4 ms·

Another small slice of personal agency is lost. Still enjoying those walled gardens keeping you "safe?"

by nathanaldensr 5y ago

anon9001 5y ago
Surely Amazon feels safer now.
- behnamoh 5y ago
  I wonder what's in it for Amazon. FS users would end up buying on Amazon anyway. It's just that they would choose another seller or alternative products. Why would Amazon want that gone?
  - ipaddr 5y ago
    They may not find a better seller and move to another store.
johnebgd 5y ago
DRM manages freedom like jail manages freedom.
deregulateMed 5y ago
Stop calling it a "walled garden". It's a "walled prison".
- simondotau 5y ago
  It’s not a prison because you’re welcome to leave whenever you want.
  - chii 5y ago
    you can leave the phone ecosystem the same way you can leave society at will.
    - SquareWheel 5y ago
      That's overly-dramatic. It's not that difficult to leave the iOS ecosystem. There's adequate tools for exporting data for emails+contact. If you want to move to Android, you'll have to buy a new device and spend maybe $100 on apps, but most services support both platforms. Yes it'll suck to lose that one "killer app", but there's likely alternatives that are almost as good. Changing ecosystems is always a viable option.
      - arvinsim 5y ago
        It's hard even for the HN audience. How much more for the everyday person?
        SquareWheel 5y ago
        I'd wager it's harder for the HN audience. They'd have many more services they need to update account info with, or apps they'll need to find parallels for. Most regular users use a small number of services (Facebook, reddit, whatever) and that will be available across both platforms. Something like exporting email from one account to another will be more difficult for the regular user, but there's many guides available online. Or more realistically, a nephew to do it for them.
        simondotau 5y ago
        In fact I’d wager that a substantial number of regular people would move between iPhone and android without ever realising that they were convenience benefits in sticking with the same platform, other than basic familiarity with a particular user interface. Similarly, I’m sure there are plenty of people who continue going to a McDonald’s drive-thru instead of a competitors’ because they are comfortable with and familiar with the menu. Yeah no one would accuse McDonald of having any amount of “platform” lock in.
    - deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]
  - cartoonworld 5y ago
    Mirrors on the ceiling / The pink champagne on ice And she said "We are all just prisoners here, of our own device" And in the master's chambers / They gathered for the feast They stab it with their steely knives But they just can't kill the beast Last thing I remember / I was running for the door I had to find the passage back to the place I was before "Relax," said the night man / "We are programmed to receive You can check-out any time you like / But you can never leave!" https://music.amazon.com/albums/B00DAKW7Q2?trackAsin=B00DAKW848 https://music.amazon.com/albums/B00DAKW7Q2?trackAsin=B00DAKW...
manmal 5y ago
I wonder if Apple would have pulled the app if it were from a nonprofit organization that doesn’t track everything the user does on those websites.
- collaborative 5y ago
  Ultimately it's user choice. If they are grown up enough to trust Amazon, they should be allowed to trust Fakespot. It's these big companies 'keeping us safe' and making choices for us that's the problem. They only have your wallet in mind, everything else is BS

Another small slice of personal agency is lost. Still enjoying those walled gardens keeping you "safe?"

anon9001 5y ago

Surely Amazon feels safer now.

behnamoh 5y ago
I wonder what's in it for Amazon. FS users would end up buying on Amazon anyway. It's just that they would choose another seller or alternative products. Why would Amazon want that gone?
- ipaddr 5y ago
  They may not find a better seller and move to another store.

johnebgd 5y ago

DRM manages freedom like jail manages freedom.

deregulateMed 5y ago

Stop calling it a "walled garden". It's a "walled prison".

simondotau 5y ago
It’s not a prison because you’re welcome to leave whenever you want.
- chii 5y ago
  you can leave the phone ecosystem the same way you can leave society at will.
  - SquareWheel 5y ago
    That's overly-dramatic. It's not that difficult to leave the iOS ecosystem. There's adequate tools for exporting data for emails+contact. If you want to move to Android, you'll have to buy a new device and spend maybe $100 on apps, but most services support both platforms. Yes it'll suck to lose that one "killer app", but there's likely alternatives that are almost as good. Changing ecosystems is always a viable option.
    - arvinsim 5y ago
      It's hard even for the HN audience. How much more for the everyday person?
      - SquareWheel 5y ago
        I'd wager it's harder for the HN audience. They'd have many more services they need to update account info with, or apps they'll need to find parallels for. Most regular users use a small number of services (Facebook, reddit, whatever) and that will be available across both platforms. Something like exporting email from one account to another will be more difficult for the regular user, but there's many guides available online. Or more realistically, a nephew to do it for them.
        simondotau 5y ago
        In fact I’d wager that a substantial number of regular people would move between iPhone and android without ever realising that they were convenience benefits in sticking with the same platform, other than basic familiarity with a particular user interface. Similarly, I’m sure there are plenty of people who continue going to a McDonald’s drive-thru instead of a competitors’ because they are comfortable with and familiar with the menu. Yeah no one would accuse McDonald of having any amount of “platform” lock in.
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
- cartoonworld 5y ago
  Mirrors on the ceiling / The pink champagne on ice And she said "We are all just prisoners here, of our own device" And in the master's chambers / They gathered for the feast They stab it with their steely knives But they just can't kill the beast Last thing I remember / I was running for the door I had to find the passage back to the place I was before "Relax," said the night man / "We are programmed to receive You can check-out any time you like / But you can never leave!" https://music.amazon.com/albums/B00DAKW7Q2?trackAsin=B00DAKW848 https://music.amazon.com/albums/B00DAKW7Q2?trackAsin=B00DAKW...

manmal 5y ago

I wonder if Apple would have pulled the app if it were from a nonprofit organization that doesn’t track everything the user does on those websites.

collaborative 5y ago
Ultimately it's user choice. If they are grown up enough to trust Amazon, they should be allowed to trust Fakespot. It's these big companies 'keeping us safe' and making choices for us that's the problem. They only have your wallet in mind, everything else is BS