Android users now face forced app updates, thanks to Google's new dev tools

[steven36]

Google is giving developers tools to push users into updating their apps.

 

 

Google is giving Android developers a new application programming interface (API) that lets them force users into updating to the latest version of their app.

 

Google revealed at its Android Dev Summit this week that developers will be able to use the new In-app Updates API to create an immediate or flexible in-app update process, which either forces or nudges a user to update an app.

 

Developers can choose which approach is more suitable, depending on how urgent it is that users should update.

 

For example, developers could use the immediate process for critical security updates. After the user opens an app, a full-screen prompt to update is launched that prevents users from using the app until it has been updated.

 

The flexible update allows the user to continue using the app while the update is downloaded.

 

The API should help developers address serious issues if they've rolled out an app with a major bug. However, it also offers developers a way to bump users up to the latest version of an app if they've built a bunch of new features and want all users to have access to them.

 

Google also provided some updates to Kotlin, which according to GitHub, is the fastest-growing language in terms of contributors.

 

 

This month over 118,000 new projects using Kotlin started in Android Studio, marking a 10-fold increase on last year, according to Google.

 

Google yesterday also revealed how Android would support different types of 'foldables'. It will support two broad classes: foldable devices like Samsung's Infinity Flex device, which has one screen when folded, and devices like the new FlexPai, which has two-screens when folded.

 

Android will offer developers "screen continuity" so that when users start a video on the small screen, it seamlessly transfers to the larger screen as it's unfolded.

 

Source

 

[DKT27]

Interesting view by the author. Not sure if I agree with it.

 

But then again, some app developers might misuse this.

[steven36]

33 minutes ago, DKT27 said:

Interesting view by the author. Not sure if I agree with it.

 

But then again, some app developers might misuse this.

With people poisoning apps  with cryptominers on linux and windows now .. i'm staying away from android emulators and  apps or any  precracked  or apps from untrusted  sources .  Some of the apps are kind of shady on  android anyway for watching videos and people found cryptominers in the android emulators themselves . So if they start nuking peoples crack apps with unneeded updates on android its not going to effect me . As all my apps on linux are legit and the cracked ones i have on Windows i patched  or registered myself .

[knowledge-Spammer]

if its like windows 10 updates be sure its going to go wrong

[steven36]

1 hour ago, knowledge said:

if its like windows 10 updates be sure its going to go wrong

New is not always better  my experience with Windows and Linux  sometimes updates break programs . I have like 2 programs in Ubuntu 18.04 LTS  right now were newer won't work right  but older works fine  . So they  should always be a feature  to hold back updates ..Some Linux distros  have update mangers were you hold back any update but  even with Ubuntu were you  dont  have a update manger that  hold back and update  . All you have to do is
 

Quote

For example, for making a package say apache2 unavailable for install, up-gradation or uninstall, you can use following command at the terminal with root privileges:

# apt-mark hold apache2

To make this package available for update, just replace ‘hold‘ with ‘unhold‘.

# apt-mark unhold apache2

 

 

All you do is put in sudo   apt-mark hold package name and it wont update.  Anytime when  you take users control  away to stop updates and force them on people it spells trouble even for legit apps.