this post was submitted on 03 Apr 2024
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AssholeDesign

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This is a community for designs specifically crafted to make the experience worse for the user. This can be due to greed, apathy, laziness or just downright scumbaggery.

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[–] [email protected] 194 points 1 year ago (10 children)

Why the fuck would anybody install an APP to use a website?

(Puts on clown face) "Sure, I'll install this program on my pocket computer from the Urban Dictionary to save the time it would take me to open a web browser and type in the URL of it, all it costs is me giving direct access to my stored personal data and real-time activities"

[–] [email protected] 64 points 1 year ago (2 children)

The state of people blindly using apps for everything is atrocious.

“But it saves me a 1USD on my fast food burger!”

[–] [email protected] 36 points 1 year ago (7 children)

Fast food charges you around double if you don't use the app. I think it's mostly about tiered pricing. They want the money from those willing to pay $15 for a burger AND they still want the money from people who won't pay more than $10. This way they get both.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Fast food charges you around double if you don't use the app.

In the US, I guess? Not where I come from

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

In Italy it's also like this

You literally pay double the price if you order without using the coupons found in the app for McDonald's, Burger King and KFC

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Makes sense. I don’t eat fast food, so I didn’t know. But no way am I installing apps for… basically any commercial thing.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Same here, but I do eat fast food on occasion. Their small discounts are not worth enough to compromise my phone's integrity and my privacy.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago

I just looked at their app permissions, and woof. It’s almost as bad as Threads.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago

Wendy's order through app showing around a 45% discount.

It's not a small discount. Of course just using the app isn't the only hoop. You also have to order correctly to maximize the discount.

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (5 children)

McDonald's charges a lot more without the app tho

fun fact: McDonald's app has tighter "security" than my bank app and won't even work on rooted devices

[–] [email protected] 21 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I can't believe that there's a whole generation of people who voluntarily installed a McDonald's app. I guess marketing works...

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

"but i can save a dollar by letting mcdonalds root itself deep inside my large intestine!"

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

McDonald's app is the fastest way to check if you installed magisk+shamiko correctly

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

LOL! Glad I'm not the only one who thinks the Mickie app is locked down

McDonalds needs updates more often than my credit card app...

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Seriously. Apps are stupid. They exist solely to steal your data, and they do that by asking for insane permissions.

And the overwhelming majority of this could be avoided if consumers didnt just straight up braindead refuse to use the actual website because "hurr hurrr I do nothing wrong why I have to hide anything I WANT MAH CONVENIENCE! REAL OR PERCEIVED!"

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago

No, only stupid apps are stupid.

Webpages are webpages. Apps are apps. Just don't use webpages that are shitty apps, don't use apps that are shitty webpages, never let a webpage display an ad, never accept a closed-source app and you'll be fine.

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Here's a real reason: It's generally more optimized and smooth than the web version. And before you say that's because the websites purposely nerf themselves, one of the best examples to support my statement is Mastodon, which is slow and laggy on the website but fast and smooth in the app.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago

Here's the REAL reason: Apps grant Developers/Content owners more control/metrics/data about the user to feed their advertisers, which translates to more revenue. It's way easier to hoover up data about the user outside of the browser sandbox, and in apps.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago

But this urban dictionary app looks like some webapp. Also this slight smoothness costs your personally identifiable data for such apps

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

How often do I need to find a reference in Urban Dictionary?

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago (1 children)

eh, if the app is actually native and i use it a lot I'd rather have it installed...
Don't see the point of WebView/web apps packaged as mobile ones tho....

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

And that's why your phone's probably fucked up. Just install whatever, for the alleged convenience. But you already have a web browser, and you could simply make a bookmark to the website you visit frequently.

I get 3 days of battery life between charges on my phone without all that kind of bullshit on there. Running GrapheneOS on a supported Pixel with sandboxed Google Play services and zero social media apps that are not open source.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Actually I use CentOS, Raspbian, Windows 10, Android, and MacOS on my various computers.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

My phone runs fine. I use some apps, and many others I use websites. My ebooks, music, podcasts, and video stuff uses apps, as well as some games, my banking app, and this lemmy app. I don't use apps for just about every other social media (mostly because I barely use em), for many websites etc. Email I do use the apps, as well as my robovac, and some other communication based ones. Also MFA apps.

Use of apps can be decided on a per use basis, as long as the person knows the possible issues stemming from them. It doesn't need to be all or nothing, and your solution doesn't necessarily work for everyone. It doesn't make you better than them, nor them better than you, just different. Stop assuming everyone should do things like you do.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago

Especially with Firefox and derivatives allowing you to run the webpage in an app-like way! I do this for everything from the public transit website in my city to financial sites.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Reading this on Voyager app… errr well hummm

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Lemmy (and Mastodon) apps do IMO provide added value over the websites, but AFAICT the Urban Dictionary app would be better off as a web shortcut on one's home screen

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Well it looks like the app adds motion and fitness abilities… /s

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I stand corrected! Brb, downloading the app and giving it full access to my devices.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

That’s more like it. We’re glad to have you as ~~product~~ customer.

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[–] [email protected] 152 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Why the fuck did your dumb ass install a fucking app for a website you can easily navigate and access?

[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Is that actually their app? It looks like a poorly designed PWA.

[–] [email protected] 38 points 1 year ago

Every time you see "try it in our app!"

a poor developers soul was sacrificed to make a PWA.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

in case you aren't joking: Progressive Web App. Something apple doesn't like much now

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

Websites can never request this data.

[–] [email protected] 70 points 1 year ago (1 children)

How else are they supposed to provide ads that are relevant to the 2.3Km/h you are walking on day 17 of walking?

Critical data they are missing there for the advertising partners.

:P

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[–] [email protected] 33 points 1 year ago

Why do people have the need to install an app on your phone that has access to everything when it does the same thing the browser on your phone will do?

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago
[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Lol, how about eat shit and die instead?

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago

+1 for the juxtaposition of background and message

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Typing requires the accelerometer for some functions (like undo on Apple at least).

[–] [email protected] 62 points 1 year ago (5 children)

but that would be your keyboards permission not the app

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

~~accelerometer does not require a permission to use, typing is provided by a 3rd party keyboard app.~~
nvm this is ios

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

stop staring at your phone

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

He says, looking at a screen

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