Mastodawn

For anyone doing their first contribution to #MariaDB: start out by learning how the mariadb-test-run command works and how to efficiently rebuild the MariaDB sources and re-run the test suite. That is a foundational skill to being and efficient and test-driven developer as explained in https://optimizedbyotto.com/post/grokking-mariadb-test-run-mtr/

Grokking the MariaDB test runner (MTR)

The main test system in the MariaDB open source database project is the mariadb-test-run script (inherited from mysql-test-run). It is easy to run and does not require you to compile any source code.\n

Optimized by Otto

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Otto Mar 23

Note that this report and website is separate from the EuroStack movement at https://eurostack.eu/, which originated from a multiparty conference organized at the European Parliament on 24 September 2024: Towards European Digital Independence: Building the EuroStack.

Euro Stack | Building Europe’s digital future

A European Industrial Policy initiative bringing together tech, governance and funding for Europe-focused investment to build and adopt a suite of digital infrastructures

EuroStack

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Otto Mar 23

It's a long ~128-page read covering the full stack from rare earths to open source cloud software and standards, but absolutely worth it.

Alternatively, listen to audio summary at https://otto.podcast.audio/@otto/episodes/summary-of-the-eurostack-report

Summary of the EuroStack report

Audio summary of the EuroStack report published by the Bertelsmann Foundation in 2025. Generated using NotebookLM.

Castopod

Otto Mar 23

All European tech leaders should read the EuroStack report by the Bertelsmann Foundation: https://www.euro-stack.info/

It does an excellent job recommending realistic policies to leverage Europe's surprising (and often underappreciated) strengths, promote sovereignty in hardware & software, reduce risky foreign dependencies, and grow the economy through healthy collaboration.

#OpenSource #Sovereign #Europe

Otto Mar 20

🛡️ MariaDB's new AppArmor profile is now enforcing in Debian unstable and heading to Ubuntu 26.04. I developed it against 7,000+ tests to minimize false positives, full story at https://optimizedbyotto.com/post/new-apparmor-profile-for-mariadb/

If you are a dba/sysadmin, check your logs and share feedback via the Debian bug tracker.

#AppArmor #MariaDB #opensource

Automated security validation: How 7,000+ tests shaped MariaDB's new AppArmor profile

Linux kernel security modules provide a good additional layer of security around individual programs by restricting what they are allowed to do, and at best block and detect zero-day security vulnerabilities as soon as anyone tries to exploit them, long before they are widely known and reported. However, the challenge is how to create these security profiles without accidentally also blocking legitimate actions. For MariaDB in Debian and Ubuntu, a new AppArmor profile was recently created by leveraging the extensive test suite with 7000+ tests, giving good confidence that AppArmor is unlikely to yield false positive alerts with it.\n

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Otto Mar 16

After comparing several, seems https://euro-stack.com/ is the most comprehensive. It also allows to filter by _both_ being European _and_ open source 🇪🇺🐧

The same people run https://eurostack.eu/ and also got fame delivering the https://euro-stackletter.eu/ letter to President Von der Leyen a year ago.

#OpenSource #EU #Europe #DigitalSovereignty

Otto Mar 15

Yet another directory of European alternatives: https://eutechmap.com 🇪🇺

There quite a few of these now. Which directory do you think is the best one to recommend/promote?

#OpenSource #Europe #eurostack

EU Tech Map | European tech alternatives

Find European tech, software, and service alternatives that respect your data sovereignty, are GDPR compliant, and store data in Europe.

EU Tech Map

Otto Mar 7

🐧 Univeristy student keen to gain open source skills this summer? If you or someone you know wants to contribute to #Debian with Google's sponsorship, explore the #GSoC2026 project ideas now: https://wiki.debian.org/SummerOfCode2026/Projects

Applications open until end of March! Don't miss out, look into project ideas already this weekend!

#OpenSource #FOSS

Otto Feb 26

🇪🇺 Naïve Europeans finally waking up to realize what is the difference between an ally and a master? We should aim for collaboration, not just one-way dependency.

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/us-orders-diplomats-fight-data-sovereignty-initiatives-2026-02-25/

'Experts say the move signals the Trump administration is reverting to a more confrontational approach as some foreign countries seek limits around how Silicon Valley firms process and store their citizens' personal information - initiatives often described as "data sovereignty" or "data localization.'

Otto Feb 23

Is the #AI hype still on or have the models plateaued? I tested 9 flagships (Claude 4.6, GPT-5.2, Gemini 3.1 Pro, Kimi K2.5, etc.) in my own mini-benchmark with novel tasks, web search disabled and zero training contamination and no cheating possible:
https://optimizedbyotto.com/post/ai-models-plateaued-or-not/

Do AI models still keep getting better, or have they plateaued?

The AI hype is based on the assumption that the frontier AI labs are producing better and better foundational models at an accelerating pace. Is that really true, or are people just in sort of a mass psychosis because AI models have become so good at mimicking human behavior that we unconsciously attribute increasing intelligence to them? I decided to conduct a mini-benchmark of my own to find out if the latest and greatest AI models are actually really good or not.\n

Optimized by Otto

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