Technology

I literally had to switch bank accounts because I couldn't reset my password "on the web" and required me to use Virgin Money's app.

Customer service agent(s) on the phone after prolonged discussions why their app wouldn't work on three Android phones right in front of me surfaced, and I shit you not

Well sir, I have my iPhone here and can login just fine maybe you should buy one of those instead

That day I found out about this

https://www.currentaccountswitch.co.uk/

This affects me a lot day to day. I have a phone, but it runs postmarketOS, not iOS or Android. It really shows me the importance of open standards. I feel that every business should be required to support open standards for each of the services they offer.

For me, buying train tickets used to be ok, but is getting harder now. Some train operators are really pushing you to use their app now, and getting rid of the option to download a PDF. It really frustrates me: it's not like it costs them more to offer PDF download - if anything, it's much cheaper to offer that functionality than to build and maintain an app for iOS and Android.

Back when I had an Android phone, I used Monzo, and it was so easy to send money to friends, set up standing orders etc. I wish they offered a proper web interface. Now, I use Natwest's online banking, and it's a real pain - I use the card reader to authenticate, then the website logs me out seemingly every 2 mins of inactivity. Some features, like pre-notifying that you'll be travelling abroad, are only available on the app. I only see this trend continuing.

The concert tickets example in the article is insane to me. I can't think of a use case that is better suited for PDFs, and that's what we've been doing for the last 10+ years without any issues. It really is user hostile and excludes people on the edges of society who don't fit, for whatever reason, with what the 80-90% do.

I flat-out refuse to do business with any that requires I use an app. I won't even scan a QR code for a restaurant menu; that's my cue to go eat elsewhere.

It’s also a gigantic information harvesting ploy.

That is what I noticed. Everything these days require app to get shopping vouchers, book tickets, go in to your local gym, pay in store (we are being weaned off from using cash) etc.

If you don't have a smart phone in the US, even temporally, your almost a second class citizen.

Then if you don't install corporate apps on your phone, there are even more problems for you.

The whole using your phone for everything from grocery shopping to just doing whatever Like getting deals or whatever?, Can it please go away?

They're collecting our data anyways.

A mobile app requirement is an easy excuse for me to nope the fuck out.

I keep seeing this headline and thinking it's a slur

Cloudalist's and their technofuedalism

I have an app for that.