alt Hacker NewsUser can back up files in all those cases, but if this is really an issue, the "data will be deleted" dialog can have a button to say no. The way it is now is the worst. It's so unclear what you need to do to actually uninstall something that people go download stuff to do it, often malware.
I agree the current process is shit. But that’s not the point I was countering.
To be honest, I think the way Windows handles uninstalls is shit too. I don’t think either desktop OS has got it right.
Their respective app stores are an improvement on the status quo. But unfortunately they turned them into an ad riddled, proprietary mess that is more designed for their benefit than the end users.