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[–] 151 points 2 years ago* (6 children)

"Sideloading" isn't an actual thing. It's a word the industry made up to make installing your own software sound dangerous.

All traditional Windows applications were "sideloaded" and back then it was just fucking called installing an application.

Prior to the bullshit ass Microsoft Store, sideloading was literally the only way to get shit on Windows.

Linux also always allowed you to install applications directly. Everyone just uses package management software at this point because it's all well managed and easier to keep things updated, but you can still install things manually with make.

If this leads more people to understand that "sideloading" is some contrived boogeyman bullshit for just being allowed to install what you want on the device you fucking own that's a good thing.

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  • [–] 20 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    As a traditional Mac user I also “side loaded” applications

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    As a recent modern Mac user, this experience is so bizarre and is always a little different.

    I grew up on macs (thanks mom) and built a PC as soon as I had my first real job in highschool. I recently bought a MacBook for the promise of battery life and cool running. If only it was easier to get my arm windows laptop to boot Linux...

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  • [–] 12 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Sideloading doesn't sound dangerous, if anything it sounds cool lol

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  • [–] 11 points 2 years ago (2 children)

    Linux also always allowed you to install applications directly. Everyone just uses package management software at this point because it's all well managed and easier to keep things updated, but you can still install things manually with make.

    You only need make if you're compiling. Installating precompiled software is somewhat easier, since it's basically just copying to /bin. If you know where that is, then it's simple.

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  • [–] 4 points 2 years ago* (2 children)

    It's a word the industry made up to make installing your own software sound dangerous.

    [citation needed]

    Prior to the bullshit ass Microsoft Store, sideloading was literally the only way to get shit on Windows.

    Yeah, I mean that made sense when it was the only way. There was no need to differentiate. That's not the case anymore.

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  • [–] 10 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    The term "sideloading" has been around since the 90s. Source: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sideloading

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  • [–] 4 points 2 years ago

    The term "sideload" was coined in the late 1990s by online storage service i-drive as an alternative means of transferring and storing computer files virtually instead of physically.

    Sounds like it was something very different back then...

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  • [–] 2 points 2 years ago*

    I also felt like the author of the article ignorantly weaponized the name to make something completely mundane sound like a bad thing. They totally stomped right into the corporate moustrap while doing so. Why not call all app stores something like "corporate single source installation" or "[Microsoft/google/apple] assisted installation"? Maybe someone will write an article on the dangers of that.

    Also, I don't give a shit about TikTok. I just don't like the fact that everything is capitalized on to make the world a shittier place so someone can collect a few extra gold coins.

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