[APP][5.0+] FairEmail - Fully featured, open source, privacy oriented email app

[M66B]

I would also like to do my part. I have used FairEmail for many years and was (and actually still am) always satisfied. Yes, I also have the Pro version and donated now and then. But to be honest this ass kissing here gets on my nerves.

Google doesn't block and remove apps for no reason at all. They never have and they never will. Anyone who reads through the guidelines knows what is allowed and what is not. I don't want to say that Marcel is to blame, but I also don't want to say that Google is to blame. There are now times these guidelines.

And in the software industry a bad rating is not the end of the world, it should be taken as serious criticism. Who is not able to do this, is either too stupid or too ignorant. It has to be one of them.

It's his app, and it's his decision whether to stop or not, but he shouldn't present himself as the sole victim. My support mails have not been answered for days, instead I now get one or two new spam mails every now and then. I don't know him personally and I don't want to make any judgments about him, so please don't misunderstand.

I hope nevertheless with all my heart that someone else will take care of FairEmail.

Apps are automatically being rejected by an "AI" and this will obviously not be fail-safe. In itself a rejection isn't a problem, but it is a problem that Google doesn't tell why an app was rejected exactly and that no useful discussion about it is possible.

I think the biggest victims are the users of the app.

I am answering all support emails, but last days were "a bit" hectic, so maybe your messages got lost in a huge pile of messages. Please ask your question again, which you can do here too.

 

[M66B]

@Dr-Bob

I just sent this to Google:

EU regulation 2019/1150 requires you to be specific and transparent about why the app is being rejected. You being unable "to provide any more details or a better answer" doesn't exempt you from this requirement. If you can't give an answer, somebody else needs to give the answer. I am requesting you again to be specific and to answer these questions:

1. Which contact info is being sent
2. When that is being sent
3. To where that is being sent

 

[M66B]

{Mod edit: Quoted post has been deleted}
They did not and I asked them a few simple questions, which they do not answer.

 

[M66B]

The app doesn't send or share contact list info.

The app has been removed before, probably just because there was a link in the change log to https://libravatar.org.

It just isn't that simple.

Anyway, the app is open source, so if you or anybody else can tell me where the app sends contact list info as Google says, please be my guest.

 

[chris122380]

Another question: the app is not available in the Play store anymore. How is it possible that people can write reviews?

If you have purchased the app you can still see it under the list of your purchased apps. However ignore the reviews you are always going to find critics. It doesn't matter if it's a perfect app there will always be somebody who complains. However the last time I looked at it (yesterday) all the reviews were five stars that were displaying on the page. The outpouring of support on XDA, Twitter, Mastodon, in news articles, etc show that all of us don't care what the reviewers have to say. Plus if you want to look at reviews Fairemail surpasses all of these apps with a 4.7 rating while these are less than that Twitter, Mastodon, XDA, Facebook, Gmail, Google, Aquamail, K9, etc. It just shows that more people liked Fairemail then the majority of the apps in the Play store. And even outranked almost all of Google's own apps. To have this high of reviews there is nothing to be ashamed of.
Fairemail is still the best email app available and even if you choose not to update it going forward doesn't change the fact that it is still the best.

 

[skibbi_pl]

Hi Marcel,
As a FairEmail pro user I just wanted to thank you for this amazing mail app. I'm a heavy mail user and I absolutely love your app. I hope you'll not drop the development because of this. But of course it's your decision so I would like to thank you for the last one year of support.

Take care and best wishes!

 

[paradøx]

I was just thinking to maybe just release updates on GitHub, but that plan is going right into the trash can after this 1 star Play store review

"I think the open source community will not miss such a character."

Wrong. Netguard, FairEmail, XPrivacyLua... I wonder how that idiotic reviewer has contributed to the open source community?

 

[M66B]

I think this is a fair question: can you please uninstall the app, install the Gmail app and go away?

 

[rhardy]

Hi Marcel,
Sorry to hear about what has been happening with Fairemail and your partner. How she gets better soon.
Things have not be easy lately on so many levels. Thanks for your efforts with respect to FairEmail. Your tool is badly needed and your contributions will be surely missed. I really hope we find some way to keep using FairEmail as I too have bought the Pro version. From my point of view there really isn't a functional alternative. Seeing the community come together and build on your tool and figuring out a way to sponsor improvements to it was really the direction I was hoping for. For example I would love to find a way to get better server side searching through the app and could sponsor that.

The current mobile landscape is broken on so many levels. Computing devices whether they are notebooks, phones, PC or whatever are their owners. Having monopolistic corporate interests control for store policies when they are heavily biased to their corporate interests and then force them on developers and device owners is inherently a conflict of interest. Device owner rights, data rights and right to repair need to be protected in law or highly disposable devices which only serve corporate interests will remain the norm. I really hope laws world wide catch up to protect owners and developers.

I can imagine free unlimited support for nothing or even less than 10 euro isn't realistic. It sounds like adopting a functional sustainable model which serves both the community and your interests is needed.

Front end support could be on community members be that forums, IRC channels, Discord etc.
If you are going to be involved figure out what you need for a living wage and to be happy and only offer that.
Less than 10 euro for life of free updates and unlimited support is a good deal but isn't sustainable for you.
Perhaps offering pro features paid once and a subscription model for individualized priority support would work?

Stay well,
Robert Hardy

 

[Rococos]

Like Marcel said before, there ain't many replies here addressing the how and why.

I am a pro user and FairEmail is the best email app. Filters, anti-tracking, keywords, etc. No other app comes close. K-9 is years behind.

As for the how and why Marcel, I'd stick to paid updates on a quarterly base, for example. Gives you the piece of mind to work at your own pace, only mind the paying supporters, ignore the non-paying choosing beggars / cheapskates. Focus on F-Droid which is probably the bulk of your paying, privacy-minded, users.

Ditch Google... Most paying supporters are using LineageIS or other custom ROM. Your brilliant piece of software is probably not praised or understood at all by the common sheeple.

I'd pay for updates on a trimester or quarterly. And I'm not even talking about feature requests. Just maintaining it.

My 2 cents...
All the best to you and your loved ones.
Thanks for FairEmail

 

[M66B]

{Mod edit: Quoted post has been deleted}
You can have it, without updates and support.

 

[mkasimd]

@Dr-Bob the app does not send any contact data to anyone else. The only things that happen are:

• The sender and recipient as well as email content are sent / received from the email server, as this is the basic requirement for an email app
• The app might send the email address of the user to the email provider when registering to the server to open an IMAP or SMTP session for receiving or sending mails. Again a requirement for an email app to work properly as many providers require the email address as username for authentication
• If using Favicons was explicitly enabled by the user, fairemail loads the image https://domain.tld/favicon.ico for any mail received from [email protected] (deactivated by default)
• If using libravatar, gravatar or similar services was explicitly enabled by the user, FairEmail might send a hash of the sender's address to the avatar service to receive an avatar. The email address itself isn't sent (deactivated by default)

Google claims something that does not happen and won't tell what it is.

Now, people like you come over here and claim Google would have explained everything. No they didn't. If you claim so, come on, look into the source code and give us a file name and a line number where the claimed violation happens. Here's the source code: https://github.com/M66B/FairEmail

Asking Marcel to disprove Google's ridiculous claims is ridiculous in itself. It's like the police arresting somebody at random, telling him "you're under arrest for murder" but not telling who was murdered when and where. But then also expecting that random guy to prove his innovence. Keeping him arrested despite the police couldn't prove his guilt.

Does that make any sense to you? If not, then be reasonable and stop complaining.

 

[de_Wolf]

{Mod edit: Quoted post has been deleted}
We are on different levels. Your statement cannot affect me at all.

 

[M66B]

Since you have stopped the updates and support anyway, allow me this question: Does it still matter?

Without this discussion it would have mattered more.

 

[M66B]

{Mod edit: Quoted post has been deleted}
If that's true, Google is stupid, isn't it?

 

[MajorWinters]

Best wishes for you @M66B!

 

[Irish_Dude]

i installed K9 mail today and also PEP email client after using fairemail for years.

When I installed and used these 2 apps it felt like I downgraded from a mcclaren F1 to a Toyota corolla.

Nothing comes close to fairemail.

Id be more than happy to pay a yearly sub if you ever decide to keep developing Fairemail.

Best of luck either way Marcel

 

[M66B]

{Mod edit: Quoted post has been deleted}
I rather like to leave it as it is, as it illustrates one of the problems I am having with this project.

@Oswald Boelcke

 

[garak]

The app doesn't send or share contact list info.

But didn't you say you use the email address to log into the server? And the email address is a part of the contact list. So the condition is fulfilled that you upload something from the contact list. As far as I understand it, it is not about the whole contact list, one field from it is enough.

 

[jarlanddonnell]

But didn't you say you use the email address to log into the server? And the email address is a part of the contact list. So the condition is fulfilled that you upload something from the contact list. As far as I understand it, it is not about the whole contact list, one field from it is enough.

If that ends up being their rationale I'd say it's borderline malicious interpretation (on Google, not you).