DeceptiveTechnology

An article dropped recently about Apple removing the App “ICEBlock” by the request of the Trump administration. Its not clear if this is lawful. Apple didn’t release any proof that they received a lawful order to remove the app, only a statement that they were complying with a lawful order. Cory Doctorow listed some other apps that got removed over the years from Apple’s App Store that appeared suspicious to me....more

A follow-up on my successful transition from Windows to Linux as my daily driver. Microsoft’s increasingly anti-consumer practices with Windows 11 vindicated my decision to leave in 2023.

I am a Computer Hardware professional. I started working with computer technology in the early eighties. I have seen the evolution of technology starting with closed platforms like the game console era and then the move toward open platforms like the Home Computer Golden Age. In the last 5 or 10 years, I have witnessed technology changes that are slowly moving away from open hardware designs towards hardware that is locked down and can’t be modified by the user....more

I repair computers and provide solutions to everyday computer challenges for home users and very small businesses. To find out more about me, visit my home page. Very recently, OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturers of consumer desktops and laptops, like Dell, HP, and Sony, etc.) have been introducing new features into the Basic Input/Output System (the system that controls all the hardware in a computer). These features are put in under the guise of protecting the consumer, but in practice, they are unnecessary and over-complicating the setup and experience, reducing ownership power and ownership privacy....more

My personal reflections on my journey to move away from Windows and towards a Linux desktop environment.

In the last couple of years, laptop technology has been advancing in a direction of portability. Reducing the weight and size of technology enriches how we live. We now have mobile devices that are ultra-portable, and with these advancements it makes it possible to connect with friends and family, or create works of art, anywhere in the world. What hasn’t advanced along with the portability of technology is the ecological impact we are having on the environment under this current paradigm....more