Libb

Debian (desktop) and Mint (laptop), because I don’t need to use the latest version of every app I use and because it works so well.

If I had to chose a single one, it would be Debian but I don’t have to chose ;)

Well, Debian has a 32-bit ISO, and since Ubuntu is based on Debian you may consider giving it a try?

https://www.debian.org/distrib/

My bank offers both an app and a website which is nice, but the app is mandatory for doing any kind of operation involving money (which is not that uncommon when logged-in in your bank accounts ;) even when connecting through their website, as the app is used for some ID-ing process.

Then, there are a few not-mandatory but such-an-effing-pain-to-not-use apps, say to ID oneself with some (public) services.

I use a dumbed down iPhone (like, really: no social, no games, no whatever not even email is configured on it) just so I can access those few apps.

No, I did not see that. Thx! That’s clever.

BTW, I loved this old t-rex logo and felt, well, if not betrayed quite disgruntled the day they replaced it. Loved it so much that occasionally I still wear my old Mozilla ‘Take back the web’ t-shirts, the ones with the t-rex printed on a red star. It’s as cool today as it ever was, if you were to ask me :p

I’ve been using Firefox since it was called Netscape, and before that I was using Mosaic. Nowadays, I’m also using Safari (and Vivaldi) but I still can’t imagine not using FF as my default browser. More exactly, FF with the uBO extension, which is another nice gift to all of us — a bit like FF pop-up blocker was back then.

I would have loved if they had released an anniversary icon for FF. Too bad they did not, but that’s probably just me getting old, all nostalgic and sentimental :p

The same reason I care about a working democracy. You can’t have one without the other.

I am going to quote myself here:

Allow me to quote myself too, then:

That’s not the point.

I do not disagree with your remarks (I do not use Telegram), I simply consider it’s not the point or that it should not be.

Obviously, laws should be enforced. What those laws are and how they are used to erode some stuff that were considered fundamental rights not so long ago is the sole issue, once again, im(v)ho ;)

Well, except Telegram isn’t a good tool for privacy.

That’s not the point. The hunting down on tools and their creators (and on our right to privacy) is the issue here. At least, imho.

I appreciate your feedback and understand where you’re coming from. However, I believe

You’re more than welcome to believe whatever you want. That does not make it a fact. And certainly not something I’m interested in or I’m willing to consider worth discussing.

Have a nice day.

Hello Science Community, Thank you for taking the time to review this manuscript. While it includes philosophical elements, it also explores scientific ideas that I hope will spark thoughtful discussion and constructive criticism. I look forward to your feedback. Thank you again!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XuhV1MwntVU-Gsb7M69jxhudAwGuh4uEkw1Ri4ZkFt0/edit

You are sharing your personal opinion in that text (and, yep, I read it). That’s not science and it’s not philosophy.

Opinions are fine. I mean, we all have opinions and they can differ widely from person to person. That’s the reason why they’re called personal opinions. But they’re just that, opinions, aka the expression of personal judgments/values and personal preferences.

‘I don’t like bananas’ is a personal preference of mine. ‘I think bannas taste like shit’ is my personal opinion on them. My preference and my opinion say absolutely nothing about bananas and their qualities as a fruit. At best, they state a fact about me. Not about the bananas which, obviously, are perfectly fine fruits whether I like them or not.

Despite the intense dumbing down going on on in our societies, opinions and preferences don’t make a science. And if they can sometimes be considered a starting point to a (or some makeshift) philosophy , they still need a little more work — the important words in the latter definition being ‘system’, ‘analysis’, ‘theory’ and ‘understanding’, not expressing one’s opinions.

You mean, something like this? https://www.youtube.com/feed/subscriptions

Clever 8^)

But I still have to install FF from time to time, like I did today — best way to spend one’s Sunday, reinstalling the Mac :/

Speaking installation, whenever I do an installation Firefox is always the second app I install on fresh machine. The first one being my password manager.

I don’t really understand all these articles explaining how to switch to Firefox. You install firefox and use it, that’s all.

They don’t give a crap about the article usefulness, that’s just more ads to sell.

Why do you think the web is so much riddled with crap content? More and more of it generated by clueless AI? It’s not to be helpful to their readers, that I can tell you ;)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_web_browser ;)

Sorry, I can’t switch to Firefox, as I’ve never not used Firefox.
I used it already when it was called Netscape. Before that I used Mosaic, which itself is not entirely stranger to Netscape creation.

Also, FF is not “a great alternative to Google Chrome”. FF is a great browser in its own right. (Almost) always has been. And how could it be considered an alternative to anything when it was there first (or second, right after Mosaic)?

This. We have not owned a TV since the very early 00s, when we realized they wanted us to pay in order to watch… ads. More and more of them.

If you’re interested, I’d be open to DMing about privacy and security. I would like to learn more about your situation and your threat model and what measures you’ve taken

Not sure to understand your question, my situation is nothing special. I’m a dude that cares about what I consider a fundamental human right, as essential as is/should be the freedom of expression: privacy. A right I certainly don’t want to see thrown away for a few already very rich people to be able to make even more crazy profit, nor in the name of convenience (including my own) not even for my own ‘security’ or well-being, for that matter.

Is there anything in what I wrote that made you believe my situation was somewhat special?

As for the ‘measures’ I have taken. I try to be careful & lucid when I use any app/services/device and I do as much as I possibly can without using them at all, aka offline and the analog or IRL way, which is not that hard for me as I often work much better using analog tools.

If you have any specific question feel free to PM me, I can’t promise you an answer but at the very least I will let you know I’ve read it and can’t answer it.

Like did we forget about the whole “respect other people’s opinions” thing?

I cant say if we have forgotten it or not, but it sure looks like we don’t want to hear about it very much.

It’s all turned binary (pun intended): you’re with us or you’re against us, either you’re good or you’re evil (and then, you deserve to be eliminated). Which is as saddening as it is is… stupid.

So I am looking for generic communities that focus on mobile privacy that doesn’t have drama or toxicity or “extreme opinions”. Any suggestions?

the excessive and constant noise a limited number of people is making, their rage when it’s not pure hatred against whatever they don’t like or whoever they don’t agree with, is the main reason why, a Linux user worrying about privacy myself, I decided to stop wasting my time online with any such ‘tech’ communities. It has become almost impossible to have an open and calm discussion on any topic without someone jumping in and barking like some crazy dog — because reasons.

No matter what their reasons or motivations are to be angry or hateful, I have zero desire to listen to endless rabid barking. There isn’t much to learn in that, at least when you’re not a dog.

And I have no time for that either: we only have a limited amount of time to live before the game is over and there is no extra life to get, no second chance. I realized that a few years ago and decided I would not waste a second more of my time dealing with those constantly frustrated or hateful people. In tech or elsewhere.

Tech-wise, I have had much more stimulating and enriching discussions in communities that are not tech (or privacy or security or Linux)-related but communities where tech can still be discussed and debated (including by very competent tech people) just always in a broader discussion that don’t focus on tech itself.