diff --git a/_posts/2010-09-29-f-droid-is-here.html b/_posts/2010-09-29-f-droid-is-here.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..83b34d6ba --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-09-29-f-droid-is-here.html @@ -0,0 +1,9 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "F-Droid Is Here" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
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F-Droid is dedicated to Free and Open Source (FOSS) software on the Android platform. Here you will find news, reviews and other features covering all things Android and software-freedom related.

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Yes, master!Everyone needs an email client, and unfortunately the stock Android client is very poor indeed – presumably because most of the development focus was on the GMail app. Luckily for those that don’t use GMail, or use other accounts too, the developers of K-9 Mail came to the rescue with what must be the best mobile mail client around.

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K-9 deals easily with multiple accounts, of both POP and IMAP varieties, and Push IMAP is supported too. With this, notifications of incoming mail are instant, via the standard Android notification bar.

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The support for dealing with large volumes of mail, one of the many shortcomings of the stock Email app, is excellent. Multiple selections are easy to use, as are multiple folders and combined virtual folders for multiple accounts.

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Other useful features are encryption and signing, in conjunction with APG (I’ll cover that in a later review) and Microsoft Exchange integration, which I haven’t tried.

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The ability to customise almost everything via the settings pages, both globally and on a per-account basis, is fantastic too. I’d almost suggest that if you can’t get K-9 to behave how you want it to, the problem is you, not the software. Even then, of course, the source is available!

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My only real problem, ever, came when one of those nasty ‘Sent from my…’ default signatures sneaked into an upgrade without any warning, but even that was easy enough to disable.

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K-9 is a mature, high quality and actively developed app which I use every day. Highly recommended.

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Vital Statistics

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market://serach?q=pname:com.fsck.k9

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Available in the Android Market (scan/click the QR code opposite) or, of course, via the FDroid repository.

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Ars technica is reporting on a study that reveals that, unbeknownst to the user, some Android apps are sending personal information such as telephone numbers and GPS coordinates off to unknown recipients. The only surprising thing here is that anyone is surprised.

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When we talk about FOSS we talk about free as in freedom, not free as in beer. I like to extend the free beer analogy to describe three kinds of software.

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First we have FOSS – the beer really is free, and we know it’s so because of the freedoms we’re granted. It’s served up in a clear glass with a list of ingredients, and if you’re still not sure you get the recipe – make it yourself if you like, it comes out just same. Or vary the recipe to suit your taste.

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Then there’s the beer you pay for. The seller is keeping the recipe a secret so you don’t know what’s in it and can’t alter it, but at least the deal is clear – you get the beer and the seller gets the cash. If he starts poisoning people with dodgy beer the money stops flowing and that’s not what he wants. It’s usually safe to drink.

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Finally, a very odd kind of beer indeed. The guy is giving this stuff away as fast as he can make it, but he refuses to tell you what’s in it. Why’s he doing that? And why would you take even a sip through the straw of the opaque cup he insists you drink it from?

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Although it seems a bit extreme to suggest that every app with hidden source code and no cost is out to get you, I do wonder about the motives behind such things sometimes. If you must dabble in the stuff, and I think it’s risky on a device that knows everywhere you go and everyone you speak to, then at least take the time to check the required permissions carefully before installing. Does that Silly Sound Effects app really need access to your location, or the internet? I don’t think so.

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A better option, where possible, is to seek out the FOSS alternative. One of the aims of this site is to help you find it.

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I always think popping up a “Battery Low – Connect Your Charger” message is a very thoughtless thing to do, and with battery life being what it is it’s something I get to think about quite a lot.

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For one thing, if I was able to connect my charger I wouldn’t have ended up 5% battery in the first place, would I? And for another, if I’m desperately trying to get those last couple of things done before the power goes completely, the last thing I need is to be interrupted by a pop-up message that I have to clear before I carry on. I can see the battery is low – it’s right there in the status bar, that ominous looking red battery with a line through it. Every Android user’s worst nightmare.

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Luckily I have several spare batteries, along with a stand-alone wall charger to make sure they’re always ready for action. They’re very cheap, if you know where to look, so long as you’re not hung up on brand names. So I might be about to run out of power again, but only for the time it takes to stick the next one in.

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Following on from yesterday’s article about app permissions, here’s some more practical help in the form of an app that lets you review the permissions you’ve granted to everything that’s currently installed.

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The imaginatively titled Permissions shows all the available permissions on your phone in a big list, with those it considers dangerous highlighted in orange. Each entry also has a description of what it allows an app to do, and how that might affect you. For example, for the “coarse (network-based) location” permission, you’re told “Access coarse location sources such as the cellular network database to determine an approximate phone location, where available. Malicious applications can use this to determine approximately where you are.” It might seem like stating the obvious in this case, but for some of the more obscure permissions the description is essential.

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The main purpose of the app is not just a list though – you can expand any of the entries in the list to see what applications are using that particular permission. This allows you to spot things you may have let slip through your defences when you first installed them, like the proverbial Fart App that strangely requires access to your contacts and the internet to make its amusing noises.

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Selecting one of the applications in the expanded list takes you to the standard Android Application Info screen, where you can see all the information about how much storage the application is using and whether it’s running or not. If it’s running, you can force it to stop, and you can also easily uninstall it from here in one click. You can see the full list of permissions too, in the same format as it’s given in when you have to accept them before installing. Effectively Permissions presents this information in reverse, for all your apps at once.

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Permissions is a very useful app for reviewing who you’ve allowed to do what on your phone, and for learning some details of the Android permissions structure. As a tool for the casual user to do a quick security audit on their phone though, it’s a bit too detailed. One improvement in that direction might be to make the default mode a) show only ‘important’ permissions – perhaps those the app already highlights in orange, and b) show only user-installed apps, and leave out the system apps. A menu item could allow switching between this and the current full detail mode.

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Vital Statistics

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\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-02-lifesaver.html b/_posts/2010-10-02-lifesaver.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..bda5a1af1 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-02-lifesaver.html @@ -0,0 +1,22 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "LifeSaver 2" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
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LifeSaver 2 is a simple but very useful app that backs up your call log and SMS messages to your SD card, and allows you to restore them later. This is useful for general everyday backups, as a means of exporting this data in an easy format for use elsewhere, and also (the intended usage) if you’re changing your phone, or wiping and reinstalling the OS.

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For my utilitarian tastes, the whole thing is visually a bit too jazzy – I’d rather have the extra free space on the phone and more functionality on the screen than those giant images and animations, but plenty of people like things this way I suppose, and I must admit it does look slick. I forgive it the eye-candy-bloat because it gets the job done quickly and without any fuss.

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Once you’ve “Saved your life” the information will be in a directory called LifeSaver-F on the SD card, in two files called MessageLog and CallLog. Both of these are text files, starting with a count of the number of entries, and then a simple JSON-encoded chunk of data for each one. This makes it easy to use this data elsewhere once you have it saved.

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One amusing point of interest – it’s not called LifeSaver 2 because it’s a big upgrade or improvement over the original LiveSaver. In fact, the developer lost the app signing key for the original, so had to publish it as a whole new app. (Android won’t upgrade an application in place if it’s signed with a different key to the existing installed one, so to not do this would have broken the upgrade path for all existing users). I find the loss of the key particularly funny given the saving-things nature of the application, but it’s a lesson for all application developers and who better to provide it than Google’s own Developer Advocate?

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Vital Statistics

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market://search?q=pname:com.textuality.lifesaver2

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\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-04-mythmote.html b/_posts/2010-10-04-mythmote.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..cf225e281 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-04-mythmote.html @@ -0,0 +1,31 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "MythMote" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
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If you use MythTV (and if not, why not?) then you need MythMote. It’s a remote control that communicates with all your MythTV front ends over the network. Why is this better than a normal remote? Just some of the many reasons:

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  • The interface is better
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  • No infra-red – the dog can’t sit in the way
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  • The same device works in every room
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  • No infra-red – you don’t have to point it
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  • You always have it with you
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  • No infra-red – you don’t even have to be in the same room
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  • Everyone can have their own remote
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To use MythMote, you need to tick the ‘Enable Network Remote Control Interface’ in the MythTV frontend setup, for each frontend you intend to use it with. You also need network access to these machines, which normally means using WiFi on the Android end. In theory, you could use cell data by exposing a port for each frontend at the edge of your LAN, and routing them to the appropriate machines, but I don’t know if I’d consider it safe to do that.

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Once you’re all set up, you just need to select the appropriate frontend (‘location’) from your list in MythMote and it’s connected almost instantly. You then have three tabs, with lots of on-screen buttons, plus the ability to send keyboard input – useful for searches, for example. Not every function you’d ever want is available, but most of the everyday ones are. An example of something that’s not there, unless I’m missing something, is that you can’t delete a recording. Actually, you can, by sending a ‘d’ as keyboard input, but that’s not something you’re going to want to have to do very much.

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A great addition to a future release would be the ability to configure the layout, adding different functions and removing unused ones. In the meantime, of course, you could always tinker with the source if you really needed to.

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Vital Statistics

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market://search?q=pname:tkj.android.homecontrol.mythmote

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\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-05-beem.html b/_posts/2010-10-05-beem.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..b59092ad9 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-05-beem.html @@ -0,0 +1,20 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Beem" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
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Settings Screen

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Beem is an XMPP client which, as yet, offers a fairly basic range of options but is under active development. There are a few quirks that mean it’s probably not quite ready for prime time yet, most notably the fact that it doesn’t always handle disconnections very well.

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One of the biggest limitations currently is that you can only configure a single XMPP account. Ideally I’d like to be able to have several, which I could enable and disable individually.

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Another problem, for those with small screens and no physical keyboard, is that due to the way the chat output is formatted, you’re not left with much room for reading once the virtual keyboard has taken its share of the display.

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Despite these problems, it’s a good enough client for my purposes. There may be better options (what do you use?), but as far as I’m aware not that I can get the source code for – a feature I rate very highly.

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Depending on whether you use XMPP heavily from your Android device, Beem may or may not be the client for you, but even if it’s not it’s worth keeping an eye on because it’s improving all the time.

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Vital Statistics

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market://search?q=pname:com.beem.project.beem

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\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-06-book-catalogue.html b/_posts/2010-10-06-book-catalogue.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..cce243850 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-06-book-catalogue.html @@ -0,0 +1,26 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Book Catalogue" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
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It’s hard to know how to start a review of an application with a name so descriptive you know exactly what it is from the title. The standard cliche doesn’t work – Book Catalogue is a book catalogue application. Can’t write that. Somehow we seem to have got started though, so let’s move on.

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More specifically, this is an application for building and maintaining an database of all your books – the old kind, made out of paper, rather than those new-fangled e-book things. There are three ways of adding a book, as follows:

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If you have the excellent ZXing Barcode Scanner (review coming soon) installed, Book Catalogue will use that to let you scan the barcode directly. It then looks up all the details of the book, grabs a thumbnail of the cover if it can, leaving you to just fill in details like notes and location.

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Sometimes the book is too old to have a barcode, or it’s too dark to scan it, or for no apparent reason it just won’t scan. The last one is rare, thankfully. Then you’re on to method 2, which is to find and type in the ISBN, at which point everything carries on just as if you’d scanned it. You do have to be careful, and this applies to scanning as well, that the data you get back is what you expected. It’s not unheard of for a book to have completely the wrong ISBN on it – out of a couple of hundred I’ve done so far, two or three have been like this.

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Finally, there is the evil third category of book – no barcode, no ISBN. For these you have to type the information in yourself, which starts you wondering why you’re doing this in the first place, if you weren’t already.

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Once you have some books in there, you can view and sort the data in various ways, but some of the basic features you might expect aren’t there (yet) – you can’t search, for example. On the other hand, there are some quite advanced features you might not expect, such as keeping track of loans, and the very nice ability to completely remove any fields you don’t use from the views.

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Book Catalogue can export all your data into a CSV file on your SD card, which is easy to read and work with, and can also import data in the same format.

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All in all there is room for improvement, and a lot of features that could be added, but Book Catalogue is a very solid and reliable application which is updated regularly. All you need to do is figure out why you’d want to catalogue all your books. Or, like me, just get on with it, and worry about that later.

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Vital Statistics

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Yesterday we looked at real books so today it’s the turn of e-books. FBReader is an e-book reader based on the desktop application of the same name.

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Although it’s currently at what sounds like a lowly version 0.7, the reading interface is slick and flawless. You have full control of the fonts and colours used – double control, in fact, because there is a day mode and a night mode, each of which retain their individual settings. Navigation between pages can be done by swiping the screen, but the more sensible option is using the volume buttons. For broader navigation, you can access the table of contents or set and jump between bookmarks.

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When you come back to FBReader it immediately resumes exactly where you left off, and also remembers your place in any other books you’ve had open.

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The only e-book formats supported currently in the Android version are EPUB (and its predecessor Open eBook) and FictionBook. These have been good enough for my purposes so far, but a few other formats are supported in the desktop versions and there are plans to port these over. Notably missing, and this is a plus point as far as I’m concerned, is any kind of support for DRM.

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Book files placed in the Books directory of the SD card will be automatically available, but the built in ‘Network Library’ allows you to search and download easily from multiple sources. Any source that provides information in OPDS (an extension of Atom) is supported, and a number are preloaded into the application. OPDS and FBReader allow for both free and paid books, but it seems like for a paid book you have to leave the FBReader interface and conduct the transaction via the web browser. This is not something I’ve had to do yet, as there are so many books I want to read in the public domain. I suspect from what I’ve seen though, that in most cases it would be easier to buy them on a ‘real computer’ and stick them on the SD card.

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I’ve never really bothered with e-books before, much preferring the paper versions, but I’ve been using FBReader for a while and have found the whole experience to be a lot better than I expected. Before writing this review I intended to try out the much talked about Kindle app, just to compare the reading interface (although I don’t see how it could be better than FBReader’s). However, it wanted my credit card details before I even started. It’s hard, with e-books, not to keep making comparisons with ‘the real thing’, so in other words they wanted my credit card details at the door, before I walked in to their book shop and got to see if anything was worth buying. I thought this was a bit rude, as you would, and headed back out into the street. I was quite pleased to be let of the hook really though, as I could see through the window that there was DRM going on inside. The more distance I keep from that kind of thing, the better I feel. FBReader will do nicely for me.

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Vital Statistics

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market://search?q=pname:org.geometerplus.zlibrary.ui.android

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There are plenty of options for mapping on Android, including the virtually ubiquitous Google Maps. However, none of them are even in the same league as gvSIG Mini.

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One of the main things that sets this app apart from the competition is that it’s a generic viewer, rather than being tied to a specific map provider, or a particular company’s commercial interests. Any tile map source can be used, either in online or offline modes.

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Online mode involves reading tiles from the server as you go, which is fine if you have a good connection. Offline mode uses tiles cached on the SD card, or even pre-downloaded before a trip. You can achieve this pre-downloading using the gvSIG desktop app (also FOSS) along with the Phone Cache plugin (yes, FOSS too).

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A wide range of tile map services (or layers) are configured in the app by default, but additional ones can be added as required. Amongst the preloaded layers are:

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  • OpenStreetMap (various renderings)
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  • Google, Yahoo, Microsoft map/satellite
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  • Ordnance Survey
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  • Specialist maps, such as geological data
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The ability to access all these different maps makes gvSIG the only choice for many uses. If you’re in the UK, for example, and venture away from roads, you have little option but to use the Ordnance Survey maps, and gvSIG is the only sensible option for that. Yet the same time, you have the ability to instantly switch to other sources such as OpenStreetMap or satellite. For this, and many other purposes, this is the best (or indeed only) application for the job.

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There are a whole load of other features I haven’t even mentioned, but if you aren’t ready to try it for yourself by now you probably never will be.

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Vital Statistics

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NetCounter is a simple but effective application to keep track of your data usage. It counts cell and wi-fi data separately and displays a summary of both in an easy to read format. You can see the total used ever, and the amount used in the current calendar month, as well as figures for today and the last 7 days.

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If you want to get fancy, you can long click on the interfaces and items in the display to get pretty graphs, add new counters – maybe you want the last 14 days, for example. You can also set up alerts on any of these counters, so if you’ve got a monthly cell data allowance, you can get a notification when you’re getting close to it.

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You can also export the data to the SD card, and import it again, which is handy if you’re changing phones or wiping for an upgrade. It also means you can take the data elsewhere to analyse in more detail.

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NetCounter is an essential tool if you need to keep an eye on your bandwidth usage due to carrier limits or charges, and even if you don’t it’s nice to have around just out of interest.

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Vital Statistics

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market://search?q=pname:net.jaqpot.netcounter

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\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-14-statusnet-mobile.html b/_posts/2010-10-14-statusnet-mobile.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..d231edeb5 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-14-statusnet-mobile.html @@ -0,0 +1,27 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "StatusNet Mobile" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
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This is the official client for StatusNet microblogs, including the popular Identi.ca.

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On one hand I expected great things from this, because it comes direct from StatusNet’s excellent development team. On the other, I had grave reservations when I heard it was being developed using Appcelerator Titanium. When it came to it, I decided I was right on both counts.

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It’s a very slick and well designed application that does everything it sets out to. Although not as feature-rich as established clients like Mustard, it isn’t missing a great deal, which is good considering how new it is.

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The main downside is, as I expected, the Appcelerator thing. Appcelerator is a major win from the developer’s perspective, as they can write the application once and have it run on many platforms. From the user’s side though, you get something that isn’t designed for your platform. Consequently, StatusNet Mobile’s interface is very non-Androidy, which I found very off-putting. Others might like it though, who knows? You might even particularly like it because you can get a client from StatusNet, with pretty much the same functionality, across several different mobile AND desktop platforms.

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I also found it to be quite sluggish in operation, and in particular slow to start up. I instinctively want to blame Appcelerator for this too, but with no facts to base that on, I won’t.

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The lack of support for Android 1.5 is also worth noting – this is a big problem for many Android users, and seems totally unnecessary based on what the application is actually doing.

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If you’ve come away from the above with the impression of lots of negative points, that would be unfair. This is a great client, especially for one so young, and it’s definitely worth a try to see if you like it. Personally though, I prefer Mustard at this point in time.

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Vital Statistics

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market://search?q=pname:net.status.client.mobile

Market QR Code

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\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-15-repository-vapourware.html b/_posts/2010-10-15-repository-vapourware.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..3c94ee0ac --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-15-repository-vapourware.html @@ -0,0 +1,31 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "F-Droid Repository Vapourware" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
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The observant amongst you will have noticed the “and more” in this site’s tagline. I thought I’d write a little bit of an introduction to that side of things, since I’ve briefly mentioned it to various people already anyway.

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The plan is to implement something that’s sorely missing from the Android world – a repository of FOSS software. Development of this is well underway, and soon there should be code to be seen and alpha versions to be played with. As of right now there’s nothing to see though, hence the ‘vapourware’ in the title of the post.

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Even so, I think it’s worth outlining the basic plans for the sake of soliciting feedback. There are several components to this, as follows:

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The F-Droid Application

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This is similar to Google’s Market application in that it sits on the Android device and allows you to search available applications, install them and uninstall them. It’s easier to describe the ways it’s different:

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  • There is better metadata – as well as less-constrained descriptions, there is the stuff we care about – the license, for example, and links to source code, issue trackers and the like.
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  • Multiple versions are available. You can install a release candidate or nightly build. You can downgrade to an earlier version.
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  • Multiple repositories can be added. (By entering the URL, by clicking in a browser, or by scanning a QR code).
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  • There are no prices, and no “FREE”. Everything is free, as in freedom. As far as free as in beer goes, you should donate to an application’s developer(s) as you see fit.
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The Repository Front-End

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A repository can be hosted on a standard web server, as it’s just files. Ideally, but optionally, a repository will serve using HTTPS for the sake of security. A repository consists of an index file, which also contains all the metadata, plus any number of APK files, and their associated icons. Tools (a.k.a. a simple Python script) are available to automatically generate a repository index from a set of APK files and additional metadata files containing information that APKs do not. MD5 hashes of all the binary files are also part of the index.

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This simple setup allows a developer, or anyone else, to host a simple repository for their applications. All a user needs to do to access it is add the address of the repository into the F-Droid application.

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The Repository Back-End

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The simple repository described above deals purely in binaries. There is no verification that those binaries match any particular source code. This matters. There is at least one application in the Android Market now that claims to be GPL, but the source published does not match the binary distributed. (In fact, it’s a blatant GPL violation too, since most of the code is from another, genuine, GPL app).

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The repository back-end generates the relevant files for the front-end directly from the source code of the applications, by tracking the project’s source tree and building the binaries of release versions (or nightlies) from known project states. You can liken this to the way Debian’s packages work, for example – built from source packages, not upstream binaries. Thus, if you trust the repository owner, you can trust that the binary you download and install via the F-Droid application matches the source code. If you don’t trust any repository owner, you can run it yourself, since all this is obviously free software itself.

+

I envisage that there will be one or more large repositories containing many applications (I intend to host one at f-droid.org), and also that application developers may want to host their own repository for their application. Additionally, people may have their own personal repositories – either for trust reasons, as mentioned above, or as an easy way to facilitate running customised versions of applications.

+

Note that in this scenario APK files will be signed with a different key, depending on where they come from. I don’t think this presents a big problem, since all that’s necessary if you wanted to switch from one version to another is uninstall before installing the other, which the F-Droid application can do automatically.

+

Current Status

+

The F-Droid application itself is nearly usable, and the server front-end scripts work. The more complex server back-end stuff is still at the design stage.

+

This is strictly a spare-time project so progress is not rapid, but I hope to release code, and a working version of the application, fairly soon. In the meantime, all feedback is appreciated.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-16-mathdoku.html b/_posts/2010-10-16-mathdoku.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..0d1059c84 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-16-mathdoku.html @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "MathDoku" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

+

I’ll start by saying that I hate Sudoku, it always struck me as very tedious, and I’ve never heard of KenKen, the variation on which this game is apparently based. In case you’re clueless too, it’s like Sudoku but bits of the grid are boxed off and have to ‘solve’ the simple arithmetical puzzle for that box. If that doesn’t make sense, look at the screenshot – the three squares at the bottom right are boxed off and have to add up to twelve.

+

On a 4×4 grid, the smallest you can have, it’s pretty easy. You can choose any size from there up to 8×8, which is, let’s just say slightly tricky.

+

+

A nice little feature is that you can mark squares as being ‘maybe’ one of several numbers. Again, look at the screenshot – I decided the two squares in the top right were maybe 1 or 2, so marked that in to remember later. That might seem a bit unnecessary until you get to the larger grid sizes, then it’s probably essential.

+

Everything looks good and works properly, so whether this game is for you or not really comes down to whether you like this kind of thing or not. Having said that, I claim not to like this kind of thing, but I’m still playing and enjoying the game.

+

Vital Statistics

+

market://search?q=pname:net.cactii.mathdoku

+ +
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-20-f-droid-repository-alpha.html b/_posts/2010-10-20-f-droid-repository-alpha.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..2f193233e --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-20-f-droid-repository-alpha.html @@ -0,0 +1,26 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "F-Droid Repository Alpha" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

Following on from the earlier post (read first if you don’t know what this is about), you can now try an alpha release of the software. There’s a lot of planned functionality still missing, but it’s fully functional and useful.

+

+

Source code for the application is on Gitorious and you can install the current binary release, via the Repository page.

+

A quick overview – open the FDroid application, press the menu key, and choose update. The lists should then be populated with the FOSS apps already in the repository. Stuff you already have will be automatically detected, and put in the ‘Installed’ tab, and the rest will go in the ‘Available’ tab.

+

+

Selecting any item from the list takes you to the details of that application. From there, hitting the menu key will give you the option to install and uninstall, as well as taking you (in the browser) to the application’s web site, issue tracker and source code. You can also choose to view the application in the Android Market.

+

Additionally, if there are multiple versions available, you can select that version directly in the list and install it. You would use this, for example, for installing an older version or for installing a newer beta or nightly version.

+

+

Some of the things that are missing, but coming soon (time permitting) are:

+
    +
  • Filtering of unsuitable SDK versions – e.g. if you have Android 1.6 and the app (or a version of it) requires 2.1, you won’t see it.
    • +
  • The same filtering for device capabilities – e.g. if your device doesn’t have a camera but the application NEEDS one, you won’t see it.
    • +
  • A more complete repository – there are only 32 47 apps in there currently.
    • +
  • Searching
    • +
  • Categories
    • +
  • Lots more. Plus your suggestions and/or contributions!
    • +
+

Comments and feedback are, of course, welcome, either in the comments here, or via OStatus – @fdroid@identi.ca.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-22-missile-intercept.html b/_posts/2010-10-22-missile-intercept.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..b7eb98759 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-22-missile-intercept.html @@ -0,0 +1,20 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Missile Intercept" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

+

Missile Intercept is a game modelled on the classic Missile Command, complete with retro-style graphics. You’re defending three cities at the bottom of the screen from destruction by incoming enemy missiles.

+

The gameplay changes somewhat due to the touch screen interface, because you aim your counter-missiles by simply touching the appropriate point on the screen – no need to manoeuvre a crosshair around. In addition to this though, are two non-standard things – your counter-missiles explode immediately where you target them, which means you don’t need to account for the time they take to get there, and also you seem to have a virtually unlimited supply.

+

+

These differences all conspire to make it a bit to easy and thoughtless – until you get a long way in, you can almost get away with poking away madly at the screen. I definitely think the game would benefit from a limited supply, launched properly from launchers.

+

Despite those gameplay grumbles, I’d still recommend this for a bit of retro action fun. If nothing else, you get a trip back in time to the days when you knew governments and their war machines were the enemy of sane people. In a modern version, you’d be fighting off a horde of (mostly) imaginary terrorists, while somewhere off screen the real enemy (same as in the original) used the imaginary terrorists as an excuse for all kinds of nefarious activities. The retro version is definitely more fun.

+

Vital Statistics

+ +
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-10-22-the-donate-pledge.html b/_posts/2010-10-22-the-donate-pledge.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..3ecdeda2d --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-10-22-the-donate-pledge.html @@ -0,0 +1,14 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "The Donate Pledge" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

A while back I read about the Paid App Pledge over at Android Guys. I didn’t want to sign up to that – the last thing I want to do is encourage more hidden source code.

+

The intention is a good one though – encouraging more high quality software on the Android platform. Not that I think there’s a shortage of it, but more is better.

+

With that in mind, here’s my alternative pledge:

+

Any time I can afford to do so, I’ll take a look at the FOSS apps I’m using on my phone that I haven’t donated to yet. Then I’ll make a donation to the one I use most.

+

As well as financial donations I’ll make the effort to contribute in other ways too. That can include reporting bugs, suggesting features, or contributing code. Everything helps.

+

Care to join me?

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-11-04-connectbot.html b/_posts/2010-11-04-connectbot.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..7d71a4127 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-11-04-connectbot.html @@ -0,0 +1,25 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "ConnectBot" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

+

ConnectBot is an essential tool for the sysadmin on the move, or the stationary sysadmin on the beach. It’s a fully functional SSH client packed with useful features, including:

+
    +
  • Multiple concurrent connections that stay open in the background
    • +
  • Port forwarding
    • +
  • Key management, for password-less logins
    • +
+

A clever feature is ‘URL Scan’ which grabs anything that looks like a URL from the terminal and presents a list where you can click to open it in the browser.

+

Ideally you’d use this with a physical keyboard, both for speed and screen space reasons. Even so, it’s perfectly usable with a virtual keyboard and there are plenty of customisable features to make life easier in that scenario.

+

ConnectBot is extremely useful to have around, especially in an emergency, and is actively developed. Highly recommended.

+

Vital Statistics

+ +
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2010-11-15-client-0-14.html b/_posts/2010-11-15-client-0-14.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..73a26c27b --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2010-11-15-client-0-14.html @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Repository Client 0.14" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.14, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

The main changes since the previous version are:

+
    +
  • Background updating of the repository index, and notification of updates to your installed applications. (Both of these features must be enabled on the preference screen).
    • +
  • Control over caching – all downloaded applications can be cached on the SD card – again, you need to enable this on the preferences screen.
    • +
  • Now in Italian and German, as well as English.
    • +
+

As the application is developing rapidly, the translations may lag behind on new features for a while. If you want to help translate into your language, see here.

+

If you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-01-06-sokoban.html b/_posts/2011-01-06-sokoban.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..dea5cd2a8 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-01-06-sokoban.html @@ -0,0 +1,22 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Sokoban" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

+

No prizes for guessing that Sokoban is an implementation of the classic game Sokoban. Unless you’ve never heard of it of course. I’ll assume that’s the case, otherwise this would be a very short review.

+

Sokoban is 30 years old, and is a puzzle game that involves moving your character around and pushing multiple things onto targets. Originally the things were boxes (Sokoban is Japanese for warehouse man) but in this version they’re some kind of shiny red gem. Sounds simple? The tricky part is that these things get in each others way, and your way. In practice, it’s hard, and in the process of completing the first 67 levels I’ve declared many of them impossible and closed the application in disgust before going back and trying again later. Clearly it’s addictive too.

+

This version has a total of 354 levels to play through – the only question is whether you can complete that many without either frying your brain or smashing up your phone.

+

The graphics are nothing to write home about, and the menu screens are particularly sparse (standard Android buttons and nothing else) but this doesn’t matter at all. The game plays perfectly, with nice touches such as zooming in and out with the volume buttons, and undoing a move with the back button. You can move with the direction buttons/pad/whatever-new-fangled-thing-your-phone-has but it seems much easier to use the other option of just dragging your finger around the screen.

+

Definitely give this one a try if you like puzzle games.

+

Vital Statistics

+ +

You can install it from the FDroid repository client, or download the APK directly if you prefer.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-01-17-repository-client-0-17.html b/_posts/2011-01-17-repository-client-0-17.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..efb991116 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-01-17-repository-client-0-17.html @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Repository Client 0.17" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.17, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

The main changes since the previous version are:

+
    +
  • Search – this has started to become an essential feature as the repository grows. Use the Search option on the menu on the main screen to search for applications.
    • +
  • The Updates tab now shows the number of updates available on the tab itself.
    • +
  • Various minor bug fixes and improvements.
    • +
  • A warning if you attempt to install an application with a different signature to the version you already have installed. (This will be explained fully in an upcoming post about signatures).
    • +
  • Settings, disabled by default, to allow the client to show applications with various types of ‘antifeatures’ – for example, applications that include adverts. There are no such applications in the repository currently, but this would allow us, or someone else, to include them in a repository later, while still allowing you to opt in to seeing them.
    • +
  • New languages – French and Swedish. As the application is developing rapidly, the translations may lag behind on new features for a while. If you want to help translate into your language, see here.
    • +
+

If you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-02-01-repository-client-0-20.html b/_posts/2011-02-01-repository-client-0-20.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..0bbf97f4e --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-02-01-repository-client-0-20.html @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Repository Client 0.20" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.20, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

The main changes since the previous official release are:

+
    +
  • Signed repository index. Although all the applications in the repository are cryptographically signed, and also verified by an md5 sum before installation, the index itself was not previously. It is now. The client is still compatible with unsigned repositories, and will automatically upgrade to using a signed version where available.
    • +
  • Faster repository updates – the signed repository index is a JAR file, and is therefore compressed. For the main FDroid repository, this makes it a fifth the original size.
    • +
  • Fixed a crash that happened if you rotated the screen while a repository update was in progress!
    • +
  • New language – Serbian. As the application is developing rapidly, the translations may lag behind on new features for a while. If you want to help translate into your language, see here.
    • +
+

If you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-02-04-fosdem-schedules.html b/_posts/2011-02-04-fosdem-schedules.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..2615ae9f2 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-02-04-fosdem-schedules.html @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "FOSDEM Schedules" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

+

It seemed like a shame that although there are two choices of FOSS application to keep track of the busy FOSDEM schedule on your phone, you were told, or indeed forced, to use proprietary software to get your hands on them. Well no more – they’re both in the repository now.

+

FOSDEM

+

Option one is the dedicated FOSDEM application, as seen in the first screenshot.

+

On my device, this had quite a few visual flaws – half chopped off text in the lists, and even in the main logo.

+

Also, a greyed-out button tells me I need to press a ‘Search’ hardware button I don’t have in order to search Hint: the SDK docs explain how to do search properly.

+

On the other hand, being a dedicated app it’s easier to use, packed with detailed information and works very well.

+

Giggity

+

+

Option two is Giggity, which is a more generic solution. Although it comes preloaded with the data for this year’s FOSDEM, it’s a generic schedule viewer that can load and display xcal/Pentabarf XML files for any kind of event.

+

This one could save you from having to have a different app for every conference you attend.

+

Summary

+

Both apps can remind you of upcoming events you’ve favourited. Each application has its strengths and weaknesses – maybe you should grab both to be on the safe side. Search for ‘FOSDEM’ in the FDroid client, or get the APKs direct from here and here.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-02-24-repository-client-0-21.html b/_posts/2011-02-24-repository-client-0-21.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..6f2ce04f9 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-02-24-repository-client-0-21.html @@ -0,0 +1,16 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Repository Client 0.21" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.21, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

The main changes since the previous release are:

+
    +
  • Donate option – for applications where we have a link to a donate page, hitting ‘Donate’ from the menu on the application’s page in the client will take you straight there. You’ve been able to do this when browsing on the web site for a while, but now it’s available direct from the client too. If you’re an application developer accepting donations and we don’t have a donate link for your application yet, please let us know.
    • +
  • The application list now shows the build type for each package (APK, or version) available. This can either be ‘source’ or ‘bin’. Source means it is built automatically from the source repository and signed by the FDroid build server. It’s a guarantee that the source is actually available, and matches the binary file you’re installing. For this build type, you can also download a source tarball from the web site, which is ‘normalised’ such that simply downloading it and running ‘ant release’ should always work. Bin means it’s a binary file released by the original developer of the application and signed by them. Note that due to the signatures, switching from one type to another requires you to uninstall the old version first. There will be more detail about signatures and related issues in a forthcoming blog post here.
    • +
  • For Galaxy S devices, and possibly others, there is a major performance improvement when updating the repository index from the server.
    • +
+

If you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-05-20-repository-client-0-22.html b/_posts/2011-05-20-repository-client-0-22.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..8f5c1c41a --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-05-20-repository-client-0-22.html @@ -0,0 +1,16 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Repository Client 0.22" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.22, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This release contains numerous minor fixes and user interface improvements, but the main changes since the previous release are:

+
    +
  • Applications that are incompatible with your device (e.g. requiring a different Android version, or hardware you don’t have) can now be filtered from the lists.
    • +
  • Applications that require root privileges can be filtered from the lists.
    • +
  • Various translation updates.
    • +
+

If you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-11-14-repository-client-0-23.html b/_posts/2011-11-14-repository-client-0-23.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..a755c9ce8 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-11-14-repository-client-0-23.html @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Repository Client 0.23" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.23, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

The main changes in this release are:

+
    +
  • Categories – a filter at the top of the main screen now allows you to filter the current list by category of application.
    • +
  • New ‘Dependencies’ anti-feature – on the preferences screen you can choose to filter out applications that have dependencies on non-free software.
    • +
  • Various translation updates, and several new languages.
    • +
+

If you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-11-30-andors-trail.html b/_posts/2011-11-30-andors-trail.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..e4d9a6051 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-11-30-andors-trail.html @@ -0,0 +1,23 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Andor’s Trail" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

+

Andor’s Trail is a classic RPG. Your brother, the Andor of the title, has disappeared, and via a series of interlinked quests your job is to find out what’s happened to him.

+

The action takes place on a tiled top-down map, which although not complete yet, covers a very large area with a wide variety of environments. The world is populated by various humans to help and hinder you in your quests, and the obligatory range of wild animals and mythical beasts, all of which deliver up the usual combination of gold, experience and dropped objects when killed via combat in the classic turn-based stats-driven style.

+

+

The conversation system works really well, and provides the means by which all the quests are driven. The dialogue can seem rather strange at times, but once you get used to the idea of wizened old wizards talking in the style of a grumpy American teenager, it’s not a big problem.

+

+

If you have any interest at all in this style of game, you’ll find a vast amount of gameplay here already, with a lot more to come as time goes on. Although this is definitely a work in progress, in terms of the map and quests being expanded, everything that already exists is very polished and not at all buggy.

+

Additionally, the availability of various editing tools for the maps and quest systems means it would be easy to get involved with the building of the world.

+

Vital Statistics

+ +

You can install it from the FDroid repository client, or download the APK directly if you prefer.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2011-12-05-repository-client-0-24.html b/_posts/2011-12-05-repository-client-0-24.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..96ec9358b --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2011-12-05-repository-client-0-24.html @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Repository Client 0.24" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.24, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This release fixes a problem that caused notifications of updates to your installed applications to not be displayed.

+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2012-01-12-repository-client-0-25.html b/_posts/2012-01-12-repository-client-0-25.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..bc743f23b --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2012-01-12-repository-client-0-25.html @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Repository Client 0.25" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.25, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This is a minor update release, with lots of translation updates and various small user interface improvements.

+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2012-08-23-security-notice-textsecure.html b/_posts/2012-08-23-security-notice-textsecure.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..dc744343f --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2012-08-23-security-notice-textsecure.html @@ -0,0 +1,12 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Security Notice – TextSecure" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

Unfortunately, the TextSecure application is now deleted from the repository.

+

Previous versions of this have a serious security flaw. One feature of the software is that all SMS messages sent and received are stored in an encrypted database. However, due to an apparent oversight by the developer, all received messages are logged in plain text to the Android system log file. The end result is that rather than providing more security than the default setup, where a specific Android permission is required to access SMS message content, the messages are exposed in the log file, which is much easier to access and may even be inadvertently posted when sending debug logs to developers. Note that messages sent using end-to-end encryption (i.e. where the other party also uses TextSecure) are logged in encrypted form, so that content is NOT exposed in plain text.

+

The latest version of the application is 0.6.2, and the security flaw has now been fixed. However, the author has not published any source code corresponding to the binary he released of this version, and far from wishing to help anyone stuck with his previous disastrous mistake, he actually asked for the application to be removed from our repository as he wants to distribute it via Google Play only.

+

As such, I would recommend anyone running this application to cease to use it, and remove it.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2012-08-26-client-0-28-released.html b/_posts/2012-08-26-client-0-28-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..ad053886a --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2012-08-26-client-0-28-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.28 Released" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.28, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

The main changes in this release are:

+
    +
  • New Categories within the client for What’s New (apps added in the last 14 days) and Recent Updates (apps updated in the last 14 days).
    • +
  • Better theming and visuals on post-Gingerbread Android versions, tablets, etc.
    • +
  • New clean-shaven icon.
    • +
  • Lots of translation updates and new languages.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2012-09-01-client-0-31-released.html b/_posts/2012-09-01-client-0-31-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..4c176cb46 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2012-09-01-client-0-31-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.31 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.31, is now available. You can get it from the repository page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Changed since 0.28:

+
    +
  • Fixed a bug in the French translation that caused a crash if a search returned only one result.
    • +
  • Improved large screen support, resolving problems such as bad menu positioning.
    • +
  • Fixed an overlap of the list onto the tabs in the main screen, on larger screens.
    • +
  • Improved the background index update mechanism, resolving several minor problems, and occasional issues such as crashes when putting the app in the background during an update. Additionally, user-initiated updates can now be cancelled.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2012-09-13-client-0-33-released.html b/_posts/2012-09-13-client-0-33-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..24030c834 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2012-09-13-client-0-33-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.33 Released" +author: "F-Droid" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.33, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Changed since 0.31:

+
    +
  • Update notifications take you straight to the updates tab.
    • +
  • Various performance improvements for slow devices. (More of these to come in the next release)
    • +
  • More efficient memory usage when updating.
    • +
  • Fixed occasional random crashes caused by database locks.
    • +
  • Packages for the same app from multiple repos are merged, rather than one repo taking priority.
    • +
  • Various translation updates and minor bug fixes.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2012-09-19-client-0-38-released.html b/_posts/2012-09-19-client-0-38-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..3b2c826fe --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2012-09-19-client-0-38-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,26 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.38 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the FDroid Repository Client, version 0.38, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Changed since 0.33:

+
    +
  • Enhanced descriptions, including better formatting possibilities, external links, and direct links between apps.
    • +
  • More performance improvements for low-end devices.
    • +
  • Removed erroneous ‘touchscreen’ feature requirement – F-Droid doesn’t require one.
    • +
  • Added a preference to ignore touchscreen requirement when determining compatibility, because a huge number of apps state this requirement when they don’t need one.
    • +
  • Resolved the problem of the list of versions being inaccessible when the description was very long.
    • +
  • Various improvements to the main list interface. In particular, the category selection now only applies to the Available list, not Installed or Updates, and the Available list no longer excludes installed apps.
    • +
  • Apps excluded due to incompatibility or anti-feature selection will now still appear if already installed, and will case update notifications.
    • +
  • Stopped cancelling downloads/updates when touching outside the progress dialog on ICS.
    • +
  • Fixed a crash introduced in 0.33, when rotating while on the app details screen.
    • +
  • The What’s New and Recently Updated categories now show the most recent items first.
    • +
  • What’s New is now the default category on starting the app.
    • +
  • Various translation updates.
    • +
  • Additional features in Expert Mode (e.g. display of package IDs).
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-03-24-client-0-42-released.html b/_posts/2013-03-24-client-0-42-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..a4a391032 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-03-24-client-0-42-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.42 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.42, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.38:

+
    +
  • New option to launch installed applications directly from the client.
    • +
  • Improved repository update checking performance. (Including etag support)
    • +
  • Fixed crashes when searching with 0 or 1 results in some languages (e.g. Italian)
    • +
  • Lots of translation updates, and some new languages.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-05-29-client-0-45-released.html b/_posts/2013-05-29-client-0-45-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..bd84775ea --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-05-29-client-0-45-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.45 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.45, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.42:

+
    +
  • Fixed a bug where repository update checks could happen more frequently than what was requested in the settings.
    • +
  • The repository has been split, such that older versions of applications are kept in a separate archive repository. In a fresh client install, this repository is pre-installed, but switched off. Just tick it in ‘Manage Repos’ to enable it. For upgraded installations, you can add the repository with the address “https://f-droid.org/archive”. The current policy is to keep the three most recent versions of an application in the main repository, and the rest in the archive.
    • +
  • Permissions can now optionally be displayed with the application description, allowing review before download.
    • +
  • Better progress feedback during repo update.
    • +
  • Many other UI improvements.
    • +
  • Lots of translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-05-31-client-0-46-released.html b/_posts/2013-05-31-client-0-46-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..8788f1d26 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-05-31-client-0-46-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,15 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.46 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.46, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.45:

+
    +
  • Worked around a bad interaction with Google App Verification (relevant only to proprietary software users)
    • +
  • Minor UI improvements (layout, spacing)
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-07-27-f-droid-workshop-berlin.html b/_posts/2013-07-27-f-droid-workshop-berlin.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..833416ed7 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-07-27-f-droid-workshop-berlin.html @@ -0,0 +1,18 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "F-Droid Workshop – Berlin" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

F-Droid Workshop – learn how to include new apps into the repository.

+
    +
  • When? Saturday the 3rd of August, 2PM – 5PM
    • +
  • Where? IN-Berlin (http://in-berlin.de/space)
    • +
  • Who? Daniel Martí – F-Droid developer
    • +
+

The workshop is aimed at developers and advanced users – if you know how to use the terminal on a GNU/Linux machine you’re probably good to go. The only requirements for the workshop are basic technical skills on a GNU/Linux environment, including basic knowledge of the shell and the Git VCS.

+

The event will be split into two parts: First, there will be a presentation explaining the basics about F-Droid and how it works. After that, we’ll head on to the hands-on workshop, where everyone will be welcome to include new apps, update existing ones, improve the client and more!

+

Apart from your Android device, you should also bring a laptop if you have one. It will be easier to participate in the workshop if you have your own computer.

+

For more information, please see the wiki page containing all the information regarding the activities and other details.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-08-14-second-f-droid-workshop.html b/_posts/2013-08-14-second-f-droid-workshop.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..5faacf1cf --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-08-14-second-f-droid-workshop.html @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Second F-Droid Workshop in Berlin" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

Following the success of the first F-Droid Workshop in Berlin, there will be another this weekend.

+ +

The workshop is aimed at developers and advanced users – if you know how to use the terminal on a GNU/Linux machine you’re probably good to go. The only requirements for the workshop are basic technical skills on a GNU/Linux environment, including basic knowledge of the shell and the Git VCS.

+
At the first F-Droid Workshop, Berlin

At the first F-Droid Workshop

+

The event will be split into two parts: First, there will be a presentation explaining the basics about F-Droid and how it works. After that, we’ll head on to the hands-on workshop, where everyone will be welcome to include new apps, update existing ones, improve the client and more!

+

Apart from your Android device, you should also bring a laptop if you have one. It will be easier to participate in the workshop if you have your own computer.

+

For more information, please see the wiki page containing all the information regarding the activities and other details.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-08-21-client-0-50-released.html b/_posts/2013-08-21-client-0-50-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..4b27cfb37 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-08-21-client-0-50-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,24 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.50 released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.50, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.46:

+
    +
  • New basic app sharing functionality.
    • +
  • Handle f-droid.org web repo as well as market:// app uris.
    • +
  • Search by just typing on main screen and search results screen.
    • +
  • Flattr and Bitcoin donation methods added.
    • +
  • Noticeable speedups when returning from installs and uninstalls.
    • +
  • Add back to home buttons to the ActionBar.
    • +
  • The client will no longer recommend versions newer than the current or incompatible with the device.
    • +
  • Switched to using standard Android locations for cached files rather than the .fdroid directory on the SD card.
    • +
  • Fix for crash at boot time where the SD card was slow to initialise (bug introduced in 0.46)
    • +
  • Lots of bug fixes.
    • +
  • Lots of translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-10-28-f-droid-talk-catalonia.html b/_posts/2013-10-28-f-droid-talk-catalonia.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..65cc1c206 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-10-28-f-droid-talk-catalonia.html @@ -0,0 +1,16 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "F-Droid Talk – Catalonia" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

On Saturday the 9th of November, F-Droid developer Daniel Martí will be giving a talk entitled “Distribution of Free Software applications on Android”. The talk will present F-Droid, the software the project produces, and the services it offers. It will be mainly aimed at the generic Android user, who is aware of what Open Source means but has never used F-Droid on their device.

+

As well as discussion about the client and how to use it, the server software will be covered, briefly explaining how to set up a repository or build apps from source.

+ +

 

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-11-05-client-0-54-released.html b/_posts/2013-11-05-client-0-54-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..1dbbfdc21 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-11-05-client-0-54-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,26 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.54 released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.54, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.50:

+
    +
  • New options on the App Details screen to ignore all future updates for that particular app, or ignore just the current update.
    • +
  • Apps with Anti-features are no longer hidden, and the corresponding preferences to unhide them are removed. Instead they are clearly marked on the App Details screen.
    • +
  • Apps with incompatible native code architecture requirements are now correctly filtered.
    • +
  • A bug that prevented update notifications from appearing has been fixed.
    • +
  • Theming support, with Light and Dark theme
    • +
  • New launcher and notification icons, and new default/loading app icon. Icons are now retrieved dynamically, drastically improving startup time on first installation.
    • +
  • All app donation options have been grouped into a submenu, and Litecoin donation support has been added.
    • +
  • App filter settings now take effect immediately.
    • +
  • Apk native code ABIs are now shown in expert mode.
    • +
  • Search uris for market://search and fdroid.search: are  now handled.
    • +
  • A problem with ActionBar Up navigation on some devices has been fixed.
    • +
  • Other minor bug fixes, and adjustments to spacings and layouts.
    • +
  • Lots of translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2013-11-12-client-0-55-released.html b/_posts/2013-11-12-client-0-55-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..776939d45 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2013-11-12-client-0-55-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,15 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.55 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.55, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This is a minor update to the 0.54 release, with the following changes:

+
    +
  • Fixed problems with category selection and permission lists on Android 2.X devices.
    • +
  • Lots of translation updates, including new Norwegian translation.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2014-01-11-f-droid-at-fosdem.html b/_posts/2014-01-11-f-droid-at-fosdem.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..5e42d7ba3 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2014-01-11-f-droid-at-fosdem.html @@ -0,0 +1,13 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "F-Droid at FOSDEM" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

FOSDEM 2014 is coming up on the 1st and 2nd of February, in Brussels.

+

F-Droid developer Daniel Martí will be giving a talk about the project on Sunday 2nd at 10am. See the talk details on the FOSEDEM site for more information.
+

+

 

+

 

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2014-01-13-client-0-58-released.html b/_posts/2014-01-13-client-0-58-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..fa9909667 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2014-01-13-client-0-58-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,23 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.58 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.58, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.55:

+
    +
  • Icons are now downloaded with a resolution that matches the device’s screen density, which saves resources on smaller devices and gets rid of unnecessary blurriness on larger devices.
    • +
  • Some layouts have been tweaked, especially the app lists and their compact layout
    • +
  • App lists now show more useful version information: current version names, rather than number of versions available
    • +
  • Performance has been improved in app list scrolling and repo update processing.
    • +
  • More information is now shown in App Details: The category in which the app was found and all the categories the app is in, as well as the Android version required to run each one of its versions available
    • +
  • The preferences screen now uses descriptive summaries, which means that you can see what the checkbox preferences actually mean and what the edit and list preferences are set at.
    • +
  • Support has been added for dogecoin donations.
    • +
  • Old icons are no longer kept on the local disk cache.
    • +
  • Various minor bug fixes.
    • +
  • Lots of translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2014-04-08-client-0-63-released.html b/_posts/2014-04-08-client-0-63-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..4f5c2f710 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2014-04-08-client-0-63-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,23 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.63 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.63, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.58:

+
    +
  • Support for Network Service Discovery of local FDroid repos on Android 4.1+ from the repository management screen
    • +
  • Always remember the selected category in the list of apps
    • +
  • Send FDroid via Bluetooth to any device that supports receiving APKs via Bluetooth (stock Android blocks APKs, most ROMs allow them)
    • +
  • NFC support: beam repo configs from the repo detail view (Android 4.0+), beam the FDroid.apk from FDroid’s main screen (Android 4.1+)
    • +
  • Support for repositories using self-signed HTTPS certificates through a Trust-on-first-use popup
    • +
  • Support for TLS Subject-Public-Key-Identifier pinning
    • +
  • Add native Right-to-Left support on devices running 4.2 and later
    • +
  • Filter app compatibility by maxSdkVersion too
    • +
  • Major internal changes to enable F-Droid to handle repos with thousands of apps without slowing down too much. These internal changes will also make new features easier to implement.
    +Lots of translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2014-05-02-client-0-66-released.html b/_posts/2014-05-02-client-0-66-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..8b55f13d3 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2014-05-02-client-0-66-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,22 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.66 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.66, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.63:

+
    +
  • Fixed a crash on startup for devices with more than 500 installed apps, and improved performance for devices with many installed apps.
    • +
  • Added the ability to send apps to other devices directly from the App Details screen via NFC or Bluetooth.
    • +
  • Improved app list layouts.
    • +
  • Keep track of installed apps internally, rather than asking Android each time.
    • +
  • Fixed update notification problems.
    • +
  • Security fixes and updates for adding of repos.
    • +
  • Fixed a bug introduced in 0.63 which made F-Droid always omit density-specific icons, making icons blurry on high-res devices.
    • +
  • Fixed some other crashes.
    • +
  • Translation updates, and category lists are now translatable.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2014-07-01-f-droid-at-rmll.html b/_posts/2014-07-01-f-droid-at-rmll.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..bb1c50c45 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2014-07-01-f-droid-at-rmll.html @@ -0,0 +1,12 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "F-Droid at RMLL" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

RMLL

+

The 15th Libre Software Meeting, RMLL Montpelier 2014 takes place in France from the 5th to the 11th of July and F-Droid will be there.

+

F-Droid developer Daniel Martí will be presenting a conference about the project on Tuesday.

+

Throughout the week there will be a workshop, jointly organised by the F-Droid, Replicant, and FSFE’s Free Your Android projects. The team will be there to guide you through the installation of Free Software on mobile devices and answer any questions you may have.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2014-10-14-client-0-76-released.html b/_posts/2014-10-14-client-0-76-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..d60eee859 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2014-10-14-client-0-76-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,24 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.76 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.76, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.66:

+
    +
  • Added “local repo” support to host an F-Droid repo on the device itself, with full signed repo support, icons, and optional HTTPS.
    • +
  • Ability to set up such a local repo by choosing from any of the installed applications on the device.
    • +
  • Reverted self-signed support since it was broken, only HTTPS certificates with proper CA signatures will work for now.
    • +
  • Find local repos on the same network using Bonjour/mDNS.
    • +
  • Support for F-Droid repos on Tor Hidden Services (.onion addresses).
    • +
  • HTTP Proxy support in Preferences.
    • +
  • Directly send installed apps to other devices via Bluetooth and Android Beam (NFC+Bluetooth), also compatible with Samsung/HTC S-Beam.
    • +
  • Initial experimental support for root and system installers, allowing the client to install applications directly on its own, and without ‘Unknown Sources’ enabled. Both these features bypass Android’s built in pre-install permissions warning dialog currently – as such, we don’t recommend using them unless you know what you’re doing.
    • +
  • Increased performance when updating from repository with many apps.
    • +
  • Various bug fixes.
    • +
  • Many translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-01-02-client-0-78-released.html b/_posts/2015-01-02-client-0-78-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..18829f4d6 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-01-02-client-0-78-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,16 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.78 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.78, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.76:

+
    +
  • Compatibility with Android 5.0 has been implemented. In the previous release, a clean install would show no apps available.
    • +
  • Local repo” has an improved interface making it simpler to swap apps between devices and the “Start Swap” menu item opens a wizard to help with the process.
    • +
  • Various translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, talk to the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-03-26-client-0-83-released.html b/_posts/2015-03-26-client-0-83-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..5d162e638 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-03-26-client-0-83-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.83 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.83, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.78:

+
    +
  • Fix possible crashes when installing or uninstalling apps.
    • +
  • Fix issue that caused the installed state label to sometimes not be updated.
    • +
  • Support for future devices with more than two cpu architectures.
    • +
  • Show when packages are installed but not via F-Droid (mismatching signature).
    • +
  • Fix possible background crash concerning the category list change listener.
    • +
  • Add an option to check for repository updates less often.
    • +
  • Get rid of the confusing checkbox on/off descriptions.
    • +
  • Translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-04-29-client-0-88-released.html b/_posts/2015-04-29-client-0-88-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..e4f2c9a7c --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-04-29-client-0-88-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,25 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.88 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.88, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.83:

+
    +
  • Show list of apps in the update notification (on devices with Android 4.1 or higher)
    • +
  • User interface language can now be changed from inside the F-Droid preferences without changing the system language (locale)
    • +
  • Fix an issue where xml files could pile up in the data directory
    • +
  • Improve app and search link handling while also adding supporting for Amazon and Google Play links
    • +
  • Fix regression where F-Droid web repo links would trigger an “Add new repo” action
    • +
  • Show a message to the user when there are no apps to display.
    • +
  • Swapping is now two way. Connecting to a swap on one device will initiate a swap on the other device.
    • +
  • Small UI fixes to avoid overlapping text and improve app version ellipsizing.
    • +
  • Split up search terms when querying the app database – “fire fox” now matches FireFox
    • +
  • Ignore trailing paces in search terms introduced by some input methods
    • +
  • Fixed bug where categories were always empty on non-English locales
    • +
  • Misc fixes to the “swap” workflow (especially on Android 2.3 devices)
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-05-29-client-0-91-released.html b/_posts/2015-05-29-client-0-91-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..3ce749c11 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-05-29-client-0-91-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,23 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.91 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.91, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.88:

+
    +
  • Don’t request the “Write to external storage” permission on 4.4 and later since it’s not needed to use our own external app directory
    • +
  • Fix a crash occuring if the user triggered a repo update that got rid of more than 450 apks at once
    • +
  • Properly cache apk files on the SD card if configured this way
    • +
  • Drop support for unsigned repos in favour of signed ones and TOFU support
    • +
  • Provide better feedback when adding repos with same name of existing repo
    • +
  • Add support for special Google Play search terms like “pub:” and “pname:”
    • +
  • Fix regression where adding repos via URLs would not actually add a new repo
    • +
  • Normalize and check URLs of repos being added
    • +
  • Don’t crash if links on descriptions cannot be handled by any application
    • +
  • Support building as part of a ROM via an Android.mk using gradle
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-06-08-client-0-92-released.html b/_posts/2015-06-08-client-0-92-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..08af02fa6 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-06-08-client-0-92-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,18 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.92 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.92, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.91:

+
    +
  • Make swap only in portrait mode to prevent crashes and issues where UI elements are obscured
    • +
  • Update Universal-Image-Loader to 1.9.4
    • +
  • Make Apk downloads progress be measured in kilobytes instead of bytes
    • +
  • Add missing Sardinian language to the preferences
    • +
  • Fix minimum SDK to be 8 (2.2) instead of 7 (2.1) since support for version 7 was dropped long ago
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-08-06-client-0-95-released.html b/_posts/2015-08-06-client-0-95-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..68fc0849a --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-08-06-client-0-95-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.95 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.95, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

Main changes since 0.92:

+
    +
  • Start porting UI to Material Design, including a new launcher icon
    • +
  • Add support for app changelog links, which will appear for apps that have them once the repositories have been updated again
    • +
  • Redesign the App Details view with larger icons, expandable description and links with icons
    • +
  • Add ability to make F-Droid install itself as a privileged app on /system via root, allowing the use of the system installer
    • +
  • Remove the root installer, since the system installer is safer, more stable and now easy to set up with root privileges
    • +
  • Speed up and simplify repo update process by streaming the data out of the jar file directly
    • +
  • Can now manually add swap repo via “Repositories” screen
    • +
  • Using NFC during swap now initiates a proper swap, rather than redirecting to the “Repositories” screen
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-08-13-client-0-95-1-released.html b/_posts/2015-08-13-client-0-95-1-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..324a2a9db --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-08-13-client-0-95-1-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.95.1 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.95.1, is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This is a maintenance release, with the following changes from 0.95:

+
    +
  • Disable prompt to install F-Droid into system until it’s more stable
    • +
  • Fix crash when updating from an older release if using the “Light with dark ActionBar” theme
    • +
  • Re-add SuperUser third-party permission to the manifest since some systems require it
    • +
  • Fix privileged installer confirmation screen crash on Android < 3.0
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-09-16-client-0-96-released.html b/_posts/2015-09-16-client-0-96-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..ba332dd71 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-09-16-client-0-96-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,21 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.96 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.96 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This is a maintenance release, with the following changes from 0.95.1

+
    +
  • Move the repo index update to a notification
    • +
  • Handle apk downloads without a dialog
    • +
  • Don’t let users try to uninstall system apps that haven’t been updated
    • +
  • Various bugfixes in the process that installs F-Droid as a privileged app
    • +
  • Fix privileged installer confirmation screen issues on Android 2.X/3.X/4.X
    • +
  • Disable HTTPS support in swap until it’s stable
    • +
  • Fix a few crashes, including package receivers and NFC actions
    • +
  • Translation updates
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-09-26-client-0-96-1-released.html b/_posts/2015-09-26-client-0-96-1-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..44dc38234 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-09-26-client-0-96-1-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,14 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.96.1 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.96.1 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This is a maintenance release, with the following changes from 0.96

+
    +
  • Fix crash when updating repos on Android 2.3.7 or older
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2015-11-17-client-0-97-released.html b/_posts/2015-11-17-client-0-97-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..47a188e34 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2015-11-17-client-0-97-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,25 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.97 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.97 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This is a maintenance release, with the following changes from 0.96.1

+
    +
  • Add option to prompt for unstable updates globally
    • +
  • Add support for free Certificate Authorities: cert.startcom.org and letsencrypt.org
    • +
  • Rework the privileged installer to use an extension as a privileged app instead of F-Droid itself
    • +
  • Add a new night theme
    • +
  • Fix crash when trying to install incompatible apps with the privileged installer
    • +
  • Fix downloading from HTTP servers that did not send a Content-Length
    • +
  • Material design tweaks and fixes, including repo and app screens makeovers
    • +
  • Add StrictMode to debug builds
    • +
  • Make the GitLab CI run the tests in an emulator
    • +
  • Use gradle-witness to ensure the reproducibility of the build with libraries pulled from maven repositories
    • +
  • Switched to Weblate for translations
    • +
  • Translation updates
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2016-02-02-client-0-98-released.html b/_posts/2016-02-02-client-0-98-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..af3cda10d --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2016-02-02-client-0-98-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,23 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.98 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.98 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

These are the changes since 0.97:

+
    +
  • Add opt-in crash reporting via ACRA
    • +
  • Add support for HTTP basic authentication of repos
    • +
  • Fix repo updating on older devices with little memory
    • +
  • Rework search to be incremental and without a separate activity
    • +
  • Add English to the list of languages to use in the settings
    • +
  • Fix “database is locked” seemingly random crash
    • +
  • Cache installed app information in the database
    • +
  • Add counter to the installed tab
    • +
  • Translation updates
    • +
  • Display license and author information in app details where appropriate
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2016-02-15-client-0-98-1-released.html b/_posts/2016-02-15-client-0-98-1-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..ec6b376d9 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2016-02-15-client-0-98-1-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,17 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.98.1 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.98.1 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

This is a maintenance release, with the following fixes since 0.98:

+
    +
  • Fix crash when entering only a space into the search dialog
    • +
  • Fix crash when entering slashes into the search dialog
    • +
  • Fix potential fragment crash when installing/removing a package
    • +
  • Fix crash when adding malformed URIs as repos
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2016-03-03-client-0-99-released.html b/_posts/2016-03-03-client-0-99-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..7d8d902b3 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2016-03-03-client-0-99-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,18 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.99 Released" +author: "CiaranG" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.99 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

These are the changes since 0.98.1:

+
    +
  • Add simple “Use Tor” setting.
    • +
  • Enable TLS v1.2 for HTTPS on all devices that support it.
    • +
  • Fix a series of Swap crashes, including a background crash.
    • +
  • Fix most Android lint errors and some warnings.
    • +
  • Translation updates.
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2016-05-29-get-it-on-f-droid-badges.html b/_posts/2016-05-29-get-it-on-f-droid-badges.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..3a9401e43 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2016-05-29-get-it-on-f-droid-badges.html @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Get it on F-Droid badges" +author: "mvdan" +--- + +
+

Get it on F-Droid

+

If your app is available on F-Droid, you can now add a “Get it on F-Droid” badge to your website or markdown README file following these instructions.

+

For more information, see the new F-Droid artwork repo on GitLab.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2016-06-14-client-0-100-released.html b/_posts/2016-06-14-client-0-100-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..ca94fcceb --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2016-06-14-client-0-100-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,29 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.100 Released" +author: "mvdan" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.100 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

These are the changes since 0.99.2:

+
    +
  • Ability to download apps in the background
    • +
  • Significant performance improvements when updating repositories
    • +
  • Add setting to enable automatic downloading of updates (screenshots below)
    • +
  • Apks can now be kept on disk for various amounts of time
    • +
  • Show what repository each apk comes from
    • +
  • Better support for Android 6.0
    • +
  • Translation updates
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+

downloaded-updatespref-auto-download-updates

+

 

+

 

+

 

+

 

+

 

+

 

+

 

+

 

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2016-10-03-client-0-101-released.html b/_posts/2016-10-03-client-0-101-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..8c437fdea --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2016-10-03-client-0-101-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,18 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.101 released" +author: "mvdan" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.101 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

These are the changes since 0.100:

+
    +
  • Support for Android 2.2 is dropped, 2.3.3 or later is now required
    • +
  • Fixed APK cache bugs, requiring the cache time be reset to 1 day
    • +
  • Use Privileged Extension by default if installed
    • +
  • Optionally grey out apps that require Anti-Features
    • +
  • Translation updates
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/_posts/2016-11-14-welcome-to-jekyll.markdown b/_posts/2016-11-14-welcome-to-jekyll.markdown deleted file mode 100644 index 8be21d77b..000000000 --- a/_posts/2016-11-14-welcome-to-jekyll.markdown +++ /dev/null @@ -1,37 +0,0 @@ ---- -layout: post -title: "Welcome to Jekyll!" -date: 2016-11-14 21:40:22 +0100 -categories: jekyll update ---- -You’ll find this post in your `_posts` directory. Go ahead and edit it and re-build the site to see your changes. You can rebuild the site in many different ways, but the most common way is to run `jekyll serve`, which launches a web server and auto-regenerates your site when a file is updated. - -To add new posts, simply add a file in the `_posts` directory that follows the convention `YYYY-MM-DD-name-of-post.ext` and includes the necessary front matter. Take a look at the source for this post to get an idea about how it works. - -Jekyll also offers powerful support for code snippets: - -{% highlight ruby %} -def print_hi(name) - puts "Hi, #{name}" -end -print_hi('Tom') -#=> prints 'Hi, Tom' to STDOUT. -{% endhighlight %} - -Check out the [Jekyll docs][jekyll-docs] for more info on how to get the most out of Jekyll. File all bugs/feature requests at [Jekyll’s GitHub repo][jekyll-gh]. If you have questions, you can ask them on [Jekyll Talk][jekyll-talk]. - -[jekyll-docs]: http://jekyllrb.com/docs/home -[jekyll-gh]: https://github.com/jekyll/jekyll -[jekyll-talk]: https://talk.jekyllrb.com/ - -# h1 - -## h2 - -### h3 - -#### h4 - -##### h5 - -###### h6 diff --git a/_posts/2016-12-15-client-0-102-released.html b/_posts/2016-12-15-client-0-102-released.html new file mode 100644 index 000000000..9f9f59b8d --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2016-12-15-client-0-102-released.html @@ -0,0 +1,18 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Client 0.102 released" +author: "mvdan" +--- + +
+

The latest release of the F-Droid Repository Client, version 0.102 is now available. You can download it from the home page or, if you already have an earlier version installed, just update.

+

These are the changes since 0.101:

+
    +
  • Optionally keep install history
    • +
  • Optionally let repositories request installs and uninstalls of apps
    • +
  • Support for APK extension files (OBB)
    • +
  • Enable TLS v1.2 for HTTPS on all devices that support it (again)
    • +
  • Better support for multiple repositories providing the same app
    • +
+

As usual, if you have problems or feature requests, please let us know via the issue tracker, join us in the Forum or visit #fdroid on FreeNode.

+
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/assets/CiaranG.jpg b/assets/CiaranG.jpg new file mode 100644 index 000000000..86e100fc6 Binary files /dev/null and b/assets/CiaranG.jpg differ diff --git a/assets/F-Droid.jpg b/assets/F-Droid.jpg new file mode 100644 index 000000000..e127cb612 Binary files /dev/null and b/assets/F-Droid.jpg differ diff --git a/assets/mvdan.jpg b/assets/mvdan.jpg new file mode 100644 index 000000000..97b0d459f Binary files /dev/null and b/assets/mvdan.jpg differ