yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] Privacydroid:
Had to lookup xmpp :ROFLMAO: founded 1999, the universal messaging standard ~ according to wikipedia, but wikipedia has also become a shady censorship sh!thole, they just hide it pretty well. Just had to say it.

I've heared simplex is based on signal, that they used their sourcecode.

I got it installed and used it a bit, so far really impressed, no email, no phone number, added contact via qr-code.

Just the fact that they don't ask for phone number and email got me really interested.

I know alot of people use signal and while it's probably not perfect it's way better than zucking whatsapp.

But for people like me that don't have a simcard, signal never was an option, so simplex is just great.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] TheMystic:
For reasons unknown to me, WhatsApp has managed to become the number 1 chat app in most countries, despite lagging behind in features compared to competition. It is also used extensively by organizations as a medium of communication. If it is not WhatsApp, then it is it's sibling Facebook Messenger:

Most Popular Messaging Apps Worldwide 2023 | Similarweb

Redirect Notice

I have tried to switch to other apps, but had to come back to WhatsApp as that is the default app for communication by most other users with whom I communicate.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
I know it's a bit heartbreaking to get out of touch with some people but when I see what jokes/pictures by what people in what groups are circulating... Nah, quite happily not being a part of. Quiet dignity!

Well, I miss one thing: One of my favorite restaurants spreads its weekly menu by whatsapp and I have to get that list elsewhere...

Wait! What? Like how?

Yeah, SimpleX seems like all or at least most (multi device missing) prayers answered 🤩
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] Privacydroid:
For some reason i'm pretty sure the main reason is ignorance and stupidity, and some just doen't know what they're doing.

Oh hell i opened that link but it didn't load because i blocked google domains, it's ironic that someone who doesn't like whatsapp uses googlesearch and sends all searchrequests to bigbrother.

While similarweb is a cool website, not so convinced if they publish only accurate statistics, maybe some bias who knows.

Firefox global marketshare is 6%, oh wow humanity really is finished.

Let me tell you one thing, anyone who refuses to use another app to chat with me instead of whatsapp is a zucking retarded moron that is not worth chatting with me, use signal or simplex or briar, and if it's asked to much to use a free app that doesn't spy on all communications then go zucking zuck yourself!
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] Privacydroid:
And when i said i blocked google, i ment it.

Short story, i haven't worked in a while and couldn't afford to pay monthly bills for my sh!t bank that knew i have no income but took absurd amounts of cash from because of monthly fees, we all know running servers with accounts is that expensive...

Same with phone, simcard contract cost to much, had to quit. And why even use a simcard in the first place when you can make free calls with simplex as long as you got a network connection.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] TheMystic:
Often, this may not be possible or may not be convenient. Even though I had logged out of Facebook over 7 years back (may be even longer), I 'had to' start using it again because I'm part of certain groups that post updates on FB (and WhatsApp) only. Non-members cannot view them. Even from a convenience point of view, notifications are much better to have than having to manually refresh every now and then.

Somewhere, governments around the world should stop acting for their own interests by giving in to lobbyists, and put public and national security interests over corporate interests and personal gains. Stupidity is largely due to ignorance, which in turn is due to lack of awareness (as opposed to ignorance by choice) and government inaction.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
There, fixed for you. Still, these people are ours, too.

Searx fixes most.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Searx

Stop reading my mind :D

Yeah, kinda sad that so many interesting things happen there like food places... Oh, well...

BTT, current stats:

Magisk Votes: 75.0%

F-Droid Votes: 56.3%

Termux Votes: 56.3%

Firefox Votes: 50.0%

Aurora Votes: 43.8%
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
Apropos, I did the same here sort of: You'd have to vote to see results. I felt a bit bad at first doing so but then I thought, better give some incentive to vote :cool:

I wonder shall we keep it that way or make the results public?
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] ethical_haquer:
Well, if they see what the majority of people have voted that might influence their own vote.

EDIT: Could you tell me who else uses Organic Maps? :ROFLMAO: I'm not sure if it breaks any rules.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] Privacydroid:
Oh i just realized you've added simplex, bromite, and protonvpn to the voting options.

Don't get me wrong it's a nice move that you added these!

I just wanted to say that eventually you could replace protonvpn with "any vpn".

Protonvpn is only one of many options and probably only a minority uses exactly that provider which will certainly impact the vote, you get the idea.

Personaly i would go for mullvadvpn over proton if i had to money.

Simplex could also be replaced with "any encrypted & private messenger app"

I'm sure there's alot more people using signal over simplex but there's even more options.

For example briar, element, session.

I hope nobody thinks about whatsapp now..

I guess generic votes like "vpn app" or "encrypted messenger app", get more votes than individual ones like simplex, or proton.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] TheMystic:
Here's something I hope everyone realises:

VPN, TOR, End-to-End Encryption (EEE), etc. are all nothing more than a false sense of security and privacy.

Every single technology is a tool to 'communicate', and therefore, there is ALWAYS a way to track, inspect, and monitor all such communications. Such tools are just not available commercially, and this makes people think these are 100% secure. But they are not. They may be safe from your friends and family, but not everyone. That's because they are safe only from tools known/ available commercially.

Think about this:

Can Google/ Facebook/ Intelligence Agencies/ others not employ a private person (or even their own employees) to make 'alternatives' to their own apps? These apps would be just another way to track all your online activities.

Apple created a marketing drama about how they wouldn't allow CIA/ FBI to access a criminal's iPhone, and that it wasn't even possible because of how the system works. All that was drama to boost public perception about how much Apple values and respects people's privacy. Then a company from Israel helped the intelligence agencies unlock that iPhone and have access to all data.

Apple they came up with CSAM which would scan all media on users devices to check for violations. What a joke!

Open Source is another area that is open for massive exploitation. We keep saying the code is open for inspection and so it must be safe. What an immature way to think of it that way. No one bothers about whether all open source apps and services are actually being inspected, and more importantly, whether there is a reliable system in place to monitor all such apps on a continuous basis. This is important because a safe, clean and open source app can be released, marketed successfully, and once there is a large user base, it can be exploited by injecting trackers or outright malware.

Your life is private only as long as you don't use technology.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] Privacydroid:
VPN, TOR, EEE, Tails, Qubes, are great tools to protect privacy, they are not perfect - nothing is.

Using this won't make anyone invincible but it will certainly make their digital footprint way harder to track comapred to a silly google chrome sheep.

It depends on your choices, will you use mullvadvpn or expressvpn, will you use signal or whatsapp.

And ofcourse using any privacy focused software on a zucking iphone is entirely pointless.

Clientside scanning just means apple will know what you typed before you sent it, so the EEE is useless.

And the scanning of all media because of SCAM is BS, it's obviously not about SCAM but it's about spying and data collection.

Can't blame apple, blame the morons still buying these spy devices.

CIA / NSA ofc have tools to get into more or less any system they want, no doubt about it.

As ethical_haquer said: https://wikileaks.org/ciav7p1/

Opensource is not perfect but when there's a choice between closed and open you always want to for opensource.

Make up your mind and decide who you want to trust with their software, the only realistic option.

It happens all the time we use products and think they're private just to find out they are not, or not anymore.

For example, mozilla firefox few years back was known for being the privacy browser, nodays it's the opposite.

Or duckduckgo search, everyone tought it's a private search but then someone leaked that they don't block all trackers, they do block some but not those from microsoft because of a contract they made where they use bing search results.

I used duckduckgo but when i found out about that situation i quit the ****.

But i still think it was better using duck over google...

100% privacy doesn't exist anywhere, if they want you they will get you, there so much technology these days, remind me who was the guy they tracked down with satellite spying? Hell yeah....

When you say Your life is private only as long as you don't use technology. that's true BUT doesn't really matter because everyone uses technology these days so we have to try and be as private as possible while using technology.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] ethical_haquer:
Sure, they're not perfect, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to make it harder for people to track me.

They sure can. However, if the app is open-source it would be practically impossible. In my case, 80+ percent of the apps I use are.

They still try to make people believe they value user's privacy:

But like you said, clearly they don't: link. It really isn't shouldn't be that hard for people to see through it.

Open source apps are inspected by a portion of the people using them. So they could inject other code in at some point, but how long will it take for someone to find it? I can't fathom somebody trying to pull that off, because if someone saw that, the developers would be screwed.

It's true, in reality you're only going to be %100 private if you live in the middle of nowhere and don't use technology at all, and you can't go near anyone who uses it either. However, you can still immensely cut down on how much data you leak by making conscious choices about what hardware/software you choose to use. So no, it's not perfect, but it's better than choosing to do nothing about it.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
Ah, yes, good point!

No, I cannot. Even if I could I wouldnt, sry.

Uh? I thought you wanted them listed?

No, won't make sense - this thread is not about categories but about apps/programs. Even though you have a point there, as in "top 5 categories". It just doesn't make sense in this context (getting started with a barebone LOS).

No, same as just before.

As for the rest... well, that escalated quickly ;)

Hmm, VPNs are not flawless but they can (help to) "hide your ass".

Open source vs closed source? Why would I trust a company that doesn't trust me, that doesn't trust anyone?

Giving up technology is senseless - if you don't use it, others will still use it on you.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] TheMystic:
That's if everything else is identical. But if I have to choose an open source app that connects to the internet to get something done compared to a closed source app that doesn't have internet permissions for doing the same work, I'll choose the closed source option.

Nothing is impossible. We're only being optimistic here.

This too is an assumption!

How? Most developers are anonymous and are unknown beings. Anyone that is caught can easily create a new account and come back with another app.

One must be aware of the risks of using technology. The problem is most users consider open source as synonymous to privacy and security. This is not true. Same holds true for VPNs, EEE, etc. Sure these are useful tools and technologies that help bypass some restrictions and make it harder to track, but one must be aware that their activities can still be tracked and monitored. They need to be aware of it and not assume otherwise.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
Yes, but in reverse: Closed source is not inspected by anyone but the owner (even that I doubt sometimes), per definition. In other words: No chance for you to check anything, not at all! Nil, niente, nix, nichego, nada...

Well, perhaps so but it's still the best shot we have. Also, open source has other benefits, too. An be it just breaking the monopoly of a few too rich companies.

But, yes, open source should not be exempted from rigorous testing/auditing or simply throwing it into the works of virustotal :giggle: (which, of course, can be rigged as well)

BTW, in this context, one might wonder how you ended up in a LOS thread :unsure: What OSes do you use then? Any advice?

Yes, indeed: Trust no one. Always try to check it yourself.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] pocketrule:
Although I didn't vote I think there's common sense MiXplorer is the (at least one of the) most popular app everyone wants to have first on their device. And I cannot vote until Tasker is an option to vote for. I cannot live without it an I'm VERY surprised noone has missed it yet.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
You must! Every vote will make Justin Bieber sing one song less, I promise!

Nah, just kidding but you can still vote, of course. And it's very appreciated!

By Tasker you mean this one?

https://tasker.joaoapps.com/

I'd love to add it (seems powerful and versatile) but it is neither free nor open source and that pretty much breaks the deal for being installed first. I thought/hoped there might be a free version (like Mixplorer) but I could not even find here a thread proper (only secondary ones on how to use).

My apologies.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] MJPollard:
"Breaks the deal" for who? By limiting your list to "free and open source" only, you eliminate a lot of apps from consideration. You added Swift Backup to the list (at my suggestion), for example, but it's neither free nor open source. That would mean Tasker is just as qualified to be on the list, and if you eliminate Tasker from consideration, you have to eliminate Swift Backup and anything else on the list that isn't FOSS. Changing the rules mid-stream is, at the very least, bad form.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
For me and/or this thread's topic: Hassle-free install after flashing.

Please read again:

Didn't say "and".

Correct. Thanks for the heads up, it slipped my harsh rule but not your keen eyes. I will kick it out... or die trying.

Any other bad apples like that? Just let me know!

If you can forgive me this lapsus then I am pleased to reassure you that I will not report you to any authorities for breaking rule #2 ;)

You are correct, was not intended to change rules.

Still, those two apps have their merits for many people. Perhaps such things deserve their own thread?
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
It rips my heart apart but I cannot change, delete or XXX it. Sry for this inconsistency.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] MJPollard:
Thanks for making it easy to push you out the airlock. Been doing it for 40 years and I've gotten very good at it, because there are some people whose behavior makes it impossible to tolerate them. Please, feel free to have the last word, because I won't be seeing it.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] pocketrule:
Ah I see! Of course, it's my pleasure and duty then, to make my vote 😎️

Yes, that's what I thought of. There's a trial version which you can test for 7 days until you have to purchase / verify your account. And it's worth much much more than its price. But I now understand the intention of this query better and also think it doesn't fit in this selection like MiXplorer for example.

No problem at all. I should have read better.

Btw: I'd like to do some advertising for [APP][TOOL] TeMeFI comprehensive system Administration. It's not open source, but free and also one of the most powerful apps you can imagine. I don't think it's very popular, as you can get it only on xda and is a bit complicated to use sometimes. You'll profit most of it if you have deeper linux shell knowledge... If your device is rooted you should check out this app if you don't already know it.

Edit: I have just cast my vote and I'm VERY surprised not to find MiXplorer at first place 😱️

I'm wondering how the others install their favourite apps without it (of course, it's doable).

This survey is a great idea, thanks @SigmundDroid
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
Thanks for the feedback :) And sorry that I didn't word it better, and even let something incorrectly pass as Mr. Pollard so brilliantly pointed out.

If you say that's in your top 5, good enough for me, will add it in a jiffy. One question though why is DiamondJohn "hiding" it behind a linker when he could just drop it off at XDA?

PS:

Well, blame Magisk being 1st but , yes, I think so, too. Splendid tool, with plenty of bells and whistles. Probably most people are just not aware of it and stick with FX...
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] pocketrule:
TeMeFi

Ah no, I didn't mention it to be included in the survey as I myself don't install ist as one of the first five apps on a new device (but as one of the top 10 😜), eg. if I want to have extended battery graphs.

I don't know exactly why. But I think he wants to have full control about the release. DiamondJohn says he builds this app for his own and provides it as it is, without having to deal with any restrictions. Despite that, he provides an excellent support (if you have read the manual / thread before).
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
Too late. Let's see if someone takes the bait ;) After all, it qualifies.

Well, there are worse things than link trackers, otherwise he'd have no info at all...
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] Privacydroid:
It might not be relevant but i thought i'll mention this, bromite https://github.com/bromite/bromite has been abandoned since over a year now, however luckily another person now maintains the rebranded project cromite https://github.com/uazo/cromite

Needless to say bromite could therefore be replaced with cromite.

If you ask me i don't get why currently 47% of votes for browsers go to firefox, a browser that uses google firebase analytics and mozilla telemetry. https://reports.exodus-privacy.eu.org/en/reports/org.mozilla.firefox/latest/

while only 3% currently voted for bromite/cromite, a far superior browser when your goal is privacy.

Using firefox over chrome because of privacy concerns doesn't make sense, cromite is far superior for this subject.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] ethical_haquer:
I'll have to try out Cromite, currently I'm using Mull.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
Yes, they are still riding the good boys' flag... well, false flag, eh? On PC they have at least tons of very useful addons...

My weapon of choice is naked browser, FF only as (very) rare fallback if I need to sign in somewhere (ugly UI anyway, IMHO). Cromite could be an alternative for me, if it shows up on fdroid. Still, will check it out (and Mull, too), thanks!

PS: Cannot change the choices but did add cromite to the list of sources. Would you want me to add mull, too?

PSPS: Merry Christmas and a happy new year!🎄🥂 💕
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] Privacydroid:
I was a second away from installing mull but then checked it on exodus and apparently it uses 2 trackers, mozilla telemetry and sentry.

https://reports.exodus-privacy.eu.org/en/reports/us.spotco.fennec_dos/latest/

Might be a false positive, do you know anything about this? Might have to contact the divest team for clarification.

I've heared about mull before but never tried it, didn't expect exodus to show any trackers, i was just curious about the permissions.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] Privacydroid:
The only thing i dislike about bromite/cromite is the fact it's based on googlechrome, from all i know it's opensource but can you ever really trust anything running google code?

What's the official source for the nakedbrowser? I couldn't find it.

Any privacy friendly app should be welcome as a voting choice imo.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] ethical_haquer:
You threw me off guard 😲, but after checking, it looks like it's a false positive: link, link, link. I'm not exactly sure what requirements apps on F-Droid have to meet, but Mull is also on there.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] ethical_haquer:
About that, @Privacydroid recommended Librewolf to me, and I've been using it as my primary browser (on desktop) ever since. Add-ons work the same as on Fire-Fox too.

Same here, I keep only keep Fire-Fox installed for those rare cases where Librewolf won't load a site that I need.

Yes please, it's the most privacy-respecting Fire-Fox fork I know of. Thanks!
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
Oh, looks kinda defunct/tricky except you know where to look

https://xdaforums.com/t/app-2-1-naked-browser-1-0-a-full-featured-yet-tiny-web-browser.1929663/

http://nakedbrowser.com/android/

(there is a very tiny little smal link "here" in the yellow block)

Yes, pretty old (normal and pro from 2019) but still runs...

Ah, okay. Thanks, would have never found it.

Done. Thank you for reporting :) Was already looking forward to find some replacement for the stock fennec.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] TheMystic:
Have any of you tried the FOSS Browser?

It is currently my most preferred Default Browser. This is purely from aesthetics and ad-blocking point of view. This is one of the very few browsers (the only others I know being Via Browser and Brave Browser) that has a proper Dark mode support where all webpages are rendered in dark mode properly, even if the websites themselves don't support it.

I personally prefer the light mode as it is easier on the eyes than dark mode, only exception being when I'm in a pitch dark environment, but when required, this is one of the very few browsers that delivers perfectly. Add to that ad-blocking, which also works perfectly when other browsers fail. This browser also removes the space used by ads most of the time, as opposed to showing the ad space with connection failed text, so the webpage looks really clean.

I use this as my default browser currently. But when I have to do something that requires maximum security, such as banking, I use Chrome browser (which I don't use for anything else) or Safari.
[LineageOS Questions & Answers] SigmundDroid:
Not sure if this will do for me, disabling I can live with but completely disabling might possibly break some things and limit its usability.

Don't get me wrong, I am quite the PriVatnik but not allowing a choice hardly makes sense, does it?

And in this context: I did add firefox because it seemed quite fitting. Now, with so many choices, it turns into a main battlefield which easily deserves its own thread and poll.

What do you think?

Adding all sorts of browsers here, perhaps with categorizing (not so fond of) and possibly "overpopulating" it.

Or starting another poll/thread which such important topic deserves (perhaps shootout with further in-depth information)