Google just took down IPAs (Apple equivalent of APKs) of popular YouTube tweaks
Google just took down IPAs (Apple equivalent of APKs) of popular YouTube tweaks
Only the downloads were taken down
Some repos added instructions to compile through GitHub Actions
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Can someone please translate what that means?
As for what these were, they are modified versions of the official YouTube app. What has been taken down is the full modified app files (.ipa) ready to install on an iPhone, not the source code to the tweaks that are in the repos.
These modifications do things like replicate the paid YouTube Premium features, from the uYou features list for example:
- Ad-Free Browsing: Bid farewell to interruptions and enjoy seamless video playback without annoying advertisements.
- Background Playback: Keep your favorite videos running in the background while you multitask or lock your device.
- Video and Audio Downloads: Download videos, shorts, and audio tracks in various formats, including MP4 and WebM, for offline viewing and listening pleasure.
- [...]
You can see why Google would want to have them taken down. They aren't even a re-implementation with their own code/UI like NewPipe.
So why are people in this thread glad google is doing this?
I thought Lemmy was all pirates and anti monopolies, dont we all have adblock? And background playback used to be default. It was explicitly removed to exploit.
I am not trying to argue but can someone explain why there rooting for the power addicted mega company?
The only comment I see being glad about it is a joke about the style of beer also called an IPA.
I saw the woooosh and it still woooshed right over me. Have never encountered it.
I think there's a difference between a third-party app/frontend and a modded app like these. One is at least trying to provide their own value, and stuff like NewPipe for example can support multiple services in the same UI, a feature I wish was better supported in streaming as I dislike trying to navigate all the individual apps. Modifying a service's app to remove the ads while still consuming their bandwidth and not putting in the effort to make your own app feels worse for me for some reason. At least pirates generally tend to use their own bandwidth and servers to distribute things instead of leeching directly off the original.
Hope that helps explain it for at least one person.
It's not just removing the ads, though. NewPipe also, of course, consumes YouTube's bandwidth.
I'm not saying NewPipe doesn't use their bandwidth, just that taking YouTube's app/UI code too just feels worse to me for some reason. It's less about the logic of it and more about the feeling.
The equivalents for Android, precompiled ReVanced APKs, are commonly used to spread malware. Following the instructions to patch the app yourself isn't hard. Google taking down precompiled modded versions of YouTube but leaving patches and the the tools anybody can use to apply them is a neutral thing at worst.
Also I don't see anyone in this thread glad that Google did this, aside from the first half of the joke / fakeout / pun post about IPA beer.
IPAs are the iOS equivalent of APKs. As long as you don't sideload over 3 apps (which is actually 2 if you want to avoid having to connect your device to your computer every week, and even less if you have apps that do things other than being apps), you can sideload IPAs.
Google made GitHub take down all the downloads but not the repositories themselves.
Wait a sec. Apple allows sideloading but only 3 apps, otherwise you need to connect to a PC on a weekly basis? What for?
Apple has always allowed side loading just not as a method of mainstream distribution.
App developers use it all the time and not just on their own devices, it's also used to beta test apps.
There area few different ways it can be done with varying limitations. But in general it is absolutely possible to install apps outside of the App Store. In fact side-loading has been around since before the App Store even existed.
Almost anyone (except Tim Sweeney) can register for a developer account. And in fact you don't even need to, since most people who side-load are testers not developers. Developers can deploy a pre-release build of their app to up to ten thousand regular iPhone owners bypassing the app store entirely.
I have no idea what they're talking about with "only 3 apps". As an iOS developer I've got countless side loaded apps on my iPhone. Some of them are test builds of my own apps, some of them are test builds of other people's apps, some of them are hobby projects where I've slapped together an app in a weekend — not good enough for public distribution but it works for me and I've been using them for years.
The current method for sideloading apps without a developer account seems to be limited to three separate apps at a time.
You need to pay a lot for a dev account
$99/year is a lot of you’re just doing it to side load. If you’re using all the tools available, it’s not that much.
they probably just want to make it as inconvenient as possible
Hobbyist development.
Not sure if this has changed for free due to EU regulation.