This year we made good progress. You know, Linux gaming becoming better, Reddit fucking up, Metaverse failing etc. But on the other hand Big Tech has or are planning to make some moves. Such as, Google’s Web Enviroment Integrity API (EDIT: they backed off), UK’s encryption bill, etc.
So what do you think of the future? I’m currently optimistic. I think the best recent event was Reddit fucking up. Obviously one of the biggest information sources going down that path isn’t something to celebrate. But it was bound to happen. I believe decentralized social networks becoming more popular is what Aaron Swartz would have wanted if he saw how Reddit was being managed.
On a Operating system/free software level we’re doing fine. Not great (still no true open source phone OS, Firefox has like 3% market share, lots of closed/unfixable hardware) but you can work and have fun using OSS and it’s not going anywhere. On a global economy level we’re as fucked as always. Big tech isn’t going anywhere and 99% of people will choose convenience over ethics every single time. We’re a minority here and always will be.
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As I explained in other post, AOSP may be open sourced but it still depends on android services owned by google. I have degoogled android and some apps don’t work and other apps require device registration. And of course most apps are still only in play store. We’re not that far for properly open platform and hopefully EU will get as there but we’re not there just yet.
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I am seeing it as a net positive. Especially because of the Windows 12 bit, the more Windows is an inconvenience, the more will jump ship, and some will land on linux.
What are some good distros these days to dip my toes in as a gamer who is certainly no pro but knows his way around/isn’t afraid of a terminal window?
Mint is my go-to recommendation.
Ubuntu is a decent place to start.
Before anybody decides to jump down my throat over it, there are some very good reasons to not use Ubuntu generally. I know.
That said, I still recommend it as a first distro because it’s
- well supported - if someone puts out Linux support, it’s likely been tested on Ubuntu.
- simple to install - everything from WSL to a live boot USB drive to a full install, you’ve got lots of options
- pragmatic - yes, it’s compromised vs being truly FOSS. Otoh, your consumer grade Windows-supported hardware will likely work out of the box. For a first timer, I think that’s critical.
There are many other, better distros out there for specific needs. Manjaro is a great one for gaming in particular, but can be a little harder to get setup with, or to find help for when things go wrong. But I still think Ubuntu is the best “starter” distro I’ve encountered.
I’d just like to say that if something says Ubuntu support it will very likely work on all Debian based distros unless its something really low level and your running one that swapped out systemd or something. They normally just mean that they ship their software as a .deb file and even that can be installed on non Debian distros if your willing to do some special stuff. Also as for drivers/firmware I’ve never had any issues except when trying to use a distros that doesnt include non-free firmware.
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Windows 12 is not going subscription. This was a bad take by a worse source (who apologized).
Stop spreading this shit!
They want to and it’s coming in the future.
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The future I want to foresee is one where everybody runs and keeps their data locally (or their dedicated VPS):
- where everyone has access to at least 10Gbps symmetric fiber optic connection to the internet at their home/apartment at affordable price (doesn’t have to be unlimited, but pricing per TB of bandwith usage needs to be less than USD $1 as it is the actual cost of operating & peerage)
- whereas net neutrality is a prerequisite to any corporation/organization/government/municipality getting network backbone peerage with other network operators
- whereas registering to a website or service actually creates a local secure database/bucket/pod where that website/service organizes/sort/manipulates our data and stores all generated modified data/metadata within our local personnal server, every time we interact with that same external website/service it gets access to the database/bucket previously created. Look into the Solid protocol specification to get a better idea (it doesn’t have to be that specific protocol)
- whereas FIDO2 or WebAuth or their successor is widely accepted for passkey implementation or just multifactor authentication
- whereas all communications are direct peer-to-peer without transiting third party servers (as in not managed by either communicating party)
Moreover, even better would be to teach everyone from elementary school various concepts (from simpler to more complex gradually) of science, programming, critical thinking and empathy.
If I may dare to push even further, with technology (secure authentication, work from home familiarity, collaborative softwares, digital signing, distributed version control), give every citizen (from the age of 12 or earlier; because one has to start learning early to make mistakes, understand and form good habits) the ability to vote/abstain on every proposition, motion, new/modified law and decision regarding their own country. Have a publicly accessible historical account of every vote by everyone (excluding secret ballots obviously). Most importantly, every year end, 4 years, 10 years, 25 years, 60 years have a collective review/retrospective of past motions/decisions that were implemented and let everyone vote on if those were overall beneficial or harmful for the country/state/municipality. Empower those who tend to regularly vote and tend to historically vote beneficially (at least 70% of their votes after they reached 25 years old) for the country/state/municipality to become a local representative.
I know it’s getting wordy and perhaps a bit complicated but keep up with me. Give accredited/qualified individual in very specific fields the retractable/overridable power to have their votes on certain very specific motion/law/decision be inherited by active delegation by any other citizens up to a limit of ~290 (Bernard–Killworth number) per qualified inviduals. For example, a citizen could separetely delegate his/her votes:
- relating to healthcare to their own family doctor if they like/respect their judgment or even a familly member who is licensed for medical practice, it doesn’t matter who as long as they are qualified for the subject matter
- relating to renovating a specific bridge to their neighbor who is a general contractor or their nephew who is a civil engineer
- relating to military procurement to their veteran uncle still with a sharp mind and keenly informed with world event or even their weekly indoor hockey teammate who is a unstoppable adventurer exploring every part if the world but also a office worker and a reservist
All while always preserving the option to change their vote anytime for any reason; by delegating to someone else for specific issue/concerns or voting on their own (always takes priority over delegation).
Well… I am being too hopeful and probably pushed things far beyond what is realistic, but it is nice to make thought experiments on what may be possible with technology.
People are retarded and like being controlled. It’s a bleak future
I disagree. People just have bigger things to worry about, like their livelihoods. If you don’t know where your next paycheck comes from, you don’t have the capacity to care about such abstract issues like the current privacy struggles. I think this is why we need better social policies first and foremost
They do, they just willingly choose not to or they support the oligarchs. We have bills to pay yet we’re willing to take the time to understand how things work, so they have no excuse
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