Universal macappstore: Links
The App Store app on macOS is the default handler of URLs with the
macappstore:scheme. App Store preview web pages automatically open the App Store app by setting the location of an HTML<iframe>element to amacappstore:URL. My free open source app Stop The Mac App Store registers itself as the default macOS handler for themacappstore:scheme, thereby preventing Safari and Safari Technology Preview from automatically opening those URLs in App Store. If you click Cancel or press the escape key, the App Store app won’t open.[…]
I’ve discovered that macOS Ventura and Sonoma changed how Safari handles App Store links, bypassing Stop The Mac App Store in some cases. Fortunately, I’ve also discovered a solution to the problem. In this blog post I’ll discuss both the problem and the solution. As a bit of a spoiler, let me first deflate the conspiracy theories: Apple wasn’t specifically targeting Stop The Mac App Store, which is too obscure to be noticed by the corporate giant. My app never lost the ability to become the default handler of the
macappstore:URL scheme. Rather, it seems that macOS Ventura started treating App Store URLs as universal links[…]
It continues to be infuriating that macOS doesn’t offer a way to opt out of Universal Links. I’ve had to uninstall the Twitter and Mastodon apps because otherwise URLs for those services become unusable in my Web browser. I guess an alternative would be to switch from Safari to Chrome, which offers more control here.
As for macappstore: links, I generally prefer to view them on the Web because:
- I can open multiple links in different tabs.
- I can search text and select/copy it.
- I can see details, such as the available IAPs, without having to expand a separate section.
- The Mac App Store forgets which app was being viewed when it quits and has no persistent history to go back to recently viewed apps.
Unfortunately, you need to use the App Store app to access all of the reviews.
Previously:
> I guess an alternative would be to switch from Safari to Chrome, which offers more control here.
Or Firefox!
> I’ve had to uninstall the Twitter and Mastodon apps
> […]
> As for macappstore: links, I generally prefer to view them on the Web because:
> • I can open multiple links in different tabs.
> • I can search text and select/copy it.
> […]
This is the reason I very rarely use "native apps" for things like this, or even email – I use Fastmail – RSS feeds and so on. As janky as the web can be, it's much more flexible.