[maxharris]

I don't have a problem with this specific thing. Both Apple and Google are doing things like adding links to apps. This obviously won't please the die-hard web fanatics, but I think that this is a positive development. Something has to be done to avoid the Electron performance disaster that has befallen the desktop, and the only solution I can see is to go native.

Having said that, not being able to install apps from outside the App Store is a major problem. It's not healthy for our society, in the long-term, for the App Store and Google Play stores to be limiting the content as they do.

Solution? Let's campaign for openness in native apps! This way, we're not caught in the position of telling users that they have to put up with inferior UX and low battery life in exchange for freedom from central control.