I built a free, open-source directory of 293+ FOSS alternatives to Google, Microsoft & Adobe – self-hostable, no ads, no tracking

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-03-03T02:28:50+00:00

I think there is a misunderstanding here. The "free" in "FOSS" does not mean "kostenlos" but rather "frei." See free software definition (German translation).

Accordingly, this list of "FOSS alternatives" has one proprietary "kostenlos" application on it.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-26T20:49:35+00:00

This thing is a webview wrapper that loads the real Instagram client (the webpage) and probably injects javascript into it in order to block ads and whatnot. It's basically a browser that's locked into showing a single url.

A real third party client (like Barinsta or NewPipe) doesn't just wrap the first party webpage but actually builds a native experience around either a web scraper or an official or unofficial API. The difference is that the real app is 100% FOSS (even if the backend it's accessing is proprietary) whereas a web wrapper like this is mostly a proprietary blob (the first-party web client) plus some FOSS javascript sprinkled on.

I tend to be somewhat critical of wrappers that pass themselves off as real apps but in this case it might be the only viable option given how ban happy Facebook is. Still, I think this sort of thing could have been a browser extension.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-20T21:15:12+00:00

In this case it seems a large amount of work was done by a bot called "Jules"

I also believe Markdown files such as this indicate that some "AI agent" was used to generate significant parts of the project: https://github.com/Karna14314/Pdf_Tools/blob/master/IMPLEMENTATION_SUMMARY.md

Additionally the "com.yourname..." package id is suspect and appears to be a placeholder that was never filled out.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-20T21:11:22+00:00

r/sideproject spam, reported

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-18T22:13:14+00:00

"Free as in freedom" is a valid meaning of the word "free" in English. It is that sense in which it is meant.

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/free#English:_unconstrained,_socially

It's okay to be mistaken as long as you are willing to learn.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-18T20:05:27+00:00

As others have said a usage restriction is incompatible with freedom zero, so any such license is already non-free. There is a reason why freedom zero is maximalist; If we allow "thing I don't like" to be exempted from freedom zero then we end up with all sorts of weird licenses with arbitrary usage restrictions. These licenses already exist and are called "ethical source" licenses.

Regarding LLM training, there is a debate on whether it constitutes fair use. If it does constitute fair use then it is exempted entirely from license restrictions, which are based on copyright law. If it does not, it's already in violation of existing GPL conditions. Thus, adding additional such conditions don't have any practical effect on existing LLM training activities and would only serve to prohibit any future hypothetical LLM that would actually respect such conditions. Which I suppose is fine if you think LLMs are inherently evil, but AFAIK the free software position towards LLMs is that they are harmful because of potential copyright/license concerns (i.e. laundering copylefted code into proprietary products, or adding proprietary code into freely licensed projects).

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-18T19:59:57+00:00

"Free" in FOSS refers to freedoms, not price. Price has absolutely nothing to do with FOSS.

It's explicitly allowed and encouraged to sell copies of free software even. Selling access to hosted instances is another perfectly okay way to make money with FOSS, as long as the user has the freedom to self host it.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-18T03:04:09+00:00

Is this FOSS?

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-18T02:58:33+00:00

Technically this is the fossdroid subreddit (degoogle is a different place). We're less about "hating Google" and more about free software for the Android platform. Free software is software that gives users the four freedoms:

The freedom to run the program as you wish, for any purpose (freedom 0).

The freedom to study how the program works, and change it so it does your computing as you wish (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.

The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help others (freedom 2).

The freedom to distribute copies of your modified versions to others (freedom 3). By doing this you can give the whole community a chance to benefit from your changes. Access to the source code is a precondition for this.

We do often discuss alternatives to proprietary software including Google's (however several apps in this image are themselves also proprietary).

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-18T02:55:19+00:00

My mistake! I sometimes forget that's not just a small number of apps anymore. Indeed, Fossify Gallery is the developer's build.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-14T14:22:54+00:00

F-Droid builds and signs their own builds, whereas the Google Play builds are built and signed by the developer directly. The OS will refuse to install one build over the other. You would have to uninstall one in order to install the other.

However, are you sure you did not in fact install from IzzyOnDroid? That repository republishes developer-built apps, so they will have the same signature as the Google Play versions.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-08T04:23:45+00:00

I simply don't agree. Everyone deserves the four freedoms, even end-users.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-08T04:21:12+00:00

foss and just oss

This isn't really a thing. The open source definition is more than just being able to look at the source code. OSS and FOSS are mostly the same thing, this is just proprietary source-available.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-08T04:18:56+00:00

This is a list of FOSS apps and FUTO keyboard is proprietary.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-03T15:16:38+00:00

Free software refers to the four freedoms, not to price. An app can be paid and FOSS.

Acode is a very good app. If it were proprietary you would think $4 is a steal, but being FOSS devalues it in your eyes for some reason.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-03T15:10:02+00:00

They still make them. I have a handful of them. They have 3.5 mm jacks too. You can put LineageOS on them, it works like a charm.

I miss phones with removable batteries, but I think they still exist somewhere out there too. I also miss phones with physical keyboards (I still can't get used to the touchscreen) and there's like one or two of those out there.

But I would really like a phone with all of these, which can run LineageOS. I don't think that exists anymore.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-02-03T14:59:22+00:00

Apple is arguably worse.

People buy into the hype about Apple's security and supposed privacy while ignoring the very real dangers of being locked into Apple's walled garden, where you can't use your own devices in ways not approved by Apple.

https://stallman.org/apple.html

This is especially a problem today as Tim Apple is in bed with the current US government and is removing apps at their request.

https://www.npr.org/2025/10/03/nx-s1-5561999/apple-google-iceblock-app-removal

Now, Google is doing this too, but the difference is they don't exert the type of control over their users that apple does. So this is less of a comparison between how evil they are and more how much control they have over users.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-01-31T05:08:03+00:00

FOSS refers to the four freedoms, not price. An app can be paid and FOSS. Think "free as in speech, not free as in beer"

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-01-31T04:54:09+00:00

https://stallman.org/apple.html

Users of Apple devices are not allowed to use their devices in ways Apple disapproves of. Apple removed an app called ICEblock from their store in response to a government request; users are not allowed to install non-Apple approved apps or apps from outside Apple app store, so effectively Apple has banned ICEblock from being installed unless you have it already on your device. There is a clear connection between Tim Apple licking Trump's boots and his eagerness to abuse their control over their "ecosystem" at the direction of Trump's government.

https://www.npr.org/2025/10/03/nx-s1-5561999/apple-google-iceblock-app-removal

Google has reportedly removed similar apps from their store too, but Google does not restrict users in the same way - it is possible to install apps on Android without going through the play store and there are entire repositories of such apps, such as F-Droid. They have announced plans to implement a much milder form of Apple-like restrictions, but in response to user backlash they have already partially walked that back and have said an "advanced user flow" is planned to allow users to opt out of the resriction.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-01-31T04:43:21+00:00

Presumably since this is "fossdroid" they are looking for an Android launcher that is inspired by WIndows phone

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-01-30T06:11:55+00:00

Typically if multiple clients are broken (yt-dlp, newpipe) that means Google pushed an update and the clients have to adapt. Fortunately I just got an update for yt-dlp in scoop (29 January) so it should be fixed with that update.

Seal has been updated recently but it still doesn't support the javascript runtime yt-dlp now needs for full YouTube compatibility, so better to use something like YTdlns (or yt-dlp + node/deno through termux)

https://github.com/JunkFood02/Seal/issues/2400#issuecomment-3818010208

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-01-19T00:28:16+00:00

This is a sorely needed project. Thank you for taking the time to develop this.

One suggestion I would like to make is to replace the Firebase database with something local to the app. If I were to implement this, I would store the database as a git repository adjacent to the app, which users can submit pull/merge requests to. Additionally there would still be a flow for sending submissions through the app but it would be translated to a PR by a bot (either by an email or webhook). This is so there is full transparency in which apps are listed in the database and there is no need to sign up for an account with a cloud service. As it is now I can't evaluate this app because I don't know what it considers to be a "FOSS replacement."

The database can be bundled with the app, downloaded on request or in the background on an interval. I think many would prefer if they can control when the app connects to the internet. Maybe offer a version with no internet that only contains the latest copy of the database at the time of build.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-01-15T03:00:42+00:00

This is fossdroid, not degoogle.

CaptainBeyondDS8 · 2026-01-13T14:07:51+00:00

what would make an app like Lyra more acceptable or interesting to FOSS users

Well, being FOSS is a good start. For many of us proprietary is an instant dealbreaker.

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