I feel like I’ve been gaslit into running FOSS but every success only brings me closer to fighting god

  • Chemical WonkaEnglish
    66•11 months ago

    In 2018 I went to research why all the sites wanted my cookies so much, today I’m a free software adovocate and a Marxist

    • @SuperSpruce@lemmy.zip
      9•11 months ago

      That sounds kinda like my journey, although without the Marxist part.

      1. Clueless about tech, bought an iMac
      2. These ads are annoying. [Installs adblock Plus]. There. Except for fricking Taboola, they can DIAF. And the cookie popup banners. Why do they love cookies if they’re not playing cookie clicker?
      3. It’s the MacOS Catalina Update!! It Thanos snapped my iPod music library. This taught me to avoid MacOS and realize that updates often just make things worse. Set up a dual boot with Windows.
      4. I start browsing r/asshole_design too much. Teaches me to never trust a corporation. I also realize how phones keep dropping useful features. I finally realize uBlock origin blocks much more than ads.
      5. Oh boy, this is where the rabbit hole starts. I’m sick of how slow my Mac is, addicted to discovering new cool apps on my phone, and discover FOSS. I install Linux for the first time, and it runs quite well on a laptop from 2009. Also YouTube goes full greed mode.
      6. Get my new Windows gaming laptop, try to balance privacy with convenience. But I’m irked at how slow it is for some basic tasks. Everything is stable, except when the laptop’s SSD borked.
      7. Uh oh. Discord, YouTube, and Reddit all make massively greedy decisions, and I don’t want to support those platforms anymore. I discover Lemmy. I try to focus extra hard on FOSS and donate $150 over the course of the year. I think this tells me I’ve became radicalized. Proprietary platforms keep getting worse and worse.
      8. Linux resurgence. Tired of Windows, and one of my classes needs a UNIX terminal. Sounds like it’s time to dual boot (on 2 SSDs), with Ubuntu being the default. Also I buy a year of Nebula to support creators and stick it to Google.
      • @Guenther_Amanita@feddit.de
        4•11 months ago

        Maybe a bit random, but

        Also I buy a year of Nebula to support creators and stick it to Google.

        Would you recommend that? I also wanna quit/ reduce YouTube and enjoy learning new stuff while watching high quality content. Is it worth its money? I’m currently broke and have to watch my finances, but I wouldn’t mind spending a few bucks if it’s something I enjoy.

        • @SuperSpruce@lemmy.zip
          3•11 months ago

          You can get a promo for $30/yr. If you’re broke, it’s hard to recommend it as money is better spent on needs, but if you have some disposable income I’d say it’s worth it. Many large creators upload their YT videos (sans sponsorship sections) to it and add bonus exclusive content, and it doesn’t come with any ads.