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Would you consider adding it to f-droid?
Yes! I opened a request with F-Droid in July and it's waiting for a reviewer: https://gitlab.com/fdroid/rfp/-/work_items/4138
Until then, the GitHub releases work with Obtainium.
Obtainium
TIL
It's a good one. It installs apps straight from their GitHub releases and keeps them updated. Gander's README has a one-tap link to add it.
this whole time i've been doing the hard way -- manually sideloading. :p
well no more of that now, glad i got to share 😄
Any vibe-coded parts?
A lot of it was written with AI, yes, under my direction, and every push runs the test suite in CI.
The no-permissions part doesn't rest on trusting the code, though. The build fails if a permission is added, the About screen shows what Android says the app requests, and it's MIT, so the code is there to read.
If anything in it looks wrong, open an issue and I'll look into it: https://github.com/mokshablr/gander/issues
i don't remember seeing anything similar to this, i want to check this out when it comes to fdroid. lemmy needs a reminders feature.
Thanks! The F-Droid request is here if you want to follow it: https://gitlab.com/fdroid/rfp/-/work_items/4138
Until then, Obtainium can install it from the GitHub releases and keep it updated.
Finally I have something to install when I clean up phones used by boomers.
I have no idea why boomers love to install 10 different ad-ridden PDF readers, all at the same time. One of them used 5gb of internet in 30 days. Why would they replace the default one with a reader that shows a mandatory 30 seconds ad before loading the file
This is cool, I was literally looking for an app to open all kinda files for a lean build...great piece of software..
Thanks! What's the lean build, a stripped-down phone? If a file doesn't open, do let me know.
Well, it opened a pptx with embedded videos without a problem. That's nice!
What Gander name means?
edit: Also, I'm not informed in the very least what security measures may apply here, I mean against random files users may open. It would not hurt to consult with an expert.
Glad the pptx worked!
The name is from "take a gander" which is like slang for "take a look". A gander is also a male goose hence the icon. 😛
Gander treats every file as untrusted. Documents render in a WebView that runs only Gander's own scripts and loads nothing except Gander's own code and the file you opened. With no internet permission, a file that got past that still couldn't reach the network.
Nobody outside has audited it yet, and you're right that it wouldn't hurt. SECURITY.md lists what a file should never be able to do, and how to report one privately: https://github.com/mokshablr/gander/blob/main/SECURITY.md
Looks cool. Great demand for this.
Can you set the git so that obtainium can install it?
Is there an edit feature which will then open your app of choice for editing the file type?
Obtainium already works with the GitHub releases, and the README has a one-tap link for it.
There's no edit feature, but the viewer's Share button hands the file to any app that accepts it so that should work for what you said.
Brilliant, thanks - my obtainium attempts had ".git" on the end. Looks great, the share feature is exactly the use case I was looking. Only looking for it baked in because android's share feature is fairly poor.
The README is full of slop, what about the code?
Fair question. A lot of it(the README and code) was written with AI assistance under my direction, and every push runs with a the test suite in CI.
The no-permissions claim doesn't depend on trusting that tho.. the build fails if a permission is added, the About screen on the app also shows what Android says the app requests(isnt hardcoded), and it's open-source MIT licensed, so the code is there to read.
If you find something bad in it, you can open an issue and I'll definitely be there to look into it.
Ok then, why not on F-Droid yet?
F-Droid is the one I actually want. The request has been open since July (https://gitlab.com/fdroid/rfp/-/issues/4138) but nobody from F-Droid has reviewed it yet, which seems to be normal there.
The one thing I expect review to bring up is that the renderers are vendored as minified JavaScript, and I've offered to swap in unminified copies or build them from source. Meanwhile, the APK on GitHub releases works with Obtainium.
Put a "Get it on Obtainium" button on the README
Done, thanks! The README's install section now has a one-tap link to add Gander to Obtainium: https://github.com/mokshablr/gander#install
That's better than nothing, but what I meant is you have a "Get it on Google Play" button at the very top of the README, right next to which you could have an equivalent "Get it on Obtainium" button button.
Hey, this thing is pretty great!!
Legit no permissions! Very neat
The empty permissions page is weaker evidence than people in here are taking it for. That screen only lists runtime permissions, so INTERNET, ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE, FOREGROUND_SERVICE and the rest never show up there whether or not an app has them. Plenty of apps with a blank page can still open sockets.
The manifest line is the actual claim, and it's a much stronger one. Anyone who wants to check it without taking your word or mine: on the Play listing, About this app → App permissions → See more is extracted from the uploaded build, not written by the developer. Or aapt2 dump permissions on the apk. Both show the normal permissions that the on-device page hides.
System TTS or built in?
Any root functions?
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