RAWR X3 (art by @sharpytown on Bluesky)
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Moved to PieFed bc fuck tankies: piefed.blahaj.zone/u/cloudskater
Moving to piefed.blahaj.zone lol
List of servers to block
List of servers to block - Pawb.Social
The title sounds overly negative but idk how else to ask. Is there a list of known conservative / corporate owned / generally shady Mastodon instances that I can block outright? I don’t want to go searching for them, but I also don’t want to stumble upon posts from them either, so I’d appreciate a list of confirmed shitty servers to essentially copy and paste.
Which phone and OS should I pick?
Which phone and OS should I pick? - Pawb.Social
I’m sure this is a very common post but please hear me out, I’m in a weird place here and don’t want to make a poor decision when it comes to such a big purchase, let alone three of them (potentially). I was under the impression that Linux phones weren’t a thing until very recently. Had I known, I likely would have made this post several months ago and bought a different device (I bought a crazy overpriced Pixel bc I thought GraphineOS was the ONLY option for a FOSS phone). I have two partners in the US who’s Androids are old and even falling apart on them. They can’t afford one Pixel, let alone two, but I’ve gotten them into Linux Mint and want to take this opportunity to rid their phones of proprietary software as well. So here’s the deal: I have little to no knowledge of Linux phones. I don’t know if they have dedicated software, or if all apps are run through Android emulation, or even how different Android is from Linux itself (isn’t the former based on the latter?). None of us need high-spec devices, we just want something that can: - Play media files and use privacy respecting YouTube clients, stuff like that - Send and receive texts/calls through Signal, Telegram, etc. - Actually deliver notifications (GraphineOS is horrible for this in my experience) - Use your average social media (Mastodon, Bluesky) - Has expandable storage and preferably a headphone jack - Isn’t total overkill and won’t cost a grand for features most people don’t need I don’t expect any phone to fit the bill perfectly, but if you guys know which device and OS I should try, I’m all ears. Speaking of operating systems, I’ll go looking around this community to try and find their individual pros and cons, but if anyone has experiences or endorsements to share, please, please do. My plan is to get one of these phones for myself and find which pairing of device and OS is easiest to operate with the least drawbacks. Being the techie of the group, I wanna be able to help them if something goes wrong. Once it’s all settled, I’ll buy and set up another, then send them both to my partners, so they can finally have new phones that are FLOSS, free of corporate spyware, and hopefully last them a good while.
Why. (A Rant About Bread)
Why. (A Rant About Bread) - Pawb.Social
It is truly amazing that bread, fucking bread, has been one of the hardest things for me to secure vegan options for. You can get bread that doesn’t involve dairy or eggs, but it’s usually the cheap, crappy stuff, and if you have the option of something better, it has one of the two in it. Shouldn’t be an issue for me though. I know a guy who makes bread and we get loaves from him on the regular. I asked recently if he used milk or eggs and he said no, but turns out he was using butter all this time. A bit distressing that I’ve been consuming that ever since I’ve become vegan last year, but nobody asked until now so it’s on me, really. Dude was nice enough to buy vegan margarine for me specifically. Genuinely grateful for that, he’s a sweetheart for it. deep inhale Why. Does margarine. Have palm oil. I ain’t complaining to him again, he’s been kind and accommodating enough, but I know this shit is awful for the environment and for me too. It’s better then dairy butter but whyyyyy?? I just want oil and salt to put on some basic-ass bread! I literally want a food so basic that comparison to it is a universal stand in for “wow, that’s bland as hell”. It might not be the hardest thing to find a vegan version of (there are also still some toiletries like toothpaste that I haven’t personally checked yet), but does anyone else struggle this much with bread of all things? Does margarine exist without palm oil? I’ve heard of people just drizzling toast with olive oil, so if I add a bit of salt to that will it amount to the same thing? infernal screeching
There has to be a better way!
There has to be a better way! - Pawb.Social
I hope you read the title like one of those stupid infomercials. Anyways… I understand why GraphineOS is only functional on Pixels, because they’re the only phone with an unlocked bootloader, right? How is there not a single other phone on the market that offers this? I don’t need a high tier phone so it’s hard to justify spending over a grand on a device that, for me, needs to be able to text, call, play media, and make posts like this. Not much else. Any cheap Android would do, but I need to pay stupid prices for specs I don’t need just to be free of Google. I literally have to buy Google’s bespoke phone to rid my phone OF them. I hope this doesn’t come off ignorant of all the hard work FLOSS devs put into their projects, but why haven’t Linux phones become a thing? Sure, I doubt it’d get mainstream adoption, but Linux isn’t mainstream either and I can install it on any old potato. I guess I’d be reluctant to put in the work too if my OS would be incomparable with most phones. It’s really sad. I got my boyfriend into Linux before he got used to Windows (he only had a Chromebook before), but he still uses a standard Android with Google services and stuff. Asking someone to buy an already overpriced device just to run a different OS is a hard sell, even if you have the money. I’m not ungrateful to the effort poured in to projects like GraphineOS, but I’m sad that, unlike Linux, so many people don’t even have the option to use it.
Cheap parts for screwing around with
Cheap parts for screwing around with - Pawb.Social
Exactly what the title says. I know the prices of computer parts have been skyrocketing because of all the “generative” “AI” bullshit that’s been forced on the world, and I’m lucky my computer is just good enough to still be doing what I need it to several years later. It’s a laptop, though, so hardly if any ability to swap parts. I want to get into PC building, more out of necessity then desire, but I’m nervous about ruining good parts. I’m totally fine with building a mediocre machine with cheap, old stuff just to get a feel for how everything goes together. If I can make it run Linux and maybe emulate a 16-bit game, I’ll be happy. Additionally, I have a HUGE rack mounted server PC from the mid 2000s that, if nothing else, can be gutted for it’s spacious casing. Is building a cheap test machine like this worth while? If so, I’d appreciate any advice on what parts to scoop up and maybe where I could find them.
Open source alternatives to Life360?
Open source alternatives to Life360? - Pawb.Social
I know it’s unlikely to exist, but I’d be really grateful if it’s out there. My partners use Life360 for the location tracking, just so they know the other is okay. I’d like to join in on this too, but no way am I installing a closed source GPS if I can help it. They’re pretty knowledgeable about the risks of doing so, and are open to using an alternative service. Heck, I was the guy who got one of them in on Linux after ditching his Chromebook. lmao For the record, they have all the data collection settings disabled, but how much is that worth, really? You’d have to trust the company’s word and even still, closed source GPS shit. Ew. Any suggestions are appreciated!