mobile/why-does-your-phone-ask-allow-this-app-app-permissions-explained.md
Why does your phone ask "Allow this app?" App permissions explained
Every app on your phone lives in its own sandbox: free to use its own files, but walled off from other apps and from personal things like your location, camera and microphone. To reach those, it has to ask, and you decide.
Tap through a phone simulator on iPhone and Android to see the real choices: while using, only this time, don't allow, always, and precise vs approximate location. Then see what developers must do: declare permissions, ask at the right moment, and keep the app working when you say no.
$ ls mobile/
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mobile/list-recycling-why-a-phone-can-scroll-10-000-contacts-while-building-o.md
List recycling: why a phone can scroll 10,000 contacts while building only 8 rows
A phone can scroll through 10,000 contacts without building 10,000 rows. It builds only enough row views to cover the screen, then recycles…
mobile/push-notifications-how-your-phone-buzzes-for-an-app-that-isn-t-running.md
Push notifications: how your phone buzzes for an app that isn't running
Your phone buzzes with a message from an app that isn't even running. How? Phones keep one shared connection to a push service (Apple's…
mobile/offline-sync-what-happens-when-two-phones-edit-the-same-contact.md
Offline sync: what happens when two phones edit the same contact
You edit a contact's phone number on a plane. Your partner fixes the city on a tablet. Both devices are offline, then both reconnect. Which…
mobile/deep-links-why-one-link-opens-an-app-and-another-opens-a-web-page.md
Deep links: why one link opens an app and another opens a web page
Tap the same link on two phones and one opens an app while the other opens a web page. Who decides, and how? This article explains deep…
mobile/app-lifecycle-why-your-phone-forgets-what-you-typed-when-you-switch-ap.md
App lifecycle: why your phone forgets what you typed when you switch apps
You switch apps for a minute, and when you come back the message you were typing is gone. Nothing was broken: the phone needed memory…
mobile/pixels-dp-and-points-why-a-button-of-48-is-tiny-on-one-phone-and-fine.md
Pixels, dp and points: why a button of 48 is tiny on one phone and fine on another
A button you size at 48 looks fine on one phone and tiny on another, because a sharper screen packs more pixels into the same space. This…