Why is it required to open an account in order to receive software updates?

answered 2014-02-09 05:44:09 +0200

00prometheus
13308 ●135 ●174 ●152

updated 2014-02-10 16:34:13 +0200

I voted the question up. We all love our Jollas, and Jolla the company. However, let us not become blind to the truth: It is primarily an early adopter and nerd phone, and it is marketed on nerd values, none the least Free Open-Source Software (FOSS) values. Compared to the Android or iPhone flagships, it really has no place in the market. Even compared to the maximum bang-for-the-buck sweetspot midrange phones, the Jolla hardware lags behind. As we all know, the current state of the software is no where near as polished as what Apple and Google churn out. So what we have is a very promising enthusiasts phone, with lots of promise for the future, but it certainly isn't there for the mass markets yet.

Now I have seen my share of Apple fanbois, people that blindly accept and praise their favorite company, regardless of how that company acts, as long as the hardware looks beautiful. I really don't think Jolla can get away with the same for the audience they have! To believe in open source is a political state of mind, it is an ideal that has shown to be the most practical and powerful there is in the software industry (note how all still succesful mass-market OSs are based on open source). However, like all good political ideals, including democracy, it must be guarded and protected relentlessly!

No matter how much we love Jolla the company, we can not just accept when they behave wrongly, like the worst Apple fanbois do from Apple. We must hold Jolla to their image and style, make sure they remember that it isn't the company itself, or even the beauty of their products that makes us want to be a part of this development - it is the promise of a good phone that takes the FOSS ideals truly to heart that makes the Jolla phone better than anything else on the market.

It is very easy for a company to slip up; the marketers want some basic demographic data on their customers, and then you find yourself requiring that data instead of asking nicely for it as a voluntary request. It is us, the community, that has to keep the company true to its line. Not only because we love FOSS, but also because we love Jolla, and Jolla can not survive without those who believe in FOSS.

Please vote the question up! What Jolla is asking for is a small thing, easily circumvented by lying, but a protest now presents a clear line at an easy spot, before Jolla falls down a slippery slope to a place much harder to get out of.

tl;dr Jolla should ask us to volunteer the data, not require it

answered 2014-02-09 18:51:23 +0200

This post is a wiki. Anyone with karma >75 is welcome to improve it.

updated 2014-02-09 18:52:03 +0200

strnous
7296 ●46 ●53 ●52

Among others the Terms of Service everyone agrees with while ordering/buying Jolla states (chapter 4):

"Our Services are generally available to people of all ages. The following age limitations apply, however, to specific cases:

If you are considered a minor in the country you reside in, you must ask your legal custodian’s permission before making any purchases.

If you are under thirteen, you should not use any of our Services that require you to provide us with personal data. See our Privacy Policy for more information on how we collect and process personal data.

If the Service-specific Terms imposes additional age requirements, you must comply with those requirements before you can use the service in question."

At least this is clear official statement which, from my point of view, supports Jolla's requirement to create the account including the requirement for the date of birth. Such requirement protects Jolla against potential legal issues. Providing fake values imposes the responsibility on the user who provided them.

Anyone has always the choice not to agree with such requirement which can be expressed by not buying/using the device.

answered 2014-02-09 18:11:05 +0200

corneliusg
953 ●12 ●14 ●19

Sharing some personal data actually is the basics of forming any relationship. Without that, it is not a relationship. You can lie about your data, so lying is the kind of relationship you choose. Jolla asks you not to lie, which sounds fair to me, as I in return don't want Jolla to lie to me.

Remote control - you don't know me, but I know you and I tell you what to do - is IMO something, that should be left to the human-being - machine relationship. Among human beings it usually has led and still does lead to disaster.

answered 2014-02-11 01:23:15 +0200

sauron
298 ●5 ●8 ●15

updated 2014-02-11 01:24:45 +0200

hi, please tell me what is privacy in internet? Internet is a place where you make money selling people data, so... Jolla needs registration is true, but people who voted up this question i am sure don't have a gmail account neither a facebook or tweeter account... These kind of stuffs are dangerous for privacy, not the jolla account. if you are actually so worried about your privacy:

1. close every gmail account or yahoo account
2. close your facebook account and any other social network account
3. change your /etc/hosts to make sure, for example, google analytics is 127.0.0.1
4. do not buy anything on the web
5. well maybe for you the best is not to connect to the internet at all

Please instead of reading every single word looking for something weird, look around you, in the mobile world everyone is trying to tell you what you need, jolla is asking us what we would like to have on our phone, this is very unlike. Bye