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As I understand it, Windows Bridge (which Astoria is part of) is there to directly port to Windows, but just happens to let you use the same basic code base as Android when you do, which Google can't just go ahead and screw over; Bridge tells you straight up which bits of code you need to change, including links to Google Play, which according to this video appears to be a pretty simple process to hook the app into Microsoft's services rather than Google's. Apps ported using Bridge aren't going to be Android apps running on Windows, they're going to be Windows apps which just happened to start life as Android apps and which Microsoft has made blindingly simple to port over. Anyhoo, I went ahead and installed the insider preview of W10 Mobile, and it's good! A lot of the stock apps like Weather and Outlook look a lot nicer and are much smoother to navigate through (I will shed no tears for the death of the lumbering, awful tabs of 8.1), the interface is mostly the same with a lot of fat trimmed and major changes in UI are generally for the better. The home screen defaulted to the 8.1 look of a background image seen through completely transparent tiles, so I didn't even need to worry about the fact that I wasn't totally enamoured with the new 10 look of semi-transparent tiles. My only major gripe right now is that Edge doesn't do as good a job of whipping up tiles (static or live) for webpages as IE did, but maybe that'll be fixed in a later build. Battery seems fine, so I've personally got no reason to go back to 8.1, although watch me do a complete about face tomorrow when something unexpected hits.
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Aug 10, 2015 21:09
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Is there a dark theme in Outlook Mobile and for the Cortana cards?
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Aug 10, 2015 21:56
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Mr Funkface posted:I'm not totally au fait with the mechanics so a somewhat ignorant question: doesn't the reliance on Project Astoria mean if that ever breaks all your Android apps break? Perhaps a little paranoid (android ha!) and fearmongery but it's not like MS has been on top of its game when it comes to ongoing support without sudden deprecation for no apparent reason. This is a little trollish, or ill-informed. Microsoft has actually done a pretty good job over the years of maintaining backwards compatibility. Go fire up a Win32 app written 15 years ago for Windows NT. Chances are it mostly still works. If it doesn't muck around with a lot of UI elements, it probably still works just fine. One of the biggest problems Microsoft has had is that there have been numerous things they've wanted to fix, but application developers ended up using broken functionality in odd and sometimes clever ways, so updated DLLs had to support old, broken ways of doing things as well as newer, better ways. They haven't been perfect, but they've hardly been nefarious.
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Aug 10, 2015 22:11
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Ynglaur posted:This is a little trollish, or ill-informed. Microsoft has actually done a pretty good job over the years of maintaining backwards compatibility. Go fire up a Win32 app written 15 years ago for Windows NT. Chances are it mostly still works. If it doesn't muck around with a lot of UI elements, it probably still works just fine. One of the biggest problems Microsoft has had is that there have been numerous things they've wanted to fix, but application developers ended up using broken functionality in odd and sometimes clever ways, so updated DLLs had to support old, broken ways of doing things as well as newer, better ways. Well I did precede with "so a somewhat ignorant question" and "perhaps a little paranoid fearmongery" but I appreciate your concern. Being a Windows Phone discussion I wasn't really commenting on Win32, NT, desktops, etc. I am specifically referring to recent UI/UX element changes and slow dissolution of the great differentiators, the 7.0/7.8 to 8.0 clusterfuck. You can even extend this to alienating non-Nokia manufacturers then pissing on that fire - I think it's hard to defend MS's reliability and consistency in the mobile world. But this has been talked and complained about to death, and I think the discussion's moved on: MrBond posted:AFAIK it's not any different to Google than forked android, so probably just move more things under Google Play services than ever. Oh joy!
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Aug 11, 2015 01:49
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loquacius posted:As I understand it, this thing is just a quick fix to make an APK run on Windows. The porting tools to turn iOS apps into universal apps also exist for Android (but are not finished yet); those just take more programming effort to actually make them work (although theoretically still not much). The APK hack is just the I'm probably misunderstanding, but the way I understand you now is that there are two ways to get Android apps on WP? An APK hack and project Astoria?  Drastic Actions posted:Normal users would never side load apps like this sort. They would download the apps directly from the store, which should always work. It's going to be interesting to see how many apps get ported and if developers will keep supporting them.
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Aug 11, 2015 07:24
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solution and not the one they're generally encouraging people to use.
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Mr Funkface posted:Well I did precede with "so a somewhat ignorant question" and "perhaps a little paranoid fearmongery" but I appreciate your concern. This is a very fair counterpoint, particularly when considering mobile.
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Aug 11, 2015 14:54
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Project Astoria doesn't include Google Play Services APIs. Android devs would either have to disable those parts of the app or retarget them to Astoria APIs.
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Aug 11, 2015 16:48
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Darth TNT posted:I'm probably misunderstanding, but the way I understand you now is that there are two ways to get Android apps on WP? An APK hack and project Astoria? I think so, yeah. One is a way for developers to port apps to WP easily, one is a way to sideload APKs to a WP phone and just run them as-is, and both of them technically fall under the "project Astoria" umbrella but they obviously want developers to use the former wherever possible and as such aren't really gonna advertise the latter. Right now it's being covered mostly as a thing powerusers with unlocked phones can do independently if they want. e: according to Windows Central's story the sideloading method isn't exactly "legal" per se since the only good way to get an APK in the first place is by pirating it loquacius fucked around with this message at 17:16 on Aug 11, 2015 |
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Aug 11, 2015 17:14
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Will apps converted using Astoria just straight up not work if they include Google Play services, or will they just not be eligible to go in the Store but still basically run otherwise (and possibly wig out if the Play services are accessed)? If I can get the HD Sonic 1/2 apps running then I would be the happiest man on earth.
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Aug 11, 2015 17:18
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Doctor_Fruitbat posted:Will apps converted using Astoria just straight up not work if they include Google Play services, or will they just not be eligible to go in the Store but still basically run otherwise (and possibly wig out if the Play services are accessed)? If I can get the HD Sonic 1/2 apps running then I would be the happiest man on earth. Won't work. The app would request some google service API, app would then tell you "Hey, I need to go to the Google Play Store and get the required files!" and then fail because, of course, you don't have that. The developer has to update the app to support Windows, just like how someone who wants to make an app for Amazon's FireOS would. How complex it is to port is mostly dependent on how tied to Google the app is.
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Aug 11, 2015 17:34
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I'll burst laughing the day some guy gets to port the android youtube app to WP hacking its integration with Google API just because some people are like that.
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Aug 11, 2015 21:27
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I really hope someone does, but until then we have Metrotube.
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Aug 11, 2015 22:59
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Shumagorath posted:I really hope someone does, but until then we have Metrotube. metrotube and mytube are better anyways.
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Aug 11, 2015 23:00
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I quite like TubeCast myself. WP is not short on decent Youtube apps.
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Aug 11, 2015 23:39
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I mainly want someone to steal the YouTube app because of the awful antitrust-level poo poo Google pulled with the original. I swear the app should have just downloaded a new API key for each phone on start and faked its user agent string to be some Android / iOS version.
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Aug 12, 2015 03:43
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So, the Facebook app has started crashing/quitting every time I try and view the Most Recent feed. 925, 8.1. Just me? ETA: have obviously tried reinstall/restart. Jeherrin fucked around with this message at 08:45 on Aug 12, 2015 |
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Aug 12, 2015 07:45
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What are people's thoughts on Groove vs Spotify vs Rdio vs MixRadio? I'm currently using Pandora for my In car music streaming needs but it has a much smaller song collection than those others. I don't mind the radio station style that Pandora has, though creating my own playlists would be neat too. I do care very much about audio quality. (unfortunately Tidal isn't available on Windows phone, and I'll likely be switching to that when I leave the platform)
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Aug 12, 2015 08:21
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The Lord Bude posted:What are people's thoughts on Groove vs Spotify vs Rdio vs MixRadio? I'm currently using Pandora for my In car music streaming needs but it has a much smaller song collection than those others. I don't mind the radio station style that Pandora has, though creating my own playlists would be neat too. I do care very much about audio quality. (unfortunately Tidal isn't available on Windows phone, and I'll likely be switching to that when I leave the platform) I'm a fan of MixRadio. It does what I need it to do, without adverts, and through my headphones the audio quality seems perfectly reasonable. Sometimes you have to reselect the playlist via the menus, rather than just tapping it on the home screen of MixRadio; this, as far as I can tell, is related to the playlist needing to refresh when it's been updated.
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Aug 12, 2015 08:47
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Shumagorath posted:the awful antitrust-level poo poo Google pulled with the original Whoa whoa whoa, let's not get carried away, it's not like they did anything seriously anti-competitive like, I dunno, bundle a browser with an operating system OH WAIT
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Aug 12, 2015 12:39
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How are you meant to get another browser without one being built-in in the first place?
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Aug 12, 2015 13:10
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Doctor_Fruitbat posted:How are you meant to get another browser without one being built-in in the first place? A cover CD from a computer magazine, duh.
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Aug 12, 2015 13:14
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Doctor_Fruitbat posted:How are you meant to get another browser without one being built-in in the first place? I think what the EU made Microsoft do was put a shortcut on the Desktop that linked you to the homepage of your choice of competing browser, and thank GOD they did that, right???
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Aug 12, 2015 13:20
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loquacius posted:I think what the EU made Microsoft do was put a shortcut on the Desktop that linked you to the homepage of your choice of competing browser, and thank GOD they did that, right??? No, they actually had a dialogue during the install process that listed all the major browsers, in random order along with an advertising blurb for each one, and forced users to choose one to be installed as their default browser. that's why the EU had separate editions of windows for several years.
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Aug 12, 2015 13:25
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The Lord Bude posted:No, they actually had a dialogue during the install process that listed all the major browsers, in random order along with an advertising blurb for each one, and forced users to choose one to be installed as their default browser. that's why the EU had separate editions of windows for several years. It was hilariously bad. Every browser featured a little blurb mentioning how great of a browser it was...every browser except IE. The IE blurb just said "Internet Browser". They couldn't even be arsed to create a sales pitch for IE. loquacius posted:Whoa whoa whoa, let's not get carried away, it's not like they did anything seriously anti-competitive like, I dunno, bundle a browser with an operating system  EU is currently sizing up Android for it's anti competitive nature and it's going to be really interesting to see what will happen. From what I understand all manufacturers that want access to the playstore are by contract obligated to put google products on the front page and other prominent positions. It makes me wonder what would've happened if Samsung would've been allowed to put their own stuff (no matter how terrible some of it was) on the prime real estate. I wonder how long it's going to be before the EU also starts targeting Microsoft again since Windows 10 seems to undo the browser bit. I'm a little confused, does Media player still exist?
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Aug 12, 2015 14:23
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Jeherrin posted:So, the Facebook app has started crashing/quitting every time I try and view the Most Recent feed. 925, 8.1.
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Aug 12, 2015 14:23
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Darth TNT posted:They couldn't even be arsed to create a sales pitch for IE. Ha, they probably weren't even allowed to I bet.
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Aug 12, 2015 14:41
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I'm in the UK and I've installed every release of Windows since XP and I have not once been asked which browser I wanted to use; IE came as standard. Is it different for the UK?
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Aug 12, 2015 15:05
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Doctor_Fruitbat posted:I'm in the UK and I've installed every release of Windows since XP and I have not once been asked which browser I wanted to use; IE came as standard. Is it different for the UK? Depends on when and how you installed, likely if you had left IE as the default you would have in due time gotten a question about what browser you wanted to run. If you got a European retail copy I think it would ask you immediately, but stuff like OEM installs just got the ballot "eventually" over Windows Update.
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Aug 12, 2015 15:10
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The controversy was largely confined to continental Europe as far as I can recall - I'm not sure if the UK got the Euro version of Windows
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Aug 12, 2015 15:29
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Darth TNT posted:It was hilariously bad. Every browser featured a little blurb mentioning how great of a browser it was...every browser except IE. The IE blurb just said "Internet Browser". They couldn't even be arsed to create a sales pitch for IE. Google is currently in the opening stages of what looks like at the very least a long if not expensive fight over multiple technologies not just android but also including its core search platform. Here is an article about the current state of some of it: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2015-08-06/google-s-6-billion-miscalculation-on-the-eu?cmpid=BBD080615_BIZ
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Aug 12, 2015 15:49
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Mecca-Benghazi posted:Just you, or maybe I'm lucky. I feared as much. The FB Beta app works fine, weirdly. Soft reset time, maybe.
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Aug 12, 2015 17:02
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Jeherrin posted:I'm a fan of MixRadio. It does what I need it to do, without adverts, and through my headphones the audio quality seems perfectly reasonable. Sometimes you have to reselect the playlist via the menus, rather than just tapping it on the home screen of MixRadio; this, as far as I can tell, is related to the playlist needing to refresh when it's been updated. I started up MixRadio just once to see how it worked. For some reason it decided that I would really like Dolly Parton, and it changed it's tile to a Dolly Parton album picture. So now I have a picture of Dolly Parton on my home screen that I can't figure out how to get rid of.
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Aug 12, 2015 17:38
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The Lord Bude posted:What are people's thoughts on Groove vs Spotify vs Rdio vs MixRadio? I'm currently using Pandora for my In car music streaming needs but it has a much smaller song collection than those others. I don't mind the radio station style that Pandora has, though creating my own playlists would be neat too. I do care very much about audio quality. (unfortunately Tidal isn't available on Windows phone, and I'll likely be switching to that when I leave the platform) Purchase or steal your music at your preferred quality, put it into OneDrive, then use an app that streams out of OneDrive to listen to it anywhere. There is now more than 1 app that can do this 
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Aug 12, 2015 18:22
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Jeherrin posted:So, the Facebook app has started crashing/quitting every time I try and view the Most Recent feed. 925, 8.1. I have it too, 920 running 8.1. Just started a few days ago. I haven't bothered troubleshooting.
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Aug 12, 2015 18:54
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http://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/08/12/announcing-windows-10-mobile-insider-preview-build10512/ Anyone want to post a trip report?
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Aug 12, 2015 18:57
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WorldWarWonderful posted:I have it too, 920 running 8.1. Just started a few days ago. I haven't bothered troubleshooting. drat. Soft reset did gently caress all.
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Aug 12, 2015 19:01
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Tivac posted:http://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/08/12/announcing-windows-10-mobile-insider-preview-build10512/ UWP apps will now download from the store with this build. Meaning if you install this build and install Awful Forums Reader (which is now a UWP app) you'll get the 10 version instead of 8.1. Note that you have to uninstall the 8.1 version if you already have it, it won't overwrite it. So right there that's awesome. And I can start deploying apps from Visual Studio to my actual device again. Which is also sweet. I would say, in the brief amount of time I've used it, it is an improvement. Seems more stable than the last build. The UI is still a bit weird and I get some glitches on my 1520 but each new build fixes more of them, so it's again better than before. Like the other previews, you should probably not install this on your main phone. But they are making progress.
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Aug 12, 2015 19:21
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Tivac posted:http://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/08/12/announcing-windows-10-mobile-insider-preview-build10512/
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Aug 12, 2015 19:33
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Combat Pretzel posted:During the update, I used my 930 as a hot plate for some scrambled eggs. I had to put it on top of an AC unit, because if I didn't it would crap out half way through it forcing me to hard reset.
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Aug 12, 2015 19:38
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I can confirm that all versions of windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8 I've used on my PC had the browser selection thing ( ). It was a dumb thing to do but hey, EU laws and poo poo. Now that I'm using Windows 10 I'm loving Edge but I only use it for Twitch and a few things until they release adblock addons and that stuff.
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Aug 12, 2015 20:34
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