Bonum Certa Men Certa

Links 05/09/2022: Another RC of Linux 6.0 and Apache AGE 1.1.0



  • GNU/Linux

    • 9to5Linux9to5Linux Weekly Roundup: September 4th, 2022

      This week has been all about Ubuntu as we kicked off the week with a piece of fantastic news for fans of the good old Unity7 desktop environment, namely that the Ubuntu Unity distribution is becoming an official Ubuntu flavor. In addition, Ubuntu 20.04.5 LTS arrived with an updated HWE kernel, Ubuntu 22.10 adopted the Linux 5.19 kernel, and both Ubuntu 22.04 LTS and 20.04 LTS users got a new kernel security update.

      On top of that, this week brought us a new major OBS Studio release, new point releases of the Nitrux, MX Linux, and Armbian distributions, as well as a plethora of software releases for everyone. Below, you can enjoy these and much more in 9to5Linux’s Linux weekly roundup for September 4th, 2022.

    • Linux Made SimpleLinux Weekly Roundup #198

      Welcome to this week's Linux weekly Roundup. We had a full week in the world of Linux releases with MX Linux 21.2, Absolute Linux 20220825, Bluestar Linux 5.19.4, Nitrux OS 20220831, Garuda Linux 220903, Linuxfx 11.2.22.04.2, deepin 20.7, and Ubuntu 20.04.5 with all it's flavors.

    • Audio and Video

    • Kernel Space

      • Linux 6.0-rc4
        It's Sunday afternoon, which can only mean one thing - another rc
        release. We're up to rc4, and things mostly still look fairly normal.
        
        

        Most of the fixes the past week have been drivers (gpu, networking, gpio, tty, usb, sound.. a little bit of everything in other words). But we have the usual mix of fixes elsewhere too - architecture fixes (arm64, loongarch, powerpc, RISC-V, s390 and x86), and various other areas - core networking, filesystems, io_uring, LSM, selftests and documentation. Some of this is reverts of things that just turned out to be wrong or just not quite ready.

        Please do go test, Linus

      • LWNKernel prepatch 6.0-rc4 [LWN.net]

        The 6.0-rc4 kernel prepatch is out for testing. "We're up to rc4, and things mostly still look fairly normal". Beyond the usual fixes, 6.0-rc4 includes one feature change: a hook to allow security modules to control access to the io_uring command pass-through mechanism. See this article for the background behind this late-arriving change

    • Applications

      • Earthly15 Essential Linux Terminal Commands - Earthly Blog

        Linux, a powerful, free, stable, secure, and highly customizable operating system, is essential for any developer’s workflow. The Linux terminal interacts with the operating system for all basic and advanced tasks. Moreover, most web servers run Linux, and tools like Docker work by providing an additional layer of abstraction and automation on top of Linux.

        While some distributions have GUI (graphical user interface), the GUI is limited with regard to functionality and customization. The terminal, or the shell, provides you with the power to customize and carry out tasks in seconds that would have been tedious, multi-click steps on a GUI. You can chain commands to run multiple commands together with an order of execution or simultaneously, which makes your workflow optimized and efficient.

        In this post, you’ll learn about fifteen essential commands—commands that will help supercharge you as a Linux user. The commands in this post have been selected based on their popularity and usefulness.

    • Instructionals/Technical

      • Linux Made SimpleHow to install Ripcord on a Chromebook

        Today we are looking at how to install Ripcord 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.

      • LinuxTechiHow to Deploy Docker Swarm on Ubuntu 22.04 Step-by-Step

        Docker Swarm is a container orchestration tool that runs on the Docker platform. It helps users to create and manage a cluster of Docker nodes. Clustering in Docker is a crucial concept in providing redundancy by enabling Docker Swarm to fail over should one or more nodes in the cluster fail.

        Docker Swarm uses the standard Docker API to communicate with other tools such as Docker Engine. It intelligently assigns containers to worker nodes and ensures resource optimization by scheduling container workloads to run on the most suitable node(s)

      • Data SwampHow to host a local front-end for Reddit / YouTube / Twitter on NixOS

        I'm not a consumer of proprietary social networks, but sometimes I have to access content hosted there, and in that case I prefer to use a front-end reimplementation of the service.

        These front-ends are network services that acts as a proxy to the proprietary service, and offer a different interface (usually cleaner) and also remove tracking / ads.

        In your web browser, you can use the extension Privacy Redirect to automatically be redirected to such front-ends. But even better, you can host them locally instead of using public instances that may be unresponsive, on NixOS it's super easy.

      • Data SwampManaging a fleet of NixOS Part 1 - Design choices

        I have a grand project in my mind, and I need to think about it before starting any implementation. The blog is a right place for me to explain what I want to do and the different solutions.

        It's related to NixOS. I would like to ease the management of a fleet of NixOS workstations that could be anywhere.

        This could be useful for companies using NixOS for their employees, to manage all the workstations remotely, but also for people who may manage NixOS systems in various places (cloud, datacenter, house, family computers).

        In this central management, it makes sense to not have your users with root access, they would have to call their technical support to ask for a change, and their system could be updated quickly to reflect the request. This can be super useful for remote family computers when they need an extra program not currently installed, and that you took the responsibility of handling your system...

      • Trend OceansArch2appimage: Convert Arch Package into Appimage using Python Script on Linux - TREND OCEANS

        If you are using Arch Linux due to a specific package being only available in that distribution, then it’s time for you to move on with that package.

        What am I talking about? You might be thinking about what I’ve just said. Look, you and I both know that Arch or its derivatives like Manjaro and Endeavour, are community-driven and have the largest software repository.

        It’s been a long time since I’ve used Arch or any of its derivates, but as I recall, I remember there were many packages that were not available for other distributions and vice-versa. However, if you are using an Arch-based system just because your favourite package is not available for another distribution like Debian, Ubuntu, RHEL, Fedora, etc, then it’s time for you to move your package to those distributions using Arch2appimage.

    • Games

    • Desktop Environments/WMs

      • GNOME Desktop/GTK

        • Gingerblue 6.2.0 for musicians who compose, record, and share original music in Evolution - Ole Aamot

          You can try Gingerblue 6.2.0 with Evolution email attaching in the Broadcast step in the GTK+/GNOME wizard available from https://www.gingerblue.org/ and https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Gingerblue

          Gingerblue 6.2.0 provides a link in the final GtkAssistant Broadcast page that launch Evolution or another email program that supports mailto:?attachment=localOggVorbisRecording.ogg application handler in GNOME 43. The syntax mailto:?attachment is not yet a RFC and it is only supported by Evolution 3.44 as far as I have tested, the default email client on GNOME 43.

        • Linux LinksSaving Money with Linux: Power Settings in GNOME - LinuxLinks

          The first article in this series recommended you use a power meter to establish how many Wh your computer uses. In this article we’ll explore a few ways you can reduce this footprint without sacrificing your productivity or workflow.

          We’re testing power consumption using the GNOME desktop on a Mini PC with a quad-core i5-6500T processor. This is a relatively old desktop processor (Intel 6th generation with a 35W TDP).

          From the GNOME desktop, there are three power profiles available. To choose a power profile go to the Activities overview and start typing Settings. Click Power to open the panel.

  • Distributions and Operating Systems

    • Reviews

      • Distro WatchReview: deepin 23 Preview

        Hiweed GNU/Linux is an Ubuntu-based distribution developed in China. Actually, that description is a bit out of date, let me start over. Linux Deepin is an Ubuntu-based Linux distribution featuring a custom desktop environment called Deepin Desktop Environment. Actually, that's no longer accurate. Deepin is a Debian-based distribution featuring the custom Deepin desktop and a number of desktop applications developed in-house. Wait, I'm almost up to date now. deepin is a Chinese distribution which claims to be independently developed. It features the Deepin desktop, a custom system installer, a custom application repository called Linglong, and the project offers atomic updates.

        A preview of the latest version of deepin was published in mid-August and its release announcement featured a few key points. Specifically: the move away from Debian to be an independent distribution; the use of Linglong to offer a custom repository of portable applications that can be run across multiple distributions; and the use of atomic updates to make updates more reliable.

        The new deepin release, version 23, is currently in the development phase at the time of writing and I wanted to see what this departure from the previous, Debian-based model would look like. I downloaded the deepin ISO which is a 3.4GB build for 64-bit (x86_64) computers. After confirming the media's checksum was good, I tried booting from it.

        The live media brings up a boot menu asking if we'd like to install deepin with version 5.15 of the Linux kernel or 5.18. Both options also have failsafe driver options, resulting in four menu options. There's a fifth menu entry for running a self-check on the media. There are no options for running a live desktop in the menu. I decided to try the 5.18 kernel option first.

    • BSD

    • Arch Family

      • Linux Shell TipsThe History of Arch Linux Distribution and Repositories

        Most Linux distributions are renowned for their ease of use. Out of the box, you get pre-installed applications that will help you get working without so much of a struggle.

        Arch Linux is a Linux distribution that takes on a different philosophy. It’s a pragmatic Linux flavor and demands a high level of skill in setting everything up.

        Designed for Intel’s x86_64 architecture, Arch Linux is a general-purpose operating system that is free and open source and designed for intermediate to advanced users.

        By default, it provides a minimal base system allowing the user to install and configure only what is required. This is especially handy in avoiding bloatware that comes with graphical installations.

    • Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications

  • Free, Libre, and Open Source Software

    • PostgreSQLPostgreSQL: Announcing the release of Apache AGE 1.1.0

      Apache AGE is a PostgreSQL extension that provides graph database functionality.

      AGE (A Graph Extension) is inspired by AgensGraph, a multi-model database Bitnine built from PostgreSQL 10. The goal of the project is to apply graph processing and analytics to relational databases, enabling both the ANSI-SQL and openCypher.

    • Web Browsers

      • Mozilla

        • OMG UbuntuFirefox 105 Includes Gesture Navigation, PDF Annotation + More - OMG! Ubuntu!

          Mozilla Firefox 105 is shaping up to be an impressive update when the stable release lands in a couple of weeks time.

          Intrigued by what I’ve been hearing, I downloaded the latest beta of the famous FOSS browser to find out first-hand what Mozilla’s got in store for us.

          And spoiler: it’s set to be a real doozie.

    • Programming/Development

      • uni TorontoGo 1.19 added an atomic.Pointer type that's a generic type

        In Go 1.18, the Go developers were careful to keep generic types out of the standard library, to the point where they decided not to have a 'constraints' package of generics helpers in the standard library, never mind generic versions of slices and maps. As the Go 1.18 release notes say, all three packages were instead put under golang.org/x/exp. However, Go 1.19 turns out to have somewhat quietly changed that, adding the standard library's first public generic type in sync/atomic's new atomic.Pointer[T any] type.

        The atomic.Pointer type is a type-safe atomic pointer to a *T, with the type safety assured at compile time. You could previously do atomic pointers through atomic.Value, but that was only type safe at runtime and might panic if you violated type safety (and storing a nil in one was complex (but possible)). The appeal of atomic.Pointer as a generic type is pretty obvious and it also seems unlikely that you could design a better generic type or a better API than the one it uses (which atomic.Value had from Go 1.4 and Go 1.17 (for .CompareAndSwap())). I suspect that all of this adds up to why it was considered safe to add to the standard library in Go 1.19, and thus commit Go to having it there as part of the compatibility guarantee.

      • Rust

        • Red HatHow to create Python binding for a Rust library | Red Hat Developer

          This article continues a series about how to take advantage of the recent Rust support added to Linux.

        • Red HatHow to create C binding for a Rust library | Red Hat Developer

          This article is the second installment of a series about how to take advantage of the recent Rust support added to Linux. The first article in the series, 3 essentials for writing a Linux system library in Rust, describes special considerations that system libraries require when you are writing in Rust. This article demonstrates how to create a C binding so that programmers in C or C++ can call your Rust library. Rust has not conquered the Linux world yet, so our system library needs to provide bindings to other languages.

  • Leftovers

    • Matt RickardWhy Does Google Kill So Many Products?

      Google's reputation for discontinuing products is unmatched. There's even a site dedicated to it (KilledByGoogle). We all loved Google Reader, but it shut down almost ten years ago.

    • Science

      • ACM TechBrief Warns of Promise and Peril of “Sleeper” Quantum Simulation Technology, Highlighting Multiple Risks

        The Association for Computing Machinery’s global Technology Policy Council (ACM TPC) has just released “Quantum Computing and Simulation.” It is ACM’s fourth TechBrief: a series of short technical bulletins by ACM TPC that present scientifically grounded perspectives on the impact of specific technological developments in computing and their applications.

        “Quantum Computing and Simulation” underscores how quantum simulation, an offshoot of quantum computing that has received relatively little attention, poses profound societal and individual risks as well as benefits with serious public policy implications. These include that intense media and policymaker focus on the theorized encryption-cracking power of future quantum computers has obscured the imminent viability, and actual likely consequences, of quantum simulation technology today.

      • Scientists discover new ‘origins of life’ chemical reactions
      • BBC'We talk to plants - they tell us how happy they are' - BBC News

        Vertical farming - growing plants indoors, on stacked levels, in a highly controlled environment - allows higher yields.

        And now, the Gardin company hopes to further improve productivity, using sensors and artificial intelligence to assess individual leaves and suggest changes to each plant's environment.

    • Hardware

      • CNX SoftwareTelink energy harvesting wireless module to enable batteryless remote controls - CNX Software

        The solution is based on a 48MHz RISC microcontroller that supports Bluetooth 5.1 LE, 802.15.4 (Zigbee/RF4CE/6LoWPAN/Thread), and 2.4GHz proprietary protocols. With a single module integrating all main components required for batteryless operation, Telink says its solutions reduce BOM and size, as well as supply chain complexity, and improves user-friendliness by removing the need for battery swaps.

    • Pseudo-Open Source

      • Openwashing

        • Enterprisers ProjectDigital transformation: 3 steps to enable innovation

          Everyone wants to be seen as innovative. Innovation conjures images of exciting, dynamic companies that move fast, generate great results, and leave everyone (employees and customers) happy.

        • OpenSource.comSaving home energy using open organization principles [Ed: Openwashing and greenwashing all in one]

          There are (at least) two ways to look at the move to more green power generation: the supply side and the demand side. The supply side emphasizes a transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy and carbon-free energy. The demand side, however, looks at how to reduce energy use, preferably without hurting the current standard of living.

    • Entrapment (Microsoft GitHub)

    • Security

      • Daniel StenbergA bug that was 23 years old or not | daniel.haxx.se

        The vulnerable code has been in curl versions since version 4.9 which makes it exactly 8,729 days (23.9 years) until the shipped version 7.85.0 that fixed it. It also means that we introduced the bug on project day 201 and fixed it on day 8,930.

        The code was not problematic when it shipped and it was not problematic during a huge portion of the time it has been used by a large amount of users.

        It become problematic when HTTP servers started to refuse HTTP requests they suspected could be malicious. The way this code turned into a denial of service was therefore more or less just collateral damage. An unfortunate side effect.

        Maybe the bug was born first when RFC 6265 was published. Maybe it was born when the first widely used HTTP server started to reject these requests.

      • OpenSource.com3 things to know about planning for OTA updates in your homelab | Opensource.com

        Updates to a system used to be relatively straightforward. When a developer needed to revise something that they'd already distributed to the public, an updater would be released for people to run. Users would run the updater, allowing old files to be replaced by new files and new files to be added. Even with these "relatively straightforward" updates, though, there was a catch. What happens when a user's installation is in an unexpected state? What happens when an upgrade is interrupted? These questions are just as relevant now when all kinds of devices are online, and sometimes in need of important security updates. Many updates today are delivered wirelessly, over-the-air (OTA), and the potential for poor connections, sudden loss of signal, or loss of power, can potentially be disastrous to what should be a minor update. These are the top three strategies you need to consider when planning to deliver over-the-air updates.

      • Privacy/Surveillance

        • Make Use OfIs Wickr Secure? How the Encrypted Instant Messenger App Works [Ed: Wickr has been buster and is not trustworthy anymore.]

          You have almost certainly used an instant messaging app at some point. In fact, you probably use one on a daily basis, and it is highly likely you use apps like Facebook Messenger—which is neither secure nor private.

          Fortunately, secure alternatives that keep your messages private, and don't collect or sell your personal data, exist. Wickr is among their number. So, what is Wickr, and how does it work? Is Wickr safe? How does it compare to other encrypted messaging apps?

        • The Register UKChina orders tech companies to ID users who spread fake news
    • Defence/Aggression

      • New York TimesChina Charges 28 People, Months After Brutal Beating of Women - The New York Times

        A group of men caught on camera violently beating several women at a barbecue restaurant in June were charged on Monday, part of a wider investigation into the criminal activities of a local gang in the Chinese city of Tangshan.

        More than a dozen officials and police officers are also under investigation for corruption, more than two months after the brutal attack unleashed a torrent of outrage over violence against women.

      • Ukraine and the Politics of Permanent War

        No one, including the most bullish supporters of Ukraine, expect the nation’s war with Russia to end soon. The fighting has been reduced to artillery duels across hundreds of miles of front lines and creeping advances and retreats. Ukraine, like Afghanistan, will bleed for a very long time. This is by design.

        On August 24, the Biden administration announced yet another massive military aid package to Ukraine worth nearly $3 billion. It will take months, and in some cases years, for this military equipment to reach Ukraine. In another sign that Washington assumes the conflict will be a long war of attrition it will give a name to the U.S. military assistance mission in Ukraine and make it a separate command overseen by a two- or three-star general. Since August 2021, Biden has approved more than $8 billion in weapons transfers from existing stockpiles, known as drawdowns, to be shipped to Ukraine, which do not require Congressional approval.

      • Radioactivity under the sand

        The Hoggar massif is located in the west of the Algerian Sahara. Prehistoric men have left stunning rock carvings there. The men of the 20th century left nuclear waste.

        Between 1960 and 1996, France carried out 17 nuclear tests in Algeria and 193 in French Polynesia. In Algeria, atmospheric and underground tests were carried out at the Reggane and In Ekker sites, in an atmosphere of secrecy and conflict between an Algerian nation under construction and a colonial power seeking strategic autonomy. A majority of the tests – 11 – were carried out after the Evian agreements (18 March 1962), which established Algeria’s independence.

        [...]

        In French Polynesia, the strong mobilization of many associations has enabled the environmental consequences to be taken into account and the first remediation steps to be put in place. For Algeria, the situation is different. Due to a tumultuous Franco-Algerian relationship, the absence of archives, and the absence of registers of local workers who participated in the tests, the data on the consequences of the tests remains patchy and incomplete. It was only in 2010, thanks to independent expertise, that a map from the Ministry of Defense was revealed, showing that the European continent was also affected by fallout from the nuclear tests carried out in the south of the Sahara.

    • Environment

      • RlangCO2 Emissions Comparing and Modeling for Global Warming | R-bloggers

        Recently, I watched the new Predator movie, Pray, and I loved it. Hence, I’ve fallen into the Predators series, especially the first two movies, again. The Predators in the movie would choose warm planets to hunt because their vision capabilities are based on infrared thermal, which allows them to see heat signatures.

      • Jacobin MagazineThe Floods Devastating Pakistan Are More Than a Natural Disaster

        Monsoon rains and melting glaciers have driven tens of millions of Pakistanis from their homes. The disaster shows that the poor Global South populations who do least to cause climate change are the people who pay most for its consequences.

      • Energy

        • Didier StevensQuickpost: Standby Power Consumption Of My Bosch 18V Chargers | Didier Stevens

          I have 2 Bosch 18V “power for all” chargers. A normal charger (AL 1830 CV) and a fast charger (AL 1880 CV).

          Measuring the power consumption of these 2 chargers in standby mode (plugged into a 230V outlet, but no battery connected) with a GPM-8310 powermeter, I obtained the following results

    • Finance

      • Michael West MediaWing crack fears for A380 superjumbo escalate customer nightmare for Qantas chief Alan Joyce - Michael West

        Qantas international flights may become even more expensive as Airbus has issued a global directive concerning A380 wing cracks. Holus-bolus leasing of foreign aircraft and flight crew is now being considered. Michael Sainsbury with this exclusive investigation.

        Qantas is being forced into urgent maintenance on two of its three double-decker A380 planes, due to fears at their manufacturer Airbus that some of the aircraft may have cracks in their wings due to problems with critical aircraft infrastructure. The superjumbos are the biggest planes in the sky and can carry up to 853 passengers.

      • Michael West MediaPensions boost as cost of living bites - Michael West

        More than 4.7 million Australians struggling to cope with cost of living pressures are in line for a helping hand. Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth says an indexation increase to welfare payments set to kick in on September 20 will be the largest in more than 30 years for allowances and 12 years for pensions.

      • The Past, Present, and Future of Work - YES! Magazine

        Our work environment is deeply dysfunctional. But making systemic change requires understanding how we got here.

    • AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

      • ReasonTrump Disregards Democracy, While Biden Ignores Its Dangers

        In his speech last night about "the continued battle for the soul of the nation," President Joe Biden said some things that are indisputably true. He noted that democracy requires candidates to accept the results of "free and fair elections" and that refusing to do so threatens the rule of law as well as the peaceful transfer of power.

        Donald Trump and his followers have conspicuously failed that basic test. But Biden's emphasis on preserving democracy sets the bar for good government pretty low, eliding the tension between majority rule and individual freedom. And his related claim that Trump's refusal to concede electoral defeat amounts to an "extreme ideology" gives the former president, who is anything but a systematic thinker, too much credit.

      • ScheerpostKatrina vanden Heuvel: Gorbachev’s Legacy

        On March 11, 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became leader of the Soviet Union. Within a few weeks, the full-scale reformation he attempted to carry out both inside his country and in its Cold War relations with the West, particularly the United States, began to unfold. Perestroika (“restructuring”)—as Gorbachev called his reforms—officially ended with the Soviet Union and his leadership in 1991. The historic opportunities for a better future it offered Russia—and the world—have been steadily undermined ever since.

        Usually forgotten is that the wave of democratization at the end of the 20th century began in a place, and in a way, that few had expected: in Soviet Russia, under Gorbachev’s leadership as the head of the Soviet Communist Party. Indeed, the extent to which his democratic achievements during nearly seven years in power have been forgotten or obscured is a measure of historical amnesia.

      • TwinCities Pioneer PressSerge Schmemann: Gorbachev freed the Soviet Union but could not save it - Twin Cities

        Back in the old Soviet Union, the political joke was the principal underground conduit of political opinion. One that made the rounds soon after Mikhail Gorbachev came to power in 1985 posed this question: “Who supports Gorbachev in the Politburo?” The answer: “Nobody has to. He can move around on his own.”

    • Censorship/Free Speech

      • New York TimesParler Returns to Google Play Store

        Parler, the social media service that attracted fans of former President Donald J. Trump, will return to Google’s Play app store on Friday, more than a year after Google suspended the app for content that incited violence.

        A Google spokesman said the app had significantly increased its content moderation since the beginning of 2021. All apps in Google’s Play Store must have practices “that prohibit objectionable content, provide an in-app system for reporting objectionable” content, and remove or block abusive users who violate terms and policies, the spokesman said in a statement.

        The app had also been banned from Apple’s App Store, but has since been reinstated.

        Parler defended its content moderation policies on Friday. “While Parler believes the best way to address the problems of hate and divisiveness in today’s culture is to allow more speech, not less, we are still happy to do business with those who think differently, on the terms on which we do agree,” Christina Cravens, Parler’s chief marketing officer, said in a statement. “The conversation isn’t over, and those who want to see Parler as we intend it may always do so in the browser at Parler.com.”

      • New York TimesOpinion | Salman Rushdie and What It Means to Support Free Speech - The New York Times

        Violence against writers was the topic I was about to interview the novelist Salman Rushdie about at the Chautauqua Institution on Aug. 12. We were being introduced onstage when out of nowhere, like a scene from Mr. Rushdie’s novel “Shalimar the Clown,” a knife-wielding man rushed onto the stage and began to stab him.

        Immediately audience members ran to the stage to defend him.

        It was a remarkable response. That rush of people leaping from their seats was the opposite of the so-called “bystander effect,” when individuals do nothing, relying on others to help. I would call it “the reader effect.” Reading creates empathy, and Chautauqua is an intentional community of readers. The intuitive response of an empathetic community is to help.

      • RFAShanghai police detain zero-COVID critic who called on local leader to resign

        Shanghai police have detained a prominent rights activist who called on a local official to resign over the citywide COVID-19 lockdown in April.

        Ji Xiaolong has been incommunicado, believed detained by the Shanghai state security police, for 24 hours, sources told RFA on Friday.

        Ji, 46, lives in an expatriate district of Pudong district, and has around 33,000 followers on Twitter, which is banned in China.

        His detention came after he began writing petitions to Shanghai ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) secretary Li Qiang, calling on him to resign for "blindly following orders from the central government [in Beijing]" when implementing weeks of grueling lockdown in the city earlier this year.

        In the petition, Ji wrote that he was fine with being jailed for opposing government policies in an era of widespread internet censorship and surveillance of ordinary people.

      • ReasonBiden Admin’s 'Misinformation' Crusade is Censorship by Proxy

        On July 16, 2021, the day that Joe Biden accused Facebook of "killing people" by failing to suppress misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines, a senior executive at the social media platform's parent company emailed Surgeon General Vivek Murthy in an effort to assuage the president's anger. "Reaching out after what has transpired over the past few days following the publication of the misinformation advisory, and culminating today in the President's remarks about us," the Meta executive wrote. "I know our teams met today to better understand the scope of what the White House expects from us on misinformation going forward."

      • Hong Kong Free PressExplainer: Hong Kong’s national security crackdown – month 26

        Hong Kong’s High Court made a landmark ruling this month to lift reporting restrictions on committal proceedings for criminal cases, including national security cases, should the defendant request the limitations be removed.

      • RFAFacebook user fined for accusing Vietnamese police of ‘singing too much karaoke’ — Radio Free Asia

        A Facebook user in Vietnam has been fined VND 7.5 million (U.S.$ 323) by authorities in Bac Giang province for “slanderous acts, distorting and affecting the honor and reputation of the police force.”

        State media cited a source from the Son Dong District police as saying the 35-year-old owner of the Facebook account P*****R***, who had the initials NVP and lived locally, posted an article titled: "Crackdown on brothels hiding in the shadow of Karaoke bars.”

        NVP added the comment: "The crackdown was for show. Maybe policemen go singing more [than ordinary people],” with the implication that “singing” was not the only activity the police were taking part in.

        NVP was fined in accordance with Point A, Clause 1, Article 101, Decree 15 of the government regulations on penalties for administrative violations in the fields of post, telecommunications, radio frequencies, information technology and electronic transactions, often used to punish those accused of spreading “fake news” online.

      • ViceVirginia Court Blocks Republican Attempt To Criminalize LGBTQ Books

        A court in Virginia has thrown out a lawsuit which tried to make it illegal to sell or lend two popular LGBTQ-themed books to minors in the state.

        The lawsuit—which was brought against book chain Barnes & Noble by state delegate Tim Arnold on behalf of Republican Congressional candidate Tommy Altman—tried to use the state’s ancient “obscenity” laws to have the books restricted or removed from stores and library shelves. While book bans have become frighteningly common in schools and public libraries, the West Virginia lawsuit is notable because it tried to criminalize the books entirely, making them illegal to sell or loan within the state.

      • GizmodoTaliban Is Upgrading Afghanistan to 4G Despite Censorship

        The Taliban wants to expand high-speed internet connectivity in Afghanistan despite a history of online censorship and internet blackouts to thwart protests against the militant group.

      • RFAChinese police crack down on petitioners, dissidents ahead of 20th party congress — Radio Free Asia

        The ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has announced it will hold its 20th National Congress on Oct. 16, amid a mounting wave of censorship and curbs on the freedom of dissident voices around the country.

        A Beijing-based petitioner surnamed Ma said police had already started rounding up petitioners, ordinary people who pursue complaints against local government wrongdoing through China's "letters and visits" system, despite frequent detention and harassment from "interceptors" sent from their hometowns to stop them.

        "The Beijing police started rounding up petitioners more than 10 days ago — they've all been taken back to where they came from," she said. "People came from Heilongjiang more than 10 days ago to detain people, and we got into a fight with officers from the police station."

      • RFATaiwan author hits back over book ban, saying she is proud to be banned in China — Radio Free Asia

        Taiwanese author Lung Yingtai has responded to the banning of her books in Chinese schools, saying she is honored to have been targeted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s ever-widening program of censorship.

        "I am honored to have been banned by you," the former Taiwanese culture minister and long-term critic of authoritarian rule wrote on her Facebook page after schools in the eastern Chinese provinces of Shandong and Jiangsu, among other locations, issued notices to parents that all of her works were no longer considered suitable reading matter for children.

        "Actually, I have been banned for a long time," she wrote, adding that "Big River, Big Sea 1949" and "Please Use Civilization to Convince Me" have been banned in China for more than 10 years now.

        Other works including "Watching You Go" and "Dear Andreas" have also been targeted, Lung wrote.

      • Off Guardian'The Rise of the New Normal Reich' banned in Germany, Austria, and The Netherlands! - OffGuardian

        So, the censorship of my latest book, The Rise of the New Normal Reich: Consent Factory Essays, Vol. III (2020-2021), continues. Amazon.com has now banned the book in three countries … Germany, Austria, and The Netherlands.

        The pretext the Amazon Content Review Team has cited as grounds for banning the book is the semi-visible swastika on the cover. This pretext is clearly a pretext, i.e., a lie, as Amazon sells a number of other products displaying semi-visible swastikas in these markets.

      • ReasonEngineering Board Penalizes Engineer-Activist for Calling Himself an Engineer

        The head of an urban policy nonprofit has been penalized by Minnesota's licensing board for referring to himself as a "professional engineer" in speeches and articles while his license was expired.

        Last month, the state's Board of Architecture, Engineering, Land Surveying, Landscape Architecture, Geoscience, and Interior Design (AELSLAGID) issued an official censure of Charles Marohn, founder of the Brainerd-based advocacy group Strong Towns, and slapped him with a $1,500 fine.

    • Civil Rights/Policing

      • HRWBangladesh: Allow UN to Assist ‘Disappearance’ Inquiries | Human Rights Watch

        Bangladesh authorities should heed international calls for transparent, independent investigations into enforced disappearances, Human Rights Watch said today on the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances.

      • Unicorn MediaPassings: Peter Eckersley, a Founder of Let’s Encrypt, Dies at 43 - FOSS Force

        FOSS Force has learned that Peter Eckersley, who among other things was a founder of Let’s Encrypt, has died. He was 43 years old. We first learned of his death from a brief notice on LWN.net that links to a post from Seth Schoen, a friend of Eckersley’s who worked with him on Let’s Encrypt, a project that provides short-lived SSL certificates to website owners that Eckersley co-founded in 2012 while working at Electronic Frontiers Foundation.

  • Gemini* and Gopher

    • Personal

      • Backwards Chairs



        Jackson sneered, frustrated with the seating coordinators. Chairs were supposed to be positioned towards the stage, at least as far as he understood. Maybe cyborgs had eyes on the back of their heads, or maybe they modified their necks to turn around 180 degrees with ease. He had no idea. Regardless, anthropes like himself needed to sit in the direction they're looking, unless they wanted major neck pain.

        He casually turned each chair around, one by one, accidentally clanking them against each other at times and readjusting rows when all their chairs had been corrected. Working slowly prevented him from getting too anxious, as it freed his mind to consider other things. If only straightening out this thoughts was as easy as turning chairs.

      • Passed by the Dutchy on the left hand side

        Overtaking generally happens at the end of a straight. The car behind gets an aerodynamic tow, and can get along side as they brake for the corner. No one expected much overtaking at the Dutch Grand Prix because it's all fast corners. But that's not how it went. Tyre differences and strategy differences meant speed differences, and passing into turn one looked almost too easy.

    • Technical

      • Internet/Gemini

        • a pub, huh?

          This led me to find Geminispace, which at first I was skeptical about until I realized how much better it was than the regular World Wide Web, at least in terms of being more user-focused, easier to work with, and the absence of companies finding ways to monetize everything.


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



Recent Techrights' Posts

Topics We Lacked Time to Cover
Due to a Microsoft event (an annual malware fest for lobbying and marketing purposes) there was also a lot of Microsoft propaganda
 
Links 23/11/2024: "Real World" Cracked and UK Online Safety Act is Law
Links for the day
Links 23/11/2024: Celebrating Proprietary Bluesky (False Choice, Same Issues) and Software Patents Squashed
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, November 22, 2024
IRC logs for Friday, November 22, 2024
Gemini Links 23/11/2024: 150 Day Streak in Duolingo and ICBMs
Links for the day
Links 22/11/2024: Dynamic Pricing Practice and Monopoly Abuses
Links for the day
Microsofters Try to Defund the Free Software Foundation (by Attacking Its Founder This Week) and They Tell People to Instead Give Money to Microsoft Front Groups
Microsoft people try to outspend their critics and harass them
[Meme] EPO for the Kids' Future (or Lack of It)
Patents can last two decades and grow with (or catch up with) the kids
EPO Education: Workers Resort to Legal Actions (Many Cases) Against the Administration
At the moment the casualties of EPO corruption include the EPO's own staff
Gemini Links 22/11/2024: ChromeOS, Search Engines, Regular Expressions
Links for the day
This Month is the 11th Month of This Year With Mass Layoffs at Microsoft (So Far It's Happening Every Month This Year, More Announced Hours Ago)
Now they even admit it
Links 22/11/2024: Software Patents Squashed, Russia Starts Using ICBMs
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, November 21, 2024
IRC logs for Thursday, November 21, 2024
Gemini Links 21/11/2024: Alphabetising 400 Books and Giving the Internet up
Links for the day
Links 21/11/2024: TikTok Fighting Bans, Bluesky Failing Users
Links for the day
Links 21/11/2024: SpaceX Repeatedly Failing (Taxpayers Fund Failure), Russian Disinformation Spreading
Links for the day
Richard Stallman Earned Two More Honorary Doctorates Last Month
Two more doctorate degrees
KillerStartups.com is an LLM Spam Site That Sometimes Covers 'Linux' (Spams the Term)
It only serves to distract from real articles
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, November 20, 2024
IRC logs for Wednesday, November 20, 2024