Replicant

Hello, I'm new to the world of free software, and I've been curious to learn more about it. A while ago, I bought a Samsung S2 to try out the Replicant distribution of Android since it was cheap, and I was surprised by how incredibly easy it was to modify... (They really don’t make them like they used to...) However, I’ve run into an issue: I can’t download anything at all.

I understand that F-Droid was removed because it includes some applications with "anti-features," and someone suggested I download apps directly through the browser. Unfortunately, that doesn’t work either. What I ended up doing was downloading the apps on my other phone (which runs a standard, proprietary version of Android) and transferring them one by one via Bluetooth. Most of them work, but others, like NewPipe—which, as far as I understand, is free and open-source based on what I saw on F-Droid—don’t work properly. I can see the video listings, but when I try to play them, I get an error message.

Just for convenience, I tried installing F-Droid again (so I could decide which apps to install based on their licenses), but the repositories won’t load. None of them work. I managed to install Droid-ify, and almost none of the repositories work there either, except for a few for some reason. The number of apps I can access is very limited, but it’s better than nothing. From what I’ve gathered, the issue might be related to some kind of certificate... I think the problem occurs when trying to download something from an HTTPS site, or at least that’s what I understood. Honestly, I have no idea.

I also managed to install Termux, only to realize later that it wasn’t necessary since this Android distribution comes with its own terminal... (I found out too late.) Well, at least it makes copying commands easier.

On another note, unrelated to my current problem, I’d like to ask: What kind of Wi-Fi adapters do I need for this phone? On my computer running Trisquel, I have an old CNet adapter that I miraculously kept, and it works perfectly. I also have one of those multi-purpose adapters for connecting SD cards via USB, USB-C, or micro-USB. This adapter also has a USB port. I tried connecting the USB adapter along with the Wi-Fi adapter to my computer, and it worked. I thought it would work for my phone too, despite how bulky it is, but unfortunately, it didn’t. I suspect the issue might be that the Wi-Fi adapter isn’t receiving enough power from my phone, but I don’t want to buy a more convenient adapter only to find out I wasted my money. Why can’t I use the same Wi-Fi adapter that works with Trisquel? I know I need to use RepWifi, but even with that app, the Wi-Fi adapter doesn’t seem to be recognized.