2026-04-15T18:04:45Z https://yabu.me Torsten Grote https://yabu.me/npub1a50hz9f7fryc6z6mvdd86xzgpfamhaphw2kts9ke5r4r02up546qgsevl6 https://assets.chaos.social/accounts/avatars/000/137/351/original/40dd8aa8d02b952d.jpeg https://assets.chaos.social/accounts/avatars/000/137/351/original/40dd8aa8d02b952d.jpeg https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsz5pthkarttmezdnzm8t487x34j3uy4e2sy6p90u5yjwfp6z53z9gzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgknrd4u Google has news on what you will need to do for still being able to sideload apps:<br/><br/>* enable developer options<br/>* confirm that you are not tricked<br/>* restart phone and re-authenticate<br/>* wait one day<br/>* confirm with biometrics that you know what you are doing<br/>* decide if you only want unrestricted installs for 1 week or forever<br/>* confirm that you accept the risks<br/>* enjoy the few apps that still have developers motivated to develop for a user-base willing to put up with this<br/><br/><a href="https://goo.gle/advance-flow">https://goo.gle/advance-flow</a><br/> <img src="https://assets.chaos.social/media_attachments/files/116/257/013/453/251/722/original/96cc009e66012b03.png"> <br/> 2026-03-19T17:24:40Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqspusjm5m77568mcpfg8fr205907yhdzwkln8tlg5szlt3p2975vggzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhg02gm37 The <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1vwvtra8vq0zy7wtd9mzhz2xfyzq4r5nae5tzfffhzfg76tz0ml3qsacqgs" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>The Tor Project</span> (<span class="italic">npub1vwv…cqgs</span>)</a></span> VPN app for Android is now available in <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1mtrk3vl7546q9c4lf0k62nkaypanv6t95gyh32f5jp63ffalu98s4mtrt0" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>F-Droid</span> (<span class="italic">npub1mtr…trt0</span>)</a></span> and therefore guaranteed to be fully Free Software, rebuilt from source.<br/> <img src="https://assets.chaos.social/media_attachments/files/116/139/557/933/135/369/original/15cadc8cb9655a98.png"> <br/> 2026-02-26T23:36:56Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqs0ypyf6tzrd53uuxgasadxn3g8vw486re46g44h6d82f7kt2a82yszyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhg5d5qfk I made a (ugly) page showing the most downloaded apps from <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1mtrk3vl7546q9c4lf0k62nkaypanv6t95gyh32f5jp63ffalu98s4mtrt0" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>F-Droid</span> (<span class="italic">npub1mtr…trt0</span>)</a></span> servers: <a href="https://grote.gitlab.io/fdroid-metrics-distilled/">https://grote.gitlab.io/fdroid-metrics-distilled/</a><br/>It exposes some JSON endpoints as well. 2026-02-22T21:28:30Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsv4l24800cjeupq9kss0zau8hnaa4mv055j99xca9vqeap9p28rfczyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgr6npme F-Droid Basic 2.0 alpha is now available for early testing. Feedback is encouraged and appreciated. More information in the blog post: <a href="https://f-droid.org/2026/01/24/fdroid-basic-2.0-alpha.html">https://f-droid.org/2026/01/24/fdroid-basic-2.0-alpha.html</a><br/>#fdroid<br/> <img src="https://assets.chaos.social/media_attachments/files/115/957/181/604/147/596/original/c53141e7b912424e.jpeg"> <br/> 2026-01-25T18:17:00Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsqszftxc9ykqcauqahvkehr378v30ke7c24k9s8js2x66ml2vqt2czyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgp950ss The merge request for <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1mtrk3vl7546q9c4lf0k62nkaypanv6t95gyh32f5jp63ffalu98s4mtrt0" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>F-Droid</span> (<span class="italic">npub1mtr…trt0</span>)</a></span> 2.0 is in. The goal is a first alpha for F-Droid Basic in time for <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1yaucq4lpxpm2qzayehm42g98gnuz5swjyg8m233dggu9annluxfsyhatjv" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>FOSDEM</span> (<span class="italic">npub1yau…atjv</span>)</a></span> <br/><a href="https://gitlab.com/fdroid/fdroidclient/-/merge_requests/1607">https://gitlab.com/fdroid/fdroidclient/-/merge_requests/1607</a> 2026-01-21T11:10:48Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqs2f9vj8s0rdyqrf55jv8gya6xw5sh90g70pac88v7y7d5vr3w98qgzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgk2t23q &#34;Google is supposed to begin distributing third-party app stores inside the Play Store and mirror Play Store content in other stores.&#34;<br/><br/><a href="https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/10/supreme-court-refuses-to-pause-play-store-changes-while-google-appeals-antitrust-case/">https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/10/supreme-court-refuses-to-pause-play-store-changes-while-google-appeals-antitrust-case/</a><br/><br/>Should <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1mtrk3vl7546q9c4lf0k62nkaypanv6t95gyh32f5jp63ffalu98s4mtrt0" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>F-Droid</span> (<span class="italic">npub1mtr…trt0</span>)</a></span> be added to Google Play? 2025-10-08T10:09:46Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsxjx8sntp7mvdw030vwkkwkqgv0qqw8cfrpemv9f5zzqkyyqcj43qzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgmn7utj In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqs2jzp2zejlq26pwwrd05lyglqns4ykrs8xx8upy4283796ckjhgxcx4v2up'>nevent1q…v2up</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>Android published new APIs that seem to confirm that your phone will phone home when you install apps. It will refuse installation when you are offline or developer got blocked by Google: <br/><a href="https://developer.android.com/reference/android/content/pm/PackageInstaller#DEVELOPER_VERIFICATION_FAILED_REASON_NETWORK_UNAVAILABLE">https://developer.android.com/reference/android/content/pm/PackageInstaller#DEVELOPER_VERIFICATION_FAILED_REASON_NETWORK_UNAVAILABLE</a> 2025-09-18T23:46:05Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqs2jzp2zejlq26pwwrd05lyglqns4ykrs8xx8upy4283796ckjhgxczyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhged0ceu In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqsxarqdrzlv0l5rftfg4uwmvvhzxl0hzkafjtnh8mvcezat5spwqmst4g8zm'>nevent1q…g8zm</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>The <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub12zw0mcqze206my24qsuvvz4nwj82hsvz58mpncy2uqzvyxfurn6syqc76f" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>Mark Murphy</span> (<span class="italic">npub12zw…c76f</span>)</a></span> has some uncomfortable Questions About Android Developer Verification for Google: <a href="https://commonsware.com/blog/2025/08/26/uncomfortable-questions-android-developer-verification.html">https://commonsware.com/blog/2025/08/26/uncomfortable-questions-android-developer-verification.html</a> 2025-08-26T23:59:17Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsxarqdrzlv0l5rftfg4uwmvvhzxl0hzkafjtnh8mvcezat5spwqmszyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgeuygte In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqswy7u5w9elqq478ce3v970n27wgvdkrmnjwaf3wu6lsapm57kvays0d7s8q'>nevent1q…7s8q</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>Google asks what we think of their plans to block Android app installs outside of Google Play (unless the developers let Google verify their identity and pay a fee).<br/><br/>Want to tell them your opinion, just submit this form:<br/><br/><a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfN3UQeNspQsZCO2ITkdzMxv81rJDEGGjO-UIDDY28Rz_GEVA/viewform?usp=dialog">https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfN3UQeNspQsZCO2ITkdzMxv81rJDEGGjO-UIDDY28Rz_GEVA/viewform?usp=dialog</a> 2025-08-26T13:43:45Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqswy7u5w9elqq478ce3v970n27wgvdkrmnjwaf3wu6lsapm57kvayszyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgdjykrq In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqsphq2946v3nnmvc8uqcl8l8afha2ujxlnl82uaypgr8mdlddmkvqq08zfyj'>nevent1q…zfyj</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>Under-reported detail: If you don&#39;t pay a fee to Google, they limit how many people can install your apps and how many apps you are allowed to have.<br/><br/>Source: <a href="https://developer.android.com/developer-verification/guides/android-developer-console">https://developer.android.com/developer-verification/guides/android-developer-console</a> 2025-08-26T13:29:09Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsphq2946v3nnmvc8uqcl8l8afha2ujxlnl82uaypgr8mdlddmkvqqzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhg0d0l2e In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqsyffkz8fvalljwqtfr5gy6najraaq3tyxy3um0xlzdp3yaw7tjy8qq63fpt'>nevent1q…3fpt</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>In the past, when books were censored and forbidden, people could still print them in their basements and spread them. Everybody who got their hands on one, could read it. This won&#39;t be possible anymore in our new digital age. 2025-08-26T10:22:15Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsyffkz8fvalljwqtfr5gy6najraaq3tyxy3um0xlzdp3yaw7tjy8qzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgx0tu47 In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqsdhrrvxgfywwaypq9uvl9wresrckpq9zlnyg7dpnyz4lqtvhuqh7szjp60l'>nevent1q…p60l</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>People saying &#34;But I use a degoogled custom ROM, so I won&#39;t be affected&#34; are missing the point. Apps not on Google Play are already a niche. Banning them on most people&#39;s devices is a big issue, even if some people can still escape.<br/><br/>Also the general trend of Google becoming more closed may make even custom ROMs impossible eventually. 2025-08-26T10:17:54Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsdhrrvxgfywwaypq9uvl9wresrckpq9zlnyg7dpnyz4lqtvhuqh7szyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgs66ynw In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqsxwq3uvscz5q4kj6xnp32v808g254pgx64xtee6zcfw787v4q0wlcd050sj'>nevent1q…50sj</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>Unfortunately, developers on Google Play are already used to this system and people have accepted Apple, so I this will be a hard fight. Digital ecosystems being closed &#34;to keep us safe&#34; isn&#39;t seen as a bad thing. 2025-08-26T10:08:46Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsxwq3uvscz5q4kj6xnp32v808g254pgx64xtee6zcfw787v4q0wlczyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgd332ca In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqsxkny430358n3gscds4uhlut2s0efrgd9h8rd0ftr0hmwj5m6q0dskg32p2'>nevent1q…32p2</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>We need to fight Google&#39;s new ID requirement for app developers. It isn&#39;t like showing ID at the airport. More like showing it at the printing press and only IDed authors are allowed to print books.<br/><br/>What Google doesn&#39;t talk about is that they build this ID system to ban developers and their apps. 2025-08-26T10:05:16Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsxkny430358n3gscds4uhlut2s0efrgd9h8rd0ftr0hmwj5m6q0dszyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhg2m44ur Google won&#39;t allow you to install Android apps whose developers&#39; identity Google hasn&#39;t verified. Starting in 2026 in some countries and in 2027 everywhere: <a href="https://www.androidauthority.com/android-developer-verification-requirements-3590911/">https://www.androidauthority.com/android-developer-verification-requirements-3590911/</a> 2025-08-25T17:28:54Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqs035ql0759l8dt5rl2wvnl67gyac2ju5cg0pp894ydqu7tgzz0qmqzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhg4j2g99 Check out my progress on the new <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1mtrk3vl7546q9c4lf0k62nkaypanv6t95gyh32f5jp63ffalu98s4mtrt0" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>F-Droid</span> (<span class="italic">npub1mtr…trt0</span>)</a></span> app and let me know what you think of this early prototype.<br/><br/>Thanks to <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1n8y64vc26phwqu2ey5uztdrz9qusdlu06qdpk5tukgdlsdj0gu8sl3l96n" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>NLnet</span> (<span class="italic">npub1n8y…l96n</span>)</a></span> and <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1dk0yumc78t4z3rdxuqw5swz96qp3u93ala23awmyaqkc8qghm65spnk0wd" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>NGI Zero open source funding</span> (<span class="italic">npub1dk0…k0wd</span>)</a></span> for supporting this work! <a href="https://f-droid.org/en/2025/04/29/mobifree-client-funding.html">https://f-droid.org/en/2025/04/29/mobifree-client-funding.html</a> #fdroid<br/><video controls width="100%" class="max-h-[90vh] bg-neutral-300 dark:bg-zinc-700"><source src="https://assets.chaos.social/media_attachments/files/115/028/861/981/392/752/original/448ef158d700b961.mp4"></video><br/> 2025-08-14T19:56:19Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqs0d5glhgl5u04xz3wvfh8zmcplmhytxp6mtpqw8py0d96eeqvmzmszyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgsqh9k3 In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqsqk30elgn75h7p094aq445wh3fdhsdgjp65fj6uxs0gggpyrm892cvmj7l4'>nevent1q…j7l4</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>Congrats! Why does it need native code? Is this a Flutter/React thing? 2025-06-12T12:44:55Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqsgptra5f6ekgr8kue7qnwy0mq0zs6g43yfgq5x4rvxxs59xz0uthszyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgpn3lty In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqs8dm99n069yvk4c8jsm26a0s4le06tsha5hrz5svj5efurs2e644qdl2j8e'>nevent1q…2j8e</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>About and maybe even Account could go into the top right overflow menu. 2025-04-26T23:35:09Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqs0l5y6w6gkwv8wrfdsdpwmf6vdu4gwkan5eg40usavegu9ssdcxggzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgaxlsf9 In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqswtgkf0nrglgcmnt0tt0p4r3x0zkspv9mdq488fun9n64fhn05rtggkrr40'>nevent1q…rr40</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>I ran first mailbox setup in xterm instead of my default terminal and its font worked well for scanning. May need delete current account if yours is already set up.<br/><span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1sh9vsyv3x2wk6r20n59x3u2f30sx028w4yzz6gtm3knvtw8ak0sqy4r3ez" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>Briar Project</span> (<span class="italic">npub1sh9…r3ez</span>)</a></span> 2025-01-18T12:00:02Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqszgfxwcwfwhvrnzyuevpwejxdwg9xlkwdgltg3ngxx20k7nsq0akgzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhglwr3y7 In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqs0mm64vy35k5zrplcmwlp3xxakvjfa5k0nqvhzhpgrcxtt77uwplgjv0rm7'>nevent1q…0rm7</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>Showing the qrcode with xterm allowed me to scan it with<br/><span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1sh9vsyv3x2wk6r20n59x3u2f30sx028w4yzz6gtm3knvtw8ak0sqy4r3ez" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>Briar Project</span> (<span class="italic">npub1sh9…r3ez</span>)</a></span> 2025-01-18T00:45:34Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqs23teft9z0qr3gs2cm6ch92uhj4rhhzy3vg8rr9kqeygletndyp7gzyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhgrghp7k In reply to <a href='/nevent1qqsz5jfsw9gl8l3p8qlvgfyj4gkj6mwx72umz5tcy5y9r9dw8hwvhycyk0vn6'>nevent1q…0vn6</a><br/>_________________________<br/><br/>Note that <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1mtrk3vl7546q9c4lf0k62nkaypanv6t95gyh32f5jp63ffalu98s4mtrt0" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>F-Droid</span> (<span class="italic">npub1mtr…trt0</span>)</a></span> can&#39;t build apps hosted on codeberg anymore due to this. Its buildserver clones the repo for each app and soon gets 429. 2024-10-19T14:32:35Z https://yabu.me/nevent1qqszn8wy2dy0fjql63jsvl5g04utl872nnp57cxfc8y7vedxma6mh8szyrk37ug48eyvnrgttd345lgcfq98hwl5xae2ewqkmxsw5datsxjhglpy6gd Thanks to support from <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1dk0yumc78t4z3rdxuqw5swz96qp3u93ala23awmyaqkc8qghm65spnk0wd" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>NGI Zero open source funding</span> (<span class="italic">npub1dk0…k0wd</span>)</a></span> and <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1xwazjwc09elgx8jrdl5eqzmj88k4rmx50jj59v0gy53z2zlltkwshl75q9" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>CalyxOS</span> (<span class="italic">npub1xwa…75q9</span>)</a></span>, I was able to improve Seedvault&#39;s app backup. Taking inspiration from <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub18j36ug82cpj650y2qxkhtplk4e88vk39lmu2477ancl5yh0uh4as6ww0c9" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>The restic backup program</span> (<span class="italic">npub18j3…w0c9</span>)</a></span> and <span itemprop="mentions" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person"><a itemprop="url" href="/npub1aeywqzexqa27hf9gank2uff69tlc8jkxhjwmnstrw2k84f7xeh0qn8y08m" class="bg-lavender dark:prose:text-neutral-50 dark:text-neutral-50 dark:bg-garnet px-1"><span>BorgBackup</span> (<span class="italic">npub1aey…y08m</span>)</a></span> 2, backups now use de-duplication, compression and chunking - resulting in smaller and faster backups. Snapshots allow you to restore previous states of your device. Available on free Androids soon.<br/><br/>Docs: <a href="https://github.com/grote/seedvault/blob/app-dedup-research/doc/README.md#seedvault-app-backup-repository-documentation">https://github.com/grote/seedvault/blob/app-dedup-research/doc/README.md#seedvault-app-backup-repository-documentation</a><br/>PR: <a href="https://github.com/seedvault-app/seedvault/pull/750">https://github.com/seedvault-app/seedvault/pull/750</a> 2024-09-24T20:06:00Z