mpblack @ mpblack @lemmy.ml

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35

Joined

3 mo. ago

Facebook. It’s easy to drop all the other platforms, but even my homeowner association insists on using FB for communication, which locks everyone into Meta’s data harvest. 🤢

Reading on my e-reader (e-ink) or print books. Short periods - eg waiting for a kid to do something - are good for poetry. Meditating. Listening to music. Listening to podcasts. Sometimes I’ve taken out some paper and doodled while listening to something - which is really gratifying (even though I’m no Picasso). I also cook, which is wonderful. Or I go for a long walk. I’m also actively trying to fill my time with offline human engagement - volunteering twice a week and participating in a men’s group (a safe space for men to share their experiences).

Fair point - bureaucrats aren't always good at nuance. :/

Although I still hold out hope that with Linux, there's room for the open/volunteer approach + a for-profit model that results in investments/profits going back into the volunteer community. After all, Linux isn't controlled by a corporation for proprietary purposes, like Windows is by Microsoft. We'll see...or we won't, if Linux never reaches any kind of mainstream status. :)

I agree. It’s not constructive to call non-techies “dumb.” Nor is it helpful to demand they”just” spend 30 min searching for solutions online. If you love tech, this is worthwhile - if you’re, say, a rights activist you’d rather spend that time reading an important report or meeting with people to advance your work; if you’re a retiree with limited means, then it might be overwhelming to “just go online”; and if you’re a musician working on an album, why should you need to spend time on tech when you could be spending that time mixing? I see examples of Linux becoming pretty user friendly compared to days of yore (eg Mint, Ubuntu), but has that improvement somehow compromised the techie side of Linux?

I see - but given that Linux isn’t one thing, couldn’t we instead see regulation of for-profit distros (or distros managed by for-profits), while volunteer-based, open-source remains largely unregulated?

I don’t see them as mutually exclusive - can’t Linux be user friendly for the non-techie while also offering a techie lots of flexibility and command-line joy? 🤷‍♂️

How do you see Linux being regulated if it grows? I imagine that Windows and MacOS are regulated because they’re for profits that e.g. harvest our data, create proprietary limitations on apps, and so on. Genuinely curious how regulating Linux would look similar - or how it might differ.

These guys give me the creeps. I've canceled my Spotify account - I'd rather not support a platform that promotes this kind of garbage (de-googling and de-FBing, too). Don't worry, I'm not telling you what to do - just sharing what I've done. 😉

Have fun - and invite your friends and relatives and colleagues 😎

Agree - love Mullvad!

An interesting McKinsey article on cost of AI. Basically it’s hard to predict, but the numbers here are staggering. And then there’s the “hidden cost” of environmental impact. All these data centers etc will add to CO2 emissions, which may worsen climate change and result in more climate disasters (drought, flooding, etc) that carry huge costs. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/technology-media-and-telecommunications/our-insights/the-cost-of-compute-a-7-trillion-dollar-race-to-scale-data-centers

You’re right - he likes to be provocative and makes some big generalizations. Not sure about the costs of AI…would need more info on that but he seems to suggest it’s an exception to the general rule in computing.

I like the prices! And europaweit lieferung - that works for me. :)

That was my first thought - but maybe this does a better job? Plus it can apparently be used for any device, so it might prolong the life of, say, noise-canceling headphones, book lights, and portable speakers.

That's super helpful - I didn't realize how big a difference there is between models. Thanks for clarifying. And yeah, by now I get the sense that LinuxPusher.dk is not for me. :)

Nice to hear - and yeah, their focus on hardware for Linux is really appealing. Also, supporting a company that offers an alternative to the big players in the Windows market...

Thanks for the link - and good tip about the timing!

Thanks! :)

Thanks - I’ll check it out!

You’re so right: perfection isn’t the goal. It sounds like you have a good sense of what aspects of digital life can be helpful and which can be harmful to you. And how to use hardware and apps to lead you to the moments that bring you joy - such as time with your friends and playing the guitar.

It is encouraging that we’re seeing more e-ink and other technology to counterbalance the potentially toxic rabbit-holes of modern tech. I hope for a future in which we rely on tech as true tools, not attention eaters. I love having a blender in my kitchen, but I don’t want to spend time with my blender beyond blending. Somehow computers have become more than computers.

Anyway, I’m happy to hear that you’re finding ways to address the parts of tech that make you feel bad. And I hope you continue to find ways to prioritize non-tech moments with friends and strangers and music and nature — all the things that humans loved before we invented computers and smartphones.