I'd like to thank @giovaelpe for his thought provoking comment on a somewhat random post I made recently. I thought that it deserved to be explored further and our latest blog post is the result. Age verification doesn't fix any of the social media platform issues that we're trying to protect our youth from. And it likely won't work. So let's think differently about how to achieve a desired result.
🚨 New Video: Fluxer: Passion Project or AI Vibe Coded?
I joined
@ReignOfRaining on her Linux channel to talk about why "trust me bro" isn't a valid security policy for #OpenSource software. We talk about erased histories and the hidden role of LLMs in development.
The MNT Reform Next in purple is my "someday" upgrade. It is fully open source, modular, and repairable. It is a machine that actually respects the user instead of fighting them. Plus, that purple is beautiful. I have respect for MNT Research for being one of the few ethically sound companies in Tech.
In an email from Storyblocks today titled "Two new ways to create faster," you can probably guess what they're selling. With the slop maker of course.
"We’ve launched two new ways to help you find exactly what you need, faster.
Artist Voices bring distinctive, human-inspired AI narration into AI Voiceover, giving you more expressive voice options trained on real professional artists...
And with Search by Sound, you can upload any audio reference to instantly discover similar music and SFX - matched by tone, style, and pacing."
Artist voices inspired by humans. I want to gag reading this. This is one of the most egregious misuses of the technology.
And how much does replacing yourself with slop cost? Only about $252 per year, which is a discounted rate for paying annually, to start with a few "credits" per month. They'll happily charge you for higher tiers, like their "Small Business" license which is about $480 per year.
I once considered using Storyblocks because of their stock media but quickly discovered the "AI Toolkit." No artist or creator should ever use this service. Be wary of anyone who takes them as a sponsor as well. This represents everything in the #enshittification of everything.
A full page screenshot of the Storyblocks website showing four subscription tiers: Essentials ($21), Unlimited All Access ($30), Small Business ($40), and Enterprise. The page includes testimonials from three YouTubers, a "Have questions?" contact banner over an image of orange lilies, and a Frequently Asked Questions section.
For the last two months, our mascot Tony has been trying to persuade people to leave Big Tech behind as their new year resolution for 2026. We're already in March, so it's time to put an end to this campaign, but we hope you'll let us keep walking with you on this journey towards digital sovereignity.
Here's some mantras for you to repeat in front of the mirror every morning:
"I can make choices."
"My data is mine to control."
"I'm done being used and abused by big corporations."
Hello, I'm new here, never used Twitter and still figuring this out. I'm currently obsessed with extracting myself from US big tech and building a quieter, more sovereign digital life. Also completely overwhelmed by the state of the world, like everyone else. Hoping this can be a small corner that feels a little safer. #introduction#privacy#digitalsovereignty
It took me some time to prepare this sad moment, but I am happy it's here now.
I shared
@_elena great introduction video and wrote in the captions about how the Fediverse is such great place for creatives, artists, hobbyists, tinkerer, writer, art lovers, photographers, blogger, nerds and just everybody. And how one can find interesting people to talk to, original artworks, diverse communities and discover great music and journalism... and all this without annoying ads or stupid algorithms. :blobcatheartbongo:
💪 I've even (hello non tech person here!) made a little website for my friends with some info and links to help them switch to the Fediverse.
Every month the United States provides even more reason to boycott its products and companies — the strikes on Iran being just the latest.
In light of that, it’s a great time to ditch the products and services of US tech companies. I made a comprehensive guide to help you that I’ve been regularly updating for months.
I'm looking for people working at a bank in Europe who are interested in #EthicalTech and who would be interested to help us ensure that banking apps function well on European operating systems. Do you know anyone who might be interested? Please reach out to me via DM!
🎉 Big Tech alternatives are finally getting mainstream media attention! 🎉
Yesterday, The Guardian published a piece on how people and organizations can leave Big Tech behind and choose ethical, privacy-focused alternatives, a topic we’ve been passionate about at Tuta for a long time. 🙌🔐
Thank-you to Steve Rose for mentioning Tuta. It’s great to see privacy-first solutions getting recognition. 🙏
Screenshot of an article written by Steve Rose for The Guardian titled : Leave Big Tech behind! How to replace Amazon, Google, X, Meta, Apple - and more.
If you’re not a US citizen, Anthropic supports your mass surveillance by the US regime. Thought you might want to know in case you find yourself funding your own future demise from a drone strike or something.
@aral Exactly. While #snowden felt forced to reveal how the us government was illegally surveiling its own citizens, but as an aside, it also revealed the depths of its spying on all other countries, including its so called 'allies'.
But no one in the US cared about that then, and no one cares about it now. Settled opinion is that it is their right.
And to think they get angry at us when nations start decoupling #us tech.
I had an earlier post about municipalities leaving X and joining Mastodon and a thought occurred to me.
Cities and towns could benefit from having their own instance running #Friendica - the closest #Fediverse equivalent to Meta/Facebook. It would allow them to have separate groups for neighborhoods or communities within their municipality, and integrate easily with other Fediverse apps. It would give them more control and focus for their communications.
I was looking into social media policies established by municipalities and came across this article referencing a policy update by the Town of Innisfil, population approximately 44k. The debate over leaving X is likely going on across Canada, and towns or cities are simply stopping their use or struggling to figure out an alternative. Towns in the 25k to 50k population range are prime candidates to convert to Mastodon.
In a new review for Le Monde Informatique, writer Dominique Filippone explores Nextcloud Hub 26 Winter and highlights our performance gains coming with the ADA engine. 💪
Now on stage, the man who published the very first post on the #SocialWeb in May 2008 and is often called the father of the #Fediverse: Evan Prodromou
@evan Co-author of the #ActivityPub protocol at Social Web Foundation
He presents the structure and dynamics of the social web, including the benefits and disadvantages of this architecture, the products and protocols, people and organizations involved in its development.
Live with Christine Lemmer-Webber
@cwebber Co-founder of
@spritely and Co-author of the #ActivityPub protocol.
A reflection on key questions: How do we build a social internet in a time of social conflict? How far are we from a #SocialWeb we want, what is the #Fediverse doing well today, and how do we get to where we should go?
Does anyone know of schools using something other than #GoogleClassroom for schools and education? Maybe in #SchleswigHolstein Maybe in #Österreich? (you seem progressive in digital sovereignty). Or maybe my next door neighbour #Danmark?
It'd be nice to have some exchange of experiences between the board of education for the municipality of #Lund (we need to learn) and some other city.
If there is one? 😀
Over the course of today, at a leisurely rate, I think we'll do a roundup of European efforts regarding #DigitalSovereignty and #DigitalIndependance. Europe and Canada have both struggled with this issue, but it's fair to say our allies across the Atlantic have been far more progressive and Digital Sovereignty has far more awareness with citizens and individual governments.
The suspension of email service by Microsoft for an official of the International Criminal Court has been cited as one of the factors causing booming interest & investment in #DigitalSovereignty in Europe. It was a wake up call for European governments that U.S. tech firms would follow U.S. influence over EU rights. The ICC announced in late 2025 that they will move away from #Microsoft services.