Perhaps the United States Congress does not realize how bad this ban will be. That’s going to be devastating for the small business owners, the single moms, the artists, the comedians, and so many more who use the app and rely on it to make a living and make the economy go round.

Actually, it could even be devastating for the politicians who rely on the app to reach constituents and make an impact (some of which even voted for the ban, for some reason).

The law authorizing the sale itself feels like a swing and a miss for many; I have to agree. Some have said the ban is meant to serve as a distraction from other things; I don’t buy that. Some have even been in denial that the ban won’t take effect; It likely will, to be honest with you all.

The two options are simple: the Supreme Court stays the looming ban for now as it plays out in their court, or rules the ban is unconstitutional. I’m speculating on everything because I don’t know how they’re feeling. No one does. Just going off what the Court’s Justices stated during oral arguments this past Friday.

If the last 8 years in politics have taught me anything, it’s that anything can happen, for better or for worse. We’ll see what happens.

The post The TikTok Ban is looming appeared first on Slade Watkins.

It is no secret that I am an avid Apple user. I have been using a Mac in some fashion as my primary computer since 2016. I have had a 13″ M2 MacBook Pro since 2022, and recently got an 27-inch Intel-based iMac from my best friend’s parents. I have no plans of leaving the “Mac World” anytime soon. The iPhone world, maybe, but not the Mac. I live in Final Cut Pro and Compressor, I breathe in Safari, I pour my brain out into Notes. This has been my world for 8 years now. It’s hard to break that sort of cycle.

Now, I’m no stranger to Linux — Ubuntu 8.04 was what I learned how to use a computer on. That’s why Macs feel so natural to me; they feel very similar in the ease-of-use and performance departments. Windows is neither of those things. The only reason anyone uses Windows is application support, primarily gamers. (And for gamers, that’s really because kernel level anti-cheat exists, frankly. If developers embraced less insecure anti-cheat solutions, we would not be in this mess.)

Windows hasn’t been a good performer since Windows 7. It has been infested with ads since Windows 8/8.1, only getting worse with 10 and especially 11. Even with Windows 10 about to lose support next October, nobody’s rushing to upgrade to the latest release. In fact, Windows 11’s market share just fell AGAIN, losing an entire percentage point on the global Statscounter. I recognize that may not sound like a lot, but remember there are hundreds of millions of Windows computers out there. This isn’t insignificant!

The tests I ran were not really scientific so take it with a grain of salt, but: even on a decked-out Lenovo Ideapad 3 Gaming (2021 model), everything upgraded to the maximum it can possibly go with all new SSDs, the computer performs miles better under Pop!_OS (Linux) than it ever did under Windows 11. Windows 10 seems to perform somewhat better than 11, but not nearly as good as Pop!_OS did.

Because I use that computer for games, compatibility with my Steam library becomes a giant question mark. Even if they are compatible, most have some sort of configuration I need to do. And games like Mass Effect: Legendary Edition or Fallout: New Vegas become even more of a question mark, because I’m not even sure I can run their mods or even their respective launchers!

So, even though I’m feeling “done,” I’m not sure I can leave just yet. At least not until I can figure out the answers to the questions I have in regards to the games I play. Until then, I’m just going to rip out telemetry, continue using an Enterprise release with minimal bloat, and hope for the best…

The post I’m feeling done with Windows again appeared first on Slade Watkins.

Ever since Elon Musk took over in 2022, the site has been plagued with issue after issue. From the general instability of the site, to the shrinking of the user base (despite the leadership of Musk and “CEO” Linda Yaccarino saying otherwise), to the verification scandal (which has its OWN Wikipedia page with a laundry list of References), to the owner’s own antisemitic and otherwise hateful views.

This is only scratching the surface. When Musk finally closed the acquisition and took Twitter private, I’d hoped he’d just be the owner and hire somebody actually qualified to build out his vision. Someone who could push back on the bad ideas. (And just to be clear, not all of his ideas for the site were bad! It was a very low percentage of them, but still.)

The truth is, the site’s bleeding money and users who don’t want to buy what he’s selling. Advertisers don’t want to pay Elon anymore, which apparently his solution for is to sue and say it should be illegal (causing the GARM organization to collapse).

I won’t get into the details on how exactly I feel about this particular thing, but now that he’s likely* going to become a US government official (*pending confirmation from the Senate), and holds several government contracts, I don’t know if he’s going to get appointed at all. If he does, I doubt he’s going to have time to manage the platform as it does not appear Yaccarino is even allowed to do much. That’s where I’m leaving this section, though.

Look, I met my closest friends on Twitter (one of whom is building “Chirp,” which is a brilliant little project.) While I have other ways of reaching them all, thank God, I’m still sad to be losing a platform I have to thank for bringing them into my life in the first place. Bittersweet is probably a better term for it.

So where do we go from here? Well, a lot of Twitter users have moved over to Bluesky. (Which, funnily enough, was funded by Twitter and its former CEO Jack Dorsey prior to Musk’s acquisition.) Some are on Threads, Mastodon, or other places on the fediverse. Some are here on Tumblr, too. Or all of the above even!

Honestly, this has made me really appreciate the vibe of the “old internet” even more. This new era feels more like a modern day Myspace / Early 2010s Twitter hybrid. I love it.

So, I encourage you to consider any of the alternatives and start moving away, too. It’s not a “it’ll happen overnight” thing, of course, it’ll take time… but these other, more healthier places absolutely deserve your support in order to be viable! Stay positive, folks.

After all, bluer skies are ahead! (Sorry.)

The post After 9 years, bluer skies are ahead. appeared first on Slade Watkins.

After two long years, Apple got the message!

Having spent time with the iOS 18 beta over the summer, I really enjoy my phone now! I love my iPhone 13 Pro Max for a number of reasons. But I’ve also come to realize that RCS may not come to my carrier’s AT&T-based network on iOS until this time next year. This comes down to the way Apple implemented their RCS stuff, really.

At the very least, US Mobile do have RCS working on their Verizon-based network. So we have that. Unfortunately, I am stuck with the AT&T network option due to coverage in our area and the places I travel to with frequency…

Nothing against US Mobile, of course! The ball is squarely in AT&T and Apple’s courts on this one. On AT&T’s part, their generic bundle is terrible and needs to get updated. On Apple’s part, they need to let US Mobile have their own carrier bundle. It’s a whole thing.

I didn’t want to bring it up, but as of me writing this, MMS group messaging is STILL completely busted on Dark Star. I consider this to be a mandatory feature–and since RCS isn’t here to save that, it’s not ideal! I blame AT&T–not US Mobile–for the subpar experience. It’s AT&T’s generic bundle: they need to fix it.

Anyway, silver lining: This is something US Mobile is working on for Dark Star (their AT&T-based network) first before the other two networks, at least. Frankly, I believe them when they say they’re trying to get this out the door soon! But… I’ve always been someone who doesn’t like sticking with something that isn’t going to work for me now, on the promise of something else happening in the future. And I don’t know if I can stick it out. Maybe I’m being cynical, but I don’t trust Apple to let them have a bundle.

Look, I’ve been pulling back from most “normal” social media use. I don’t post on Twitter, or anything really, as much as I used to. These days I prefer making good old fashioned phone calls, sending texts, or using Snapchat to communicate with the friends I have. I won’t get into the details of my own mental health, but I do mention this because it is informing my decision.

Snapchat is… a mess on Android, and it has been for many years now. While it is getting better, the iOS app is more stable and has a far more usable app overall. That’s a win for iOS, and a major concern if I were to decide to swap my eSIM over to my Pixel right now.

So, the wins for iOS mostly stop there. I don’t really care about iMessage anymore–it’s cool, but RCS offers high quality media and that’s all I really cared for. Stickers are a nice bonus, but I don’t consider those important. Apple Pay isn’t something I use, none of my friends use it either. We all use Venmo. So, who cares?

Realistically, nobody actually cares. Use whatever phone you want, when you want to use it…just make sure you or the people you know are on iOS 18 and turn RCS on if they can, PLEASE! Let’s at least fix the group chats and horrid videos… as for me, well, I’ll decide eventually.

Maybe…

The post The Sixth Android vs iOS Dilemma This Year appeared first on Slade Watkins.

Who knows.

Why I currently daily an Android phone

I’ve been an Android user for a very long time. I’ve had Motorola, Huawei (for a brief time), and Google phones as my primary phone for ages. I really only obtained an iPhone in high school because we had iPads, and I had a Mac at home, so it just made sense for file transfers (AirDrop). Now, I really only regularly use a Mac. My iPad just sits on my nightstand now that I have a Pixel Tablet.

Truth is, my parents are deep in the Google ecosystem, and as you’ll see: a lot of my life revolves around currently or effectively Android-exclusive features like the replacement for SMS and MMS, Rich Communication Services (better known as RCS). I’m not entirely sure if I could easily leave the Google ecosystem. Although… the iOS version of Snapchat would be nice to have again.

The iPhones I have, themselves

Okay, so, I have a couple options that I somehow have to pick one of.

I am currently running the iOS 18 betas on both of the iPhones I have, which are the 11 in Green and 12 in Product Red. I probably need 5G support on my main line to be “prioritized,” as it’s currently through US Mobile’s Warp (Verizon) network. So that’s pushing me towards the 12, which certainly has a prettier screen, but my 11 has so much storage.

That said, I haven’t noticed a difference, and frankly, I’ll be swapping to their Dark Star (AT&T) network when that becomes available anyway. (I’m glad they got this off the ground under a year after I wrote a blog post about it.)

I’m really not sure which device of the two I’d pick to drive daily, if I were to switch back to iPhone. I suppose I could always drive myself and Adam mad and just keep carrying two phones. Just… both of them would be iPhones, and I’m not sure how much sense that’d make!

RCS and International Texting

RCS is a necessity for me. My family and most of my friends have Android phones, and our group chats are all RCS (with the common Discord server exception, of course.) However, it seems like MVNOs don’t have RCS on the betas yet, nor does there appear to be any indication that they’ll support it.

I have an international phone plan, so I’m not too worried about any charges there. And for most international folks, we’re all on WhatsApp or Snapchat now anyway. No matter which way you look at it: this is a non-factor now, which is great!

Apps situation

Because I’ve been with Android for God knows how long now, I’ve amassed a great amount of paid apps and subscriptions which are all tied to my Google Play account. I’m not going to buy or subscribe to those again on the Apple App Store if I already have them on Android.

Similarly, because of my time in high school, I do have some app purchases on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, but not nearly as many as I have on Android. It makes this really hard for me, since I use a lot of them every day, even a decade later.

Apple Music is what I use for music these days, because Spotify sucks. Not worried about that at all. It’s literally everything else.

Google and Apple’s track records

Apple has been known to give the middle finger towards things they don’t like, Google is known for their less than stellar promise-keeping record for keeping services around (RIP Google One VPN), and honestly: I’m losing faith in both companies. This kind of factors into my indecision a fair bit. I guess I don’t know which of the two evils I’m okay with putting my support behind.

Cameras

I take a lot of pictures. Like I’ve mentioned, I’m a very frequent user of Snapchat and it’s my primary way of communicating with friends outside of Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Camera quality is important to me, and honestly, no matter which phone I pick (Pixel or iPhone), I’m going to end up with a great camera system.

It boils down to operating system and how the apps I use to take photos interact with said camera system. A point for the iPhone is that apps seem to hook right in the best, whilst even high end Android phones struggle.

Conclusion

So that’s everything. At the end of the day, I’m conflicted. I love Android but I guess I’m also ready for a change, Snapchat on Android (even high-end phones like my Pixel or the Samsung Galaxy S23s) is terrible, and that’s how I communicate with basically everybody I know.

What do you all think? Let me know. I’m having a hard time making a decision…

The post Should iSwitch Back to iPhone? appeared first on Slade Watkins.

With this leap, and their partnership with ChatGPT that made billionaire conspiracy theorist and known idiot Elon Musk* squeamish (and eventually Community Noted by his own platform) for whatever reason, I’m certain that Apple has the lead in building AI. Why? Because they’re building it safely and privately, with the user being the most important part. That should be applauded! That’s how it should be done!

*I’m not linking out directly to his tirade, Elon can go pound sand, but enjoy this funny interaction that I wholeheartedly agree with:

Also, Elon uses an iPhone to send out all of his Tweets. So, might be time for him to get a new phone if he hates this Apple Intelligence thing so much! Haha.

Any way, while the AI craze is likely to die out eventually, it’s here to stay for now. My opinion is that technology should be built with user privacy at the forefront of everything, and Apple is one of the leading companies out there when it comes to privacy. Period. Apple is a trend setter, and I’m hoping the rest of the industry follows their lead here. Privacy and security are a really big deal to consumers right now. More so than ever, frankly.

Now probably the thing I’ve been most anticipating (for over a year now) RCS isn’t available on the iOS 18 beta (yet?), which is incredibly frustrating. It’s probably coming in Beta 2 or something, but part of me doubts they’ll add it. But that said, a large number of features announced on stage aren’t available on any of the new operating system betas released to developers today. It’s quite worrying, considering that besides Apple Intelligence, none of these updates are particularly “huge” so-to-speak. But, we must be patient!

Overshadowed

All of that said, this conference was overshadowed by an incredibly bigger issue with Apple right now: their compliance (or alleged lack thereof) with the Digital Markets Act. You still, in iOS 18/iPadOS 18, cannot sideload or install any app you’d like — let alone any third-party storefronts — on the device you paid for outside of the EU. Meanwhile, on Android, you can just install the app and all Google will do is a virus/malware scan to make sure it’s clean. That’s it. No (real) scare screen, no problem.

Apple should’ve unlocked this functionality for everyone and got ahead of the regulators here. It wouldn’t have solved every issue, but it would have at least made it seem like Apple was trying to work in good faith. Alas… it wasn’t meant to be.

I’m a firm believer that if you paid for a thing, you should be allowed to do whatever you want with it. Nobody should stop you, or limit how much you can do that thing, or anything like that. And certainly companies shouldn’t be telling you what you can or cannot run on your device, either. I’m hoping that the Courts and/or Congress will step in and fix that soon.

The Department of Justice here in the States is currently in a lawsuit against Apple, so hopefully we seem them loosening their restrictions (à la macOS). I’m betting we probably will, considering Apple’s partial loss in Epic v. Apple a few years back.

Regardless, as I write this post in my text editor to send out to you, I’ve updated my M2 MacBook Pro to macOS 15 Sequoia. Along with the rest of the Apple fleet I currently have around me, of course! (Can’t do the Apple TV yet since it’s at a friend’s house, whoops.) But as I mentioned, there’s not a lot new to report on right now–but the betas across the board have felt relatively snappy on iPhone 11, 12, Apple Watch Series 6, and MacBook Pro (M2, 2022). I’ll keep you posted, though!

The post WWDC 2024: Intelligence and The Shadow Casting Above appeared first on Slade Watkins.

“…the snapshots and strings of text that Windows Recall logs are safely encrypted on your PC using Device Encryption and Bitlocker. This means if your laptop is ever stolen, intruders can’t access the contents of your storage without an encryption key, and they won’t be able to gain access to any stored snapshots without being logged in to your account.”

While this may be true, encryption does not equal secure. (And a point I’m going to address in a second entirely calls into question the security of the feature at all.) Even so, if you’re actively looking at Recall information and you unknowingly have malware or a targeted virus on your computer, you’re screwed! Oh, and if you hit share on a Recall thing, all someone has to do is eyeball your “C:\Users[username]\AppData\Local\Temp” folder, and boom, they have that information.

Thankfully, Zac does agree that malware may be a problem. Which is good! That’s a main concern amongst pretty much everyone right now.

The entire Windows Recall experience is processed on device, which is partly why it requires a Copilot+ PC to function. Microsoft is offloading the resources required to process a feature like this onto the NPU, which is a secure chip that’s powerful enough to handle the processing of snapshots using AI with little power draw.

This means Windows Recall works 100% offline, and you don’t need an active internet connection to take advantage of it. It doesn’t even require a Microsoft Account, and as a result is missing some quality of life features such as cross-device syncing. None of that is possible here, because Windows Recall does not upload your data anywhere.

It was recently discovered that Recall works completely fine without any real issue on devices without NPUs, including systems with Intel/AMD processors (though a few dependencies are obviously missing on x86_64 systems.) So whilst the claim that it “requires” a Copilot+ PC to function correctly, that only really means “out of the box.” You can get it working on other PCs, and that’s the real concern.

Additionally, Recall is not discriminatory about what sort of information it’ll grab. Microsoft themselves have warned it will grab your passwords and banking info. The discrimination feature seems to be integrated fairly well into private browsing on many of the popular web browsers.

And let me raise you this question: who’s going to use that to check their bank statements or make a purchase every time? Or even use Edge at all, for that matter? Sure, Edge has gotten better since switching to Chromium, but it’s still a bloated piece of trash that hardly anyone trusts, so I’m not entirely convinced it’s a great substitute.

And yes, you can exclude certain apps and websites from showing up in Recall at all, but I don’t trust Microsoft to respect the damn settings. I mean, the company has shown they don’t respect your default browser (hell, they’ve probably stolen your data without you even knowing). They shove ads down your throat in an operating system you paid for.

The UK, by the way, is currently launching an investigation into this Recall feature. While it’s unclear why, it’s probably due to all of the concerns raised by users like me, as well as literal cybersecurity professionals. In an interview with SC Media, Patrick Tiquet, VP of Security & Architecture at Keeper Security said:

“Microsoft’s Recall feature raises a few alarms, including security risks of potentially capturing and store detailed and sensitive information, as well as concerns surrounding invasion of privacy. The potential of sensitive information being stored without proper security protocols, puts your cybersecurity and even your identity risk.”

Even the malware protection giant themselves, Malwarebytes, chimed in on Twitter with their own thing:

Encryption, even with the popular BitLocker tool, simply aren’t enough to quell people’s concerns. Even barring the concerns, this feature has some serious privacy and security implications. Can Microsoft, a company known for not caring about user choice (see: Edge forcing itself down your throat, Microsoft not letting you change default browsers easily or uninstall Edge at all, etc.), really be trusted to handle something like this?

For people like me, who are well-versed enough to know when to sound the alarm and jump ship: this is that time, and we are. I already have, I’m writing this on Pop!_OS, actually. I’ve returned home to Linux for the first time since switching to Windows in 2014 and macOS in 2016. (Though I still use macOS, of course!) I simply refuse to let Microsoft tell me how to use my computer, dictate what browser, search engine, and apps I use on my computer.

Freedom, privacy, and security matter. I will use 1Password, I will use Firefox, I will use whatever the hell default programs I feel like on my computer. Everyone should have that freedom. End of story.

I stand behind my claim that Windows 11 is just one of many nails in Microsoft’s coffin. It’s, in fact, a data-collection beast. It’s phoning home to Microsoft, even if you tell it not to. Microsoft is simply masquerading as a hardware/software giant, when it’s actually one of the most successful advertising powerhouses on the planet.

Why? Because we, the people, believed many of their past lies, and went along with it. Because Windows is “easier” to deal with than Linux (you have a point, but it’s getting easier with distributions like Pop!_OS.) Because games “just work” on Linux (Valve and the Steam Deck are changing this with Proton.)

So yeah, I can confidently say that Windows is spyware pretending to be “The best Windows yet.” And Microsoft? It’s 100% spyware, let’s just call it what it is. There’s no debate here to be had, either, I think it’s fairly well known that the telemetry is awful and only gets worse as the years go on.

That’s why I don’t trust Recall or anything that comes out of Microsoft anymore. That’s why you shouldn’t either. Be skeptical. And if you can (not everyone can), leave Windows behind. Go to a Mac, if you really don’t want to touch Linux. Just run away.

The post Windows Central Claims Recall Isn’t Privacy Nightmare You Think It Is. I Disagree. appeared first on Slade Watkins.

There’s no excuse.

I don’t know how Google has managed to fail so spectacularly at literally anything they do. The fact that Samsung is way ahead of Google on Android updates and feature releases that lay underneath One UI is a kick in the balls for Google. Samsung are a third-party that builds on top of Android Open Source Project (AOSP) code, they have no reason to be so far ahead of Google. I cannot understate how bad this is for Google as a company.

They have no credibility. They consistently shut down services with no recourse and little notice. If they want to fix this problem, I think they need to get aggressive and do the following two things:

1. Google must match software and hardware support for the Pixel 6 and 7 series, as well as the Fold and Tablet, to that of the Pixel 8. 7 years total, across the board, from the original launch date. They need to prove their commitment to their Tensor hardware and software experiences, this is how they do that. I’m not saying they need to bring every feature (that’s certainly not feasible), but if some Pixel 8 features can run on Pixel 7, there’s no reason they can’t run on Pixel Tablet or even Pixel 6 depending on complexity.
   • Pixel 6 has barely received any new features besides OS updates since launching in October 2021. It is planned to be barred from feature updates in October 2024. That is unacceptable.
2. With Android 15, non-Tensor Pixel devices will be unsupported on Google’s own flavor of Android (“stock” as it’s commonly called). This is the perfect opportunity to reimagine feature drops. Put more in there for those on older devices! Keep them alive and kicking. Not forever, but at least until the end of their limited shelf life. Less e-waste is a great thing for the environment, you know!

Google has a bit of a reputation problem. I don’t know if they have a team in charge of killing services or something, but it seems to happen a lot, and there’s a graveyard dedicated to them at this point.

I hold Rick Osterloh and Dave Burke, who essentially lead Pixel and Android respectively, in high regard. They’re awesome to the Android community and always have been! But, they need to get on their A-game if they want to restore their reputation. Articles like this one from Android Authority, which accuses Google of breaking their promises, shouldn’t be cropping up. It’s time to take control and do right by their consumers and community.

The post Google Needs to Get It Together and Fix Their Reputation appeared first on Slade Watkins.

The biggest reason is that developers are going to stop trusting them soon enough. Frankly, Apple is becoming the very thing they sought to destroy almost forty some-odd years ago. The fact that they’re becoming more and more litigious is enough evidence, to be honest.

The company is simply on a power trip, fueled by a hunger for control and dominance over every industry in which they take part, even if that means costing themselves a significant amount of goodwill among their vast community of developers and enthusiasts. At least Microsoft’s former CEO Steve Ballmer understood that developers mean everything to a thriving platform. That said, Ballmer was controversial as a CEO, and most of that reputation is his own fault.

Every move the company has made, from RCS support and beyond (especially recently), has been done in a way that is nothing short of malicious compliance. Developers from across the industry, including several third-party developer alums, have come together and spoken out against these moves. Whether it’s independently, or through the Coalition for App Fairness, or through some other alliance.

Spotify, for example, is a member of the Coalition whose CEO was incredibly vocal against the proposed DMA rules set forth by Apple. They released another letter to the European Commission on Apple’s “lack of DMA compliance” just last week. Apple responded, with an incredibly anger-filled press release on Monday:

“Today, Spotify has a 56 percent share of Europe’s music streaming market — more than double their closest competitor’s — and pays Apple nothing for the services that have helped make them one of the most recognizable brands in the world. A large part of their success is due to the App Store, along with all the tools and technology that Spotify uses to build, update, and share their app with Apple users around the world.”

Keep in mind, the EU recently fined them €1.84 billion EURO ($2 billion USD) as a result of the anti-trust litigation between them, Spotify, and this is just a result of their distaste in their loss. The fact of the matter is–the Apple beast has become too powerful. We, the consumers, have given them this power–and we’re the only ones who can seize it once more.

Google isn’t exactly a saint either, to be clear. They’ve had their own myriad of bullshit and muddy bodies of antitrust and litigation of all sorts that would take ages to wade through. However–Android has, and will continue to be, an open platform in both source and user choice for as long as the Android Open Source Project exists and smartphone manufacturers (who aren’t Apple) continue making phones.

For Apple to succeed in interfacing with developers in the long-term–beyond their evangelists and most dedicated users who have zero understanding of how Android, Windows, or Linux works–they must stop alienating them and being so disrespectful when given constructive feedback. I’m not sure why their knee-jerk reaction is to play the victim card so much, especially when I’m sure they have a million other cards to play, but they continue to choose it.

For sympathy? Probably.

I believe it’s time for us iOS users to rebel in the only way Apple has given us the ability to do: take our business elsewhere. The grass is certainly greener on the other side of the wall. Even DHH, a well-known lover AND critic of Apple (being an Apple evangelist for a long ass time–perhaps 99% of my life–will do that), has switched to Android and Windows and has no reason to leave for a while.

Wild that we’ve gotten here. I’m doing the same thing, too–plotting my course out of the “ecosystem.” Perhaps it is that time. If Apple has a sincere change of heart, sure, but I don’t think developers are going to stick around for long with their attitude lately. Without developers, a platform is nothing. Without COMPETITION, a developer is nothing. If Apple truly is seeking to destroy both, iOS may as well be deemed irrelevant now.

Unless you want to eventually be stuck without any third-party apps in the future… I’d start looking at your options and plotting your exit plan. Samsung Galaxy S is probably the closest choice, but Google Pixel has a great line, too. That’s my take.

The post It Might Be Time For Us to Break Free from Apple’s “Ecosystem” appeared first on Slade Watkins.

In middle school and high school, at least here in the US, you had a few options: iMessage or Snapchat. And basically everyone had Snapchat. It’s what we all used to communicate with each other. I’ve been on the app since 2012, when it first became available on Android, and I’ve grown used to Snapping back and forth with classmates or whatever.

Even after all these years, and the drama that shit on Snapchat caused during high school specifically, I think it is one of the healthier platforms out there. Twitter certainly isn’t, Facebook feels like a place to go for “old people drama,” and Instagram is fine, I guess but really isn’t the same. Which is why I elected to keep Snapchat on my phone: most of my friends are on it, and there’s an incentive to keeping in regular contact with them.

I have my own gripes with Snapchat, of course, but they aren’t shoving ads down your throat or some algorithmic timeline. It’s an intent-based social media network: you want to talk to your friends, you talk to your friends. You can either Snap them, or Chat them, or both! You can talk almost daily and inevitably start a streak. There are no barriers to entry, and no algorithms telling you what you can or can’t see based on what you might like. The timeline’s there, of course, but you have to go looking for it.

Bottom line is: You just do the thing you want to do and just like that, it’s done.

It’s the same thing with platforms like Mastodon and Bluesky, which are similarly intent-based: you tell it what you want to do, and it does the thing you want it to do. It doesn’t complain, it doesn’t tell you you’ll lose functionality (because you don’t), it just does. It makes things less addicting and more engaging. In my opinion, that’s a balance we all need to have in this heavily internet-connected world. I’m so happy to have finally found that balance.

And frankly, there’s something to appreciate about that approach to creating software: giving users the tools to use the thing however it works for them. Especially in this day and age, where companies demand more and more control over how their things work alone, or with other services (or, rather, how they don’t do either and close off their products to other third-parties, requiring first-party subscription services for the device be fully functional. I’m looking at you, Apple.)

I’m happy with what Snapchat has offered in this space. Intent-based social media apps matter, and regardless of some of my own complaints with it, it has honestly made a significantly positive impact on my friendships, and helped make them stronger… so I can forgive some of its shortcomings, for sure.

The post I Think Snapchat is A Healthier Form of Social Media: Intent-Based Platforms Matter appeared first on Slade Watkins.