It’s a schism…

We do :-)

Perhaps he is… (wait for it… wait for it… x20 with fillers placed in-between) building up to a mega-ultra instinct combo retort?

A super-long time ago I got a Nexus, b/c they were awesome, and Google was still thought of as being somewhat awesome for offering those.

Nowadays I have been dreading the thought of a Pixel - I’d more likely get a Fairphone I think - but whatever I get, it’s sad to think that a custom ROM is probably going to have to be the default for so many people:-(.

But these rules only seem to apply to apps that follow the rules. Or perhaps on an OS that does so. Hence a custom ROM would be able to bypass it, or connecting the external storage to a computer via USB or some such? At which point it seems needlessly restrictive. But, I am no expert, and it would indeed increase security for a naive user, so likely that’s what they are aiming at.

They would need to afford lawyers too, from a constant barrage of frivolous attacks designed to drive the company out of business.

Edit: that is actually how game console emulators written by third parties were driven into the dirt.

Thanks for sharing!

Oh wow, so much going on there.

What if a malicious app decides to place child pornography or a crypto mining whatever onto your device - but since its space is “private”, can unethical people now legally do that, and simply blame that Google wouldn’t let them see into the space, hence they “did not know that it was there”? This would seem to open the door to so very many problematic issues…

On the other hand this seems related solely to “external” storage - I haven’t used external storage on an Android for… actually I’ve never used it iirc. For this Netflix case, would they disallow downloading onto your device unless you have an external SIM? Also, if you used external storage, then how da fuq could they control you popping that external storage into some other device entirely, like a rooted device with a custom ROM!? It would have made so much more sense for internal storage… or possibly I am missing something there.

In any case, that sucks that Google seems more and more to be buying into the “walled garden” philosophy - you know, “for your convenience”, aka selling YOU as the product to the investor class.:-(

A quick search seems to suggest there is no known way around this, except to use an older Android OS:-(. I would hope that this would absolutely wake people up to realize why Google cannot be trusted - as if what happened to searching wasn’t enough on its own.

McCarthyism predated social media, and when we fought against rather than for it, it retreated into the shadows - for a time. Now it’s back, and it won’t take less effort to stop it again.

And imho, coming to the Fediverse is a great step towards that end - stepping out from the direct influence of Zuckerberg, Musk, and Huffman is an enormously crucial component. Thanks so much for the devs (backend, frontend, and apps), instance admins, community mods, and community builders/supporters that make that happen daily! And to the community members that promote kindness and acceptance even of newbie Fediverse converts who may require patience as they catch up.

Maybe with continued efforts - that will be labeled “subversive” by the likes of Marjorie Taylor Greene - we could vote such people out in local elections, and replace the trash with people willing to stand up for better laws that protect the People rather than enshrine protection for the police to crush moral people under their boot heels.

That’s why they will lose… but the authoritarians still keep trying, it’s just how they are built. They really aren’t intelligent enough to understand any other way, and those few who might seem not to care, being greedy enough to get what they can while they can, letting others deal with the fallout.

That refers to 8.1 Update 2 (8.10.15148.160), but down under Versions, it mentions an NT 10.0 with an EoL date of January 14, 2020 and the footnote says:

Originally scheduled on December 10, 2019, but delayed following one more security update due to the release of iOS 13.3. Supported until January 10, 2023 via the paid Extended Security Updates service.

And even then people could still hold onto their old phones (though I’m not sure if Windows allows bootloader unlocking and custom ROMs as readily as Android). I keep mine until the battery gives out, many years after purchase - even if only as a media device after removing the SIM, like to control casting to my TV. 8 years is actually normal for me.

Anyway, you are right I bet they were referring more to laptops with a desktop Windows OS.

I edited my original comment with an apology. It looks like the last release was January 2020.

I’m sorry to hear of your loss:-(. Ironically, mobile devices using iOS and Android look to still allow downloading.

Is it possible to simply not update the Netflix app on your laptop?

It really is sad when they push people to use piracy methods, even for things that we would have had access to using totally legal means, but which they choose to no longer support:-(. e.g. in the olden days, it was legal to rip a copy of a CD or DVD for your own purposes, so long as you did not distribute it and thereby prevent a sale to keep the industry running. Whereas by no longer allowing even temporary downloads, Netflix is keeping their same price but now delivering less features in return, which may lose them several customers.

I presumed it meant existing ones, even if they are no longer making new ones. But yeah, I see you are right, it does seem about the desktop, or presumably meaning laptops that could go offline.

I am not certain I know what you mean.

Netflix hasn’t given any reason for ditching downloads on Windows: when Windows Latest asked about it they were simply directed to the relevant support document, which confirms that a new app is “coming soon”, without the download option.

The fact that downloading is still available on Windows is purely bc the update hasn’t rolled out yet.

They think (unproven) that this radical change might be due to the cheaper licensing options if they remove the ability to download. A cost-benefit analysis where Windows users will either take it and like it or else who cares about Windows mobile users anyway if they leave. Either way, a victory for licensing companies, or they’ll spin it that way regardless.

My worry is that it will embolden them to go still yet further, making it harder on both pirates and paying customers just bc they can get away with doing so.:-(

It probably depends on what “working” means - it won’t ever stop piracy but if they can make things more difficult, then that fact alone gives them a woody.

Also people trying to manipulate the corporate ladder - “hey let’s maximize our revenue stream by synergizing the… yeah just gimme a raise won’t’cha?” (and since they pay themselves, they won’t mind if they do… then use all their “initiatives” like this as justification for that fact). End-users aren’t the “customers” anymore these days, in giant megalithic corpos - we are the product that is sold, to whoever is willing to pay.:-(

Android in the last couple versions has locked its file system down too

Really!? I’m a bit behind, but somehow this surprises me. I mean, not the intention, bc Google’s motto these days is “definitely be evil”, but that it had gotten this far this fast.

Anyway at a guess all you’d have to do is download whatever you want, then root, profit, then turn off root and it wouldn’t even know? Plus the tons of ways that you can do things without even needing root access these days, and I haven’t even mentioned yet a custom ROM. And ofc piracy, where someone else obtains the video files, e.g. ripping from a physical medium. So they will most definitely lose that flight. And in the meantime, the most honest customers are the ones who suffer.

Overall I just chalked this up to: anyone who uses Windows (or iOS) basically is at the mercy of profit-seeking behaviors. You will own nothing, and like it - or else!:-(

Let’s not pretend that an “average” mobile user is capable of doing that?

Which is why we need to help one another to get there:-).

“While downloads will no longer be supported, you can continue to watch TV shows and movies offline on a supported mobile device,” the Netflix document says

So essentially Windows devices are no longer “supported” wrt this particular feature.

It essentially means the Windows app will be little more than a wrapper for the Netflix website.

It’s possible that the move means Netflix can save some money on licensing, which may cost extra if downloads are included – enabling users to take shows and movies around with them and watch them without an internet connection.

So once again everything devolves down to licensing - i.e. it sounds like they were pressured into this hard choice to leave those users in the cold, which they did. Probably bc the user base of Windows phones is so tiny?

Though that is one of the main advantages of Netflix these days, as opposed to e.g. piracy.

TLDR: Ultimately it is yet more enshittification, and while due to licensing rather than Netflix, still it is Netflix users (on Windows phones) who will bear the burden.

My advice would be to disable automatic updates and coast for a long while on the current app version, though that can be easier said than done due to multiple locations of automatic update settings. I have zero experience ever with Windows phones, but good luck if you want to try it!:-|

The way I see it, which would be dumber: if they existed, or not? So yeah, they probably exist:-P. And they are needlessly used as excuses.

But the main excuse ofc is that is simply how the game is played. It seems like it would be wise for us to wake up and realize that, but we are all too self-absorbed as a society.

Asking the important questions!