Ops-Normal.org

Ok admittedly the Beeb is the source but since it hates capitalist corporations there may be a degree of truth in this:

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-47001460

To hell with bloody Facefook and to hell with Zuckerberg.

Damn shame. Whatsapp was a breeze and straightforward to use. Encrypted and extremely reliable. I've only got Telegram, Viber, IMO, Skype and a Korean thing called KakaoTalk. IMO is the only one encrypted.

Can anyone suggest a viable alternate to Whatsapp?

How about this?

I expunged WhatsApp from my phone the day it was announced that Facebook had bought it.

WhatsWhatsApp ?

( yes, yes, I know, but can't be bothered with any of it. )

compo wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 25, 2019 9:28 pm

How about this?

Great idea compo but I'd have to buy a horse. Whatsapp is free though and doesn't need a feedbag nor does it cause the house stink of horsesh!t.

It also doesn't suddenly gallop off to shag another app in the next paddock either.

TINSTAAFL

I'm with Speedy on this. Whats wrong with email, SMS and the good old phone. I've never felt the need to have anything more.

For many it is a 'fashion' thing, particularly for the younger folk. All these media have their uses, however, and are excellent for communication with family and friends especially with a video option.

As long as all users recognise that their personal information and 'private' messages are open to commercial (and possibly other) use I cannot see a problem. I think rolling the 3 apps together 'behind the scenes' will improve peoples' communication options. I gather that currently no changes are to be made in the 'front end' of all three.

True Boac.

Using whatever preferred internet means of communication tends to be localised, e.g. like Skype, Whatsapp being a particular popular medium globally whereas KakaoTalk is only really used in Korea and Japan. IMO ("eemoe") is good in the ME because it isn't blocked and thus no VPN needed. Viber in Australia AFAIK is the way to go. Thus a range of apps are needed to communicate worldwide. All these are free but Whatsapp is very piss easy to use and with proven end to end encryption with no 'pay up to remove ads' - there aren't any. Unwanted bells and whistles can be easily deselected, and those one can use are very handy - e.g. a double ding for me indicates a message from my wife. A single ding means it's from somebody else and can wait.

While I too got worried when Whatsapp was taken over by FB (the Whatsapp creators themselves being escapees of Zuck's mob), I have no evidence so far that Facefook has stolen details of any Whatsapp messages, calls or data, but I suspect an integration of all three (I loathe the other two and don't trust 'em) will create privacy issues.

Don't have a Smartphone, so no worries.

Must confess to an occasional use of Facetime on n iPad tho', from one branch of the Grandchildren family, the other lot don't even acknowledge Birthday / Christmas cash gifts, so no problem.