3 ms·

Just replaced a bunch of Google apps with Fossify apps. This was a lot easier than I feared it would be.

anonymouskimmer 3y ago
Shit. After disabling Google Messages I found out that Fossify SMS Messenger can't send text messages to email addresses, which is my primary use case. Now I have to figure out a way to re-enable Google Messages without signing into the play store with a Google account. Searching APKMirror. Edit: Damnit, I'm fucked. I can't reinstall through APKMirror because it calls the Google Play Store to finish the installation, and it won't install because I'm not signed into a Google account. Edit edit: Got Google Messages working again by installing the most recent beta version with APKMirror. I think APKMirror wasn't installing the prior download because it was an earlier version than the one I had disabled. I'll try to keep Fossify set as the default for receipt of texts and only use Google for sending texts and images to email addresses.
- Our_Benefactors 3y ago
  This post is peak HN. Why not just get a feature phone? It seems like a better choice for the über paranoid like yourself.
  - anonymouskimmer 3y ago
    No keyboard for texting. I short text once or twice daily, but don't text enough to learn predictive 9-key texting, and the press each button a certain number of times at a certain rate to write takes way too long and is aggravating. The very few 4G/5G keyboard equipped phones are way too expensive for my purposes. And almost all of them are Android smartphones anyway. I also enjoy relatively high-fidelity images and videos of wildlife (and occasionally things at work that I need to email to others). That's the only bonus from the modern smartphones for me. But even then I would have kept a keyboard feature phone if they had still made them or if 3G hadn't gone away. If they had made a feature phone with a chiclet keyboard that works on 4G LTE or better I would have bought it instead of the Moto E6 with its replaceable battery. Now that I've bought the Moto E6 I'm keeping it until it breaks or 4G LTE goes away. I'm a little paranoid on this, sure, but moreso I just actively don't want to be socially connected, and am a bit of a personal AI Luddite. ML is great in the sciences that I work in, but I don't want notifications or recommendations annoyances unless I actively search for them.
  - anonymouskimmer 3y ago
    And an additional point is that one of my work places requires 2FA and doesn't allow yubikeys, or an emailed or SMS code. So I'm forced to use an app for it.

Shit. After disabling Google Messages I found out that Fossify SMS Messenger can't send text messages to email addresses, which is my primary use case. Now I have to figure out a way to re-enable Google Messages without signing into the play store with a Google account. Searching APKMirror. Edit: Damnit, I'm fucked. I can't reinstall through APKMirror because it calls the Google Play Store to finish the installation, and it won't install because I'm not signed into a Google account. Edit edit: Got Google Messages working again by installing the most recent beta version with APKMirror. I think APKMirror wasn't installing the prior download because it was an earlier version than the one I had disabled. I'll try to keep Fossify set as the default for receipt of texts and only use Google for sending texts and images to email addresses.

Our_Benefactors 3y ago
This post is peak HN. Why not just get a feature phone? It seems like a better choice for the über paranoid like yourself.
- anonymouskimmer 3y ago
  No keyboard for texting. I short text once or twice daily, but don't text enough to learn predictive 9-key texting, and the press each button a certain number of times at a certain rate to write takes way too long and is aggravating. The very few 4G/5G keyboard equipped phones are way too expensive for my purposes. And almost all of them are Android smartphones anyway. I also enjoy relatively high-fidelity images and videos of wildlife (and occasionally things at work that I need to email to others). That's the only bonus from the modern smartphones for me. But even then I would have kept a keyboard feature phone if they had still made them or if 3G hadn't gone away. If they had made a feature phone with a chiclet keyboard that works on 4G LTE or better I would have bought it instead of the Moto E6 with its replaceable battery. Now that I've bought the Moto E6 I'm keeping it until it breaks or 4G LTE goes away. I'm a little paranoid on this, sure, but moreso I just actively don't want to be socially connected, and am a bit of a personal AI Luddite. ML is great in the sciences that I work in, but I don't want notifications or recommendations annoyances unless I actively search for them.
- anonymouskimmer 3y ago
  And an additional point is that one of my work places requires 2FA and doesn't allow yubikeys, or an emailed or SMS code. So I'm forced to use an app for it.