Writing someone a letter is a very personal thing and you're creating a memory. Something tangible, concrete, also weighs in on reality. Looking at a piece of paper with your handwrite makes you understand you're commiting to something.

I'm a FOSS loon but the craze of making everything digital is absurd. I've listened to people criticizing others for using paper and a pencil to take down a memo, note or even journaling, when they can do it on their phone.

Is existing so dreadful nowadays? Does the notion of leaving proof of existence scares?

This is why I never gave up on DVDs, even though people would laugh. As soon as Prime shoehorned ads in the middle of a show or movie, that's when I cancelled. I'll have to do the same with music and get my iPod battery fixed up if I can.

Its nothing to do with contempt for the media, or not wanting to leave evidence of my existence or anything like that, its just that I got shit to do.

Those are terribly inconvenient things IMO. We shouldn’t become Amish to reject tech bros, because tech makes life easier. There’s enough talent to make these same services in a non-exploitable way, but the incentives are misaligned with the common good.

That’s why I love the Fediverse, proof that tech can be used without tech bros.

ordering food by phone call, going to the store when you want every small thing, buying your groceries in person,

Talking on the phone, actually buying everything you need when you go shopping, interacting with a cashier...

It says a lot about you that you think these are terrible things, rather than things people do every day and don't think much about.

Yeah, handwriting sucks. I used to type my homework in a mechanical typewriter, holy cow even that sucked. Going from that to an electrical typewriter that could hold a line in memory was amazing, but still nothing compared to a proper word processor. Wordstar in MS-DOS anyone?

I still like to sketch my ideas from time to time, but all my permanent notes are stored in Joplin, encrypted, in local backup, and synced to the cloud. I can’t afford to lose them, and I can’t afford to lug around with me a heavy suitcase of papers.

I’ve seen young people wishing for simpler times, kids using Polaroid cameras, hunting retro consoles that were already ancient when they were born, longing for music that was way before their time, etc. I get they’re disillusioned with the current state of things, but romanticizing the past is not a healthy way to cope with the horrible today.

Would you care to complete your statement? What exactly does it say about me?

Your comment made me remember how 25 years ago it was unthinkable, even illegal, for a company to spy on you without consent. Tech isn’t the problem, regulation has also become a joke, that’s what gave tech bros free reign, as long as they make loads of money fast so rich investors can concentrate even more wealth.

I don't doubt you have a busy life. And that is not the subject at hand here.

What should concern us, collectively, is that we are constantly being pushed the notion that we do not have enough time and that tech is always the solution, when it is not.

I'm going to take a risk and say you write faster than you type and reaching for a pencil is quicker than launching a program.

It's not that they're inserting themselves everywhere it's this right here: "shoehorned ads". On top of extracting as much data from you that they know more about you than almost you do yourself. dystopia authors couldn't have written it better.

I’m going to take a risk and say you write faster than you type and reaching for a pencil is quicker than launching a program.

Maybe for you, but opening KWrite takes only 5-6 key presses and I type much faster than I write

Not to mention the fact theyd be expecting me to write well enough to be able to reread it later. Even if I wrote it at half my typing speed I still would not be able to make that shit out.

I use Jellyfin for music and shows. Jellyfin made it easier for me to sort the ripped CDs by directory instead of all in one shared Dir.

Also, telling people to use an LLM to figure out how to self host is like telling a 16yo to play GTA to learn how to drive.

They might figure it out, they may just kill hookers and rob a bank without ever learning how to drive the car.

Here's a full guide by the FUTO organization that consists of over 13 hours of information on self hosting and how to do it step by step.

On one hand, firmware update sound really nice so lemon isn't as sour. On the other hand, good, reliable car have absolutely 0 chance of getting enshittified by car maker, and they have to make sure the thing is good from the get go or risk getting forced to recall.

I’m a fan of big screens myself. What I’m not a fan of is putting everything into that screen. I want the screen for the infotainment system only. All hvac and essential controls should still be physical buttons and dials. And of course, ditch all the tracking and data collection that comes with the car.

There is self hosting and there is self hosting.

I run a proxmox machine with a dozen services but just looking at a guide like you send is overloading.

I will save it as a useful reference but its beyond what people who are less tech inclined then me will need to start.

Most people just need docker and some premade compose files. An llm can absolutely tell you how to install the first and create the second. They will know quickly if they want to learn more on their own or prefer to call a friendly nerd to do it for them.

And I self host mine!

Speak for yourself, there's nothing wrong with my carburettor!

My distributor on the other hand is a pain in the ass. Electronic ignition has its upsides...

There were a few sites that tracked manufacturer adoption of when the telemetry black boxes got installed, but I cannot find the specific ones I referenced a few years ago. You can “shop” for telemetry insurance and check that way too. The car won’t be eligible if it doesn’t have the hardware.

I most certainly don't write faster than I type, and sending an email or a chat message certainly doesn't take longer than finding something to write with and something to write on. There is a big factor of habit and lifestyle - I don't usually write stuff down, so I don't have prepared/assigned tools for that, but I use my computer a lot, so I do have software installed and tools/commands memorised.

And, frankly, out of many possible options, plain text is something computers are really good at - there's basically no risk of running out of space, it's indexable and searchable, it's editable, and it's very universal.

Things do get a bit more complex when you include formatting, and a lot more complicated when you start adding annotations or illustrations, or even just more freeform writing styles, but there's still a major factor of habit - I don't know what my note taking would look like if I had a habit of pen and paper, but I know I'm very comfortable with using tech for that, and it works great for me!