[fergusd]

It is probably completely inappropriate (off-topic) to raise this query here, but I'll give it a go (because of the quality of the conversation, unmatched across any other forum that I visit) and because we're all bothered to some extent about What To Do Next.
I have moved to the Asus ZenFone 8 16GB / 256GB. Android 11 OOB but automatically updated to OS = Android 12 / Security = 5 May 2022 at switch-on.
Installed: latest available version of several apps.
The phone is just great. I chose it for all of: its tech spec, build quality, its small size and heft-in-the-hand. And across all these quality judgements it most definitely does not disappoint. Just as beautiful as the BB Z10, which as we all know is saying A LOT.
HOWEVER :
Very many apps - after installing successfully and working well for a while (maybe several days) - then inexplicably fail with the "<<This application>> keeps stopping" error msg. (A bit like the BB10 message "<<This application>> has stopped running" but at least that is recoverable (usually).) Any amount of cleaning (cache, user data) yields no improvement. The list of failures includes MS Outlook, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sounds, Amazon Kindle, my banking Credit Card Manager, others. In some cases (i) I have installed old version.v-1 or even version.v-many and this has addressed the problem; or (ii) I simply visit the website (maybe this is a preferred trajectory anyway??) - but in the case of the C/C manager, I have so far not found a working version, and there is no web capability.
Is this ("keeps stopping") a common problem with Android apps / devices? Is it a phenomenon related to the youth of Android 12? Or inadequate app development / testing? Or (please NOT!) the phone's h/ware or s/ware architecture? Do Asus offer occasional firmware updates, one wonders?
Any experience, any advice, or even a comforting meToo will be greatly appreciated. And sorry for the topic. Thank you!

[Ben xfg]

It is probably completely inappropriate (off-topic) to raise this query here, but I'll give it a go (because of the quality of the conversation, unmatched across any other forum that I visit) and because we're all bothered to some extent about What To Do Next.
I have moved to the Asus ZenFone 8 16GB / 256GB. Android 11 OOB but automatically updated to OS = Android 12 / Security = 5 May 2022 at switch-on.
Installed: latest available version of several apps.
The phone is just great. I chose it for all of: its tech spec, build quality, its small size and heft-in-the-hand. And across all these quality judgements it most definitely does not disappoint. Just as beautiful as the BB Z10, which as we all know is saying A LOT.
HOWEVER :
Very many apps - after installing successfully and working well for a while (maybe several days) - then inexplicably fail with the "<<This application>> keeps stopping" error msg. (A bit like the BB10 message "<<This application>> has stopped running" but at least that is recoverable (usually).) Any amount of cleaning (cache, user data) yields no improvement. The list of failures includes MS Outlook, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sounds, Amazon Kindle, my banking Credit Card Manager, others. In some cases (i) I have installed old version.v-1 or even version.v-many and this has addressed the problem; or (ii) I simply visit the website (maybe this is a preferred trajectory anyway??) - but in the case of the C/C manager, I have so far not found a working version, and there is no web capability.
Is this ("keeps stopping") a common problem with Android apps / devices? Is it a phenomenon related to the youth of Android 12? Or inadequate app development / testing? Or (please NOT!) the phone's h/ware or s/ware architecture? Do Asus offer occasional firmware updates, one wonders?
Any experience, any advice, or even a comforting meToo will be greatly appreciated. And sorry for the topic. Thank you!

If that error pops up for me (very few and far between) there's usually something very wrong.
Did this just start happening after updating to Android 12? If so, have you tried uninstalling then reinstalling those apps?
I've seen some weird stuff happen with apps after a major system upgrade like that where a reinstall was necessary to rectify.

[Laura Knotek]

Did you install those apps from Google Play or somewhere else? Are you running a rooted device with any custom ROM?

[fergusd]

Did you install those apps from Google Play or somewhere else? Are you running a rooted device with any custom ROM?

Interesting question. I do not have (and have never had) a Google ID. I have played in the past (and very extensively) with all of the resurces like apkpure / apkmirror / .. and also with all 3 of more elaborately engineered provisions Aurora, Aptoide, Uptodown. With no particular reason to prefer one over another, I used Aptoide. Everything I needed was represented there (including not so common requirements e.g. banking, remote vehicle management) and the identification / downloading / installation of updates seemed (still does seem) to work really well. When things went wrong in the manner described it occurred with half a dozen of these, all within a couple of days. Hence the panic. Since then I have successfully re-installed 2 or 3, reverted 2 or 3 to an earlier version, AND installed 2 or 3 from Uptodown, although I had not really wanted to mix providers. All good now. I think I'm writing this experience off to "No software is absolutely perfect - how could it be and why would you expect it to be?" which has served me well in the past and at the moment all is good. When soething goes wrong again I'll just cope as now, and hope not to get a traffic jam of problems as on this occasion.
I was a BB10 diehard (though not as hard, probably, as the surviving readers of this forum) but a month of Android 12 on a really neat device which certainly stacks up against the beautiful physical merits of the Z10 has been something of a joy.
The device is not rooted.
Thank you for your interest!

[Laura Knotek]

Interesting question. I do not have (and have never had) a Google ID. I have played in the past (and very extensively) with all of the resurces like apkpure / apkmirror / .. and also with all 3 of more elaborately engineered provisions Aurora, Aptoide, Uptodown. With no particular reason to prefer one over another, I used Aptoide. Everything I needed was represented there (including not so common requirements e.g. banking, remote vehicle management) and the identification / downloading / installation of updates seemed (still does seem) to work really well. When things went wrong in the manner described it occurred with half a dozen of these, all within a couple of days. Hence the panic. Since then I have successfully re-installed 2 or 3, reverted 2 or 3 to an earlier version, AND installed 2 or 3 from Uptodown, although I had not really wanted to mix providers. All good now. I think I'm writing this experience off to "No software is absolutely perfect - how could it be and why would you expect it to be?" which has served me well in the past and at the moment all is good. When soething goes wrong again I'll just cope as now, and hope not to get a traffic jam of problems as on this occasion.
I was a BB10 diehard (though not as hard, probably, as the surviving readers of this forum) but a month of Android 12 on a really neat device which certainly stacks up against the beautiful physical merits of the Z10 has been something of a joy.
The device is not rooted.
Thank you for your interest!

For seamless app updates, it is best to use Play Store. Additionally, using apps outside of Play Store is the easiest way for your Android to get infected by malware. There is no need to fear Google. Use of the official Play Store is safer than installing some APKs from who knows where. These sites outside of Play Store are the equivalent of places like torrent sites and porn sites in terms of safety from malware.

[app_Developer]

For seamless app updates, it is best to use Play Store. Additionally, using apps outside of Play Store is the easiest way for your Android to get infected by malware. There is no need to fear Google. Use of the official Play Store is safer than installing some APKs from who knows where. These sites outside of Play Store are the equivalent of places like torrent sites and porn sites in terms of safety from malware.

To paraphrase Churchill: Play Store (with a Google ID) is the worst source of Android apps, except for all the other sources which are available.

[fergusd]

Oh Goodness I'm kind of persuaded. My reluctance up to now to engage with Google originates not in any very great anxieties about security but in my own ignorance and dislike of the huge complex architecture.
Is there a way to see what's on offer -r rather what is missing - in the Play Store without having to log into it?

[Ben xfg]

Oh Goodness I'm kind of persuaded. My reluctance up to now to engage with Google originates not in any very great anxieties about security but in my own ignorance and dislike of the huge complex architecture.
Is there a way to see what's on offer -r rather what is missing - in the Play Store without having to log into it?

Pretty much all you can do is check for updates for the apps currently installed from play store. Just tap the three dots top right corner, then updates.