Kyle Rankin @kyle@librem.one

Apple's testimony today describes their future for computing. In the name of security, Apple wants to vet (and get a cut from) all software installed on all Macs, not just iPhones. This has always been the plan, but it takes time to boil the frog that is traditional computers.

Also this release seems to have done away with the pip install that was in the OpenSnitch UI post-install script and just pulls in dependency packages, so another big improvement.

There's a new OpenSnitch release candidate 1.4.0-rc.2. This one specifically mentions improved window layouts for Librem 5: https://github.com/evilsocket/opensnitch/discussions/415

The phish you warned them all about
The patch they said they could do without
They're in an awful mess
And I don't mean maybe
Please...

Business got breached
they're in trouble deep
Business got breached
they've been losing sleep
But they've made up their mind
they're paying the ransom
Ooh, they're gonna pay the ransom

IRC wouldn't be IRC without some network having a dramatic schism every few years. It's sort of baked into the life cycle, like a forest fire.

Now that cars have become rolling smartphones, it's been pretty disappointing to see them copy some of the worst practices from the smartphone world. I wrote an article that talks about some of those problems. [CW: Tesla negativity] https://puri.sm/posts/locked-in-a-remote-control-car/

Happy Tax Day, for those that observe.

Many people turn a blind eye to Apple's absolute control over products and how they restrict a customer's freedom, because they trust Apple won't abuse that power.

That control takes on a new significance when it's handed over to the Chinese government.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/17/technology/apple-china-censorship-data.html

It must be the tangibility. I've fixed countless computers over the years, but they rarely provide the same sense of accomplishment. Maybe it's because I take tech skills for granted, or maybe it's the visceral sense that this quiet engine that was dead now growls and is alive.

There is a deep satisfaction in troubleshooting and fixing a car that won't start all by yourself, even if it's something relatively simple like replacing a broken fuel pump on an old VW engine.

Interesting article that directly compares Tesla's lock-in and remote control tactics to Apple's: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/05/14/tesla-apple-tech/

It used to be that "If you aren't paying for something, you are the product" but now you are the product regardless. https://puri.sm/posts/data-double-dipping-when-companies-mine-paying-customers/

Why is it so hard for people to have #privacy? Because a TV company can make almost as much profit selling customer data as it can selling the TVs. https://www.engadget.com/vizio-q1-earnings-inscape-013937337.html

Each time I see someone correct someone else with a pedantic edge case, my brain now sings: "You've been hit by, you've been struck by, a Well Actually" to the tune of Smooth Criminal.

Both proprietary and free software users care about their privacy, but free software users are actually empowered to *protect* it. They can audit the code and, if they have to, remove any questionable bits and still use the software. https://puri.sm/posts/audacity-telemetry-and-why-free-software-means-better-privacy/