Last night Organic Maps was removed from the Play Store without any warnings or additional details due to “not meeting the requirements for the Family Program”. Compared to Google Maps and other maps apps rated for 3+ age, there are no ads or in-app purchases in Organic Maps. We have asked for an appeal.
As a temporary workaround for the Google Play issue, you can install the new upcoming Google Play update from this link: https://cdn.organicmaps.app/apk/OrganicMaps-24081605-GooglePlay.apk
The Announcement on various Networks:
Fosstodon Post
Twitter Post
Telegram Post
If you don’t know what Organic Maps is, it is an alternative to OsmAnd and google maps, more info on the official site (link) and GitHub.
Maybe an error? Honestly this is a weird one. I hope we will learn more in the coming hours.
You can still get it on the other channels, like F-Droid or Obtainium. Still, we all know that not being on the Play Store is an heavy sentence for any Android app.
EDITs
- Added F-Droid link.
- Fixed Typo in the obtainium link.
Wow. At least it’s easy to sideload apps in Android.
F-Droid, no “side loading” needed
Don’t you need to side load F-Droid? That is what I did.
The only way to get it outside of sideloading is flashing a custom ROM like LineageOS that includes it. It’s not exactly available in the play store.
What in the world are you all calling “side loading” you just download the APK and install it. No cables, no ADB, no side loading
Edit, I guess kids these days are calling downloading APKs side loading lol
ITT: Witnessing somebody learning what sideloading is and isn’t as technical as they think it is.
To be fair on most Android devices sideloading isn’t a very meaningful term, but on locked down devices like iOS it is.
It isn’t? I’ve been using the term since I picked up my first Android phone in 2010 and there were side-loaded apps everywhere. Hell, you used to have to side-load the Amazon Store app. And that was all just “download this apk and install it” Workflows.
2010 was already tainted by the iPhone walled garden.
Installing an APK directly is sideloading. It’s literally on the “Get F-Droid” page:
Sideload, to me, means pushing it onto the phone and installing it from a second, local device. Loaded from the side. Easy enough to do if you have the tools.
Downloading an APK through a browser and installing it from a file browser, all from the single device itself, wouldn’t count as sideloading given my personal definition of the term.
You’re mixing the definitions of sideloading media and sideloading apps. Sideloading media follows your definition, e.g. transfer via another local device. Sideloading apps refers to the installing of apps outside of the (pre-)installed app store, e.g. by installing an APK directly.
That’s fine, your definition just doesn’t seem to be the norm. I think as things have changed over time, and it’s possible and easy to do it all on the device, that the definition has shifted. To me it means installing applications from outside of official channels.
That is what they are saying.
They are just pointing out the exception. The only way you wouldn’t need to sideload F-Droid is if it happened to be pre-installed on the OS itself.
I guess while I was sleeping side loading meaning went from having to manually move an APK from another device to an android via adb to just anything you downloaded?
That’s silly, but okay
Load from the Side. Sideload. It’s always meant that to me.
I guess I’m old enough that using app stores seems like the weird way to get an app. I mean, do you think of it as side loading when you download an app on PC not from the MS Store?
Wait, since when does LineageOS include F-Droid? I remember having to download it myself using the built-in browser the last time I tried it.
I installed it under Waydroid recently and it included it by default. Maybe it’s a newer thing? Or dependent on which image you choose?
I think bundling it might be unique to the Waydroid FOSS image. I recently set up Waydroid with GAPPS rather than with FOSS (because AuroraStore still won’t run on Waydroid, grrrrrrr) and it didn’t come with it.
(Side note, if you figure out how to get Aurora to show a list of apps in Waydroid x64 without instantly crashing, I will love you)
Alright, so apparently I’m about to get loved? Aurora just worked for me, but I installed Waydroid under Bazzite using one of the included just-scripts. So I went and figured out how it does it. To “configure”, which is the second step in setting up (on Bazzite) it calls this set of scripts: https://github.com/casualsnek/waydroid_script
The microg installation handles Aurora. In case you want it here’s the just script, tho it’s obviously tailored to bazzite: https://github.com/ublue-os/bazzite/blob/d5097a5e971c46912188a9004b2289cff3798221/system_files/desktop/shared/usr/share/ublue-os/just/82-bazzite-waydroid.just
What you showed in that video is AuroraDroid which is an alternative frontend for F-Droid and distinct from Aurora Store (which is a frontend for the Play Store). Do you have the actual Aurora Store also?
No, you just download it
Isn’t that was side loading is?
My definition of side loading is installing anything outside of an app management system. For example going to a website and downloading the APK and installing it.
Windows users call that “installing”… 😈
Use Obtainium
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