(cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/19917523)
Basically, what the title says. Do you use any app, that is proprietary, but either has no OSS alternatives or they’re all not good enough? If there is an alternative, what keeps you from switching?
SwiftKey Keyboard. There are OS keyboards and even swipe predictive text keyboards but I wish there was one that had the skinability and functionality that learned from my typing without monitoring my clipboard and reporting it to Microsoft. Yet every other keyboard I have tried has left me disappointed.
I want something that runs a small local LLM for text prediction, but there’s no proprietary alternative for that either.
Take a look at FUTO: https://keyboard.futo.org/
I just want a foss keyboard with gif support.
I would like one with GIF and Meme support as well. I can live without it though, but it would be nice to have!
FUTO keyboard is about as close as it gets so far. Anysoft has swipe too IIRC. And finally Floris beta has it.
FUTO swipe isn’t there yet, but last I looked it was damn near what I was looking for, but the Swipe was useless. I should check it out again. And I don’t like using beta software for something as important as the keyboard. I don’t think I have tried Anysoft Keyboard before… I will have to check that one out.
Update Anysoft Keyboard doesn’t have swipe typing and it obviously wasn’t developed with English in mind. Typing in some of my secure passwords would have had me hopping between multiple screens. Great for some people but not for me.
Nice try and thanks for the suggestions. Futo is is still in Alpha and my old phone is still down so I won’t be testing it either. Thanks for the suggestion.
This. Loved it but stopped using it when it was bought by Microsoft (it was swiftkey that Microsoft bought, right - I’m getting old and it’s late here)
Ironically I’m using gboard now, kinda given up looking for keyboard a while back.
I have to fuck about on F-Droid again for a bit I think.
Even HeliBoard?
To quote the Features; “Glide typing (only with closed source library ☹️)”
I’m going for the hot take and say Obsidian, the note writing app.
There are many alternatives but since Obsidian works well, has tons of plugins, you can use it for free and it stores your notes in nonproprietary markdown format (unless you use some specific features), it has been hard to switch.
I tried nearly all the good alternatives but they either don’t let me use folder structures or use proprietary formats stored inside databases.
I can’t understand why there is nothing like it… Trilium would be perfect but I need my files in freely usable markdown…
I saw some time ago on the Joplin github that they might add the option of saving the notes in markdown somehow, but not sure that’s implemented or even progressing.
Have you tried QOwnNotes? I haven’t used it but I’ve seen it, looks like it ticks everything you want.
I would also highly recommend logseq, org-roam, or vimwiki. For mobile support, definitely use syncthing (logseq has a paid sync feature, but it’s not worth it over self-hosting syncthing imo. It’s easier technically speaking, but syncthing is pretty easy too)
Logseq - I use this now, primarily because the mobile app is as great as the desktop version. Links, tasks, etc are all smooth and I love the workflow. Only reason I don’t think you’d like it is you can’t really have your own defined dir structure.
Org-roam - uses .org files that have their own syntax and such, also foss and non-proprietary though. I used it for a while because the emacs ecosystem is very robust and I use emacs a lot. Primary downside to this system is mobile support hurts, I used OrgNote for a while but just didn’t like it much. (If you go this route, highly recommend using doom emacs instead of just vanilla. Vim keybinds are the best keybinds)
Vimwiki - uses vim keybinds, love it. Same issue as org-roam though, mobile support makes me cry. There are plenty of foss mobile md editors, but none of them feel good. You can use this as a wiki via GitHub and have access to it from any web browser and make edits there as well, but it wasn’t a very pleasant workflow personally.
QOwnNotes i haven’t tried - gotta take a look at it
I already use Syncthing to sync my obsidian vaults
Logseq doesn’t let me use a folder structure… and that is an adamant must-have for me. I have to be able to build a hierachical directory tree for my notes, that’s just how my brain works best - and i tried the tag based stuff but i just have to be able to walk a path of folders to get where i want.
Came to Obsidian from Logseq without prior knowledge. Logseq was my first note-taking of any use. I had Keep but I didn’t really use it, cos my data is in Google’s clutches. I’m trying to degoogle.
Logseq doesn’t feel together like Obsidian does. I’m in my first month of use and I had to spend ages trying to understand how to take notes properly before I could even feel confidence about using it.
Templates are a revelation. Dataview supreme. Front-matter a delight. If they exist in logseq they’re hidden. The learning curve for Obsidian is brutal.
I have around a thousand pages of mixed tags and links because it’s not discouraged in Logseq and I have to undo that huge mess. The discord forums are not a good place to Google for help and there’s nothing like obsidian.rocks or innumerable posts helping. There are lots of logseq YouTube fans and that’s where I ended up looking, but I prefer the written word.
Logseq was my learning phase but Obsidian is where I’ll stay. I think Logseq needs the level of financial input that Obsidian gets. I’ll have to live with the fact that it is not open source.
I had disabled the non-open source packages in Fedora software so i didn’t see Obsidian and only saw Logseq. It was a good experience and given my time again I would probably do Logseq then Obsidian, again. I wish I had seen the articles on how to take notes on Obsidian.rockd before I started Logseq.
Tasker, and… that’s pretty much it!
Easer is not perfect, but really close:
But outdated :c
Adobe Lightroom. I haven’t yet found a good alternative to edit single photos and series of photos
Samsung SmartThings and all related apps/frameworks.
Any kind of app that will let me interact with my “Samsung” branded accessories without using a Samsung Device; without the limitations caused by not using a Samsung device
Spotify
Lots of proprietary apps are really about backend services. E.g. Uber sends you someone driving a car. Reimplementing the client app isn’t of much help with that.
I don’t Uber but I do still sometimes use Google maps. Organic Maps suffices only some of the time.
