gianni's recent activity

  1. Comment on Google Chrome silently installs a 4 GB AI model on your device without consent in ~tech

    gianni
    Link Parent
    You are absolutely right—there is. I personally read the Chrome and Google Services EULA today after seeing this article. https://policies.google.com/terms

    You are absolutely right—there is. I personally read the Chrome and Google Services EULA today after seeing this article.

    https://policies.google.com/terms

    2 votes

  2. Comment on Google Chrome silently installs a 4 GB AI model on your device without consent in ~tech

    gianni
    Link Parent
    Yes—without auditing the source myself, my expectation from Helium is that it would not include this feature. Despite that, I would be surprised to learn that this feature and model ships in Chromium.

    Best privacy and unbiased ad-blocking by default. Handy features like native !bangs and split view. No adware, no bloat, no noise. Made for people, by people. Fully open source.

    Yes—without auditing the source myself, my expectation from Helium is that it would not include this feature.

    Despite that, I would be surprised to learn that this feature and model ships in Chromium.

    3 votes

  3. Comment on Google Chrome silently installs a 4 GB AI model on your device without consent in ~tech

    gianni
    Link
    Beyond the disk size, what's wrong with this? Isn't local machine learning better than shipping your data off to some cloud provider? Or is the problem machine learning? To me, being upset or...

    Beyond the disk size, what's wrong with this? Isn't local machine learning better than shipping your data off to some cloud provider? Or is the problem machine learning?

    To me, being upset or suspicious about this this seems completely arbitrary—Chrome contains countless other binary blobs which a user has no insight to and cannot consent to. They are part of the application. Chrome contains other machine learning algorithms and features and has for years, but these have been baked-in.

    If people don't like these features that's fine, there are lots of alternatives to choose from (personally, I use Helium). But to be upset about this specific instance seems arbitrary to me. And to claim that it's somehow nefarious (i.e. the consent part) seems disingenuous. Consent is granted when the user downloads and begins using Chrome—why would Chrome need additional consent to download/update one of many external components?

    22 votes

  4. Comment on Motorola and GrapheneOS Foundation partnership announced in ~tech

    gianni
    Link Parent
    RCS works perfectly fine on GrapheneOS—you just need to install the Google Messages app.

    RCS works perfectly fine on GrapheneOS—you just need to install the Google Messages app.

    3 votes

  5. Comment on Zen browser / chrome alternatives in ~tech

    gianni
    Link
    I used Zen for a bit and loved it. But I switched back to vanilla Firefox after they added vertical tabs and link peeking.

    I used Zen for a bit and loved it. But I switched back to vanilla Firefox after they added vertical tabs and link peeking.

    8 votes

  6. Comment on Who's tried durian? in ~food

    gianni
    Link Parent
    I've been told that it smells like a cadaver.

    I've been told that it smells like a cadaver.

  7. Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp

    gianni
    Link
    In an effort to learn F# I am building an application to manage tasks. It is a GUI app built with GTK and uses the todo.txt specification. So far I have built the app shell and completed the...

    In an effort to learn F# I am building an application to manage tasks. It is a GUI app built with GTK and uses the todo.txt specification.

    So far I have built the app shell and completed the todo.txt parser using the FParsec library.

    Next up is turning those parsed todos into UI elements.

    2 votes

  8. Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp

  9. Comment on Fitness tracker (2025 edition) in ~health

    gianni
    Link
    Does anyone have a recommendation for a fitness tracker that works with wrist tattoos? Does such a device even exist? I've tried a couple Apple Watches and a Fitbit but neither has worked at all.

    Does anyone have a recommendation for a fitness tracker that works with wrist tattoos? Does such a device even exist?

    I've tried a couple Apple Watches and a Fitbit but neither has worked at all.

    1 vote

  10. Comment on What is the current state of Linux on phones? in ~tech

    gianni
    Link Parent
    Fantastic—thank you. Looks like my evening plans have solidified.

    Fantastic—thank you. Looks like my evening plans have solidified.

    4 votes

  11. Comment on What is the current state of Linux on phones? in ~tech

    gianni
    Link Parent
    Does RCS work on GrapheneOS? I'd like to make the switch but not at the cost of SMS.

    Does RCS work on GrapheneOS? I'd like to make the switch but not at the cost of SMS.

    3 votes

  12. Comment on <deleted topic> in ~books

    gianni
    Link Parent
    I mean... that sounds amazing. Added to my reading list based on this description alone.

    I mean... that sounds amazing. Added to my reading list based on this description alone.

    1 vote

  13. Comment on Posteo.de or Mailbox.org - Struggling to find an alternative to Proton in ~tech

    gianni
    Link
    Commenting to recommend Fastmail. An incredibly mature and feature-rich platform that doesn't seem to be run by assholes. You own your data and are fully in control of your experience. I have been...

    Commenting to recommend Fastmail. An incredibly mature and feature-rich platform that doesn't seem to be run by assholes. You own your data and are fully in control of your experience.

    I have been using them for probably close to a decade now since I switched away from Google apps.

    Edit: FWIW I am using around ~10 custom domains with Fastmail and I use both their IMAP/*DAV severs as well as their web suite.

    19 votes

  14. Comment on What low-stakes drama is going on in your circles right now? in ~talk

    gianni
    Link Parent
    Gotta ask, why is he not wrong?

    Gotta ask, why is he not wrong?

    5 votes

  15. Comment on Are modern iPhones unusable without a case? in ~comp

    gianni
    Link Parent
    I personally avoid big-ass phones because I find they are typically unusable with one hand. Currently I use an iPhone 12 Mini without a case and have zero issues even though I have tiny clown...

    I personally avoid big-ass phones because I find they are typically unusable with one hand. Currently I use an iPhone 12 Mini without a case and have zero issues even though I have tiny clown hands. I wish more manufacturers would embrace sub-6” screens—I don’t need an iPad in my pocket.

    4 votes

  16. Comment on Single most useful program you daily use? in ~tech

    gianni
    Link Parent
    It’s much more intuitive, it follows the selection → action pattern that kakoune pioneered and helix follows (see why kakoune). It also has a concept of a “keypad” which greatly simplifies...

    It’s much more intuitive, it follows the selection → action pattern that kakoune pioneered and helix follows (see why kakoune). It also has a concept of a “keypad” which greatly simplifies accessing your C-c / C-x / C-g key-chords.

    2 votes

  17. Comment on What are some traditional internet forums that you still use? in ~tech

    gianni
    Link Parent
    Wow I went down a hole on MetaFilter last night. It gave me this wonderful sense of nostalgia for the early internet. I ended up paying the $5 registration fee—thank you for sharing this!

    Wow I went down a hole on MetaFilter last night. It gave me this wonderful sense of nostalgia for the early internet. I ended up paying the $5 registration fee—thank you for sharing this!

    4 votes

  18. Comment on What books do you recommend for someone looking for positive vibes or casual amusement or escape in ~books

    gianni
    Link Parent
    I understand it is beloved, but I found it went a little too far in the calm & comforting direction. I ended up putting it down around 30% of the way through because it felt like nothing was...

    I understand it is beloved, but I found it went a little too far in the calm & comforting direction. I ended up putting it down around 30% of the way through because it felt like nothing was happening and my attention was slipping.

    That said, I had read The Murderbot Diaries not long beforehand so perhaps my expectations were elsewhere.

    1 vote

  19. Comment on How to lose weight in four easy steps in ~life

    gianni
    Link
    Years ago this article helped me in a time when I really needed it. Sharing it now in hopes that others might find it helpful, too. I'm also curious to know if anyone has come across any similarly...

    Years ago this article helped me in a time when I really needed it. Sharing it now in hopes that others might find it helpful, too.

    I'm also curious to know if anyone has come across any similarly inspiring works?

    18 votes