#QANONSEC secure search Android app Discussion
Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2023 10:09 am
So there's something in the app that has been frustrating me since it was released into the wild, which thankfully after lots of testing and trial and error I've been able to work out what the cause is.
But first, the problem:
On some Android systems when you press the X or Facebook icons it will exit the app and load X/Facebook inside an external window in Chrome mobile browser.
This is not supposed to happen and not how the app has been instructed to handle links to X and Facebook.
By design it is supposed to handle them inside the app and not leave to keep the transition between services smooth and consistent.
This is not a bug in our app, rather a terrible, albeit intentional, design in Android with how it handles external links in apps.
You can search online about the issue and find thousands of developers and end-users all complaining about the same problem.
Basically, it's an intentional instruction implemented in more recent iterations of Android, by Google, to favor the Chrome mobile browser above all other instructions.
It's not strict but as I point out here it can be resolved.
The solution:
When you first install the #QANONSEC secure search Android app you need to clear all history, cookies and site data in Chrome mobile browser.
Now when you attempt to launch X or Facebook they should open inside the app as it's designed to do.
Doing this basically gives the app priority over the links and resolves the issue.
But first, the problem:
On some Android systems when you press the X or Facebook icons it will exit the app and load X/Facebook inside an external window in Chrome mobile browser.
This is not supposed to happen and not how the app has been instructed to handle links to X and Facebook.
By design it is supposed to handle them inside the app and not leave to keep the transition between services smooth and consistent.
This is not a bug in our app, rather a terrible, albeit intentional, design in Android with how it handles external links in apps.
You can search online about the issue and find thousands of developers and end-users all complaining about the same problem.
Basically, it's an intentional instruction implemented in more recent iterations of Android, by Google, to favor the Chrome mobile browser above all other instructions.
It's not strict but as I point out here it can be resolved.
The solution:
When you first install the #QANONSEC secure search Android app you need to clear all history, cookies and site data in Chrome mobile browser.
Now when you attempt to launch X or Facebook they should open inside the app as it's designed to do.
Doing this basically gives the app priority over the links and resolves the issue.