I Hate Google

[puppykickr]

I hate Google!
Did I mention that I hate Google?

So, after a nightmare of trying to get a damn phone just to do phone things, it seemed that I had finally succeeded- well, at least the stupid thing could make and receive calls- sometimes.
Sometimes even texting worked.
Data was basically non-existant, thanks to T-Mobile deciding that I was roaming whenever I left the house.

Of course, I couldn't use data- but that never stopped all the useless Google baboon apps from gobbling up tons of it with apps I never use (or wanted, for that matter).

Anyway, since I got the piece of poop, it has nagged me endlessly about some 'security update' and how it is now ** days overdue.

I have all that auto-update crap and auto system update turned off, at least whatever I could.

So the night before last, I go through and update my apps and then because newer versions of Android make it so damn difficult to clear the app's caches I restarted the device.

When it booted, it told me that it was going to install this 'security update' in ** seconds.

No way out of it, tried pulling the battery and everything.

As soon as it booted the next time, same thing.

Pissed off, I fell asleep.

Woke up this morning to an new device- gee, thanks alot, Google.

The bastards only 'updated' every rotten Google app (I use NONE of these) to huge sizes and added God-Only-Knows what new permissions.

Not only that, the turds also 'updated' the PlayStore, and this new version has no history of recent updates.

So I am using UpToDown and ApkPure to go through these worthless apps and downgrade them to the original versions.

As if that wasn't bad enough, I open my G-Mail and discover TONS of spam!
This is all new, and from after this 'update'.

I will never, ever be 'updating' any of my devices again.
Another forced one like this, and I will say goodbye to my Google account altogether.
I am real close to taking the account off of this device.

They updated almost every single user app that I have reason to not update.
And then they don't even have the balls to let me know which ones.
They leave that up to me, to waste my day off doing what I had just done to this phone- AGAIN.

So now I have to spend all day going through and resetting the device all over again- the device that I just did that to a few weeks ago.

I HATE GOOGLE!

 

[ocnbrze]

Spoiler: soooooooooooooo

you hate Google???????

 

[Fox Mulder]

Now, tell us how you really feel-

 

[mikedt]

You've got a phone from a US carrier? Some of whom, from what I've read on AF can be notorious for forcing their devices to update. Whatever T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon, et-al, forces out for their devices, quite frankly I don't think Google is entirely to blame. Perhaps you should really be hating on T-Mobile and the manufacturer of your particular phone?

Where I am it's actually impossible for Google to force phones to update. And I've only ever seen one update that couldn't be refused, on a Samsung galaxy Note7, and the update came from Samsung of course, and not Google.

 

[Trom]

I hate Google!
Did I mention that I hate Google?

So, after a nightmare of trying to get a damn phone just to do phone things, it seemed that I had finally succeeded- well, at least the stupid thing could make and receive calls- sometimes.
Sometimes even texting worked.
Data was basically non-existant, thanks to T-Mobile deciding that I was roaming whenever I left the house.

Of course, I couldn't use data- but that never stopped all the useless Google baboon apps from gobbling up tons of it with apps I never use (or wanted, for that matter).

Anyway, since I got the piece of poop, it has nagged me endlessly about some 'security update' and how it is now ** days overdue.

I have all that auto-update crap and auto system update turned off, at least whatever I could.

So the night before last, I go through and update my apps and then because newer versions of Android make it so damn difficult to clear the app's caches I restarted the device.

When it booted, it told me that it was going to install this 'security update' in ** seconds.

No way out of it, tried pulling the battery and everything.

As soon as it booted the next time, same thing.

Pissed off, I fell asleep.

Woke up this morning to an new device- gee, thanks alot, Google.

The bastards only 'updated' every rotten Google app (I use NONE of these) to huge sizes and added God-Only-Knows what new permissions.

Not only that, the turds also 'updated' the PlayStore, and this new version has no history of recent updates.

So I am using UpToDown and ApkPure to go through these worthless apps and downgrade them to the original versions.

As if that wasn't bad enough, I open my G-Mail and discover TONS of spam!
This is all new, and from after this 'update'.

I will never, ever be 'updating' any of my devices again.
Another forced one like this, and I will say goodbye to my Google account altogether.
I am real close to taking the account off of this device.

They updated almost every single user app that I have reason to not update.
And then they don't even have the balls to let me know which ones.
They leave that up to me, to waste my day off doing what I had just done to this phone- AGAIN.

So now I have to spend all day going through and resetting the device all over again- the device that I just did that to a few weeks ago.

I HATE GOOGLE!

Do you know Rob Braxman?

 

[Deleted User]

We must all allow Google to lead us down the path of their Enlightenment, or you may be considered Unworthy.

 

[Dannydet]

Big brother is watching us

 

[PitCarver]

Have you tried to disable the Google apps that you don't use?
If you can't delete them outright, try to disable them.

 

[puppykickr]

Have you tried to disable the Google apps that you don't use?
If you can't delete them outright, try to disable them.

I normally do exactly that when I set up a phone.

But the turd will not allow me to disable most of them.

Interestingly enough, I clearly remember that Google Play Services was able to be disabled.

Then after the 'update', it no longer was.
After I brought it back down to the stock level, it was able to be disabled again.

 

[puppykickr]

You've got a phone from a US carrier? Some of whom, from what I've read on AF can be notorious for forcing their devices to update. Whatever T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon, et-al, forces out for their devices, quite frankly I don't think Google is entirely to blame. Perhaps you should really be hating on T-Mobile and the manufacturer of your particular phone?

Where I am it's actually impossible for Google to force phones to update. And I've only ever seen one update that couldn't be refused, on a Samsung galaxy Note7, and the update came from Samsung of course, and not Google.

Well, if it wasn't Google, then I would really be surprised- because only Google apps and apps available on the PlayStore were updated.

Even apps like Clock and Calendar, Calculator, etc.

 

[puppykickr]

We must all allow Google to lead us down the path of their Enlightenment, or you may be considered Unworthy.



View attachment 157968 View attachment 157969

My new version looked nothing like that.

Only to be upated, installed, and library.

Now I have the stock version again, and it is back to 'normal'.

 

[puppykickr]

Do you know Rob Braxman?

I do now, thanks!

 

[mikedt]

Well, if it wasn't Google, then I would really be surprised- because only Google apps and apps available on the PlayStore were updated.

Even apps like Clock and Calendar, Calculator, etc.

Well what sort of update was it?

Was it a firmware update, which are pushed out the by the device manufacturer(except for Google Pixel and Android One devices) or sometimes the carrier on their variant phones, e.g. T-Mobile. Usually stock system apps like Clock, Calendar, and Calculator(unless you have a Pixel or Android One), those come from the manufacturer and/or carrier as part of their firmware.

Of course I've never seen forced updates for myself, except for a recalled Samsung Galaxy Note7.

If it's a locked T-Mobile version phone you've got, then it's T-Mobile you should be ranting about, not Google.

 

[puppykickr]

Well what sort of update was it?

Was it a firmware update, which are pushed out the by the device manufacturer(except for Google Pixel and Android One devices) or sometimes the carrier on their variant phones, e.g. T-Mobile. Usually stock system apps like Clock, Calendar, and Calculator(unless you have a Pixel or Android One), those come from the manufacturer and/or carrier as part of their firmware.

Of course I've never seen forced updates for myself, except for a recalled Samsung Galaxy Note7.

If it's a locked T-Mobile version phone you've got, then it's T-Mobile you should be ranting about, not Google.

It is a Sprint phone, being used on T-Mobile.

The update was called a 'security update'.

The apps like clock, calendar, and calculator are all by Google, not the phone manufacturer.

Others included Files, Google Go, Google Assistant, Chrome, PlayStore, Play Services, etc.

Also reset some settings, like for the emergency alerts and other crap.

 

[Hadron]

Yeah, "security update" is just another type of system update. Sure, it may be mainly bugfixes, but it can also include system app updates that weren't strictly security updates (though I'm sure if you questioned the distributor they'd claim that those app updates were to improve security too - more plausible for Play Services than for Clock...). Many pre-installed system apps are routinely updated via the Play Store, but that doesn't mean that they can't be included in a system update.

As for who is responsible, it's the same chain as any other system update: Google -> Manufacturer -> Carrier (if the handset was bought from a carrier), each of whom can make their own additions (or, more rarely, subtractions, if e.g. a Google update includes a feature that the manufacturer choose not to include in their ROM, or if it includes a feature that the carrier chose to remove so that they could charge extra for their version). So a new version of Play Services would certainly have come from Google, but unless you have a Pixel there will always be at least one party involved downstream from Google, possibly two. The fact that you had no way of declining it sounds like T-Mobile were the actual distributors for this, because as others have said it's really only American carriers who force updates that way.

 

[puppykickr]

Yeah, "security update" is just another type of system update. Sure, it may be mainly bugfixes, but it can also include system app updates that weren't strictly security updates (though I'm sure if you questioned the distributor they'd claim that those app updates were to improve security too - more plausible for Play Services than for Clock...). Many pre-installed system apps are routinely updated via the Play Store, but that doesn't mean that they can't be included in a system update.

As for who is responsible, it's the same chain as any other system update: Google -> Manufacturer -> Carrier (if the handset was bought from a carrier), each of whom can make their own additions (or, more rarely, subtractions, if e.g. a Google update includes a feature that the manufacturer choose not to include in their ROM, or if it includes a feature that the carrier chose to remove so that they could charge extra for their version). So a new version of Play Services would certainly have come from Google, but unless you have a Pixel there will always be at least one party involved downstream from Google, possibly two. The fact that you had no way of declining it sounds like T-Mobile were the actual distributors for this, because as others have said it's really only American carriers who force updates that way.

I would agree, except...
the device was originally from Sprint, and it was begging for the update even then.

After changing the SIM with T-Mobile, it continued.

Further aggrevation is that the 'system security' date is still the same as it was before.

 

[puppykickr]

I have never seen a device so locked into Google and Facebook.

Although the Facebook apps are able to be disabled, the Google apps all remain active even without a Google account on the device.

Android System Webview is disabled, and because Chrome cannot be, ASW will never be active.

So Chrome IS the webview.
This means that Google is forcing all web content for any app that uses webview to go through Chrome.

 

[Trom]

I have never seen a device so locked into Google and Facebook.

Although the Facebook apps are able to be disabled, the Google apps all remain active even without a Google account on the device.

Android System Webview is disabled, and because Chrome cannot be, ASW will never be active.

So Chrome IS the webview.
This means that Google is forcing all web content for any app that uses webview to go through Chrome.

I have ordered a pine phone which is back ordered. Although they're a beta product, I'm pretty jazzed to get my hands on it. I have always hated the thought that my phone is simply leased from a surveillance agency.

 

[puppykickr]

I have ordered a pine phone which is back ordered. Although they're a beta product, I'm pretty jazzed to get my hands on it. I have always hated the thought that my phone is simply leased from a surveillance agency.

Let me know how that goes.
I very well may be interested for the very same reasons.

Would you believe (of course you would) that the damn phone is now once again telling me that it needs a 'system update'?

You can bet that I am not restarting it again.

 

[puppykickr]

Not long after I reclaimed my device after an unwanted 'update'...

So this means that as soon as the device is restarted, it will happen again.

One nice thing, however, is that for some reason after I downgraded Chrome to the stock level it became able to be disabled.

So that means that now I can actually use Android System Webview like a normal human being.

Leave it to Google to make 'able to be disabled' a good thing.

 

[puppykickr]

Learned a few things last night and this morning.

Last night, I learned that many apps that are seemingly unable to be disabled ARE able to be-

on the app page, scroll down to 'Advaced', click on 'battery', and then click on 'battery' again.

Disable then often will then be available, at least on this device.

Goodbye FB, Google, and other Google poop.

Then this morning I see yet another notice on my device like in my other post.
'Your system is 5 days out of date, blah blahblah'.
This time there is a 'learn more' option, so I take the bait.

As I suspected, it takes me right to Google poop that of course ends with the question "Was this article helpful?"

" No", of course, is the answer I gave- along with a paragraph (well, they did ask about 'How can we improve your experience?) describing to them the difference between a system update and updating a bunch of Google crap that I don't use.

Anyway, this proves that the 'system update' is really just more junk from Google, and nothing from my carrier or manufacturer.

For Google to call this a system update should be criminal.

 

[puppykickr]

Ok, so an epilogue to this.
I did figure out a way to disable lots more Google poop on this pathetic little device.

I do still get the warning that the device is out of date, bevging me to 'update' it, but now it is just a notification and there is no more countdown and forcing of updates.

No clue as to what app(s) are responsible, but I am glad to have it to this point.
I can now restart the device and not have a bunch of Poogle shoved down my throat.

My guess is that if I removed my Poogle account altogether that the issue would end altogether.
If and when I get all my contacts as device instead of Poogle, then I will do just that.
As it is now, all my contacts disappear if I remove the account.
I have tried to export them en mass and then import them after the account is gone, to no avail.