Post #1184599

2023-06-12 17:54 UTC

Google made it official that important apps like Messaging and Dialer are no longer maintained in the Android Open Source project. A free Android on its own is pretty much useless now. https://android-review.googlesource.com/c/platform/packages/apps/Messaging/+/2614297 https://android-review.googlesource.com/c/platform/packages/apps/Dialer/+/2613992

Replies (14)

@csolisr@social.azkware.net 2023-06-12 18:01

And, are there any free software replacements for those?

Open ##2044797
@rml@functional.cafe 2023-06-12 18:54

@grote never heard of these apps what do they do?

Open ##2044807
@gregandcin@mindly.social 2023-06-12 19:38

@grote I am glad that projects like @GrapheneOS, @calyxos, and @LineageOS can exist to make sure free Android can exist, even if it is not entirely stock

Open ##2044809
@Kjaerulv@mastodon.social 2023-06-12 19:42

@grote check out Volla. https://volla.online/en/blog/files/tag-volla-os.html

Open ##2044810
@joel@fosstodon.org 2023-06-12 19:46

@grote thankfully the Simple Mobile Tools suite is a thing

Open ##2044811
@mirabilos@toot.mirbsd.org 2023-06-12 20:18

@grote tbh I an surprised it held out this long

Open ##2044813
@eliasr@social.librem.one 2023-06-12 22:40

@grote Just leave Android (and Google!) behind and go with GNU-like #MobileLinux instead, see @linmob #FOSS #FLOSS #freesoftware #freedom #gnu #linux #pinephone #librem5 #pureos #mobian #postmarketos

Open ##2044814
@justinz@social.opendesktop.org 2023-06-13 00:31

@grote they're open source, anyone can fork them and keep them alive if they want.

Open ##2044831
@kaputt@social.anoxinon.de 2023-06-13 04:58

@grote Was bedeutet das für shiftOS-l? @shiftphones

Open ##2044835
@mobian@fosstodon.org 2023-06-13 05:39

@grote we are glad that gnome-calls and chatty are in the Debian repository. Android's openness is a story of death by a thousand cuts.

Open ##2044836
@jawsh@social.jawsh.xyz 2023-06-13 05:48

You can still use alternatives. https://github.com/SimpleMobileTools/Simple-Dialer https://github.com/SimpleMobileTools/Simple-SMS-Messenger I actually deactivate both AOSP apps and use these. Still a bummer but not the end of the world. AOSP will eventually be really bareboned.

Open ##2044838
@mihec@toot.si 2023-06-13 07:15

@grote so a final phase of E in EEE

Open ##2044839
@tinybehemoth@mastodon.online 2023-06-14 18:08

@grote Just wait until the modified linux kernel gets replaced with zircon. Then android will truly die.

Open ##2044840
@CodingThunder@mastodon.social 2023-06-22 15:09

@grote How on earth could they do that! I guess we should now start questioning whether should we consider Android as an open source project or not.

Open ##2044841