PoliticalCustard

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

I don't use them mainly because they put pressure on an already problematic property market (UK). Also, I don't want to stay in someone's house, especially if I'm going out with friends, the anonymity of a hotel room is heaven; pop that card on the door handle and close out the world until you've recovered enough to face the scary outside people.

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

I've never used Fastmail, so I cannot comment on that but I just closed my Proton account because of their donation to Bellingcat. It might not be a problem for some but it was for me.

https://propagandainfocus.com/proton-mail-imperialist-stooge/

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago (edited 3 months ago)

While in theory it is nice that an organisation would give over so much power to its customers in terms of where donations go, it does come with the risk of problematic decisions being made. Then later, when they've boxed themselves into a corner, quite unnecessarily, all they can do is go along with what their customers decide and then pass on the morality of that decision to those customers. But that's not really good enough to say "My customers made me do it!" No, you gave your customers too much power in the first place. It's a privacy organisation so surely better to give some money to a group that supports and compliments your aims. Bellingcat (regardless of the problems raised in the article I posted) has nothing to with privacy. If people read the article and decide they are happy with Proton, then go for it. I'd rather people make a decision with their eyes open.

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

I have had a Tuta (Tutanota) account for years and they've always been good (I just have a free account and it's always been fine for my needs) https://tuta.com/

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

If I'm not using my cam, it's not plugged in. If I am not chatting, my headset's physical button has the mic deactivated. That's two potential vulnerabilities I just don't have to think about.

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

I use Mullvad as my default browser (so it opens links) and Librewolf for login sessions so I can store some selected cookies and connect it up with keepassxc for some password/2fa autofill goodness.

Thorium for dire emergencies if I need a Chromium based browser for the very rare cases where Mullvad and Librewolf don't work.

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

Yeah, burner account. And look up loads of stuff you don't like to confuse it. 😂

For example, "Is Thomas Friedman single?"

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

I like Rob, I trust him, but this video is a sales pitch for his voip service, I think this should be made clear up front. It could be the solution everyone is looking for but he takes six minutes to get to the point at which you discover it's a sales video for a paid service he's created.

I am not complaining about the service or what he's offering at all and it's good that this video has been posted for people to see - especially a non-YouTube link too. :)

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago (edited 3 months ago)

It's a very interesting coincidence. And say your co-worker was looking up stuff related to this subject why would it be you who gets served the ad? That doesn't really make sense. If mics were listening into conversations we'd be hearing a lot more of these "coincidence" stories and it's pretty rare to come across them. I am not saying it doesn't happen, I don't trust these fuckers with anything. I use Linux with NextDNS filters up the ass, and have a rooted, degoogled phone with Adaway on it because my trust is so low and I cannot stand ads - if one ever does get past my setup I immediately am searching for a way to find out how it got through, which is rare.

I love what you are doing with your house set-up. How did an ad get to you, I guess it was is on your phone.

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

Really fascinating piece, thanks for sharing. Hurt my brain a bit though. :D

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

One of the few Google apps which is actually really good. I have used it to identify obscure parts in order to be able to repair or replace them myself. If I want to use it I have to borrow someone else's phone. It's the only thing I miss about Google. I am definitely not surprised about the behaviour you speak of though.

PoliticalCustard , 3 months ago

I am not sure; I've not tried. I degoogled my phone and I've not tried to put it on there since. It's just banned completely. :D

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Interesting piece. It's a bit weirdly worded in that it suggests that the police shut the accounts when really it's Mega, Proton, Tuta who are closing the accounts. Presumably the police tell those companies which accounts are being used for illegal purposes and then those companies then close the accounts. I was a bit alarmed at first because it sounded like the authorities were closing the accounts when that's not really the case.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Hooking up an AI model to the turbo-charged sewage pipe that is Reddit's "vast catalog of user-generated content" has surely got to constitute abuse against machines. If they ever really develop "intelligence" they are going to be absolutely furious with us. 😅

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

That is an absolutely fascinating article on the technical operation of a scam app. A definite warning to us all. Also I was very interested to read the terms and conditions of the Snap Store, specifically section 14: Limitation of Liability (which could be titled "Sorry, You're Fucked").

I don't like bitcoin, it's an environmental disaster that had potential but has turned into a highly volatile speculative device beloved by libertarians, grifters, and scammers. I do feel for the person who lost the coins, that cannot be a very nice experience to deal with.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

If anyone knows how to get the beta without having to join the beta programme on Google Play please let me know; my phone is degoogled. They do have an apk on their site but it's not the beta.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

I've been seeing Yanis pop up a bit more recently, seems like he's selling a book. Not complaining, could be good. I will give it a read and see if this really is a "new thing" or a new label stuck on an old thing.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

I don't think he's coming out of nowhere, he became well known in left circles in Europe when he became the Greek Finance Minister in 2015 (for the left-wing Syriza party) and attempted to defend Greece against predatory European lenders. He's written several books and has taught at many universities.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

User content from Reddit? It's barely worth looking at for free...

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Focusing on the core business (the browser) and dropping products (that are already done better by others) seems like a very good idea. I have seen zero people on Mastodon on a mozilla.social account and I've never seen their VPN appear in a list of top/recommended VPNs. I just want a world class browser that pounds the competition and regains browser market share. If Firefox dies, we are f'kd.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

AntennaPod on Android or Kasts on Linux and always RSS! I was very happy to see Spotify has failed in its attempt to grab the podcast market.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Thanks, good to know. At the moment I'm just plugging my phone into my computer and passing .opml files around which feels fine for the moment... and very secure.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

It's a listed app here, so I guess so: https://podcasting2.org/apps

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Giggling at the thought of the Taliban leadership being told what "af" means... they're probably a bit miffed about that. Perhaps they'll take it on the chin and set up taliban.af or something.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

I think this is a good idea, not because I'd use it but because it's the sort of thing people will want if we are to expect them to migrate from Ch***e (which already has this feature). It's just the sort of thing Mozilla should be introducing.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

I love Trafotin, he has a wonderfully dry sense of humour. If the ghastly Tom Murosky does a reaction video, it will be the only video of his that I will deign to watch.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

I tried to watch it... completely impossible; he's unbearable. I did notice he has 65,000 subscribers which shouldn't really surprise me, but does.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Garuda gets a mention, as a gamer I can highly recommend Garuda, a lot of work has gone into it and it looks great too... especially if you like neon. 🥰

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Tuta, I've had an account with them for years. Since the end of 2023 Proton Mail dropped off my list because of its funding for Bellingcat.

https://propagandainfocus.com/proton-mail-imperialist-stooge/

Proton, known for its privacy-centric email service Proton Mail, announced at the end of 2023 that it would help raise money for controversial group Bellingcat, a documented proxy British intelligence operation, through its annual Lifetime Account Charity Fundraiser.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Use a service like IronVest that gives you masked email addresses, masked (virtual) credit cards, and a masked phone number. $39/year $6/month. There might be better cheaper alternatives. https://ironvest.com/

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Piracy sites are now very often the best archive sites; if you are into old and/or obscure films very often your only choice is to go to piracy sites. Same used to be the case for music with what.cd - what an amazing musical archive that was. I still miss what.cd. Until corporations figure out a way to offer such archives, piracy will continue to grow as more and more content becomes unavailable because these corporate digital libraries are being taken away.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Yeah, I think the same. Good news for piracy... but sad that people will have to rely on trackers that can disappear at any time and without warning. Mind you copyright does expire... but I have no idea how that would work. Project Gutenberg for media with large file sizes would be expensive to run... but then storage may continue to get cheaper. But yeah, it won't be a corporate that will be offering a solution.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Yeah, weirdly enough I just found it after remembering how good what.cd was. I have seen that the interview asks about transcoding... so yeah... might have to do some learning 'fore I have a go at an interview. I guess if the bar to entry is high then that is probably a good thing. I think I only got into what.cd because I met someone who had an invite.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Oh no! That's good to know though, thank you. I will study a page a day and do the interview in a week or so, this will stress me out no end, I'm sure. 😅

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

You could try Orpheus, I managed to join today. It's even got a what.cd skin so you can pretend you're home again. https://interview.orpheus.network/

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago (edited 4 months ago)

I went to bed late last night because of this video! Nicco is a wonderful content creator, there's very little fluff in his videos and he clearly put a lot of time and research into it. Historically it's very interesting and we really should be putting effort into taking down Lunduke who is a right-wing piece of shit. I followed him a few weeks ago not knowing about him and after watching a video I was like "what the fuck is this shit?" and unfollowed him, but other Linux people might fall for it - this video will be a great resource to send to people who do fall for it.

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Wow, that's amazing, It's huge! A staggering amount of work has gone into that, well done!

PoliticalCustard , 4 months ago

Before I do anything at all my VPN gets installed, then whatever firewall gui along with OpenSnitch.

• Keepassxc
• Librewolf
• Signal
• Element
• OpenRGB
• OpenRazer
• Game stuff

I have a text file that lists everything I need to do on a clean install - a list of programmes and bits that need to be set in each programme. It's really easy to forget important stuff - like making sure my refresh rate is set at 165hz and not left at whatever the default is.

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago

It was the least fun thing I bought for my pc but at least I can relax during bios updates. I got mine because there was some work being done on the house and I was always fearful that an electrician would turn off the power. I would never have a pc without one now.

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago

I like your thinking, I guess with Linux everything is a potential project (or two)!

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago (edited 5 months ago)

I would say "yes". I have a rooted Android and it was very easy for me to download and install the software required to scan cards. I did this as an experiment only, I only used this on my own cards to see what information I could get off them from just passing my phone near to them. After doing that I have always used a shielded card holder.

I also never have NFC or Bluetooth running unless I'm actively using it.

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago

I think you should try out other stuff, you'll always be wondering if you are getting the best Linux experience for you. It's relatively easy to try out other distros with a VM (as someone's already mentioned) or dual-boot. I also started on Mint (I think it was Mint, it was awhile ago now) but I definitely caught the distro-hopper bug and now I've settled down. I still try out new distros from time-to-time, Nobara was the most recent. Also, you'll learn more about Linux by going through the processes involved and learning how other distros work. It could be fun and most distros have lovely communities.

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago

But as a general rule, if you have Nvidia, then you are not allowed to complain about anything… that was your choice, and with Nvidia under Linux, all bets are off. I thought that was clear a long time a go, especially after Linus not so subtle outburst.

Yes, but Linux users aren't always the most wealthy computer users, and people get given tech, inherit tech, bin dive for tech or get a good deal on tech in a primary or secondary market. Consumer choice is very often a privilege, and consumer awareness isn't always total. So complain away Nvidia users!

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago

Thanks for those links... perfect! You can never subscribe to enough Linux subs, I say.

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago

I like reading about these experiences and helping people along if I can, each one is different.

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago

"From each according to [their] ability, to each according to [their] needs" said some bloke called Karl Marx.

I donate to foss projects when I am able to, if I am not able to I do not donate to foss projects. I use the results of foss projects according to my needs which, in my case, is every single day. If foss folk lived nearer I would cook and bake for them (that's my ability) but as that is not possible I send money to these lovely people instead.

PoliticalCustard , 5 months ago

I have (finally, and thanks to this little chat) finally got around to researching this! I couldn't find any plugins, although, there are many great ones people have made: https://openrgb.org/plugins.html But it does look like the solution is going to be running a cron (job scheduler) script: https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Cron