's nothing unreliable about it. Yes, there are warnings, but what is the alternative? You download an app once, it installs without warning and keeps updating in the background? That'd make it way too easy for malware authors.
      - realusername 5y ago
        Malware is supposed to be stopped by the sandbox & Play protect mechanisms. If the sandbox isn't good enough to be trusted for that, I don't think I have a good answer except maybe just not downloading any app at all including on the Play Store. How I see it personally is you download the apk, tap "install", then the same permission prompt as the Play Store opens. The app is updated later the exact same way as the Play Store update (either automatically by pulling from an url or manually, depending of what the users have set as a rule for the Play Store)
  - echelon 5y ago
    Google scares you after you download them. And you have to enable the setting. This should be as seamless as using web apps, and permissions dialogues should come up when the app attempts to use certain device features. (No different than App Store downloads today.) All of this to say that web-downloaded native apps are not first class on Android. They should be.
    - int_19h 5y ago
      Permission dialogs are very ineffective in desktop OSes, with users effectively being trained to just click through them to "get things done". Is there any research showing that they fare better on mobile?
      - echelon 5y ago
        If web-based installs were the norm, there would be better security hardening efforts made. Today Apple and Google don't have to care about it. If there reputation was at stake, they would care a great deal. I'm also of the belief that we don't have to be a nanny state. We trust people to pour gasoline, drive death chariots at 70 miles per hour, open lines of credit as teenagers, buy and shoot guns, etc. Why all the ceremony here? I think it serves the owners of the platform more than us.
        natch 5y ago
        So they should care about their reputation, but they should also let their platform be known as a place where they allow malware to flourish?
        hulitu 5y ago
        > If web-based installs were the norm, there would be better security hardening efforts made. Today Apple and Google don't have to care about it. If there reputation was at stake, they would care a great deal. Well, web base installs are the norm. That's how malware and ransomware spreads. The problem with security is that is usually anti features. That't why webbrowsers use the path of least resistance and declare that they are secure, they have containers and isolation etc. And Google with project Zero is playing the good guy. It is all security theater. Security is expensive and no one wants to invest in it because it does not have a clear ROI. > I'm also of the belief that we don't have to be a nanny state. We trust people to pour gasoline, drive death chariots at 70 miles per hour, open lines of credit as teenagers, buy and shoot guns, etc. We do not trust people to buy and shoot guns. > Why all the ceremony here? I think it serves the owners of the platform more than us. Of course it serves only them. Security in android stops when you give apps access to SD card or camera or microfone or phone or contacts. And the fact that Google apps have all this access by default says a lot about how much google is interested in security.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- npteljes 5y ago
  What kills me about Android is that F-Droid can't auto-update the apps without rooting the phone and doing some trickery. I appreciate the security measures, but having no official way to appoint another trusted app store is nonsense.
  - techrat 5y ago
    Because going into F-Droid and clicking "update" is too hard? You're already inside F-Droid every now and then anyway.
    - mixedCase 5y ago
      > Because going into F-Droid and clicking "update" is too hard? Yes. The average user doesn't even understand what updates are for and the extra inconvenience for everyone else is just an anti-competitive practice masquerading as a security feature.
      - techrat 5y ago
        What's anticompetitive is not allowing another app or app store to be sideloaded at all. Quit being disingenuous.
        detaro 5y ago
        > What's anticompetitive is not allowing another app or app store to be sideloaded at all. Yes, that's anticompetitive too. And?
        techrat 5y ago
        https://www.xda-developers.com/android-12-alternative-app-stores-update-apps-background https://www.xda-developers.com/android-12-alternative-app-st... You can stop crying now.
        rtkwe 5y ago
        Less anticompetitive is still anticompetitive!
edoceo 5y ago
You sure? https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bandcamp.artistapp https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bandcamp.a...
- jjulius 5y ago
  That app is for artists and record labels, it allows them to manage their accounts. The Bandcamp app that most people use to purchase those artists music is not there.
- alphabet9000 5y ago
  that link points to 'Bandcamp for Artists and Labels' (com.bandcamp.artistapp) which is different than 'Bandcamp' (com.bandcamp.android) [0] [0] https://web.archive.org/web/20201015192746/https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bandcamp.android&hl=en&gl=US https://web.archive.org/web/20201015192746/https://play.goog...
- qart 5y ago
  Yes, you have linked to "Bandcamp for Artists and Labels", which is not the same as the plain Bandcamp app. I had Bandcamp installed on my phone via Play Store. I can still use it, but the app is missing from my list of apps on Play Store.
hardwaresofton 5y ago
While somewhat unlikely, for those who do not know what bandcamp is it's essentially Shopify for musicians: https://bandcamp.com/ https://bandcamp.com/ It is by far and away the best way to support artists that I know of, outside of going to their shows. Buy stuff from bandcamp (music, merch whatever) if you can afford it. You buy music, you download it in whatever format you want, and you play it wherever you want.
- jjulius 5y ago
  >It is by far and away the best way to support artists that I know of, outside of going to their shows. Ooh! An issue close to my heart. A lot of artists and labels also have their own websites and will sell their stuff directly from there, often via PayPal. Definitely not all of them, especially the younger artists, but I usually try and see if that option's there before hitting Bandcamp. But YES. Bandcamp is usually the best way to support your favorite artists/labels. Please use it as much as you can, and even pay a bit extra whenever you think it's worth it. If you find yourself playing an album more than once or twice via Spotify, go throw that artist some dough on Bandcamp. And please, treat yourself to a copy of it on CD or vinyl. Own the music you love.
  - ksec 5y ago
    >And please, treat yourself to a copy of it on CD or vinyl. Own the music you love. I know the surge of vinyl. But I do hope the later part of owning something make a comeback.
    - BLKNSLVR 5y ago
      I consider the downloaded FLAC files as equivalent to ownership of a physical item. There's only so much shelf-space available...
      - ED_Radish 5y ago
        Yeah, it lets them keep more of my money and having a flac is good enough for me. Its not like I'll ever actually play anything off a CD itself.
alphabet9000 5y ago
A quick twitter search shows that the App was removed as early as June 9. [0] [0] https://twitter.com/search?q=bandcamp%20app&src=typed_query&f=live https://twitter.com/search?q=bandcamp%20app&src=typed_query&...
- nightpool 5y ago
  Possibly June 8th: https://twitter.com/glitchgabi/status/1402290704316088323 https://twitter.com/glitchgabi/status/1402290704316088323
  - alphabet9000 5y ago
    good catch
mathw 5y ago
I've been doing some poking around and just found some confused people on Twitter. Bandcamp themselves appear to have said nothing at all as yet. Hopefully this can get resolved fairly soon, as Bandcamp is a pretty great platform and over the last year they have had a number of "Bandcamp Friday" events where they don't charge any commission on sales, so that's the best time to buy loads of music from your favourite Bandcamp artists and give them as much support as you can. I doubt that will last, but I know it's been welcome to a couple of my friends during the pandemic.
- crtasm 5y ago
  Bandcamp friday was fantastic, as far as I can tell it has now finished - there wasn't one last friday and https://isitbandcampfriday.com/ https://isitbandcampfriday.com/ says it is over.
tym0 5y ago
I have been looking for it for a few days and found no articles or blog about it...
conradfr 5y ago
Maybe an update is coming? Bandcamp is great to buy music but the app as a music player is not. - No resume when launching the app - No swipe for backward/forward playlist (more album than playlist, really) navigation
- comprev 5y ago
  I use Bandcamp App for 99% of listening and things like lack of playlist, lack of "individual track" favourites, etc. really lags behind other apps. Hopefully these things will be introduced with a new release
- spratzt 5y ago
  Your words are too kind. It doesn't even make it easy to play music you bought with the app. The app is truly dreadful.
  - 12ian34 5y ago
    If you're on Android, Newpipe[0] is a decent alternative. I mainly use it for Youtube but it supports Bandcamp out of the box pretty well, with background listening, autoqueue etc. [0]: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.schabi.newpipe/ https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.schabi.newpipe/
- travismark 5y ago
  interesting, I've been using the app for years now and I never thought of those features. I like the app, I prefer it over the free Amazon app (where I also buy music!). Amazon consistently bombards you with music you can STREAM, which means buying their subscription
devp10 5y ago
What! Why?
marcus_holmes 5y ago
I've been thinking about this. Surely, if the app stores maintain that their restrictions prevent users from being infected with malware, then they are legally liable for any malware that is installed? I know they have a disclaimer saying that they're not responsible for damage caused by the user installing stuff, but that may be legally unenforceable? i.e. you can't remove someone's rights with a liability waiver. If they have the authority to approve/disallow apps on the store, then surely they have to take responsibility when they allow malware on the store?
- nexuist 5y ago
  No, because new malware / legitimate apps are third party content. It's like how you can't sue Facebook or Twitter for someone using their platforms to spread illegal content or plan violence. What usually helps in these cases is that the platforms demonstrate good faith and fund moderation teams to remove harmful content once it is discovered. Likewise any malware on the App Store would get removed as soon as it becomes "popular." Now maybe you'd have a case if Apple or Google did nothing to remove this app, but that sort of laissez faire control doesn't really seem likely at this point.
  - marcus_holmes 5y ago
    As I understand it, though, that only applies if the platform doesn't control what is posted. Given that the app stores have an extensive vetting process, and complete control over what can and cannot be accepted, why are they not responsible for that content?
    - nexuist 5y ago
      Some platforms like Discord allow individual communities to set screening options for media like photos/videos. If someone posts e.g. nudity the platform is supposed to reject the message from sending. However, if the nudity filter fails, that doesn't give you legal authority to sue Discord; once again it's a good faith effort and I think any court would agree that Discord tried its best to prevent said content from being posted, it just failed in this one case. Deciding to pre-screen content doesn't make you responsible for it, especially if the malware tries to hide itself. If someone brought an American flag to a football game and then unfurled it to reveal a swastika, I don't think anyone would blame the security guards at the entry checkpoint for not catching it.
richrichardsson 5y ago
Slightly off topic but Bandcamp really need to fix their broken 24 bit .wav delivery [1]. They seem to think it's OK to lay the blame on the DJ software that won't play their files [2], but re-encoding a 24 bit .wav file from Bandcamp into 24 bit .wav file using freely available tools fixes the problem. I'm forever fielding complaints from customers (who are too lazy to search themselves) that the 24 bit .wav they just bought won't play in Traktor. [1] https://support.native-instruments.com/hc/en-us/articles/210273125-Which-Audio-File-Formats-Does-TRAKTOR-Support- https://support.native-instruments.com/hc/en-us/articles/210... [2] https://get.bandcamp.help/hc/en-us/articles/360046770013-My-downloads-won-t-play-in-my-DJ-tools-What-s-up- https://get.bandcamp.help/hc/en-us/articles/360046770013-My-...
- pentagone 5y ago
  > WAV files in 24-/32-bit resolution downloaded via Bandcamp may not load instantly and require quick supplementary treatment. Simply opening the respective file with the freeware Audacity and then shutting down the application without any further action resolves the issue. wtf, whats the issue? And why does Audacity (apparently) modify files without asking?
  - TonyTrapp 5y ago
    24/32bit WAV is a bit more exotic/ambiguous than 8/16bit, it's supposed to use a different format identifier (WAVEFORMATEX) but sometimes doesn't, some software only handles one identifier, some only the other, the better software handles both of them... So I would tend to think that the DJ software just has incomplete 24-bit WAV support (which is no surprise due to this mess).
- crtasm 5y ago
  I hope they fix that, and also let users just choose 16bit download as a default, 24bit is pointless for playback purposes.
deng 5y ago
I love Bandcamp, but man do they need to improve their app and website. It's been pretty much stagnant for a long time and there's just so much potential. Handling of collections is just terrible. You cannot sort or group your collection in any way. You cannot even easily distinguish between single tracks and albums! You cannot create playlists. You cannot download several things at once. And most egregiously: Bandcamp must sit on a ton of data to make good suggestions to what other music I'd probably like, and they do pretty much nothing with it. The only thing I could find is when you click on an album, you see a few suggestions at the bottom, that's it. Such a shame. Again: I love Bandcamp and regularly buy stuff there, but it could be SO much better!
- hobs 5y ago
  I did reach out about the multi-buy situation - apparently BC doesn't have a useful way to say "this part of my collection sell for a price and this other stuff exclude it" because almost no one sells a discog and when I emailed them the responses I got were generally "we sell vinyl and other stuff in our store and selling it in one big bundle doesnt make sense"
  - deng 5y ago
    It's actually not about buying but downloading. I regularly buy single tracks and downloading them one by one is very tedious: You have to click on "download", you get to a new site to download this single track, then you have to wait up to 10 seconds for the on-the-fly encoding, and finally you can download it. It's so bad I pretty much stopped "impulse purchases" of single tracks.
    - hobs 5y ago
      Gotcha yeah - that is annoying AF which is why I wanted to buy the discog because it has a "download all the things" button (or so bandcamp claims.) Realistically if they had a "sync my library" or w/e button then I wouldnt have even cared about that at all.
- rchaud 5y ago
bstar77 5y ago
I love bandcamp. I have bought a decent amount of music through there (including physical media) and artists tend to really show their appreciation. I almost always get signed CDs, hand written thank you notes and other unsolicited freebees. This is the platform indie artists really like to interact with their fans. I use the iOS app and have no issues.
slobot 5y ago
I've found that Bandcamp is the best for shoegaze, both from some of the originators to young bands that are still transforming the sound
- rchaud 5y ago
  I'm a big shoegaze-head myself. Which bands did you find on BC that you'd recommend? I recently got Stellarium's second album. They're a noisepop/shoegaze band from Singapore of all places!
  - citrusui 5y ago
    Slowdive and Beach House both have pages on Bandcamp. They're pretty popular though so sorry if you already knew this.
    - rchaud 5y ago
      Yes, I do know both bands, but I didn't know Slowdive were on BC. Thanks for the tip!
      - slobot 5y ago
        There's quite a lot - sometimes it reminds me of looking through the import section at a local record store since so many are scattered around the globe. I am more into the dreampop / shoegaze. So here's a list of some of my favorites I have found: ***Some of the Original-ists: Ride Swervedriver Curve Andy Bell (Ride / Oasis Guitarist) ***Newer: Blankenberg Soft Science Subsonic Eye ("Strawberry Feels" and "Dive Into" are more shoegaze, lately a little more dreampop) Pale Blue Eyes Say Sue Me Blushing Slowly Soft Wounds Fragile Animals The fin. Citrus Clouds Field Mouse WURVE Airiel Adiós Cometa there's also a pretty cool article about Shoegaze in Russia https://daily.bandcamp.com/scene-report/russian-shoegaze-bands-guide?from=hp https://daily.bandcamp.com/scene-report/russian-shoegaze-ban...
myko 5y ago
I wonder if they use background location permissions. Android's review team has been going nuts on those lately.

210 points by trynewideas 5y ago

DennisAleynikov 5y ago

oof

christhecaribou 5y ago

Why?

dathinab 5y ago
It seems no one known for now.

echelon 5y ago

I know we don't know what's happened yet, but this is why the DOJ should force Apple and Google to enable web downloads and installs of apps. The world should not rely on these two companies for distribution, given that they've captured the entire mobile computing industry and all of the commerce that happens there. Ford doesn't get to control where you go, and they don't tax the restaurants you visit. (They're also not a duopoly, but that's another issue.)

dangero 5y ago
Web downloads work fine on Android
- realusername 5y ago
  Not really, you have to enable some scary settings and they are no update or auto-update mechanism for web downloads on Android yet. It's technically "there" but not good enough to be a reliable form of distribution.
  - yorwba 5y ago
    If the app knows its own download address, it can just periodically check for a new version, download it, and prompt the user to install it. I have multiple apps installed that use this update mechanism, there's nothing unreliable about it. Yes, there are warnings, but what is the alternative? You download an app once, it installs without warning and keeps updating in the background? That'd make it way too easy for malware authors.
    - realusername 5y ago
      Malware is supposed to be stopped by the sandbox & Play protect mechanisms. If the sandbox isn't good enough to be trusted for that, I don't think I have a good answer except maybe just not downloading any app at all including on the Play Store. How I see it personally is you download the apk, tap "install", then the same permission prompt as the Play Store opens. The app is updated later the exact same way as the Play Store update (either automatically by pulling from an url or manually, depending of what the users have set as a rule for the Play Store)
- echelon 5y ago
  Google scares you after you download them. And you have to enable the setting. This should be as seamless as using web apps, and permissions dialogues should come up when the app attempts to use certain device features. (No different than App Store downloads today.) All of this to say that web-downloaded native apps are not first class on Android. They should be.
  - int_19h 5y ago
    Permission dialogs are very ineffective in desktop OSes, with users effectively being trained to just click through them to "get things done". Is there any research showing that they fare better on mobile?
    - echelon 5y ago
      If web-based installs were the norm, there would be better security hardening efforts made. Today Apple and Google don't have to care about it. If there reputation was at stake, they would care a great deal. I'm also of the belief that we don't have to be a nanny state. We trust people to pour gasoline, drive death chariots at 70 miles per hour, open lines of credit as teenagers, buy and shoot guns, etc. Why all the ceremony here? I think it serves the owners of the platform more than us.
      - natch 5y ago
        So they should care about their reputation, but they should also let their platform be known as a place where they allow malware to flourish?
      - hulitu 5y ago
        > If web-based installs were the norm, there would be better security hardening efforts made. Today Apple and Google don't have to care about it. If there reputation was at stake, they would care a great deal. Well, web base installs are the norm. That's how malware and ransomware spreads. The problem with security is that is usually anti features. That't why webbrowsers use the path of least resistance and declare that they are secure, they have containers and isolation etc. And Google with project Zero is playing the good guy. It is all security theater. Security is expensive and no one wants to invest in it because it does not have a clear ROI. > I'm also of the belief that we don't have to be a nanny state. We trust people to pour gasoline, drive death chariots at 70 miles per hour, open lines of credit as teenagers, buy and shoot guns, etc. We do not trust people to buy and shoot guns. > Why all the ceremony here? I think it serves the owners of the platform more than us. Of course it serves only them. Security in android stops when you give apps access to SD card or camera or microfone or phone or contacts. And the fact that Google apps have all this access by default says a lot about how much google is interested in security.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
npteljes 5y ago
What kills me about Android is that F-Droid can't auto-update the apps without rooting the phone and doing some trickery. I appreciate the security measures, but having no official way to appoint another trusted app store is nonsense.
- techrat 5y ago
  Because going into F-Droid and clicking "update" is too hard? You're already inside F-Droid every now and then anyway.
  - mixedCase 5y ago
    > Because going into F-Droid and clicking "update" is too hard? Yes. The average user doesn't even understand what updates are for and the extra inconvenience for everyone else is just an anti-competitive practice masquerading as a security feature.
    - techrat 5y ago
      What's anticompetitive is not allowing another app or app store to be sideloaded at all. Quit being disingenuous.
      - detaro 5y ago
        > What's anticompetitive is not allowing another app or app store to be sideloaded at all. Yes, that's anticompetitive too. And?
        techrat 5y ago
        https://www.xda-developers.com/android-12-alternative-app-stores-update-apps-background https://www.xda-developers.com/android-12-alternative-app-st... You can stop crying now.
      - rtkwe 5y ago
        Less anticompetitive is still anticompetitive!

edoceo 5y ago

You sure? https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bandcamp.artistapp https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bandcamp.a...

jjulius 5y ago
That app is for artists and record labels, it allows them to manage their accounts. The Bandcamp app that most people use to purchase those artists music is not there.
alphabet9000 5y ago
that link points to 'Bandcamp for Artists and Labels' (com.bandcamp.artistapp) which is different than 'Bandcamp' (com.bandcamp.android) [0] [0] https://web.archive.org/web/20201015192746/https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bandcamp.android&hl=en&gl=US https://web.archive.org/web/20201015192746/https://play.goog...
qart 5y ago
Yes, you have linked to "Bandcamp for Artists and Labels", which is not the same as the plain Bandcamp app. I had Bandcamp installed on my phone via Play Store. I can still use it, but the app is missing from my list of apps on Play Store.

hardwaresofton 5y ago

While somewhat unlikely, for those who do not know what bandcamp is it's essentially Shopify for musicians: https://bandcamp.com/ https://bandcamp.com/ It is by far and away the best way to support artists that I know of, outside of going to their shows. Buy stuff from bandcamp (music, merch whatever) if you can afford it. You buy music, you download it in whatever format you want, and you play it wherever you want.

jjulius 5y ago
>It is by far and away the best way to support artists that I know of, outside of going to their shows. Ooh! An issue close to my heart. A lot of artists and labels also have their own websites and will sell their stuff directly from there, often via PayPal. Definitely not all of them, especially the younger artists, but I usually try and see if that option's there before hitting Bandcamp. But YES. Bandcamp is usually the best way to support your favorite artists/labels. Please use it as much as you can, and even pay a bit extra whenever you think it's worth it. If you find yourself playing an album more than once or twice via Spotify, go throw that artist some dough on Bandcamp. And please, treat yourself to a copy of it on CD or vinyl. Own the music you love.
- ksec 5y ago
  >And please, treat yourself to a copy of it on CD or vinyl. Own the music you love. I know the surge of vinyl. But I do hope the later part of owning something make a comeback.
  - BLKNSLVR 5y ago
    I consider the downloaded FLAC files as equivalent to ownership of a physical item. There's only so much shelf-space available...
    - ED_Radish 5y ago
      Yeah, it lets them keep more of my money and having a flac is good enough for me. Its not like I'll ever actually play anything off a CD itself.

alphabet9000 5y ago

A quick twitter search shows that the App was removed as early as June 9. [0] [0] https://twitter.com/search?q=bandcamp%20app&src=typed_query&f=live https://twitter.com/search?q=bandcamp%20app&src=typed_query&...

nightpool 5y ago
Possibly June 8th: https://twitter.com/glitchgabi/status/1402290704316088323 https://twitter.com/glitchgabi/status/1402290704316088323
- alphabet9000 5y ago
  good catch

mathw 5y ago

I've been doing some poking around and just found some confused people on Twitter. Bandcamp themselves appear to have said nothing at all as yet. Hopefully this can get resolved fairly soon, as Bandcamp is a pretty great platform and over the last year they have had a number of "Bandcamp Friday" events where they don't charge any commission on sales, so that's the best time to buy loads of music from your favourite Bandcamp artists and give them as much support as you can. I doubt that will last, but I know it's been welcome to a couple of my friends during the pandemic.

crtasm 5y ago
Bandcamp friday was fantastic, as far as I can tell it has now finished - there wasn't one last friday and https://isitbandcampfriday.com/ https://isitbandcampfriday.com/ says it is over.

tym0 5y ago

I have been looking for it for a few days and found no articles or blog about it...

conradfr 5y ago

Maybe an update is coming? Bandcamp is great to buy music but the app as a music player is not. - No resume when launching the app - No swipe for backward/forward playlist (more album than playlist, really) navigation

comprev 5y ago
I use Bandcamp App for 99% of listening and things like lack of playlist, lack of "individual track" favourites, etc. really lags behind other apps. Hopefully these things will be introduced with a new release
spratzt 5y ago
Your words are too kind. It doesn't even make it easy to play music you bought with the app. The app is truly dreadful.
- 12ian34 5y ago
  If you're on Android, Newpipe[0] is a decent alternative. I mainly use it for Youtube but it supports Bandcamp out of the box pretty well, with background listening, autoqueue etc. [0]: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.schabi.newpipe/ https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.schabi.newpipe/
travismark 5y ago
interesting, I've been using the app for years now and I never thought of those features. I like the app, I prefer it over the free Amazon app (where I also buy music!). Amazon consistently bombards you with music you can STREAM, which means buying their subscription

devp10 5y ago

What! Why?

marcus_holmes 5y ago

I've been thinking about this. Surely, if the app stores maintain that their restrictions prevent users from being infected with malware, then they are legally liable for any malware that is installed? I know they have a disclaimer saying that they're not responsible for damage caused by the user installing stuff, but that may be legally unenforceable? i.e. you can't remove someone's rights with a liability waiver. If they have the authority to approve/disallow apps on the store, then surely they have to take responsibility when they allow malware on the store?

nexuist 5y ago
No, because new malware / legitimate apps are third party content. It's like how you can't sue Facebook or Twitter for someone using their platforms to spread illegal content or plan violence. What usually helps in these cases is that the platforms demonstrate good faith and fund moderation teams to remove harmful content once it is discovered. Likewise any malware on the App Store would get removed as soon as it becomes "popular." Now maybe you'd have a case if Apple or Google did nothing to remove this app, but that sort of laissez faire control doesn't really seem likely at this point.
- marcus_holmes 5y ago
  As I understand it, though, that only applies if the platform doesn't control what is posted. Given that the app stores have an extensive vetting process, and complete control over what can and cannot be accepted, why are they not responsible for that content?
  - nexuist 5y ago
    Some platforms like Discord allow individual communities to set screening options for media like photos/videos. If someone posts e.g. nudity the platform is supposed to reject the message from sending. However, if the nudity filter fails, that doesn't give you legal authority to sue Discord; once again it's a good faith effort and I think any court would agree that Discord tried its best to prevent said content from being posted, it just failed in this one case. Deciding to pre-screen content doesn't make you responsible for it, especially if the malware tries to hide itself. If someone brought an American flag to a football game and then unfurled it to reveal a swastika, I don't think anyone would blame the security guards at the entry checkpoint for not catching it.

richrichardsson 5y ago

Slightly off topic but Bandcamp really need to fix their broken 24 bit .wav delivery [1]. They seem to think it's OK to lay the blame on the DJ software that won't play their files [2], but re-encoding a 24 bit .wav file from Bandcamp into 24 bit .wav file using freely available tools fixes the problem. I'm forever fielding complaints from customers (who are too lazy to search themselves) that the 24 bit .wav they just bought won't play in Traktor. [1] https://support.native-instruments.com/hc/en-us/articles/210273125-Which-Audio-File-Formats-Does-TRAKTOR-Support- https://support.native-instruments.com/hc/en-us/articles/210... [2] https://get.bandcamp.help/hc/en-us/articles/360046770013-My-downloads-won-t-play-in-my-DJ-tools-What-s-up- https://get.bandcamp.help/hc/en-us/articles/360046770013-My-...

pentagone 5y ago
> WAV files in 24-/32-bit resolution downloaded via Bandcamp may not load instantly and require quick supplementary treatment. Simply opening the respective file with the freeware Audacity and then shutting down the application without any further action resolves the issue. wtf, whats the issue? And why does Audacity (apparently) modify files without asking?
- TonyTrapp 5y ago
  24/32bit WAV is a bit more exotic/ambiguous than 8/16bit, it's supposed to use a different format identifier (WAVEFORMATEX) but sometimes doesn't, some software only handles one identifier, some only the other, the better software handles both of them... So I would tend to think that the DJ software just has incomplete 24-bit WAV support (which is no surprise due to this mess).
crtasm 5y ago
I hope they fix that, and also let users just choose 16bit download as a default, 24bit is pointless for playback purposes.

deng 5y ago

I love Bandcamp, but man do they need to improve their app and website. It's been pretty much stagnant for a long time and there's just so much potential. Handling of collections is just terrible. You cannot sort or group your collection in any way. You cannot even easily distinguish between single tracks and albums! You cannot create playlists. You cannot download several things at once. And most egregiously: Bandcamp must sit on a ton of data to make good suggestions to what other music I'd probably like, and they do pretty much nothing with it. The only thing I could find is when you click on an album, you see a few suggestions at the bottom, that's it. Such a shame. Again: I love Bandcamp and regularly buy stuff there, but it could be SO much better!

hobs 5y ago
I did reach out about the multi-buy situation - apparently BC doesn't have a useful way to say "this part of my collection sell for a price and this other stuff exclude it" because almost no one sells a discog and when I emailed them the responses I got were generally "we sell vinyl and other stuff in our store and selling it in one big bundle doesnt make sense"
- deng 5y ago
  It's actually not about buying but downloading. I regularly buy single tracks and downloading them one by one is very tedious: You have to click on "download", you get to a new site to download this single track, then you have to wait up to 10 seconds for the on-the-fly encoding, and finally you can download it. It's so bad I pretty much stopped "impulse purchases" of single tracks.
  - hobs 5y ago
    Gotcha yeah - that is annoying AF which is why I wanted to buy the discog because it has a "download all the things" button (or so bandcamp claims.) Realistically if they had a "sync my library" or w/e button then I wouldnt have even cared about that at all.
rchaud 5y ago

bstar77 5y ago

I love bandcamp. I have bought a decent amount of music through there (including physical media) and artists tend to really show their appreciation. I almost always get signed CDs, hand written thank you notes and other unsolicited freebees. This is the platform indie artists really like to interact with their fans. I use the iOS app and have no issues.

slobot 5y ago

I've found that Bandcamp is the best for shoegaze, both from some of the originators to young bands that are still transforming the sound

rchaud 5y ago
I'm a big shoegaze-head myself. Which bands did you find on BC that you'd recommend? I recently got Stellarium's second album. They're a noisepop/shoegaze band from Singapore of all places!
- citrusui 5y ago
  Slowdive and Beach House both have pages on Bandcamp. They're pretty popular though so sorry if you already knew this.
  - rchaud 5y ago
    Yes, I do know both bands, but I didn't know Slowdive were on BC. Thanks for the tip!
    - slobot 5y ago
      There's quite a lot - sometimes it reminds me of looking through the import section at a local record store since so many are scattered around the globe. I am more into the dreampop / shoegaze. So here's a list of some of my favorites I have found: ***Some of the Original-ists: Ride Swervedriver Curve Andy Bell (Ride / Oasis Guitarist) ***Newer: Blankenberg Soft Science Subsonic Eye ("Strawberry Feels" and "Dive Into" are more shoegaze, lately a little more dreampop) Pale Blue Eyes Say Sue Me Blushing Slowly Soft Wounds Fragile Animals The fin. Citrus Clouds Field Mouse WURVE Airiel Adiós Cometa there's also a pretty cool article about Shoegaze in Russia https://daily.bandcamp.com/scene-report/russian-shoegaze-bands-guide?from=hp https://daily.bandcamp.com/scene-report/russian-shoegaze-ban...

myko 5y ago

I wonder if they use background location permissions. Android's review team has been going nuts on those lately.