Bonum Certa Men Certa

Thank Adobe for Showing Everyone Free/Libre Software is the Only Way to Go

A Venezuelan lesson

Venezuelan landscape



Summary: Free/Open Source software (FOSS) is getting a boost from the Trump regime's policies, not only in China but also in Latin America

IF Microsoft controls FOSS repositories, then it'll take them down (even causing considerable data loss) when political considerations emerge. The US government is a big client of Microsoft. GitHub users are very rarely customers to Microsoft (they don't pay). It's a bear hug and an open bear trap; Microsoft wants to squash its competition, it's not trying to foster FOSS. Azure is a losing franchise (operating at a loss; Microsoft lies to its shareholders) and so is GitHub (for many years), so Microsoft is looking to gain from control/domination/monopoly. Now there's this whole 'cloud' hype; the rental-like business model of proprietary software has never been so clear to see.



Consider what Adobe has just done [1-4]; it demonstrates the importance of decentralised Free software. Even the biggest troll at ZDNet covered it [1], but notice how they fail to mention Free software as an alternative. They don't entertain the topic of Software Freedom. But it's partly intentional. Just look at the latest SJVN/ZDNet nonsense (entrapping Torvalds with loaded questions for clickbait 'journalism'). Maybe we'll comment about it again some time in the coming days.

Related/contextual items from the news:


  1. Adobe to deactivate accounts for all Venezuelan users due to US sanctions


  2. Adobe is cutting off users in Venezuela due to US sanctions

    In the document, Adobe explains: “The U.S. Government issued Executive Order 13884, the practical effect of which is to prohibit almost all transactions and services between U.S. companies, entities, and individuals in Venezuela. To remain compliant with this order, Adobe is deactivating all accounts in Venezuela.”

    Users will have until October 28th to download any content stored in their accounts, and will lose access the next day. To make matters worse, customers won’t be able to receive refunds for any purchases or outstanding subscriptions, as Adobe says that the executive order calls for “the cessation of all activity with the entities including no sales, service, support, refunds, credits, etc.”



  3. Adobe shuts down Photoshop in Venezuela

    Adobe has moved to a subscription-only model for the latest versions of its products meaning users will not be able to buy standalone versions.



  4. Adobe Will Cancel All Subscriptions in Venezuela to Comply With U.S. Sanctions

    Users will not get any refunds, according to a notice published to Adobe’s website, and the tech giant says that the sanctions won’t allow it to issue refunds even if they wanted to.

    “We are unable to issue refunds,” Adobe says on its site. “Executive order 13884, orders the cessation of all activity with the entities including no sales, service, support, refunds, credits, etc.”





Recent Techrights' Posts

EPO's Local Staff Committee Munich Organises General Assembly Next Week, the Goal is to Oust the Corrupt President and Derail His Unlawful Agenda
They're aiming to show Campinos the door
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, September 10, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, September 10, 2026
Keeping Linux Reliable
If Linux becomes a lot more reliable in the future, we'll know why and who is responsible for it
Latest IBM Gossip is, Over 25,000 People to be PIPed (by Year's End)
That figure, 10%, is different from 15% (what we saw a lot). 10% is over 25,000 staff.
Solidarity at EPO
"Many colleagues have made personal and professional sacrifices by participating in the ongoing strike and work-to-rule action"
Gemini Links 11/09/2026: Culture Stuck, Robot Symphony, and Back to Geminispace
Links for the day
Links 10/09/2026: Facebook Unsafe for Kids, Fake Songs (Against Right of Publicity, CG Forgeries Basically) a Growing Problem
Links for the day
Rust is Financially and Technically Controlled by Microsoft. Rust Foundation is a Front for Microsoft's Proprietary Software.
Rust is not and has never been about security
Gemini Links 10/09/2026: "I Don’t Want to Interact With Stochastic Parrots" and "ROOPHLOCH 2026!"
Links for the day
What the British School Closure (BSN Senior School Leidschenveen) Means to EPO Staff
The only European thing about the EPO is the staff
Standing in Solidarity With Matt Mullenweg
I don't trust the people and companies that want Mullenweg out. Neither should you.
Links 10/09/2026: "Smear Campaign Says Anti-Flock Movement Is Chinese Propaganda" and "Flock Employee Calls Cops on Reporter Filming Them"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, September 09, 2026
IRC logs for Wednesday, September 09, 2026
IBM's Senior VP of Infrastructure is Out, Silent Layoffs Still Going On
Some people imagine the CEO will also "retire" very soon (and "ahead of time")
Gemini Links 09/09/2026: Mechanical Cameras, "Super App", and Prusa Issues
Links for the day
SLAPP Censorship - Part 177 Out of 200: Manosphere Without Financial Transparency
It has moreover replaced a female worker with a male
Deadline Tomorrow (10th of September) to Appeal the EPO's Fleecing of Staff (Union to Make Legal Challenges)
Join them. Fight the good fight.
linuxstans.com Died, Then Came Back as Slop (LLM Junk)
Don't make the mistake or the assumption that merely 'dabbling in' or 'experimenting with' LLMs can be forgivable as it is a trust destroyer
Links 09/09/2026: GAFAM Fatalities in Miami International Airport, "Britain’s Health Crisis Is Becoming a Political Crisis"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/09/2026: "Adjective Is Subjective" and Walled Gardens
Links for the day
Plagiarism is Hardly a New Problem, It Predates Mainstream Media Getting Paid to Whitewash It as "Training" or "Hey Hi", Then Conflate Plagiarism With "Intelligence" or Deferred "Value"
"Quantum" isn't new either; it's a 'circle-jerk' for companies without direction, only hype
Links 09/09/2026: Airport 'Down' (Glasgow and Edinburgh), 'Open' 'AI' Losses Rise to Pace of 50 Billion Dollars in Losses Per Year
Links for the day
Unsafe at Any Speed, "Modern" Appliances
Appliances have gotten worse
SLAPP Censorship - Part 176 Out of 200: The Sex-Obsessed Non-Experts
We heard some sexual stories
European Patent Office (EPO): No Transparency and No Paper Trail
The incompetence is that of the management, i.e. sheer incompetence of people who never examined a patent in their entire lifetime
Gemini Links 09/09/2026: Going Out, Smartphone Addiction, Mapping the Geminispace
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, September 08, 2026
IRC logs for Tuesday, September 08, 2026