18 votes

Google responds to EU by adding a fee to Play Services

17 comments

  1. J-Senior
    Link
    The EU found Google to be anti-consumer by requiring manufacturers to install Chrome with Android. Google has responded by removing the requirement but manufacturers must now pay to use Play...

    The EU found Google to be anti-consumer by requiring manufacturers to install Chrome with Android. Google has responded by removing the requirement but manufacturers must now pay to use Play Store, Maps, and Gmail.

    15 votes
  2. [10]
    Comment deleted by author
    Link
    1. [4]
      heady
      Link Parent
      I use osmand which is a free libre navigational app using open street map data. For anything not in osm I use address to GPS which uses Google to find the GPS coordinates then opens it in osmand.

      I use osmand which is a free libre navigational app using open street map data.

      For anything not in osm I use address to GPS which uses Google to find the GPS coordinates then opens it in osmand.

      4 votes
      1. [3]
        Wayfarer
        Link Parent
        I have tried multiple times to use OSM (and several others), and I have bounced off of it every single time. OSM never seems to do the job; I think my record is <1 day of using it (after ~a week...

        I have tried multiple times to use OSM (and several others), and I have bounced off of it every single time. OSM never seems to do the job; I think my record is <1 day of using it (after ~a week of research) before I ran across something that I simply could not make workable with OSM.

        2 votes
        1. [2]
          heady
          Link Parent
          Your mileage may vary depending on area. I use osm extensively, and while it is often lacks address data the roads themselves are well mapped where I am so I am always able to at least get to the...

          Your mileage may vary depending on area.

          I use osm extensively, and while it is often lacks address data the roads themselves are well mapped where I am so I am always able to at least get to the nearest cross road. The rural lot system in use helps a lot also as the approximate location can be inferred from the address itself and I can just keep an eye on the odometer to know where to stop.

          If your area has bad data you can always help contribute to improving it if able.

          2 votes
          1. Wayfarer
            Link Parent
            And I'd love to do that, but the fact of the matter is that I need to be able to get from A to B, on-time and without getting lost. I'm generally more than happy to contribute to projects like...

            If your area has bad data you can always help contribute to improving it if able.

            And I'd love to do that, but the fact of the matter is that I need to be able to get from A to B, on-time and without getting lost. I'm generally more than happy to contribute to projects like these, but it's not something I can take a risk on, y'know?

            4 votes
    2. [2]
      Soptik
      Link Parent
      I can recommend Mapy.cz, it's great. It started in Europe, so I don't know how accurate it is in US, but I love to use it and it's awesome, you can even download regions offline and it's...

      I can recommend Mapy.cz, it's great. It started in Europe, so I don't know how accurate it is in US, but I love to use it and it's awesome, you can even download regions offline and it's especially useful for tourism and searching for something in the city - not so great for driving and it's not open source - but it's still one if the best maps I've ever used.

      3 votes
    3. rickdg
      Link Parent
      If you have an Android, your apps are almost likely using Google Services, namely for notifications.

      If you have an Android, your apps are almost likely using Google Services, namely for notifications.

      2 votes
    4. [2]
      liberty
      Link Parent
      Do you use Android? That's the thing that I've yet to break away from.

      Do you use Android? That's the thing that I've yet to break away from.

      1. KapteinB
        Link Parent
        Check out Sailfish. It's pretty sweet, and it will even run most of your Android apps.

        Check out Sailfish. It's pretty sweet, and it will even run most of your Android apps.

        1 vote
  3. [7]
    rickdg
    Link
    How ironic, an AMP page.

    How ironic, an AMP page.

    4 votes
    1. [6]
      pleure
      Link Parent
      I really think Tildes ought to block amp links, or sanitize them to the real page if that’s technically feasible.

      I really think Tildes ought to block amp links, or sanitize them to the real page if that’s technically feasible.

      3 votes
      1. [3]
        cos
        Link Parent
        If it's not being served through Google, what's the problem? I personally prefer this quicker, cleaner version of The Register's site.

        If it's not being served through Google, what's the problem? I personally prefer this quicker, cleaner version of The Register's site.

        7 votes
        1. [2]
          pleure
          Link Parent
          I don’t have a real argument but it just feels icky. Also I’d rather the original site be made lightweight to begin with (like Tildes!)

          I don’t have a real argument but it just feels icky.

          Also I’d rather the original site be made lightweight to begin with (like Tildes!)

          4 votes
          1. Neverland
            (edited )
            Link Parent
            /u/cos - I agree with you, but we seem to be in the minority. It looks like Google’s AMP cache has understandably soured many people on the entire proposition of AMP, making it feel “icky.” It was...

            /u/cos - I agree with you, but we seem to be in the minority. It looks like Google’s AMP cache has understandably soured many people on the entire proposition of AMP, making it feel “icky.” It was only recently that google made it easy to find the canonical link on mobile. Google really over-reached here and messed up a good thing, IMHO.

            Personally, I would like to see the canonical URL extracted from all link topics and made as the topic link. [0]

            However, when it exists, I would also like the non-Google cache AMP link made available via a link below the topic title. [1] Why do I want this? Well I am probably one of a handful of Tilderinos who is subjected to 2G data speeds some of the time. Tildes is wonderful on this bandwidth, but clicking 99% of topic links is just not workable. While the dogmatic response is “I hate AMP,” site owners are creating and hosting AMP versions of their sites, and it makes their sites work on 2G. It solves a real world problem and has high adoption. Also, in some cases when an AMP version exists, it avoids the paywall.

            Here are two GitLab issues on these topics, please vote and comment according to your preferences:

            [0] https://gitlab.com/tildes/tildes/issues/183

            [1] https://gitlab.com/tildes/tildes/issues/184

            Edit: in case anyone is wondering how I could live on the planet earth and have 2G in 2018.. a T-Mobile account from the USA has free data in the EU, but is limited to 2G.

            Also, added clarity to the first paragraph’s critique of how Google screwed up AMP.

            3 votes
      2. [2]
        unknown user
        Link Parent
        It's certainly feasible: Source

        It's certainly feasible:

        AMP HTML documents MUST […] contain a <link rel="canonical" href="$SOME_URL"> tag inside their head that points to the regular HTML version of the AMP HTML document or to itself if no such HTML version exists.

        Source

        3 votes