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A nice place to discuss rumors, happenings, innovations, and challenges in the technology sphere. We also welcome discussions on the intersections of technology and society. If it’s technological news or discussion of technology, it probably belongs here.

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Use WhatsApp without a smartphone? (beehaw.org)

submitted 7 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Hi. I'm thinking about switching to Linux on my smartphone. The only reason I can't is because in my country WhatsApp is everywhere and I'm expected to have it for various school/sport things. I'd like to setup whatsapp on my laptop, but I don't know how.

I know WhatsApp Web and Desktop exist, but in the past you needed to log in to your phone at least once a month for the web session to keep working. Is it that still the case?

Or can I just log in from Android (and be fine as long as I don't accidentally log out)?

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 7 months ago (2 children)

@[email protected]

Whatssapp is designed as a surveillance app, it's primary purpose is to collect data from your phone for Facebook to analyze, so they make it basically impossible to use unless it's installed on your phone.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (1 children)

But Facebook bought WhatsApp in like 2015 was it?

So it wasn't designed with Facebook datascraping in mind.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 7 months ago

@[email protected] I wonder what proportion of the original code is still there. Not much I shouldn't think. The original app didn't ask for android permissions the way the modern one does, if only coz Android changed the way permissions work since then.

@[email protected]

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago

Original WhatsApp was XMPP with phone number for your username. Pretty much what https://quicksy.im/ does now.

WhatsApp today is completely different beast.