So... installing software?
>Specifically it means installing from a non-first party source.
Just like 99% of software running on computers in the world today? How is it different from "installing software"?
>Specifically it means installing from a non-first party source.
Just like 99% of software running on computers in the world today? How is it different from "installing software"?
It's easy to see this play out if try to replace "sideloading" with "installing software". If you apply it to OP's headline of
>Google confirms 'high-friction' sideloading flow is coming to Android
You get
>Google confirms 'high-friction' installing software flow is coming to Android
which isn't at all accurate. You still need the distinct concept of "installing software not from first party sources", otherwise it sounds like google is making it a pain to install all apps, which isn't the case.
In other ecosystems the store path is described as "store install" not the other way around. Android chose the inverse framing and that choice isn't neutral.
Right, which is why they used "sideload".
>In other ecosystems the store path is described as "store install" not the other way around. Android chose the inverse framing and that choice isn't neutral.
No, this is just being non-neutral in the opposite direction. Given the fact that installing from the play store is the default experience for the overwhelming majority of the user, calling it "store install" is even more obtuse.
And neutrality here isn't about mirroring current usage frequency (which is unique to Android and recent relative to the history of computing), it's about continuity with prior computing norms. Even when one distribution path dominated in practice, it didn't get to redefine the base verb.
Sometimes we use different words in different contexts. Language usually doesn't make logical sense. In mobile environments you sideload to get the binary onto the device and use the OS to properly install it. This dates from a time where putting the binary on the device was the difficult part. Devices didn't have standard ports or fast/free wireless data. You had to do something special to transfer the data.
In a lot of cases, installation was also a separate special process involving the command line. It wasn't always just tapping the install button.