Why do people use the Google Play Store search engine?
It's got to be just about the worst search engine in the world.

But people use it, right?
Why?

Why don't people use a far better search engine that actually finds apps
based on extremely powerful comprehensive search criteria & which
efficiently filters apps based on equally powerful vast filtering criteria?

Why do people use just about the dumbest possible search engine instead?

I don't get it.
Is it because that's all they know?

Why can't they install what I consider the best Android app ever written?
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>

What's wrong with people that they use the worst search & filters possible?
--
Other great apps are NetGuard, FairEmail, Aurora, Orenda, Etar,
Muntashirakon, Nova (last good version), PulseSMS (last good version), etc.

Andrew <andys@nospam.com> wrote:

> Why do people use the Google Play Store search engine?
> It's got to be just about the worst search engine in the world.
>
> But people use it, right?
> Why?
>
> Why don't people use a far better search engine that actually finds apps
> based on extremely powerful comprehensive search criteria & which
> efficiently filters apps based on equally powerful vast filtering criteria?
>
> Why do people use just about the dumbest possible search engine instead?
>
> I don't get it.
> Is it because that's all they know?
>
> Why can't they install what I consider the best Android app ever written?
> <https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>
>
> What's wrong with people that they use the worst search & filters possible?

Of course, you aren't shilling for Skyica's paid app: $1/week, $2/month,
$12/year, $40 perpetual.

https://skyica.com/appfinder/comparison/

Some features are "(planned)", so Play Store has those features that
Skyica doesn't. And visa versa: Skyica has some features that Play
Store doesn't.

Skyica makes some stupid comparisons. Reviews in different languages:
Google Play website only, and Link to Google Play website. And the
difference is what?

Skyica still installs the apps through Google's Play Store. It is just
a different way to search. Personally I already find a search at Play
Store to return way to many results to waste my time. Oh, wonder,
Skyica will return even more dross. Stuff like this is for app junkies:
install anything and everything that comes across their eyeballs. Oooh,
oooh, something new, something different, gotta have it.

About 10 months I read how users can get a free license by spamming
Skyica. Write about it in social media, and get a license. Yeah,
that's really impartial reviews and landmined links.

VanguardLH wrote on Sun, 1 Dec 2024 23:19:12 -0600 :

> Of course, you aren't shilling for Skyica's paid app: $1/week, $2/month,
> $12/year, $40 perpetual.

Thanks for looking. I wasn't aware of any cost. Did I make a mistake?

Isn't the link I supplied to the *free* version of Skyica App Finder?
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>
Name: App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk
Size: 4497432 bytes (4392 KiB)
SHA256: 7075AFFE7593C03594DA6A1EB67AA955EBB2EE23FA28198FD49D5821602EC2B9

I've been using that link for, oh, about a year now & my phone can't even
be charged money if I wanted it to (as I have no credit card on file).

So it's free for me, and I'm not anyone special (although I did help the
developer in testing some of the early versions but not recently).

> https://skyica.com/appfinder/comparison/

Thanks for digging into the comparison.

You can compare the free version with the payware version but what I said
was the free version is a far better search engine and filter than the
crummy search engine and filter that you get from the Google Play Store.

It's like getting OSMAnd~ for free versus paying Google Play Store for it.

Your choice. For what matters, the free version is already a vastly far
better search & filter than you get with the Google Play Store.

> Some features are "(planned)", so Play Store has those features that
> Skyica doesn't. And visa versa: Skyica has some features that Play
> Store doesn't.

Thanks for noticing that, but, um, er. OK. So what?
All you care about is what the Skyica free version does. Right?

> Skyica makes some stupid comparisons. Reviews in different languages:
> Google Play website only, and Link to Google Play website. And the
> difference is what?

Thanks for digging deeper into what Skyica does for search & filtering.

I think you're speaking about the filters, right? You can turn any of those
filters on - or - guess what - you can turn any of those filters off too.

Just turn them off.
> Skyica still installs the apps through Google's Play Store.

Thanks for making that guess, which is only partly correct, depending on
what you actually mean by the words "Google's Play Store".

Did you mean the Google Play Store app <com.android.vending>?
Or did you mean the Google Play Store app repository?

They're not the same thing (which probably most people don't know).
Skyica installs through the repository but not necessarily through the app.

I'm the one who made sure that it did that - which is mostly where I was
helping the developer - because I don't use the Google Play Store app.

The Google Play Store app <com.android.vending> isn't even on my system.
So I couldn't install through that app even if I had wanted to use it.

All I care about is Skyica installs through the Google Play Store
repository instead of the Google Play Store app (if you want it to).

That's one of teh ways I helped the developer who didn't know there were
billions of people who install apps off the Google Play Store app repo but
who don't even have the Google Play Store app on their Android device.

I also helped the developer with his search engine terms, where my job was
to break his search engine (and for weeks on end I broke it).

Eventually I couldn't break it anymore.

> It is just a different way to search.

Thanks for hazarding that guess but I have to gently tell you that's wrong.

Skyica App Finder gets completely different (much better) results.
Besides, it's not the search that matters - it's the results you get.

> Personally I already find a search at Play
> Store to return way to many results to waste my time.

That's the whole point!

At least you get it that it's not the search you run that matters; it's the
results that you get out of that search engine. Skyica results are GREAT!

If there are ten thousand apps with, oh, say, "APK" in the description, you
can use Skyica filters to get the one app that has APK & "something else".
> Oh, wonder, Skyica will return even more dross.

Did you try it?

> Stuff like this is for app junkies:
> install anything and everything that comes across their eyeballs. Oooh,
> oooh, something new, something different, gotta have it.

Did you try it?

> About 10 months I read how users can get a free license by spamming
> Skyica. Write about it in social media, and get a license. Yeah,
> that's really impartial reviews and landmined links.

I don't spam Skyica and I get a free license simply by installing this:
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>

Did you install that app?
What happened when you did?

Did it ask you for money?
It doesn't ask me for money.

Did anyone else reading this test it other than VanguardLH?
Did the APK above ask you for money?

It doesn't ask me for money.
It just works.

But my Android system is set up without a Google Account on it.
Maybe that's why?

Andrew <andys@nospam.com> wrote:

> VanguardLH wrote on Sun, 1 Dec 2024 23:19:12 -0600 :
>
>> Of course, you aren't shilling for Skyica's paid app: $1/week, $2/month,
>> $12/year, $40 perpetual.
>
> Thanks for looking. I wasn't aware of any cost. Did I make a mistake?
>
> Isn't the link I supplied to the *free* version of Skyica App Finder?
> <https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>
> <https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>
> Name: App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk
> Size: 4497432 bytes (4392 KiB)
> SHA256: 7075AFFE7593C03594DA6A1EB67AA955EBB2EE23FA28198FD49D5821602EC2B9
>
> I've been using that link for, oh, about a year now & my phone can't even
> be charged money if I wanted it to (as I have no credit card on file).
>
> So it's free for me, and I'm not anyone special (although I did help the
> developer in testing some of the early versions but not recently).
>
>> https://skyica.com/appfinder/comparison/
>
> Thanks for digging into the comparison.
>
> You can compare the free version with the payware version but what I said
> was the free version is a far better search engine and filter than the
> crummy search engine and filter that you get from the Google Play Store.
>
> It's like getting OSMAnd~ for free versus paying Google Play Store for it.
>
> Your choice. For what matters, the free version is already a vastly far
> better search & filter than you get with the Google Play Store.
>
>> Some features are "(planned)", so Play Store has those features that
>> Skyica doesn't. And visa versa: Skyica has some features that Play
>> Store doesn't.
>
> Thanks for noticing that, but, um, er. OK. So what?
> All you care about is what the Skyica free version does. Right?
>
>> Skyica makes some stupid comparisons. Reviews in different languages:
>> Google Play website only, and Link to Google Play website. And the
>> difference is what?
>
> Thanks for digging deeper into what Skyica does for search & filtering.
>
> I think you're speaking about the filters, right? You can turn any of those
> filters on - or - guess what - you can turn any of those filters off too.
>
> Just turn them off.
>
>> Skyica still installs the apps through Google's Play Store.
>
> Thanks for making that guess, which is only partly correct, depending on
> what you actually mean by the words "Google's Play Store".
>
> Did you mean the Google Play Store app <com.android.vending>?
> Or did you mean the Google Play Store app repository?
>
> They're not the same thing (which probably most people don't know).
> Skyica installs through the repository but not necessarily through the app.
>
> I'm the one who made sure that it did that - which is mostly where I was
> helping the developer - because I don't use the Google Play Store app.
>
> The Google Play Store app <com.android.vending> isn't even on my system.
> So I couldn't install through that app even if I had wanted to use it.
>
> All I care about is Skyica installs through the Google Play Store
> repository instead of the Google Play Store app (if you want it to).
>
> That's one of teh ways I helped the developer who didn't know there were
> billions of people who install apps off the Google Play Store app repo but
> who don't even have the Google Play Store app on their Android device.
>
> I also helped the developer with his search engine terms, where my job was
> to break his search engine (and for weeks on end I broke it).
>
> Eventually I couldn't break it anymore.
>
>> It is just a different way to search.
>
> Thanks for hazarding that guess but I have to gently tell you that's wrong.
>
> Skyica App Finder gets completely different (much better) results.
> Besides, it's not the search that matters - it's the results you get.
>
>> Personally I already find a search at Play
>> Store to return way to many results to waste my time.
>
> That's the whole point!
>
> At least you get it that it's not the search you run that matters; it's the
> results that you get out of that search engine. Skyica results are GREAT!
>
> If there are ten thousand apps with, oh, say, "APK" in the description, you
> can use Skyica filters to get the one app that has APK & "something else".
>
>> Oh, wonder, Skyica will return even more dross.
>
> Did you try it?
>
>> Stuff like this is for app junkies:
>> install anything and everything that comes across their eyeballs. Oooh,
>> oooh, something new, something different, gotta have it.
>
> Did you try it?
>
>> About 10 months I read how users can get a free license by spamming
>> Skyica. Write about it in social media, and get a license. Yeah,
>> that's really impartial reviews and landmined links.
>
> I don't spam Skyica and I get a free license simply by installing this:
> <https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>
>
> Did you install that app?
> What happened when you did?
>
> Did it ask you for money?
> It doesn't ask me for money.
>
> Did anyone else reading this test it other than VanguardLH?
> Did the APK above ask you for money?
>
> It doesn't ask me for money.
> It just works.
>
> But my Android system is set up without a Google Account on it.
> Maybe that's why?

I did not install the Skyica app. Don't need it. Typically I've
already decided what I want before using the Play Store app.

I can't tell if the URL you provided is to the free or paid version.
The web page does not say. I was referring to the comparison page that
notes there are free and paid version while noting feature differences
between them. I could not find separate downloads for a free version or
for a paid version. Perhaps what you download has an in-app purchase to
get the paid version. Other than the comparison page noting free &
paid, https://skyica.com/appfinder/ says "Some advanced features require
payment". If you don't need the paid features, you're set as long as
there are no nags, banners, or lockouts on displayed features.

Are there features in the app you got that note they require payment? I
have some apps where they have an option to hide the Pro/paid features,
but some just show all features with a mention on the payware features.

VanguardLH wrote:

> I did not install the Skyica app. Don't need it. Typically I've
> already decided what I want before using the Play Store app.

Sometimes The Play Store will hide an app, or claim it's not available
for a given device. Most recent example here, the new Google Weather
app, supposedly a Pixel exclusive, yet it refused to install on my
Pixel8a, I downloaded from apkmirror instead.

Other Pixel exclusives like generating AI wallpaper,or managing
screenshots, I could probably force install them the same way, but ...meh.

Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> wrote:
> VanguardLH wrote:
>
> > I did not install the Skyica app. Don't need it. Typically I've
> > already decided what I want before using the Play Store app.
>
> Sometimes The Play Store will hide an app, or claim it's not available
> for a given device. Most recent example here, the new Google Weather
> app, supposedly a Pixel exclusive, yet it refused to install on my
> Pixel8a, I downloaded from apkmirror instead.
>
> Other Pixel exclusives like generating AI wallpaper,or managing
> screenshots, I could probably force install them the same way, but ...meh.

Or stupid geofencing methods.

For example I've had cases where I couldn't install Australia-centric
apps, because I was in The Netherlands and cases where I could not
install such apps while I *was* in Australia, because the country
settings of my Google Account were (obviously) set to The Netherlands
(IIRC, one example of the latter was the app of the Australian Bureau of
Meteorology). Go figure!

As you mentioned, in most cases the problem could be solved by getting
the APK from some APK archive site (I mostly used apkpure,com), After
installing the APK, updating the app often *could* be done by the Play
Store app.

On 2024-12-02 05:40, Andrew wrote:
> Why do people use the Google Play Store search engine?
> It's got to be just about the worst search engine in the world.
>
> But people use it, right?
> Why?

Arlen, that's a silly question, and you know the answer except for your
bias.

Because it is the default app for searching and installing apps. And of
course, that it requires a login is of absolutely no importance to the
majority of people (except you).

:-)

>
> Why don't people use a far better search engine that actually finds apps
> based on extremely powerful comprehensive search criteria & which
> efficiently filters apps based on equally powerful vast filtering criteria?
>
> Why do people use just about the dumbest possible search engine instead?
>
> I don't get it.
> Is it because that's all they know?
>
> Why can't they install what I consider the best Android app ever written?
> <https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>

Why would we know about it?

>
> What's wrong with people that they use the worst search & filters possible?

--
Cheers, Carlos.

On Mon, 2 Dec 2024 04:40:21 -0000 (UTC), Andrew <andys@nospam.com> wrote:
>Why do people use the Google Play Store search engine?
>It's got to be just about the worst search engine in the world.
>But people use it, right?
>Why?
>Why don't people use a far better search engine that actually finds apps
>based on extremely powerful comprehensive search criteria & which
>efficiently filters apps based on equally powerful vast filtering criteria?
>Why do people use just about the dumbest possible search engine instead?
>I don't get it.
>Is it because that's all they know?
>Why can't they install what I consider the best Android app ever written?
> <https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>
>What's wrong with people that they use the worst search & filters possible?

as ever, caveat emptor . . . at least their website opens in tor browser
and some of these apps could be useful? . . . it's free to "window shop":

(using Tor Browser 14.0.3)
https://skyica.com/
>APP FINDER https://skyica.com/appfinder
>Features https://skyica.com/appfinder/comparison
>Comparison https://skyica.com/appfinder/comparison
>Research https://skyica.com/appfinder/research
>Testimonials https://skyica.com/appfinder/testimonials
>Help https://skyica.com/appfinder/help
>Other Apps https://skyica.com/other-apps
>About
> https://skyica.com/about
> About Skyica LLC
> Skyica is a software company committed to innovation and excellence.
> Founded in late 2022, its current focus is on domain-specific search engines
> and advanced mobile art, design, and productivity apps.
> Contact
> info@skyica.com
> X: @appfndr
> XDA forum
> 2590 Welton Street
> Ste. 200 #9235
> Denver, CO 80205
> United States
>Comprehensive & Innovative Advanced Search Engine for Android Apps and Games
[end quoted excerpt]

recommend tor browser (freeware, not payware)
https://www.torproject.org/download/#android
>Get Tor Browser for Android.
>Protect yourself against tracking, surveillance, and censorship.
>https://dist.torproject.org/torbrowser/14.0.3/tor-browser-android-aarch64-14.0.3.apk
>https://dist.torproject.org/torbrowser/14.0.3/tor-browser-android-aarch64-14.0.3.apk.asc
>https://dist.torproject.org/torbrowser/14.0.3/tor-browser-android-armv7-14.0.3.apk
>https://dist.torproject.org/torbrowser/14.0.3/tor-browser-android-armv7-14.0.3.apk.asc
>https://dist.torproject.org/torbrowser/14.0.3/tor-browser-android-x86_64-14.0.3.apk
>https://dist.torproject.org/torbrowser/14.0.3/tor-browser-android-x86_64-14.0.3.apk.asc
>https://dist.torproject.org/torbrowser/14.0.3/tor-browser-android-x86-14.0.3.apk
>https://dist.torproject.org/torbrowser/14.0.3/tor-browser-android-x86-14.0.3.apk.asc
[end quoted excerpt]

(using Tor Browser 14.0.3)
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=android+app+freeware

Andy Burns wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 07:54:26 +0000 :

> Sometimes The Play Store will hide an app, or claim it's not available
> for a given device. Most recent example here, the new Google Weather
> app, supposedly a Pixel exclusive, yet it refused to install on my
> Pixel8a, I downloaded from apkmirror instead.

Andy is correct where I will mainly point out that *almost always* if not
always, the Google Play Store search will NOT find a *lot* of apps that
exist on the Google Play Store.

Please realize I *tested* this both for the Aurora Store developers on XDA
and for the Skyica App Finder developers - it's all in the XDA Forum.

Trust me. I know far more than any of you do on this particular topic.

The Google Play Store is like having a dictionary with hundreds of
thousands of words in it - where most of you "think" that's everything.

It's not. In fact, it's not even close to everything in the repo!

Skyica App Finder uses open-source Google Play Store repository scrapers
which find *millions* of words for you in that very same dictionary.

And even then, Skyica doesn't always find *everything* in the repo.
Ask me how I know this fact.

The developer is *improving* Skyica constantly - but it's so much better
than the Google Play Store search that there is no comparison possible.

Plus... you guys are *forgetting* the filtering - which is the best in the
world - and where the Google Play Store filtering is the worst imaginable.

Please trust me that I tell you what I know, and I tell you what I don't
know (as my ego is in what I can learn) - and I tell you there is no
possible comparison between these two feature of Skyica versus GPS search:

1. Skyica *search* finds apps the Google Play Store search doesn't &
2. Skyica *filters* are so comprehensive that there is no comparison.

> Other Pixel exclusives like generating AI wallpaper,or managing
> screenshots, I could probably force install them the same way, but ...meh.

I'm not sure what Andy is getting at with that sentence so I simply ask for
clarification.

Carlos E.R. wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 13:58:02 +0100 :

> that's a silly question,

No it's not. None of you have any idea how bad the Google Play Store search
is, and, even worse, none of you realize how bad its filtering system is.

> and you know the answer except for your bias.

Bias? You mean the bias to get the best apps possible off the Google Play
Store repository? Why would anyone NOT have that very same "bias" goal?

> Because it is the default app for searching and installing apps.

Being the default doesn't mean it's good, Carlos.

Even you should know that.

The Google Play Store search is like having a dictionary with ten thousand
words in it whereas the actual GPS repository has a million words in it.

> And of course, that it requires a login is of absolutely no importance
> to the majority of people (except you).

Remove the word "requires" and that sentence will be fine.

But even you should know there's no requirement to have a Google Account on
the phone to download & install apps from the Google Play Store repository.

Most of my 900 or so apps on my phone at this moment are from the Google
Play Store repository and I do NOT have a Google Account set on my phone.

>> Why don't people use a far better search engine that actually finds apps
>> based on extremely powerful comprehensive search criteria & which
>> efficiently filters apps based on equally powerful vast filtering criteria?
>>
>> Why do people use just about the dumbest possible search engine instead?
>>
>> I don't get it.
>> Is it because that's all they know?
>>
>> Why can't they install what I consider the best Android app ever written?
>> <https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>
>
> Why would we know about it?

There's a Dunning-Kruger concept for the people on the left side of the
first quartile marker which is people who "think" they know it all, and
yet, they know so little that they don't even know what they don't know.

That's most people when it comes to Android Google Play Store repository
searches, but it's NOT supposed to be people on this technical newsgroup.

Skyica has been discussed *many* times on this newsgroup, so if folks
missed it, then that says a lot about their lack of ability to learn.

All I'm asking is why would anyone use the atrociously horrid Google Play
Store search & even more pathetic filters, when they don't have to?

Frank Slootweg wrote on 2 Dec 2024 11:15:22 GMT :

> Or stupid geofencing methods.

Frank and Andy are correct that the Google Play Store search finds, oh, I
don't know the percentage, but I've tested this hundreds of times, so let's
say swag it's only about 75% of the apps that meet your search criteria.

I know this because I extensively *tested* both the Aurora Store and the
Skyica App Finder (working with both developers on the XDA forum).

For now, it's a safe bet that the Google Play Store search misses about a
quarter of the apps that actually completely meet your search criteria.

But worse... far worse... there is no *filtering* (to speak of) in the
Google Play Store app search mechanism. Google doesn't want that.

For example, how would you search for only free apps with no ads but also
no "upgrade" options and which are a score of 4.5 or better with over a
million reviews and ... and... and... scores of useful filters.

You can only do that with the Skyica App Finder (as far as I'm aware).

Another example is how do you search for free apps that don't have the
Google Services Framework embedded into them? You can't with the Google
Play Store app (or web site).

But you can with Aurora (although I haven't been able to convince the
Skyica developer to include that search filter yet - but I'm trying).

> For example I've had cases where I couldn't install Australia-centric
> apps, because I was in The Netherlands and cases where I could not
> install such apps while I *was* in Australia, because the country
> settings of my Google Account were (obviously) set to The Netherlands
> (IIRC, one example of the latter was the app of the Australian Bureau of
> Meteorology). Go figure!

Luckily with Aurora and Skyica you can spoof not only your platform, but
your CPU and your location and the Android API levels, etc., aqain, none of
which is available with the default crappy Google Play Store app search.

> As you mentioned, in most cases the problem could be solved by getting
> the APK from some APK archive site (I mostly used apkpure,com), After
> installing the APK, updating the app often *could* be done by the Play
> Store app.

There's no way that will work because there are about 1/4 of all the apps
in the Google Play Store repository that are NOT reported by the Google
Play Store app (or web site) search - so you need to know the full package
name (most of the time) to find that app on the APK archives.

And why should you have to resort to APK archives anyway when the app is on
the Google Play Store repository?

Remember, about 1/4th of all apps on the Google Play Store repository (in
my estimate) are NOT reported by your Google Play Store searches, and
worse, the *filtering* on the Google Play Store app (or web site) is
worthless (which is the best thing I can say about it).

When you see the Skyica App Finder filters (or even the Aurora filters,
which pale in comparison to Skyica's) you will *understand* those words.

My main question is why do supposedly technically competent people put up
with the Google Play Store search engine lack of results and lack of
filtering of those results?

Is it because they "think" the SKyica App Finder costs money
(as VanguardLH said he "thinks" it does).

It doesn't cost me a penny. Never has.
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>
Name: App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk
Size: 4497432 bytes (4392 KiB)
SHA256: 7075AFFE7593C03594DA6A1EB67AA955EBB2EE23FA28198FD49D5821602EC2B9

VanguardLH wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 01:23:26 -0600 :

> I did not install the Skyica app. Don't need it. Typically I've
> already decided what I want before using the Play Store app.
> I can't tell if the URL you provided is to the free or paid version.

As I said already, I downloaded it (many times) & it's always free for me.
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>

Rest assured: The search & filter available with the Google Play Store (app
or web)vs Skyica is like comparing a Cessna to an F35 fighter jet.

All most people know is the Cessna. Not the fighter jet.
That's why I'm amazed people on this newsgroup think a Cessna===F35.

People on this newsgroup are supposed to be technically competent.
There's a huge difference between a Cessna & an F35 fighter jet.

Cessna: <https://play.google.com/store/apps/>
F35 Fighter Jet: <https://skyica.com/>

People on this newsgroup are supposed to be technically competent to know
the difference, just as a military pilot would know the difference between
what a Cessna can do and what an F35 can do when things need to be done.

> The web page does not say. I was referring to the comparison page that
> notes there are free and paid version while noting feature differences
> between them.
> I could not find separate downloads for a free version or
> for a paid version. Perhaps what you download has an in-app purchase to
> get the paid version. Other than the comparison page noting free &
> paid, https://skyica.com/appfinder/ says "Some advanced features require
> payment". If you don't need the paid features, you're set as long as
> there are no nags, banners, or lockouts on displayed features.
>
> Are there features in the app you got that note they require payment? I
> have some apps where they have an option to hide the Pro/paid features,
> but some just show all features with a mention on the payware features.

It would take you ten seconds to answer the questions above for yourself.

Read this thread please - and note - you'll find I posted to it to HELP the
developer improve his app (he & I conversed many times in the DM system).
*[APP][6.0+] App Finder: The most advanced search engine for Android apps*
<https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/>

If you do not read that thread, you will remain in the Dunning Kruger group
to the left of the first quartile - which is people who know absolutely
nothing about a topic & yet they "think" they're geniuses at that topic.

Please don't be like those people.
Be technically competent please.

I'm trying to edify you that a Cessna is not the same as an F35.

Note I'm trying to *help* you - but you are fighting that help tooth & nail
because you have a pre-conceived notion a Cessna is better than an F35.

Andrew <andys@nospam.com> wrote:

> VanguardLH wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 01:23:26 -0600 :
>
>> I did not install the Skyica app. Don't need it. Typically I've
>> already decided what I want before using the Play Store app.
>> I can't tell if the URL you provided is to the free or paid version.
>
> As I said already, I downloaded it (many times) & it's always free for me.

But since some features are only available in the paid version, and
because you profess intimacy with the app and developer, seems you
should know how the paid version is obtained.

>> Are there features in the app you got that note they require payment? I
>> have some apps where they have an option to hide the Pro/paid features,
>> but some just show all features with a mention on the payware features.
>
> It would take you ten seconds to answer the questions above for yourself.

Or 2 seconds for you to say Yay or Nay.

> Read this thread please - and note - you'll find I posted to it to HELP the
> developer improve his app (he & I conversed many times in the DM system).
> *[APP][6.0+] App Finder: The most advanced search engine for Android apps*
> <https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/>

No thanks. I'm not scanning through 16 pages of a discussion just to
find out what you could've answered in 2 seconds. Odd you are obtuse.

On 2024-12-02 17:27, Andrew wrote:
> Carlos E.R. wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 13:58:02 +0100 :
>
>>  that's a silly question,
>
> No it's not. None of you have any idea how bad the Google Play Store search
> is, and, even worse, none of you realize how bad its filtering system is.
>
>>  and you know the answer except for your bias.
>
> Bias? You mean the bias to get the best apps possible off the Google Play
> Store repository? Why would anyone NOT have that very same "bias" goal?
>
>> Because it is the default app for searching and installing apps.
>
> Being the default doesn't mean it's good, Carlos.

So what, Arlen?
You asked "Why do people use the Google Play Store search engine?", not
why people do not use the best app search engine.

>
> Even you should know that.
>
> The Google Play Store search is like having a dictionary with ten thousand
> words in it whereas the actual GPS repository has a million words in it.
>
>> And of course, that it requires a login is of absolutely no importance
>> to the majority of people (except you).
>
> Remove the word "requires" and that sentence will be fine.

Nope. It is designed to work with a login, for search and install. Maybe
you trick it into installing, but most people don't do that.

>
> But even you should know there's no requirement to have a Google Account on
> the phone to download & install apps from the Google Play Store repository.
>
> Most of my 900 or so apps on my phone at this moment are from the Google
> Play Store repository and I do NOT have a Google Account set on my phone.
>
>>> Why don't people use a far better search engine that actually finds apps
>>> based on extremely powerful comprehensive search criteria & which
>>> efficiently filters apps based on equally powerful vast filtering
>>> criteria?
>>>
>>> Why do people use just about the dumbest possible search engine instead?
>>>
>>> I don't get it.
>>> Is it because that's all they know?
>>>
>>> Why can't they install what I consider the best Android app ever
>>> written?
>>>   <https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>
>>
>> Why would we know about it?
>
> There's a Dunning-Kruger concept for the people on the left side of the
> first quartile marker which is people who "think" they know it all, and
> yet, they know so little that they don't even know what they don't know.
>
> That's most people when it comes to Android Google Play Store repository
> searches, but it's NOT supposed to be people on this technical newsgroup.
>
> Skyica has been discussed *many* times on this newsgroup, so if folks
> missed it, then that says a lot about their lack of ability to learn.

I don't read all messages. Specifically, I don't read all your messages,
and I don't read them complete, because you talk way too much. :-)

I don't read either all the complete messages of anybody, of course. But
you being so prolific, you are probably the most affected.

My time and my patience are limited.

So no, I don't remember ever reading about skika or it being so good.

> All I'm asking is why would anyone use the atrociously horrid Google Play
> Store search & even more pathetic filters, when they don't have to?

I told you. It is the default app. It is there. It is gratis. It works.
We don't know of another tool that is better.

And no, when I search for an app I ask here. I prefer human knowledge.

--
Cheers, Carlos.

Andrew <andys@nospam.com> wrote:

> Skyica has been discussed *many* times on this newsgroup, so if folks
> missed it, then that says a lot about their lack of ability to learn.

Yes, Skyica has been mentioned a few times (not many times) ... but only
by YOU in this newsgroup in the last 4 months (*). From your claim of
involvement with its development, and your own enthusiastic usage, you
have an obvious vested interest in proselytizing it.

(*) I purge articles in my NNTP client that are over 4 months old.
The older the article, the less relevant it becomes.

Other than searching the message store in their Usenet client, no one
(but you) is going to dedicate engrams on outdated discussions. I only
recall hearing about Skyica in 4 threads here ... always started by you.

Is 4 considered a few or *many* (bolding means VERY MANY)?

Skyica was "founded" in late 2022. Not sure when they first released
App Finder. Didn't find a release history to see when it showed up.
Looks to have shown up around Sep 2023 according to Google Groups
discussions, or Nov 2023 according to:

https://apkpure.com/app-finder/scadica.aq/versions

But below starts an XDA forum discussion in Apr 2023:

https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/

On 2024-12-02 22:35, VanguardLH wrote:
> Andrew <andys@nospam.com> wrote:
>
>> Skyica has been discussed *many* times on this newsgroup, so if folks
>> missed it, then that says a lot about their lack of ability to learn.
>
> Yes, Skyica has been mentioned a few times (not many times) ... but only
> by YOU in this newsgroup in the last 4 months (*). From your claim of
> involvement with its development, and your own enthusiastic usage, you
> have an obvious vested interest in proselytizing it.
>
> (*) I purge articles in my NNTP client that are over 4 months old.
> The older the article, the less relevant it becomes.
>
> Other than searching the message store in their Usenet client, no one
> (but you) is going to dedicate engrams on outdated discussions. I only
> recall hearing about Skyica in 4 threads here ... always started by you.
>
> Is 4 considered a few or *many* (bolding means VERY MANY)?

I found 136 posts since 2016, and the earliest reference is Dec 13 2023
by Wally J, which is one of his aliases. My search engine can not tell
which of those posts are replies, ie, quoted material. It is a raw text
search on the store, so no threads.

>
> Skyica was "founded" in late 2022. Not sure when they first released
> App Finder. Didn't find a release history to see when it showed up.
> Looks to have shown up around Sep 2023 according to Google Groups
> discussions, or Nov 2023 according to:
>
> https://apkpure.com/app-finder/scadica.aq/versions
>
> But below starts an XDA forum discussion in Apr 2023:
>
> https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/

It doesn't have a wikipedia page. I judge the importance of a tool after
reading their wikipedia article.

--
Cheers, Carlos.

Andrew, 2024-12-02 05:40:

> Why do people use the Google Play Store search engine?
> It's got to be just about the worst search engine in the world.
>
> But people use it, right?
> Why?
>
> Why don't people use a far better search engine that actually finds apps
> based on extremely powerful comprehensive search criteria & which
> efficiently filters apps based on equally powerful vast filtering criteria?
>
> Why do people use just about the dumbest possible search engine instead?

Because they don't know better.

--
Arno Welzel
https://arnowelzel.de

VanguardLH wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 13:42:14 -0600 :

>> As I said already, I downloaded it (many times) & it's always free for me.
>
> But since some features are only available in the paid version, and
> because you profess intimacy with the app and developer, seems you
> should know how the paid version is obtained.

There's a good reason why I know more about apps than anyone on this
newsgroup, such that when people ask for apps, I find apps for them.

The reason is: Skyica

Having said that...

I have no idea about the paid version of any app as I've never needed to
pay for app functionality in my entire life. Everything I need is free.

Besides, why does it even matter when I already told you that the free
version of the app is far better than any app I've ever seen in my life?

>>> Are there features in the app you got that note they require payment? I
>>> have some apps where they have an option to hide the Pro/paid features,
>>> but some just show all features with a mention on the payware features.
>>
>> It would take you ten seconds to answer the questions above for yourself.
>
> Or 2 seconds for you to say Yay or Nay.

See above. I've never paid for anything on Android and I get more features
than most Android users - perhaps even more than almost all Android users.

None of the apps that I use require payment, and, in fact, that's one of
the checkboxes for "ad free" versus "ad free with payment" in the filters.

Any app that requires money for any basic features is a strikeout for me.
In fact, ANYTHING that requires money for basic features is a strikeout.

I get my VPN for free. I get my Microsoft Office & Adobe Acrobat for free.
I even get my Amazon orders for free (now that Amazon invited me to Vine).
<https://www.amazon.com/vine/about>

For intelligent people, (almost) EVERYTHING is (legally!) free.

>
>> Read this thread please - and note - you'll find I posted to it to HELP the
>> developer improve his app (he & I conversed many times in the DM system).
>> *[APP][6.0+] App Finder: The most advanced search engine for Android apps*
>> <https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/>
>
> No thanks. I'm not scanning through 16 pages of a discussion just to
> find out what you could've answered in 2 seconds. Odd you are obtuse.

Thanks for being honest, where most people, when someone suggests an app,
simply download it as there is zero risk in doing so and it takes less time
to install it than it takes you and me to discuss installing it.

Anyway, since you're not going to install it, then you will be stuck with
the absolute worst method possible of finding good apps on the Google Play
Store repository - which is fine - as it's your choice what you install.

For anyone else who has installed the free version of the Skyica App Finder
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>

Did it ask you for money? (It does NOT ask me for anything. It just works.)

Carlos E.R. wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 21:24:25 +0100 :

> You asked "Why do people use the Google Play Store search engine?", not
> why people do not use the best app search engine.

Thanks for honestly answering the question as you saw it being asked.

If you look at the OP, you'll see, verbatim, I asked:
Why don't people use a far better search engine that actually finds apps?

What you are answering is only that which is in the subject line summary.

I'm actually asking a few (related) important questions, in this thread.
a. Why settle for the piss-poor Google Play Store app search engine?
b. Why not use a fantastic free search engine with GREAT filters?
c. Does that fantastic search engine ask you for money when you install it?

>>> And of course, that it requires a login is of absolutely no importance
>>> to the majority of people (except you).
>>
>> Remove the word "requires" and that sentence will be fine.
>
> Nope. It is designed to work with a login, for search and install. Maybe
> you trick it into installing, but most people don't do that.

If you look at the XDA Developers Forum threads on Skyica, you'll see that
about a year or so ago the app only used the Google Play Store app engine.

I worked directly with the developer (as evidenced in that thread) to get
Skyica to work WITHOUT touching the Google Play Store app engine.

That's because I don't even have the Google Play Store app on my system.
And I have more apps installed from the Google Play Store repository than
probably most of the rest of the people on this newsgroup, combined.

(Well, that might be an exaggeration - but the point is I have no problem
downloading and installing apps off the Google Play Store repository
without ever having either the Google Play Store app itself, or even a
Google Account set up on the phone. You know this so you know it's fact.)

>> Skyica has been discussed *many* times on this newsgroup, so if folks
>> missed it, then that says a lot about their lack of ability to learn.
>
> I don't read all messages. Specifically, I don't read all your messages,
> and I don't read them complete, because you talk way too much. :-)

I get that a lot where I always tell people who say that (with the obvious
disdain that it points out) that I know so much more than they will ever
possibly know in their entire lives ... coupled with the obvious fact I am
such a wonderfully good-hearted kind person that I try to convey
INFORMATION which most people can't handle - which are the people who
complain like that.

Most people can't comprehend facts.

Let's face it, the reason is most people are not all that intelligent.
In fact, most people are downright stupid.

So they can't figure out how to do the very simplest of basic things.

Like installing apps from the Google Play Store repository without ever
putting a Google Account on their phone (which itself murders privacy).

>> All I'm asking is why would anyone use the atrociously horrid Google Play
>> Store search & even more pathetic filters, when they don't have to?
>
> I told you. It is the default app. It is there. It is gratis. It works.
> We don't know of another tool that is better.
>
> And no, when I search for an app I ask here. I prefer human knowledge.

The main point wasn't so much just the title, but why don't people use far
better free search & filter apps such as Aurora or Skyica - both of which
are so much better than the Google Play Store app that it boggles my mind
how inefficient most people are at finding the best apps to install.

Anyway, if anyone does install the best search engine on the planet...
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>
Please let me know if it asked you for money as it does NOT ask me.

VanguardLH wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 15:35:11 -0600 :

> But below starts an XDA forum discussion in Apr 2023:
>
> https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/

The great thing about Skyica App Finder is it makes people NOT stupid.
I really mean that.

You think I'm getting a cut of $ or something simply because you don't
understand that kind-hearted intelligent people try to inform others.

I'm extremely intelligent. I'm also extremely kind hearted. Humble too! :)
As such, I deeply sincerely *care* that people use good app search engines.

Which, let's face it, are one of the most fundamental things you can do.

People who search only using the Google Play Store app are always stupid
when it comes to making "conclusions" on what apps exist on the Google Play
Store repo. The reason they're so stupid is they have no idea what's there.

Having said that people who think they know everything when it's clear they
know nothing (because they're using a crappy search engine, that's why)
don't have to know everything. That's fine.

But they should never say an app functionality isn't there after only
searching using the decrepit (barely functional) Google Play Store app.

If they haven't used the Skyica App Finder, they don't know anything.
They're just guessing.

Which is what makes ignorant people into stupid people after all.

Me?
I don't plan on being ignorant, so when I search, I use the best engine.
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>

All I want to know from others is whether it asks them for money.
Because it has never asked me for money & I've been using it for a while.

Carlos E.R. wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 23:26:01 +0100 :

> I judge the importance of a tool after
> reading their wikipedia article.

I'm not sure how to respond to that, other than saying some people get a
phone based purely on the color of that phone or on an advertisement.

Me?

I don't plan on doing that so I decide what to use based on what it does.
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/features/>

My observation is people who *only* use the Google Play Store app search
(and filters) are always, a priori, those making bad decisions about apps.

Arno Welzel wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 23:54:35 +0100 :

>> Why do people use just about the dumbest possible search engine instead?
>
> Because they don't know better.

Yes. You're the only one who knows the answer to that question, which is
what I'm actually trying to "fix" in my kind-hearted way on this newsgroup.
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/features/>

I'm trying to inform the technologically intelligent people on this
newsgroup that making decisions based *only* on Google Play Store app
search (and filter) results, means those people are always ignorant.
<https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/>

As a result, they don't even know what they don't know.
Yet, the sad reality is, they think they do.

That's why they're always making such bad decisions on what apps to use.

On the other question though, if you do install the Skyica App Finder
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/>
<https://skyica.com/appfinder/get/App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk>
Name: App-Finder-1.4.1a-U.apk
Size: 4497432 bytes (4392 KiB)
SHA256: 7075AFFE7593C03594DA6A1EB67AA955EBB2EE23FA28198FD49D5821602EC2B9
Please let me know if it asks you for money as it never asks me for money.

And I've used it since, oh, let me look on XDA when I first found out about
it and when I started working with the developer to make it work with
phones that have no Google Account and hence no Google Play Store app...

a. This is my latest post (July 2024)
<https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/post-89597887>
b. This seems to be my first post (September 2023)
<https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/post-88973777>
c. This is proof I communicated with Aurora & Skyica to make it work!
<https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/post-89024201>

Notice that *intelligent* people work together to solve difficult issues.
Morons only complain they can't install the app because they're afraid.

BTW, if just a few of the intelligent people here use it, I will have
fulfilled my generously kind-hearted goal of informing people of not only
one of the best free apps on Android, but the best app finder bar none.

That's what makes me happy.
--
(Responding to people who wish to remain stupid is not what I like to do.)

Andrew <andys@nospam.com> wrote:

> You think I'm getting a cut of $ or something simply because you don't
> understand that kind-hearted intelligent people try to inform others.

Nope. I think you got involved in its development which made you
enthusiastic about it. As I said, you have a vested interest.

> I don't plan on being ignorant, so when I search, I use the best engine.

Inferring others are idiots that ask you questions or disagree with you
will not engender the audience you want.

VanguardLH wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 21:02:17 -0600 :

>> You think I'm getting a cut of $ or something simply because you don't
>> understand that kind-hearted intelligent people try to inform others.
>
> Nope. I think you got involved in its development which made you
> enthusiastic about it. As I said, you have a vested interest.

While I got involved in Skyica development for selfish reasons (i.e., I
needed it to work WITHOUT the Google Play Store app existing), I ofen
promote Muntashirakon App Manager and I'm not "involved" in that one.

I often promote PulseSMS (the last known good version), or Nova (again, the
last known good version) or Etar, or the last known good versions of Simple
Mobile Tools, or the WhatsApp direct dialer or screensopy/soundcopy or
WebDav servers or Wi-Fi/Cellular analyzers or offline GPS routing apps,
etc.

None of those do I have any developer involvement, right?
I know you well, VanguardLH. You guess at everything. You never look
anything up. You just guess. And that's fine. But you guess wrong.

All the time.

Me?
I do not guess at anything.

I don't trust my intuition in the least.
You trust your intuition with your life.

We're completely different personalities.

You shake with fear at any risk, perceived or real (since you guess).
I don't.

I take risks.
You don't.

And that's OK.
Nobody says you have to learn anything.

But please stop guessing wrong.
That's all I ask of you.

You guess wrongly at my motives for example.

What you're missing is that I'm an extremely intelligent person who is also
extremely kind hearted (and humble!) who *cares* that people be informed.

>> I don't plan on being ignorant, so when I search, I use the best engine.
>
> Inferring others are idiots that ask you questions or disagree with you
> will not engender the audience you want.

I've never begged my audience to like me. I only wish to teach them.
Or, as the case may be, to *learn* from them (like from Andy Burns).

Andy turned me on to Marcel's NetGuard, for example, and I've been
promoting Marcel's FairEmail also on this newsgroup for many years.

I have no involvement in their "App Development" (although I tested
Marcel's FairEmail on XDA when Google temporarily forced 2FA upon him).

Marcel eventually left XDA in disgust because he was smarter than anyone on
there, which is kind of how I feel on this newsgroup when people tell me
that they actually want to remain ignorant and that they never want to find
a better way to do things. It's kind of the antithesis of what I am.

Which is why I constantly inform people on this newsgroup of the best apps
on the planet, only one of which is the Skyica App Finder.

Your "guess" that I'm invested in all these apps, is patently absurd.
Anyway, if you're not going to try the Skyica App Finder (which is because
you're deathly afraid of even the slightest of risk) that's fine.

But don't 'diss what you're obviously completely ignorant of.
Just accept that people who know more than you do about it, promote it.

For the good of the people here - not for their own profit.
(Your guess at my motives is seriously patently ridiculously absurd.)

You may as well accuse me of secretly being a Russian KGB spy.
Ooops. :)

On 2 Dec 2024 at 19:42:14, VanguardLH <V@nguard.LH> wrote:
> Andrew <andys@nospam.com> wrote:
>
>> VanguardLH wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 01:23:26 -0600 :
>>
>>> I did not install the Skyica app. Don't need it. Typically I've
>>> already decided what I want before using the Play Store app.
>>> I can't tell if the URL you provided is to the free or paid version.
>>
>> As I said already, I downloaded it (many times) & it's always free for me.
>
> But since some features are only available in the paid version, and
> because you profess intimacy with the app and developer, seems you
> should know how the paid version is obtained.
>
>>> Are there features in the app you got that note they require payment? I
>>> have some apps where they have an option to hide the Pro/paid features,
>>> but some just show all features with a mention on the payware features.
>>
>> It would take you ten seconds to answer the questions above for yourself.
>
> Or 2 seconds for you to say Yay or Nay.
>
>> Read this thread please - and note - you'll find I posted to it to HELP the
>> developer improve his app (he & I conversed many times in the DM system).
>> *[APP][6.0+] App Finder: The most advanced search engine for Android apps*
>> <https://xdaforums.com/t/app-6-0-app-finder-the-most-advanced-search-engine-for-android-apps.4578809/>
>
> No thanks. I'm not scanning through 16 pages of a discussion just to
> find out what you could've answered in 2 seconds. Odd you are obtuse.

Rule 1 of Usenet : do not argue with idiots.