01.03.22
Gemini version available ♊︎Software Freedom Makes the World a Greener Place, Too
Video download link | md5sum b9818d9e345d7dc111adbe5628e972f2
Summary: We probably need to improve our messaging along the lines of energy consumption and rejection of planned obsolescence in advocacy of free-as-in-freedom software
THE so-called ‘Linux’ Foundation is a total disgrace that is greenwashing the worst offenders and the biggest polluters on the planet, especially Microsoft [1, 2]. It’s even plastered all over the 2021 annual report. But then again, it’s not about software freedom but about openwashing and reputation laundering. The so-called ‘Linux’ Foundation should never even be called “Linux” anything; it’s a misleading name. Similarly, FSFE was repeatedly asked by the FSF to rename, as it had violated an agreement on the use of the name. FSFE is a bunch of self-serving dictators bankrolled by Gulag and Microsoft. They try to censor actual proponents of software freedom, who aren’t doing this for a salary but altruism and ideology. Same as the OSI, which they colluded with (against volunteers and lifelong activists).
“We need to think or rethink how we use (or reuse, recycle) technology; as gemini:// is 100% Free software (all software I’ve ever seen for it was liberally licensed) and works across many platforms — including very old ones — one stepping stone towards lowering “footprint” (energy and surveillance) is to encourage adoption of it.”My rants about fake NGOs aside (the IRS needs to bust them for misuse of tax exemption status; maybe it already does), the video above concerns Dr. Andy Farnell’s excellent article from last night. I show this article as GemText over gemini:// because I wish to encourage more people to adopt Gemini, which is vastly better for the environment, both in terms of system requirements and the energy it takes to load a page. Incidentally, those who use gemini:// to access Techrights did not notice the 4-hour downtime of the Web site yesterday (due to electric outage) and benefited from a secure connection that does not involve a CA like the so-called 'Linux' Foundation's Let's Encrypt.
We need to think or rethink how we use (or reuse, recycle) technology; as gemini:// is 100% Free software (all software I’ve even seen for it was liberally licensed) and works across many platforms — including very old ones — one stepping stone towards lowering “footprint” (energy and surveillance) is to encourage adoption of it. There are many other things one can do in order to lessen human suffering; in the video above I show my PDA, which is a model made in 2002, i.e. 20 years ago. It still works. My alarm clock and stereo were made in the 1990s and I use them every day. We need to demand from companies that they use components made to last, not to break after about 5 years, spurring another wave of sales (bad for the planet, not just for the wallet).
To make matters worse, some of the CAs are spurring further obsolescence; it’s a known issue which we were reminded of last year because many old devices ceased to work with the Web. There was no workaround because the so-called ‘Linux’ Foundation with its silly CA had a “cert” expire (last year wasn’t the first time) and then the software relying upon that “cert” — somewhere further up the chain — panicked over n nothing; Gemini does not force such a reliance on third party CAs, so it’s not bad for the environment like the Web is. █
ᶃ Gemini Space
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