Discussion:
[whispersystems] Android tablet support revisited
#359
2017-11-21 17:30:35 UTC
Permalink
Hey Robert,

I don't think things are so simple. I think there are at least three
things that are holding tablet support back:

1. Most people would probably not want to register their tablet with
another phone number (having their mobile phone already registered with
Signal), so there needs to be a way to add a tablet as slave device,
just like a desktop computer.

2. Signal Android UI is not adjusted for tablet devices at the moment.

3. The core Signal developement team is a very small group of people, I
think only Moxie is working on android devices at the moment, tablet
support is a known issue and is on the to-do list, but many other
important issues are also on the list and there's no way to do
everything at once. It seems that tablet support is not the first
priority.

The good thing is, as you already know, that Signal for android actually
works on tablets and people that really need it on tablets can use it
right now. And if someone really wanted this issue to be solved, one
could always submit their own pull requests on GitHub.

These are only my thoughts, I am not affiliated with OWS.


- jure
Hello,
I found this bug about Android tablet support. It's open and the last
change was 2y ago.
https://github.com/WhisperSystems/Signal-Android/issues/614
Many things have happened, like the APK being available officially for
download outside of the Play Store. Using this I was able to install
and register Signal on a Nexus 7 tablet.
However, there's no interface to enter the SMS code received on the
phone. Verifying the phone number through a phone call worked.
Now I'm interested to know which things were holding back tablet
support through Google Play and whether those things still apply. To
me, it looks like all we need is: Show a SMS verification text field so
the user doesn't have to wait for the time out and the phone call.
An update on the issue would be greatly appreciated.
Best,
Robert
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Kus
2017-11-21 19:53:38 UTC
Permalink
I second this request. The behavior on the iPhone is perfect. You see a text in your favorite text messaging app and you enter it yourself.
#359
2017-11-21 20:04:47 UTC
Permalink
Note that lack of that feature in Signal for android was deliberate.

- jure
Post by Kus
I second this request. The behavior on the iPhone is perfect. You see a
text in your favorite text messaging app and you enter it yourself.
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Benedikt Radtke
2017-11-22 01:54:51 UTC
Permalink
Hey,


if you don't mind building Signal-Android yourself you can run it as a
slave. Just build my branch[1], click "cancel" when it asks for your
phone number, and scan the qrcode with your master device.


My branch is currently 231 commits behind WhisperSystems:master, but if
you want I can rebase it on top of the recent changes.


- Benni


[1] https://github.com/Trolldemorted/Signal-Android/tree/multidevice
Post by #359
Hey Robert,
I don't think things are so simple. I think there are at least three
1. Most people would probably not want to register their tablet with
another phone number (having their mobile phone already registered with
Signal), so there needs to be a way to add a tablet as slave device,
just like a desktop computer.
2. Signal Android UI is not adjusted for tablet devices at the moment.
3. The core Signal developement team is a very small group of people, I
think only Moxie is working on android devices at the moment, tablet
support is a known issue and is on the to-do list, but many other
important issues are also on the list and there's no way to do
everything at once. It seems that tablet support is not the first
priority.
The good thing is, as you already know, that Signal for android actually
works on tablets and people that really need it on tablets can use it
right now. And if someone really wanted this issue to be solved, one
could always submit their own pull requests on GitHub.
These are only my thoughts, I am not affiliated with OWS.
- jure
Hello,
I found this bug about Android tablet support. It's open and the last
change was 2y ago.
https://github.com/WhisperSystems/Signal-Android/issues/614
Many things have happened, like the APK being available officially for
download outside of the Play Store. Using this I was able to install
and register Signal on a Nexus 7 tablet.
However, there's no interface to enter the SMS code received on the
phone. Verifying the phone number through a phone call worked.
Now I'm interested to know which things were holding back tablet
support through Google Play and whether those things still apply. To
me, it looks like all we need is: Show a SMS verification text field so
the user doesn't have to wait for the time out and the phone call.
An update on the issue would be greatly appreciated.
Best,
Robert
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