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The result was functional, and I got WhatsApp installed, but the biggest problem was the small screen size. It took a long time to download and install everything, occupied many gigabytes of space, and required a Google account to login and access WhatsApp through the Play Store in the virtual device.
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For instance, I thought Android Studio might provide a good emulator, but the user experience felt less than ideal. That's good enough for me.īefore I got it running in Anbox, I tried some other methods that I did not like. Most of the time, the application is not running on my laptop, but I have the ability to check in once in a while. This method still requires proprietary software, but the software has access to significantly less personal information. Installing WhatsApp in a virtual environment on my laptop feels safer than installing it on my phone.
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I came up with a solution that is far from perfect, but that works for me: install WhatsApp in a virtual phone on my laptop. While I was unwilling to install WhatsApp on my phone, I had sufficient determination to find a workaround. But this book club was already using WhatsApp. In similar situations in the past, when I was part of a group that was looking to add a new communication tool, I strongly suggested we use Signal instead. Recently, I joined a book club with members who use WhatsApp to communicate between meetings. While other free software advocates have a strong desire to impose their values on other people, I do not. Nevertheless, people around the world continue to use WhatsApp. That's the kind of demand that sends people running.
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For instance, earlier this year the company found themselves in the news again when they gave their users an ultimatum: hand over your data to Facebook or stop using WhatsApp. On the topic of security and privacy, WhatsApp has a long and checkered history, worthy of a special page on Wikipedia. To this day, I've never used WhatsApp on my phone. If you're not interested in the why, jump to the instructions Background
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