If you want to get really technical, each Signal account actually has a ‘secret’ account number that the phone number is linked to. The phone number requirement is actually a means to reduce spam and scam accounts.

And why I replaced my phone with a Pixel and installed GrapheneOS straight away.

Ironfox for Android

I’ve switched to a Google Pixel with GrapheneOS as part of my continuing deGoogle. Thanks for this, its further ideas to work on. One recommendation I would add however is that people use Obtainium instead of F-droid. This article is a pretty goof summary of why: https://privsec.dev/posts/android/f-droid-security-issues/

Its definitely more friction to get apps installed but once they are installed, I find Obtainium better for automatic updates than F-droid.

https://medium.com/@ovenplayer/does-proton-really-support-trump-a-deeper-analysis-and-surprising-findings-aed4fee4305e

https://medium.com/@ovenplayer/does-proton-really-support-trump-a-deeper-analysis-and-surprising-findings-aed4fee4305e

Or buy a Kobo instead and it just works. Bonus, no money to Amazon at all.

Its Xanavi. I don’t know if they’re still around as we did about 3-4 years ago now. There might be alternatives by now. I know its not as simple as just flashing an OS as unfortunately each head unit has a unique key that has to be preserved (else it stops working, I assume for anti-theft purposes)…

Technology and servers can get messed up. You are relying on software and hardware to keep stuff safe when the reality is it could fall over tomorrow and all your chat will be gone. Important info should be recorded elsewhere and backed up if need be. Just like in the old days before online chat existed. We survived just fine then and we can survive again without having 14 years of chat history or whatever.

Personally I always turn disappearing messages on in Signal. If my phone or computer was ever broken into, in would rather the perpetrators not have years of personal info and photos shared between my friends and family to do the gods know what with.

Are you OK? The Thought Police haven’t made DISCUSSING or TALKING about piracy illegal yet.

My Japanese export 2016 doesn’t either. Aside from the fact that we flashed the head unit with custom software, there’s nothing for it to connect to in my country anyway.

I’ll be honest, I have no idea. Its a white round one and knowing that its a Chromecast is the extent of my knowledge because I tend to avoid anything Google like the plague so have next to no knowledge about them beyond going to battle with my parents Chromecast every time i visit 🤷🏻‍♀️

This comment brought to you with my secondhand Google Pixel rocking GrapheneOS 😅

I dunno that’s entirely accurate - we have a Sony Bravia android TV (working on moving away from default OS but that’s another story) that is perfectly usable with Stremio and Jellyfin and doesn’t have massive invasive ads. One of my parents has a dumb TV with a Chromecast and it’s nothing but a PITA to use by comparison.

You can always give the trial a go. In my experience (and at the time I tested multiple search engines), Kagi served the most relevant results. I would 100% get a subscription if I could afford it (which I unfortunately can’t atm).

We have an Odroid with AdGuard that’s worked great for many years. We used to use Pihole but had niggles that Meany AdGuard was easier. For us we wanted a completely free solution that we had complete control over.

I mean, Fdroid has problems but funding from government is the absolute least of them.

For more storage space yes. We have 2x2TB HDDs in raid atm and a few years ago that cost more than $100 (although I forget the exact amount). I have no doubt they will last long long time (I have a 1TB HDD in my PC that is about 10 years old and still going strong). But we can’t even store all our favourites let alone movies/shows we watch as one offs. So we would need to ‘upgrade’ what we have which we can’t remotely afford because in this country even 2nd hand storage adds up to expensive.

Chargeback?

Unfortunately not everyone has access to cheap storage so for us a few bucks a month is more cost effective than having to upgrade expensive storage regularly. 😓

Record labels (and the like) suing ISPs like this is such a weird fucking take. Like, imagine book publishers sending their agents to markets, libraries, book shops, etc. and noting down every single book sold and who bought them, then suing the local council/government/roading organisation if they discovered off brand books or even second hand books for allowing book pirates to drive those books along the roads.

Or how about suing the power companies for providing power to pirates, or computer hardware manufacturers, or farmers for growing the food that pirates eat…