klausi
Márton BraunNo, no, and still no. Installing an app on an Android device you've purchased and fully own is not "sideloading". It's just... using your device. Nothing more. Let's not pretend even for a second that "sideloading" is a normal term to describe this.
It sort of makes sense to put app installations behind a warning. Sure, you should think about what you're installing. But having an authority that can prevent it arbitrarily or a mechanism that can block you from using your device as you want for 24 hours (!) is ridiculous.
How do these theoretical scammers get you to download a fake app from outside a store, by the way? By making you go to a website first to get it? Seems like they could just have you open a fake website at that point, which would be much much easier to do.
Lyubomir Ganev 
@zsmb13 and the website is very often reached through a scammer using scam ads served by Google Ads. Lmao.
Tired Bunny 
@zsmb13
And a lot of usecases people say, about this thing protecting from literal spyware/stalkerware, are assuming that it is not google-certified already, and that it cannot get certified either because ones who made it are affiliated with governments google must abide law of, or with by paying google under a different identity every once in a while and hiding app functionality better.
And a lot of usecases people say, about this thing protecting from literal spyware/stalkerware, are assuming that it is not google-certified already, and that it cannot get certified either because ones who made it are affiliated with governments google must abide law of, or with by paying google under a different identity every once in a while and hiding app functionality better.
benjo@zsmb13 if they continue, I will open a PR in their repo to rename adb install to adb sideload. They should rename all of it - command, docs, etc. I'm so sick of that term. It's exactly as scary and intentional as the urgency scammers use while scamming.
Tom 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🏳️🌈 🏳️⚧️@zsmb13 If you can't install & run your choice of software on it, it's not your device.
Paul Evans@zsmb13 I usually sideload bread into my toaster. I buy bread from a different company than that which made my toaster.
(Well, I load the bread in from the top like a normal toaster. ;) )
Jonathan Beverley@zsmb13 This is not the first time I've heard this, but to me, sideload was always just the obvious extension of upload and download.
When did it become a negative term rather than just a useful name for a slightly different process?
食 Shoku the Umbreon@zsmb13 Apple set the precedent, and the precedent they set was "hahahano".
tanavit
Liam 
@zsmb13 We don't "sideload applications" on our computers, we "install programs". Our phones are just computers with a cellular card and shouldn't be treated any differently. Just because something doesn't come from Google's Store doesn't mean it is different and requires a special name, it's all software and Google can't even guarantee the safety of apps on their Store, users still need to provide caution whether an APK is from the Google Store, another application repository or from some website.
Even my phone's autocorrect agrees and refuses to accept "sideload" as a real word.
