Reformat9116's recent activity

  1. Comment on Framework laptop users: what's your build? in ~comp

    Reformat9116
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    I'm running the Framework Chromebook Edition (12-gen i5), upgraded to 32GB RAM and 1TB NVMe. For expansion ports, my daily driver is 2x USB-c, 1x USB-A, and 1x Micro-SD, and I keep 1x Ethernet and...

    I'm running the Framework Chromebook Edition (12-gen i5), upgraded to 32GB RAM and 1TB NVMe. For expansion ports, my daily driver is 2x USB-c, 1x USB-A, and 1x Micro-SD, and I keep 1x Ethernet and 1x HDMI in my bag.

    Having a Chromebook that's easy to upgrade and easy to repair is pretty slick, and being able to mix-and-match the expansion cards to meet my needs is very handy.

    I do a lot of work (and play) in the CrOS Linux Development Environment ("crostini"), and this device has handled everything I throw at it with no issues whatsoever. That includes running (older) Steam games, loads of Docker containers, a couple of complex Vagrant lab environments, and even a Windows 11 VM for shits and giggles.

    I'm a big, big fan.

  2. Comment on Squarespace purchases Google Domains in ~tech

    Reformat9116
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    Yeah... I've registered several domains through Cloudflare and they all came with WHOIS privacy enabled by default. Not sure I entirely understand the concern here.

    Yeah... I've registered several domains through Cloudflare and they all came with WHOIS privacy enabled by default. Not sure I entirely understand the concern here.

    3 votes

  3. Comment on Experience with and opinion on ProtonMail and co.? in ~tech

    Reformat9116
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    I've been using protonmail for years without issues, but have always been a little disappointed by some missing features (and just generally clunky apps). My subscription is up for renewal soon so...

    I've been using protonmail for years without issues, but have always been a little disappointed by some missing features (and just generally clunky apps). My subscription is up for renewal soon so I decided last night to try out Fastmail for a bit and see if I want to switch permanently.

    Holy smokes, this is a fantastic experience. Sure, I give up the ability to send encrypted emails (which, as you point out, is only partially effective if the message metadata can't also be protected)... but honestly I've only done that once in the years I've spent with protonmail so it's not something I'm likely to actually miss. The slick (and effective!) UI/UX with Fastmail is so nice.

    Switching back and forth with protonmail's interface this morning really shows me how much I've been missing. I think I'm going to stick with Fastmail for a while.

    Thanks for the rec!

    2 votes

  4. Comment on Is it even worthwhile to turn off ad personalization or location tracking for services/apps? in ~tech

    Reformat9116
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    The biggest thing to come out of the hack for me is that I now know where all the sex offenders are near me. Those are basically the only alerts I ever get (which I guess is a good thing?).

    The biggest thing to come out of the hack for me is that I now know where all the sex offenders are near me. Those are basically the only alerts I ever get (which I guess is a good thing?).

    1 vote

  5. Comment on Is it even worthwhile to turn off ad personalization or location tracking for services/apps? in ~tech

    Reformat9116
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    I'm a big fan of muddying the waters. I'm less concerned by the ads themselves and more with the dataset that's used for deciding which users see which ads. There's big money in being able to...

    I'm a big fan of muddying the waters. I'm less concerned by the ads themselves and more with the dataset that's used for deciding which users see which ads. There's big money in being able to micro-target segments of the population with specific ads. That's hella creepy, and I want to take whatever small steps I can to make such targeting a little bit less effective.

    So I disable location history, opt-out of ad personalization, opt-out of data sharing (using Simple Opt Out which I just recently discovered), use DNS filtering to block known advertising/tracking networks, use browser extensions like Privacy Badger block tracking code, and so on.

    I don't think we're going to "win", but we can make it harder for Them to.

    2 votes

  6. Comment on Is it even worthwhile to turn off ad personalization or location tracking for services/apps? in ~tech

    Reformat9116
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    If you're concerned about privacy/security and carrying a Pixel phone, I can highly recommend GrapheneOS. It's a build of Android without all of Google's pesky tracking stuff, but it provides a...

    If you're concerned about privacy/security and carrying a Pixel phone, I can highly recommend GrapheneOS. It's a build of Android without all of Google's pesky tracking stuff, but it provides a compatibility layer so you can still use (most) Android apps (even those which rely on Google Play Services). It's very polished - but also only supports Pixel devices.

    4 votes