partytax (u/partytax)

partytax commented on iPhone dumbphone stopa.io/post/297... · Posted by u/joshmanders

Is there any way to do this with Android? I'd wish to get a modern snappy phone with a great camera but completely locked down.

partytax · 4 days ago

On LineageOS 22 this is what I did:

* Remove Jelly browser with `adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 org.lineageos.jelly`

* Disable F-Droid so you can't install another browser on a whim with `adb shell pm disable-user org.fdroid.fdroid`

partytax commented on Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season reuters.com/technology/am... · Posted by u/petethomas

vasco · 9 months ago

I've had this exact sentiment for many years but... what are we supporting really?

Is it because you want a distributed network of inventory across the country near you in case of emergency?

Is it because you like talking to someone when doing purchases?

Is it because you think someone is doing a societal good by parking money in inventory they brought near you?

Is it because you just don't like someone doing it more efficiently and getting "too" rich? ie dislike of big corporations?

Like I feel like I should want to support local business but it is way less efficient and I can't really convince myself that I'm not just repeating something my parents also said.

partytax · 9 months ago

On the localist/resilient extreme in a developing world village you have the problems of:

* Inefficiency

* Lack of options

* Stupid business practices uncritically continued

See https://asteriskmag.com/issues/07/want-growth-kill-small-bus...

On the globalist/efficient extreme in the USA, for example, you have the problems of:

* Economic dependence on large, national players that can leave at any time

* Business proprietors feel no social responsibility to your community because they do not live there and interact with locals

* Little power in deciding what products businesses offer

* Profits enriching another place rather than your own place

I don't want either of these.

partytax commented on Atlas of Surveillance: Documenting police tech in our communities atlasofsurveillance.org/... · Posted by u/freedomben

lubesGordi · 2 years ago

The one that bothers me the most is the Ring integration with police. That's happening in Chicago. The neighbor across the street installs a Ring doorbell because they like gadgety shit or whatever, and suddenly my children's playing is under surveillance.

partytax · 2 years ago

Also be aware of a company called FUSUS that's enabling law enforcement agencies to access surveillance feeds from [consenting] businesses:

https://www.fusus.com/blog/real-time-crime-center-in-the-clo...

Not as sketchy or ubiquitous, but worth keeping a close eye on.

partytax commented on 1.3B Worldcat scrape and data science mini-competition annas-blog.org/worldcat-s... · Posted by u/crtasm

hedora · 2 years ago

I looked into using Dewey Decimal for a hobby project. OCLC has a de facto monopoly on it due to the Worldcat database. They're a non-profit, but they're supported by having libraries pay a subscription fee for Worldcat.

Back when OCLC was founded, the idea that people would want to have a copy of a card catalog for personal use was laughable, so I'm sympathetic to the people that set up their funding model. It's far cheaper for a library to subscribe to Worldcat than to hire a team to maintain such a database, so it created a win-win situation.

However, keeping the world's books' metadata a secret (and leaving control in the hands of a monopoly) is an anachronism.

It's well past the time when someone (such as an international coalition of Libraries of Congress) should figure out how to sustainably fund OCLC while also releasing their work into the public domain.

partytax · 2 years ago

The Melville Decimal System popularized by https://www.librarything.com may be of interest.

Here's an explanation from their footer: "Although Dewey invented his system in 1876, recent editions of his system are in copyright. LibraryThing's Melvil Decimal System is based on the classification work of libraries around the world, whose assignments are not copyrightable. The "schedules" (the words that describe the numbers) come from a pre-copyright edition of his system, John Mark Ockerbloom's Free Decimal System, and member contributions."

partytax commented on The vital art of talking to strangers (2021) economist.com/books-and-a... · Posted by u/giuliomagnifico

nickjj · 2 years ago

The article mentions "Strangers on a Train" which I've never seen or read but I've had a number of really interesting encounters from train talk. It's a natural place to end up in a scenario where you could chat with someone for a decently long time if you both choose to do so. A takeaway I always remind myself is that you never know what's right next to you.

Last month someone asked me which track the train leaves from. I answered and that turned into chatting with someone from Lebanon visiting the US who was nearing the completion of their PhD in theoretical physics mixed with quantum computing. Out of no where a 90 minute conversation ensued around programming, life in different countries and a bunch of other assorted topics.

partytax · 2 years ago

Can confirm that trains are an amazing place to meet people. I commute on the Amtrak Northeast Regional and have made 3 regular acquaintances with whom I've had long conversations.

Never would have happened on a plane or or on the highway.

partytax commented on Tornado Cash and collateral damage lwn.net/SubscriberLink/90... · Posted by u/jwilk

sunshinekitty · 3 years ago

Have any examples of less conventional spaces with this hacker spirit in tact?

partytax · 3 years ago

* https://ungleich.ch/

* https://sourcehut.org/

* https://codeberg.org/

* https://www.ccc.de/

* https://new.paralelnipolis.cz/

* your local hackerspace or makerspace