Bonum Certa Men Certa

Links 05/07/2022: Qubes OS 4.0 EOL



  • GNU/Linux

    • Desktop/Laptop

      • Web Pro NewsLinux Distro Reviews: Intro

        This series of articles will review some of the most popular Linux distributions (distros) with an eye to everyday desktop use.

        Linux has been growing in popularity as an alternative to Windows and macOS, especially for users that want privacy, security, and control over how their data is used. Linux is also unencumbered by Microsoft’s TPM requirements, making it a good option for hardware left behind by Windows 10 or Windows 11. The fact that Linux, and most of the software running on it, is entirely free is yet another bonus.

      • Its FOSSStarFighter: A Linux Laptop with a 4K 10-bit IPS Display is Coming Soon
        We’ve had numerous Linux-exclusive laptops from manufacturers like Star Labs, TUXEDO, and others.

        However, only a handful of them focused on providing a great display.

        For instance, TUXEDO’s Infinitybook Pro 14 featured a 3K display. And, it was a nice offering.

    • Audiocasts/Shows

      • Tux Digital285: To Ship Or Not To Ship Software? - Destination Linux - TuxDigital

        This week’s episode of Destination Linux, we’re going to be discussing how soon is too soon to ship software. Then we will be discussing Thunderbird 102 and all of it’s new gizmos and gadgets. Plus, we have our tips/tricks and software picks. All this and more coming up right now on Destination Linux to keep those penguins marching!

      • Late Night Linux – Episode 184 – Late Night Linux

        The community gets angry about GitHub Copilot, Félim gets angry about email, Firefox continues to improve, drawers fill up with more Raspberry Pis, KDE shines as ever, and more.

      • Linux Made SimpleLinux Mint 21 Backgrounds

        Today we are looking at Linux Mint 21 beautiful backgrounds and how to download them and use them as you like. I have a feeling that we can expect Linux Mint 21 Beta to arrive in about a week's time as changing the backgrounds are normally one of the last things they do before releasing the beta release. Enjoy!

      • VideoLinux Mint 21 Backgrounds Slideshow - Invidious

        In this video, we are looking at the beautiful backgrounds of the upcoming Linux Mint 21.

      • VideoAre Terminal File Managers Really Worth The Effort? - Invidious

        I'm a big fan of terminal file managers and I think you should at least give them a try but are they really worth the effort.

    • Applications

      • Its FOSSLinux Release Roundup #22.27: Vim 9.0, Firefox 102, Darktable 4.0, and More Releases

        Vim 9.0 is a massive upgrade with a new script language and fundamental changes to the syntax to get closer to common programming languages.

      • UbuntubuzzStatistical Analysis Software on Ubuntu (Free and Open Source SPSS Alternatives)

         For students and academic people who use Ubuntu, especially those who meet statistics, you will likely ask for IBM SPSS alternatives that run on Ubuntu. There are several Free and Open Source software packages for statistical analysis available and they can help you switch from SPSS, Excel or SAS. Descriptive, ANOVA, Bayesian and other analysis methods are supported built-in. By this article we want to introduce LibreOffice Calc, GNU R, JASP and Jamovi.

      • Linux Links6 Best Free and Open Source .NET Static Site Generators

         LinuxLinks, like most modern websites, is dynamic in that content is stored in a database and converted into presentation-ready HTML when readers access the site.

        While we employ built-in server caching which creates static versions of the site, we don’t generate a full, static HTML website based on raw data and a set of templates. However, sometimes a full, static HTML website is desirable. Because HTML pages are all prebuilt, they load extremely quickly in web browsers.

        There are lots of other advantages of running a full, static HTML website.

    • Instructionals/Technical

      • uni TorontoWhy an empty (executable) file is generally true in Unix

        A shell that doesn't claim to be POSIX compatible doesn't have to have this 'pass files to sh' behavior, but if it lacks it, some number of random programs will probably fail to get run some of the time. On the whole I suspect that most alternate shell authors implement the behavior for compatibility.

      • uni TorontoFilesystems versus general tree structures

        More broadly, I think it's a mistake to look at filesystems through the eyes of general tree structures. Filesystems originated in a very constrained situation and continue to be focused on fairly constrained one, one where any indirect reference to something is very slow and the less that you need to access the better.

      • TecMintHow to Open, Extract and Create RAR Files in Linux

        RAR is the most popular tool for creating and extracting compressed archive (.rar) files. When we download an archive file from the web, we required a rar tool to extract them.

        RAR is available freely under Windows operating systems to handle compressed files, but unfortunately, rar tool doesn’t pre-installed under Linux systems.

      • TecMintMonitorix – A Linux System and Network Monitoring Tool

        Monitorix is an open-source, free, and most powerful lightweight tool designed to monitor system and network resources in Linux. It regularly collects system and network data and displays the information in graphs using its own web interface (which listens on the port 8080/TCP).

        Monitorix allows for monitoring overall system performance and also helps in detecting bottlenecks, failures, unwanted long response times, and other abnormal activities.

      • OpenSource.comWhy I love Tig for visualizing my Git workflows

        If you find navigating your Git repositories frustratingly complex, have I got the tool for you. Meet Tig.

        Tig is an ncurses-based text-mode interface for Git that allows you to browse changes in a Git repository. It also acts as a pager for the output of various Git commands. I use this tool to give me a good idea of what’s been changed in which commit by whom, the latest commit merged, and so much more. Try it for yourself, starting with this brief tutorial.

      • OpenSource.comManage your files in your Linux terminal with ranger

        The most basic way to look at your files and folders is to use the commands ls and ll. But sometimes, I want to see not just the file metadata but also the contents of a file at a glance. For that, I use ranger.

        If you love working out of your console and using Vim or Vi, and you don’t want to leave your terminal for any reason, ranger is your new best friend. Ranger is a minimal file manager that allows you not only to navigate through the files but also to preview them. Ranger comes bundled with rifle, a file executor that can efficiently choose programs that work with a given file type.

      • UbuntubuzzHow To Install JASP (an SPSS Alternative) on Ubuntu 22.04 and Later

        This article will explain in step by step to install JASP free software on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS Jammy Jellyfish. With this, you will have a Libre and Open Source alternative to SPSS, the statistical analysis program used in universities. Let's install it.

      • UNIX CopHow to install Apache ActiveMQ on Ubuntu and Debian Servers

        Today you will learn how to install Apache ActiveMQ on Ubuntu and Debian Servers

        Apache ActiveMQ is a free, open-source, multi-protocol message broker software written in Java. It supports standard industry protocols that can be used for communication between two separate applications that may have different or incompatible languages. It is designed for high performance communication and clustering and it also supports wide-range of language clients such as C, C++, Python, Ruby. It supports protocol like AMQP (Advanced Message Queuing Protocol) to integrate multi-platform applications and STOMP (Simple Text Orientated Messaging Protocol) for exchanging messages between web applications over websockets

      • UNIX CopNginx – Rate Limiting

        In this article, we’re going to see how to apply rate limiting to our websites using Nginx. Rate limiting can be an effective way to prevent denial of service attacks as well as throttle brute force attempts for pages like login forms.

      • UNIX CopManage MySQL with Ansible

        MySQL with Ansible is an open-source automation tool that automates provisioning, configuration management, application deployment, orchestration, and many other manual IT processes. Unlike more simplistic management tools, Ansible users (like system administrators, developers, and architects) can use Ansible automation to install software, automate daily tasks, provision infrastructure, improve security and compliance, patch systems, and share automation across the entire organization.

      • UNIX CopNginx – Improving TLS Configuration

        In my previous article, I covered using self-signed certificates to achieve a basic HTTPS connection with our Nginx instance. Today, we’re going to expand upon our configuration covering the various options we can (and some of them, we should) apply to optimize and further secure the TLS connections.

      • UNIX CopNtopng High-Speed Web-based Traffic Analysis and Flow Collection installation

        ntopng is the next generation version of the original ntop, a network traffic probe that monitors network usage. ntopng is based on libpcap/PF_RING and it has been written in a portable way in order to virtually run on every Unix platform, MacOS and on Windows as well.

        ntopng – yes, it’s all lowercase – provides a intuitive, encrypted web user interface for the exploration of realtime and historical traffic information.

      • Own HowToHow to install Cockpit web console on Ubuntu 22.04

        Cockpit is a web console utility that allows you to manage your server with ease, it is a essential tool when it comes to managing your server.

      • Linux Made SimpleHow to install FNF: SIMPGIRL on a Chromebook

        Today we are looking at how to install FNF: SIMPGIRL on a Chromebook. Please follow the video/audio guide as a tutorial where we explain the process step by step and use the commands below.

      • LinuxSecurityHow To Hide Your IP And Keep From Being Tracked

        While the internet provides many benefits, it also brings new risks and challenges. One of the most common and notable of these is the threat to our privacy. Some users might think that they are protected by their browser, search engine and antivirus programs. However, the truth is that most of us aren’t doing nearly enough to keep websites from tracking us.

      • MakeTech EasierHow to Use the Google Password Manager in Chrome
    • Games

      • GamingOnLinuxNVIDIA driver 515.57 and Vulkan Beta 515.49.06 out now

        Multiple driver updates have been released by NVIDIA for Linux recently so here's a look at what's new in each.

      • Positech GamesWhat income can you get from your old indie PC games? – Cliffski's Blog

        Because of the sheer bloody-minded determination to stick around, it turns out I have been making commercial aimed games since 1997, and therefore I have ended up with a big bunch of older titles that still run on most PCs, and can still generate revenue. have I perhaps become the ‘long-tail-indie’ just out of sheer hanging around? Could it be that actually positech games is self-sustaining on the basis of really old games, that although they do not sell much each, combined they add up to a tidy sum?

        I’ll be honest, I have no idea how much those older games make without digging into the data, but I thought either way it might be interesting, so here goes.

      • GamingOnLinuxitch.io are hosting a big Indie Bundle for Abortion Funds

        With the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade in the USA that threatens to remove access to abortions a bunch of indie developers have pulled together to make an Indie Bundle for Abortion Funds on itch.io.

      • GamingOnLinuxPlay as a sarcastic cow in the comedy adventure A Trail of Ooze

        A Trail of Ooze is an upcoming comedy adventure where you take on the role of a sarcastic cow who attempts to find their missing human farmer. It honestly sounds quite hilarious and the story sounds like something that I feel I need to play through.

      • GamingOnLinuxDenuvo announced Denuvo SecureDLC to protect DLC

        Denuvo is not exactly something any gamer I've ever seen be happy about and now it's growing and will likely appear in more games, with the announcement of Denuvo SecureDLC.

      • GamingOnLinuxAerofly FS 4 Flight Simulator live on Steam with Linux support

        Aerofly FS 4 Flight Simulator from developer IPACS is out now on Steam with Native Linux support, offering up an expansive flight sim experience. This follows on from Aerofly FS 2 Flight Simulator that released originally in 2017, with a Native Linux version of that one that arrived back in 2020 so it's nice to see continued support.

      • GamingOnLinuxFeartress is a new incremental city-building RPG in Early Access

        Feartress is a bit of a quirky one. Blending together elements of an idle RPG with some small city-building that sees you go through different dimensions. I'm really not sure on the best way to describe this one, it's just odd but it has a pretty nice idea to play through.

      • GamingOnLinuxWorthy of Better, Stronger Together for Reproductive Rights bundle live on itch.io

        A second bundle (yes there's two) supporting people in the USA following the overturning of Roe v. Wade is live on itch.io with the Worthy of Better, Stronger Together for Reproductive Rights bundle. The other is the Indie Bundle for Abortion Funds covered in a previous article.

      • GamingOnLinuxDesktopia is a city-builder that runs along the bottom of your desktop

        Desktopia: A Desktop Village Simulator seems like quite a unique idea for a city-builder, also a fun distraction to have open on your desktop. Instead of giving you a big full-screen window, the game sits along the bottom of your screen allowing you to carry on with whatever you're doing while also keeping an eye on your little people.

  • Distributions and Operating Systems

  • Free, Libre, and Open Source Software

    • Web Browsers

      • [Old] Tired of the Modern Web? Try the ‘Gemini’ protocol

        Gemini is a relatively new (the project started in 2019) internet protocol. The main idea was to make the communication protocol as simple as possible, with a clear and secure design, without heavy pages and tons of scripts running in the browser. Can it really work this way? Let’s just try and see how it is going! But before reading this article further, I highly recommend reading the first part to have a better understanding of some ideas which inspired Gemini developers for their work. Readers can also visit the official project page https://gemini.circumlunar.space. By the way, many names in the project (CAPCOM, Spacewalk, Lunar, etc) were taken from NASA’s Project Gemini. For me, it looks a bit confusing because the project itself has nothing in common with NASA, astronomy or long-distance communications, but if you like space and space programs, it can be fun anyway.

        Before we begin, a small disclaimer: I am not affiliated with the Gemini project in any way and this article is not an advertisement. I’ve just tried it, as any other user can do, all I write below is my own opinion.

      • Bryan LundukeLadybird: A truly new Web Browser (with a from-scratch engine) comes to Linux

        Well, my good sirs and madams, you are in luck! Andreas Kling — the evil genius and mastermind of the Serenty OS project — has just ported the Serenty OS web browser to Linux using Qt!

      • Stable Channel Update for Desktop

        Note: Access to bug details and links may be kept restricted until a majority of users are updated with a fix. We will also retain restrictions if the bug exists in a third party library that other projects similarly depend on, but haven’t yet fixed.

    • Licensing / Legal

      • LWN[Reposted] Software Freedom Conservancy: Give Up GitHub: The Time Has Come!

        The Software Freedom Conservancy (SFC) has issued a strong call for free software projects to give up GitHub and to move their repositories elsewhere. There are a number of problems that SFC has identified with the GitHub code-hosting service and, in particular, with its Copilot AI-based code-writing tool that was trained on the community's code stored in the company's repositories. Moving away from GitHub will not be easy, SFC said, but it is important to do so lest the free-software community repeat the SourceForge mistake.

    • Programming/Development

      • Matt RickardGiving Up Decentralization: Scalability Trilemma

        The scalability trilemma states that blockchains must choose to optimize two of the three properties: [...]

      • IdiomdrottningGood book, bad language

        Sometimes people who are stuck in a bad language need to develop discipline or structure or formalize their thinking since otherwise they’d be lost (since their language doesn’t let them create abstraction) and that can be interesting. It can also help us in langages that do have good metaprogramming facilities; there’s this old adage that most of the patterns in Design Patterns are like one line of Lisp (for example, why do you need Template Method or Visitor when you can just pass a proc...

      • Matt RickardA Look Into My Development Stack

        I've built a lot of developer tools (minikube and skaffold to name a few). But I'm often asked – what does my personal development stack look like?

      • Game of Trees -portable 0.73 released July 4, 2022

        This file details portable-specific changes to make things work on systems other than OpenBSD.

      • Matt RickardWhat Comes After Git

        Git was born from the collaboration problems in the Linux kernel. Nearly a decade later, new problems arose when Kubernetes (the operating system of the cloud) brought open-source collaboration to a new level.

        I saw the pain points of git (and GitHub) firsthand working on Kubernetes open-source. Will a new version control system (or something that solves similar problems) spring up?

  • Leftovers

    • ViceDeepfakes Might Be Used in Remote Job Interviews, FBI Warns

      According to the FBI, they’ve received reports from people working in information technology and computer programming, database, and software related roles, claiming that job applicants are using deepfakes in video interviews. What these positions have in common is their ability to access customer information, financial data, corporate IT databases, and proprietary information.

      While the FBI has not shared statistics with the public, such as whether deepfakes are actually being used in these complaints, how many people allegedly using deepfakes are successfully recruited into the roles, and if any information has been compromised, it did report that people have claimed that private information has been stolen to create applicant’s fake identities, and pass pre-employment background checks.

    • Science

      • Sci Tech DailyHarvard Developed [algorithm] Identifies the Shortest Path to Human Happiness

        Deep Longevity has published a paper in Aging-US outlining a machine learning approach to human psychology in collaboration with Nancy Etcoff, Ph.D., Harvard Medical School, an authority on happiness and beauty.

        The authors created two digital models of human psychology based on data from the Midlife in the United States study.

        The first model is an ensemble of deep neural networks that predicts respondents’ chronological age and psychological well-being in 10 years using information from a psychological survey. This model depicts the trajectories of the human mind as it ages. It also demonstrates that the capacity to form meaningful connections, as well as mental autonomy and environmental mastery, develops with age. It also suggests that the emphasis on personal progress is constantly declining, but the sense of having a purpose in life only fades after 40-50 years. These results add to the growing body of knowledge on socioemotional selectivity and hedonic adaptation in the context of adult personality development.

    • Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

      • The AtlanticWe Created the ‘Pandemicene’

        The Iceberg study suggests that new spillovers will follow surprising rules. For example, the team assumed that these events would be concentrated in the Arctic because warming temperatures nudge animals toward higher, cooler latitudes. But if two species move northward in parallel, nothing changes. The real drama occurs, for instance, when animals seek higher, cooler altitudes, and when those living on opposite sides of a mountain meet in the middle. This means that spillovers will be concentrated not in the poles, but in the mountainous and species-rich parts of tropical Africa and southeast Asia.

    • Proprietary

      • Security WeekDutch Uni Gets Cyber Ransom Money Back... With Interest

        The southern Maastricht University in 2019 was hit by a large cyberattack in which criminals used ransomware, a type of malicious software that locks valuable data and can only be accessed once the victim pays a ransom amount.

        "The criminals had encrypted hundreds of Windows servers and backup systems, preventing 25,000 students and employees from accessing scientific data, library and mail," the daily De Volkskrant said.

    • Security

      • Privacy/Surveillance

        • Ruben SchadeAustralian AG Dreyfus on data privacy law

          And that’s what makes me nervous. The pattern among Western democracies over the last few decades has generally been to curtail, infringe, or backtrack on privacy, usually for concocted or overblown reasons. My mind goes nowhere positive when I hear a modern politician say they want to overhaul or improve privacy law!

        • Port SwiggerUS eye clinic suffers data breach impacting 92,000 patients

          Mattax Neu Prater Eye Center announced the breach at the end of June, however the incident took place in December 2021.

          According to HIPAA, 92,361 individuals were impacted by the breach.

          Mattax Neu Prater, which provides surgical and non-surgical care, said that the “third -party data security incident” may have resulted in unauthorized access to the sensitive personal information of some patients.

        • PIAThe Best & Worst States in America for Online Privacy

          Cybercrime in the US is expected to cost $10 trillion by 2025. In response to this and other factors, such as the increase in remote working and the cyberwar with Russia, the US has passed an increasing amount of cybersecurity legislation.

          Let’s take a look at what the US is currently doing on federal and state levels to protect your online privacy. I’ll also show you which states are best for online privacy and how you can protect your privacy if you live in one that falls short.

        • SANSEncrypted Client Hello: Anybody Using it Yet?

          The first payload sent by a TLS client to a TLS server is a "Client Hello." It includes several parameters supported by the client, such as available cipher suites, to start negotiating a compatible set of TLS parameters with the server.

          One particular option, the "Server Name Indication" (SNI), lists the hostname the client is looking for. The client hello is sent in the clear and has often been considered a privacy issue or, for some network defenders, the last straw to hold on to gain insight into TLS encrypted traffic.

          [...]

          ESNI solves a significant part of the client hello privacy problem. But other client-hello options may be used to fingerprint clients. Encrypting the entire client hello message is the next obvious option. This idea, Encrypted Client Hello (ECH), is currently an IETF draft [ECH]. The encrypted client hello options are wrapped into an unencrypted "Client Hello Outer" that is used as a vessel to transport the encrypted blob. This blob will look like any other client hello option to a server not capable of ECH.

        • EngadgetRussia fines Airbnb, Twitch and Pinterest for not storing data locally | Engadget

          Russia has fined Airbnb, Twitch and Pinterest for violating the country’s personal data legislation, Reuters reports. On Tuesday, a court in Moscow ordered all three companies to pay fines of 2 million roubles (approximately $37,700) for not storing the data of Russian citizens within the country. The decision came after Russia’s Roskomnadzor internet commission opened administrative cases against the three platforms in May. Airbnb, Twitch and Pinterest did not immediately respond to Engadget’s request for comment.

        • The Age AUBanned 60 years ago, this ‘obscene’ Anzac play makes its Australian debut

          Wouldn’t it be exquisite if the first Australian performance of Peter Yeldham’s Reunion Day since it was written in 1961 was halted by a police raid?

          Yeldham’s screenplay, commissioned and broadcast by the BBC to critical acclaim and starring some of Australian theatre’s greatest alumni in 1962, is still subject to the censor’s ban which stopped it appearing on Australian screens 60 years ago.

        • GizmodoGravity Falls Creator Shares Disney's Bananas Censorship Notes

          For the 10th anniversary of the cult-favorite cartoon, Alex Hirsch revealed what he dealt with while making the show.

        • Jacobin MagazineFacebook’s Antiabortion Censorship Is a Reminder of the Perils of “Content Moderation”

          In the wake of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, Facebook has started censoring posts about mailing abortion pills. It’s a reminder that even if you support the idea of tech censorship now, sooner or later your views will be targeted.

        • ANF NewsANF | MSLA co-director Veysel Ok says 'censorship law' will affect everyone

          MSLA Co-director and lawyer Veysel Ok said: "The government is aware of the fact that journalists continue to do their work despite everything, and with this censorship law wants to further strengthen this control mechanism and monopolize information."

          The General Assembly discussion of the 'Draft Law Amending the Press Law and Some other Laws', signed by AKP-MHP deputies to "fight disinformation", has been postponed for the time being. For a while, journalists organized "no to the censorship law" actions in the field at the call of professional press organizations. Both the coming of this new law to the Parliament and the arrest of 16 Kurdish journalists in Amed while this law was being discussed in the Justice Committee showed how much freedom of the press is at risk. Media and Legal Studies Association (MSLA) co-director and lawyer Veysel Ok spoke to ANF about the law and why the government needs it.

        • ANF NewsANF | Journalist Balıkçı says 'Disinformation Law' is biggest censorship law in the history of Turkey

          The law, which the AKP-MHP alliance calls "Disinformation Law", but which will actually censor the press and media and actually impose self-censorship, aims to narrow the scope of journalism as much as possible. The fact that this law is being discussed and brought to the Parliament in a process where the pressures against the Kurdish press are on the agenda, is interpreted as an attack on the public's right to receive information in general terms.

          Faruk Balıkçı, who has been working as a journalist in Amed for more than 30 years in different media, talked to ANF about the censorship law and similar previous de facto obstructions and bans.

          Balıkçı emphasized that if the censorship law is passed, the working conditions of journalists will be badly affected. Pointing out that freedom of the press is one of the indispensable conditions for democracy in a country, Balıkçı noted that in a country where the press is not free, democracy is either languishing or dead.

        • ANF NewsANF | Censorship at work: access to webpages of Voice of America and Deutsche Welle blocked

          After an application by the media authority, the Ankara 1sth Penal Judgeship of Peace yesterday (June 30) ruled for the "censorship" of the webpages of Voice of America and Deutsche Welle. The two websites have been blocked due to the two outlets' failure to apply to the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÃœK) for a license.

          The Information Technologies and Communications Authority (BIK) implemented the decision on Thursday.

          The authorities blocked the domains dw.com and amerikaninsesi.com, the web address of VOA's Turkish service. Both the Turkish and English editions of DW are banned, whereas VOA's English edition is accessible in Turkey at voiceofamerica.com.

        • Journalists protest 'disinformation bill': 'Greatest censorship in Turkey's history'

          Journalists yesterday (June 21) protested the law proposal known as the "disinformation bill," which includes new arrangements about social media and online news reporting.

          Members of 10 several journalism groups attended the demonstration organized by the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions of Turkey (DÄ°SK) Press Union in ÅžiÅŸhane in Ä°stanbul's BeyoÄŸlu district.

          They opened a banner that read, "No to the law of silencing, intimidation and incarceration! The press is free, it cannot be censored."

          The bill that passed the parliament's Justice Committee last week introduces prison sentences of up to three years for spreading disinformation. It also expands the authority of the Presidency Communications Directorate on news outlets.

        • US News And World ReportOnline discussion was swirling in response to reported remarks of Beijing's party secretary.

          Digital censors quickly deleted a hashtag “the next five years” Monday as online discussion swirled in response to reported remarks of Beijing's Communist Party secretary saying that the capital city will normalize pandemic prevention controls over the course of the next five years.

        • CNNChinese censors scrub internet after senior party official gives speech on timeline of zero-Covid in Beijing

          Chinese censors scrambled to delete what appears to be a misleading quote by a senior Communist Party official published in state media Monday, which claimed the "zero-Covid" policy would remain in place in Beijing "for the next five years," in an effort to tame an online backlash.

        • US News And World ReportU.S. Targets Russia With Tech to Evade Censorship of Ukraine News
        • NYPostTwitter censors Post Editorial Board member for months

          A New York Post Editorial Board member has been blocked by Twitter for months, in what he says is punishment for the paper's decision to publish Hunter Biden's hard drive.

        • CNETSpotify Forms Council to Advise on Safety Versus Censorship - CNET

          Spotify's Safety Advisory Council comes after an artist backlash over COVID misinformation on Joe Rogan's podcast.

          Spotify said Monday it has created a new Safety Advisory Council of experts and organizations focused on online safety. The council's mission "is to help Spotify evolve its policies and products in a safe way" while still respecting creator expression.

          It's a move to help Spotify navigate problems where freedom of expression is at odds with effectively policing the most objectionable or dangerous material on its service. That tension burst into public view earlier this year, when COVID-19 misinformation on Joe Rogan's popular podcast stoked a handful of artists to pull their music off Spotify in protest.

    • Defence/Aggression

    • Environment

      • Energy

        • ViceTexas Supreme Court Rules This Train Is a Train

          A state law enacted in 1907 allows “interurban electric railway” companies to use eminent domain to buy property in order to build rail lines. The lawsuit contends an aspiring bullet train company is neither an “interurban electric railway” nor a railroad company. Specifically, the landowner applied a “living Constitution”-style interpretation to the 1907 law that argues we must adapt old laws to modern technologies, arguing the framers of a 1907 law could not possibly have meant to include big, loud bullet trains that can impact hundreds or even thousands of people per journey, intending only to permit the use of single-car trolleys that have to be loaded one person at a time and can operate only in a slow, deliberate fashion. The technology has changed, the rural Texas farmer argued in court, and the law must change with it.

          But the Texas Supreme Court didn’t buy it. On Friday, it ruled in favor of the aspiring railroad company, sticking with a more Originalist interpretation of the law by sticking to the meaning of the words on the page. Initially, the lower court agreed with the landowner, finding Texas Central could not use eminent domain, a critical tool for building a 250-mile railroad through Texas. An appeals court overturned that ruling, and the Texas Supreme Court upheld that overturn.

      • Overpopulation

    • Finance

      • Stacy on IoTSustainability is driving the IoT way beyond ROI

        Research firms agree. IDC recently issued a report noting that spending on ESG performance will grow to $158 billion in 2025, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 32.3 percent. Unfortunately, two-thirds of that spending will go to consulting services, according to IDC. That means less money for sensors and more money for figuring out how to get data, then how to adapt to and meet climate and governance goals.

        Another challenge is inflation. Research firm Omdia recently posted an article noting the demand for ESG spending is rising, but cautioned that concerns over inflation and demand for more energy might lead businesses to reduce their efforts in this sphere so as to ensure sustainable profits over sustainability.

    • AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

      • Frontpage MagazineAfter the Oslo Bloodbath

        You had to go into the archives to discover just how hypocritical Qureshi’s statement was. He’s on the record as saying that all Muslims support the death penalty for gays. (For obvious strategic reasons, he’s since announced that gays who abstain from sex need not be executed.) As for Kobilica and IRN, get a load of what happened in 2009 when Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the world’s leading Islamic scholar, praised the Holocaust. Asked for a comment, IRN’s then Secretary General, Sultan Shoaib, referred reporters to Kobilica, who was then IRN’s head. Kobilica, in turn, passed the buck to the Islamic Association’s Basim Ghozlan, who declined to comment on Qaradawi’s remark because, he said, it was a “political statement.”

      • NewsweekIlhan Omar Booed at Somali Music Event in Minneapolis

        Longer clips shared on social media show the audience booed for at least a minute after Omar and her husband came up on stage.

        One video shared on Twitter has amassed more than a million views. The clip shows that some in the crowd chanted "Get out!" while others were heard yelling "get the f**k out of here!"

      • Patrick BreyerThree years into the digital fight for freedom in Brussels – Pirates matter!

        The work of the Pirate movement in the European Parliament is characterised by our close cooperation and cross-border division of labour. I am also proud that we Pirates are now in the government in the Czech Republic and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Digital Affairs are Pirates. This will be particularly helpful in the next six months, when the Czech Republic holds the EU Presidency and negotiates for the Council.

        One thing has been clear since my election: our fundamental rights and freedoms in the digital age are being attacked and dismantled across Europe. Industry, the EU Commission and the governments of the member states are responsible for this. And yet I was able to achieve successes in the fight against surveillance and screening mania.

      • Green Party UKLabour and Tories ignoring disaster of Brexit out of own self-interest, Greens warn

        “At a time when the economic devastation caused by Brexit is becoming increasingly clear, and as public opinion is turning against the decision to leave the European Union, it is quite perverse of Keir Starmer to stick his head in the sand and insist he will make Brexit work.€ 

      • Craig MurrayThe UK’s Fake Politics

        I found this list on the Facebook page of Anya Darr. The information in it checks out, and it is pretty startling.

      • Counter PunchBlue MAGA's Big Lie

        Vote Blue No Matter Who Democrats (also known as Blue MAGAs) love to blame their party’s shortcomings and monumental incompetence on the left. The left is their boogeyman. They despise the left more than they hate the far right.

        Bernie Sanders, Ralph Nader and (inexplicably) the actress Susan Sarandon are Blue MAGAs’s favorite targets. Nader, because they blame his third party presidential run for Al Gore’s loss in 2000, just as Bernie gets blamed for Hillary’s inconceivable loss to Trump in 2016. They hate Sarandon because…well, because Blue MAGAs are completely irrational beings.

      • The NationWhat Chesa Boudin’s Recall Means for Children With Incarcerated Parents

        On June 7, voters in San Francisco recalled District Attorney Chesa Boudin after less than two years in office. Like many advocates for criminal justice system reform, I was devastated. The commitment Boudin made to bringing an end to classist and racist prosecutorial practices inspired me, but his personal story touched me on a deeper level.

    • Censorship/Free Speech

      • MIT Technology ReviewChina wants to control how its famous livestreamers act, speak, and even dress

        But many streamers, like Lawyer Longfei, are grappling with the Chinese government’s increasing willingness to weigh in on what’s acceptable. A new policy document, Code of Conduct for Online Streamers, released by China’s top cultural authorities on June 22, is designed to instruct streamers on what is expected from them. Having managed to operate under the radar in recent years, livestreamers are now facing the full force of China’s censorship machine.

        The Code of Conduct lists 31 categories of content that shouldn’t appear in online videos, ranging from violence and self-harm to more ambiguous concepts like religious teachings and showing off wealth. The guidelines also include rules on streamers’ looks, and it bans the use of deepfakes to crack jokes about China’s leadership.

      • SedaaThe Lady of Heaven: Have we become desensitised to the threat posed by Islamists

        In other words, the two are constantly blaspheming against each other; sectarianism is still rife (more on that later).

        Britain is a democratic country that prides itself on championing free speech. While these protestors have a right to express their views, this doesn’t give them a licence to make threats and harass people who wish to see a movie.

        Sadly, caving into the demands of the religious mobs has become the norm – starting from the backlash more than 30 years ago to Salman Rushdie’s novel Satanic Verses, widely perceived to be offensive to some Muslims.

      • MedforthNorway: Islamist attack on critic of Islam posted on twitter (VIDEO)

        Norwegian police confirmed they had arrested two people, including the driver of the car accused of deliberately ramming the SUV of Lars Thoren, leader of the radical group Stop the Islamisation of Norway (Sian), until it eventually overturned on its roof. “We have every reason to believe that the Sian member’s car was deliberately rammed,” said the police in Oslo.Le Progrès

      • VOA NewsNorwegian Anti-Islam Extremist in Car Crash After Burning Quran

        The SUV of the anti-Islam activists, painted in camouflage livery, then left the scene. But seconds later, it was overtaken by the Mercedes, which first hit it lightly and eventually hit it at speed, overturning the vehicle.

        The whole episode was filmed by someone following the car.

      • India TimesTV Actor Niharika Tiwari Might Get Police Protection After Death Threats Over Udaipur Beheading

        For the unversed, Kanhaiya Lal Teli, a 46-year-old tailor was attacked and murdered at his own shop after Riaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad, who posed as customers, murdered him brutally. Later, they posted videos online in which they claimed that their actions were in retaliation for an insult to Islam.

      • The Print‘Conflict can’t stop me’ – Kashmiri influencers are censoring, lying low, but won’t go offline

        Social media stars in Kashmir are stuck between a rock and a hard place, Mahek says. There’s no “formula” for their safety. All they can do is lie low on social media after someone is killed, which many started doing after Amreena’s murder. And for the ones who continued to post, the process has become more time-consuming. This is what sets them apart from influencers outside Kashmir. Rather than thinking about what is trending, Kashmiri influencers have to factor in what extremists will not like.

        sd The security apparatus in Kashmir say that Amreena’s killing marked the arrival of a new terror target group in Kashmir, the social media stars who want to show normality. According to them, militants believe that entertainment – cinema to social media – is a sin and disobedience to Allah, and women indulging in it need to be punished.

      • DNA IndiaAmravati police chief tried to hide chemist's killing by calling it robbery, alleges MP Navneet Rana

        Amravati MP Navneet Rana has levelled allegations against the city police commissioner in the case of a chemist's murder, which has sparked outrage, just days after the beheading of a tailor in Udaipur whose throat was slit last month over supporting suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma's comment on Prophet Mohammad.

        Rana claimed that the city's police commissioner, Aarti Singh, attempted to cover up the murder as a robbery. "She is providing clarification on the incident after 12 days... She initially claimed it was a robbery and tried to suppress the case. An enquiry must also be done against Amravati Commissioner of Police," the MP said.

    • Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

    • Civil Rights/Policing

      • MedforthFrance: Non-integrated migrant pushes his daughter off the bridge because he didn’t like her lifestyle

        The father of the family suspected of throwing his 18-year-old daughter off the bridge in Saint-Nazaire on Tuesday June 28 was charged with murder – premeditation was assumed – and remanded in custody, the Nantes prosecutor confirmed. The couple and their two children lived in the commune of Donges. “A very inconspicuous family” confided the mayor François Chéneau to France Bleu Loire Océan radio.

      • Daniel MiesslerThe Workforce Pincer Move During Recessions

        Companies are doing something smart (and sometimes a bit gross) during this economic…whatever this is. They’re using the downturn as an opportunity to get rid of people they don’t like, which solidifies their workforce.

      • The Nation4th of July: GunDependence Day?
      • Democracy Now“What to the Slave Is the 4th of July?”: James Earl Jones Reads Frederick Douglass’s Historic Speech

        We begin our July Fourth special broadcast with the words of Frederick Douglass. Born into slavery around 1818, Douglass became a key leader of the abolitionist movement. On July 5, 1852, in Rochester, New York, Douglass gave one of his most famous speeches, “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” He was addressing the Rochester Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society. James Earl Jones reads the historic address during a performance of “Voices of a People’s History of the United States,” which was co-edited by Howard Zinn. The late great historian introduces the address.

    • Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

      • Creative CommonsCC Expresses Views on Italian National Cultural Heritage Digitization Plan

        While the Plan is welcome as an important step towards the digital transformation of cultural heritage institutions (CHIs), it risks nonetheless restricting, rather than increasing, access to and use of cultural heritage, and having a serious detrimental effect on the public domain, creators’ participation in generative creativity, and society as a whole.

    • Monopolies

      • C4ISRNETBooz Allen acquisition of defense firm EverWatch would harm NSA, US says

        In a complaint filed June 29 in a Maryland federal court, the U.S. alleged that the merger of Booz Allen and EverWatch Corp. would eliminate competition, harm taxpayers, and result in lower quality, less innovative services.

        “Booz Allen’s agreement to acquire EverWatch imperils competition in a market that is vital to our national security,” Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter, who works in the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, said in a statement. “Both the acquisition agreement and the underlying transaction violate federal antitrust law.”

      • Copyrights

        • Torrent FreakBroadest US Pirate Site Injunction Rewritten/Tamed By Cloudflare

          After causing outrage among online services including Cloudflare, the most aggressive pirate site injunction ever handed down in the US has undergone significant weight loss surgery. Now before the court is a heavily modified injunction that is most notable for everything that's been removed. It appears that Cloudflare drew a very clear line in the sand and refused to step over it.

        • Torrent FreakACE Seizes Domains Of Large Sports Streaming Pirate Sites

          The world's leading anti-piracy coalition ACE has booked another major success. Together with one of its newest members, sports broadcaster beIN, the group shut down several large sports streaming domains. The rightsholders received support from dozens of police officers in Egypt, where the sites were based.

        • Michael GeistThe Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 133: Michael Nesbitt on How the Senate Pushed Back Against a Government Bill on Searching Digital Devices at the Border

          It isn’t every day that a Senate committee examines legislation and makes notable changes against the wishes of the government. But that’s what happened last month as a Senate committee reviewed Bill S-7, which raised significant privacy concerns regarding the legal standard for searches of digital devices at the border. A chorus of opposition sparked by Senator Paula Simons led to changes in the bill with the Chair of the committee acknowledging “we did not have one witness except the minister and the officials say that the new standard was a good idea.”

  • Gemini* and Gopher

    • Personal

      • doctor my eyes....

        I just drove virtually down the street to the house I spent most of my childhood in courtesy of Google Maps street view. Quite sobering to see a tree that I used to jump over now tower what I'm estimating to be some 70 feet tall. Um... wow.. yes, a blink of an eye indeed....

    • Technical

      • Programming

        • salparse

          Chicken Scheme’s egg tester (disgustingly named “salmonella”) creates log files that are sometimes difficult to parse.

          Here’s a dumb li’l Unix filter, I’m not even making a repo or egg for it yet, that prints the output of the test step (or if install failed, the install step) of the log file.


* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.



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