Come to think of it, why hasn't @signalapp run a 'FULL BLAST' campaign on TV, Newspapers, SM targeting India? They're well funded from what I read. Is it because they run as a non-profit? scratches head
OLX and other platforms gained traction only after those TV/Newspaper ads, IIRC.
@vijay40@Deus@mastodonindians you don’t have to wait. Delete it and you will never regret it - you’re truly free from misinformation :)
If you really want a replacement there’s always telegram or signal.
@ram@Deus@mastodonindians Telegram seemed like a good fit as there is a lot of my network already on it. However, it seems like Telegram is NOT open source. Only the client is. There is no guarantee that they will not go the whatsapp way anytime in the future.
Signals was the second one I checked out. But there are some reports that they are already adding advertising to the platform.
Maybe we need like a fediverse equivalent of whatsapp. Maybe something which supports xmpp on mobile. So there is no platform lock-in and only protocol lock-in.
@vijay40@ram@Deus@mastodonindians there is already a whatsapp foss alternative matrix.org search for element X in playstore/f-droid.
If you need fediverse compatible client Sup by pixelfed is coming soon you can also contribute to the project
@vijay40@Deus@mastodonindians not sure what you are looking for in these apps if you were willing to put up with WhatsApp this long ;-)
Nothing is sacred or secure these days. The safest is talking in person over a cup of tea or coffee I guess 😄
User pays one-time is an absolute deal breaker for a country like India. I might be happy to pay, but NO ONE in my network will be willing and that defeats the whole point of a messaging app.
@vijay40@Pabamiti@ram@Deus@mastodonindians you could go with Signal though. Donate if you can (I do) or just use the app. Should work in the Indian market considering they added Stories too now 🥲
I have been wondering why doesnt Mastodon launch a federated messaging service. The technology already exists within Mastodon with Direct Messages feature.
@vijay40@Pabamiti@Deus@mastodonindians You will have to employ chatGPT to maintain the encryption algorithms with regular security patches in order to NOT pay for someone's time ;-)
open source should not necessarily mean free
Agree. People should absolutely get paid for their effort. But still a messaging app is not useful for me unless my network is on it and I find it impossible that more than 5% of my network will pay for one.
Mastodon is also paying bills through donations while still keeping the service free.
@vijay40@Deus@mastodonindians@prav Prav App is a desi completely libre Whatscrapp alternative, being developed by free software enthusiasts from India.
Please look into it and see if it can benefit you.
@Prav looks interesting. But its super confusing for now. The about page says something like:
"Prav App is convenient without vendor lock-in (unlike WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal etc). Except Quicksy, most apps are only convenient and come with vendor lock-in. We are complementing Quicksy with a more sustainable revenue and democratic governance model through a cooperative ownership and control. We are interoperable with Quicksy and happy to see if more people learn about Quicksy from us and join it instead of Prav too."
I dont really know what all of this means. What is Quicksy ? What does Prav app do ? Is it open source ? If yes, then where is the source code ? Who pays for Prav ? What do you mean by 'sustainable revenue' ? What is this 'democratic governance model' ? Do all users vote for every feature on Prav ?
Too complicated for me imo. Can't imagine how its going to be for a non-tech user.
Quicksy is a chat app with user experience similar to WhatsApp, Telegram or Signal (sign up with an SMS OTP and find other Quicksy users automatically). Prav App is similar to Quicksy from a user experience point of view, but difference is in how much control users have over the service. https://codeberg.org/prav/ has the source code. Users pay for Prav. Regular subscription income directly from users makes it sustainable.
@vijay40@shakil_tcs@Deus@mastodonindians@prav We are in the process of registering Prav as a multi state cooperative society (we need 50 members from two states and we are very close to that target now). Users have an option to join the cooperative, if they want to involve in prav decision making. For a non tech users, they probably won't ask these questions. For them, they only need to install the app and enter phone number, start chatting with friends.
@vijay40@shakil_tcs@Deus@mastodonindians@prav we want to target non technical users so providing all the technical details like it is using XMPP protocol may not be a good idea to be on the homepage. But people who want to learn more can find these from the about page - we also have an FAQ page with even more details. We have updated the about page based on your feedback, please check and see if it is any better now.
@vijay40@shakil_tcs@Deus@mastodonindians@prav I have asked the team about this suggestion. But I feel we should not put a lot of information in the homepage as well. Everyone visiting the site may not want to know every single detail about the project. So we have to decide how much information should be highlighted.
@vijay40@shakil_tcs@Deus@mastodonindians@prav Btw you can actually try the app from beta.prav.app and give feedback about the features. Disclaimer: we are still in beta phase and we still need to complete many steps before we can offer it to the general public.
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