mastodon - Link to source

New: Google has chosen a side in Trump's mass deportation campaign. Google is hosting a CBP facial recognition app to hunt immigrants; no indication Google will remove. At same time Google takes down apps for reporting ICE sightings

“Big tech has made their choice”

404media.co/google-has-chosen-…


Google Has Chosen a Side in Trump's Mass Deportation Effort

Google is hosting a CBP app that uses facial recognition to identify immigrants, while simultaneously removing apps that report the location of ICE officials because Google sees ICE as a vulnerable group.
Joseph Cox (404 Media)

mastodon - Link to source

Suggestions for SSD erasure/destruction?

The tiny local credit union had to replace their Windows 10 PCs. Their local IT provider got acquired by a regional IT company and no longer offers disk wiping/destruction.

What are the best options to wipe or destroy (if required) about 5 SSDs that would satisfy a bank auditor?

I don't know if these are self encrypting drives. If they were spinning disks, I've used DBAN in the past, but SSDs have additional logic for wear leveling and trimming, so I don't know what additional steps are needed to ensure the data is all gone.

A quick check for physical disk destruction devices seems a bit pricey at this low volume, but a handy sledge hammer might not be enough for an auditor.

In the past, a disk random write/wipe plus drilling a hole through the platters was accepable for spinning drives.

in reply to Phillip Vuchetich

pleroma - Link to source

feld

ATA secure erase should be supported by the SSD and should be understood by the drive firmware to write zeroes to EVERYTHING including the bits you can't reach, but also even if you did a DBAN and are worried about the wear leveling the amount of extra storage dedicated to handle failing flash is pretty small that I doubt anything of value could be found. Who knows though!

mastodon - Link to source

🇪🇺 "I am surprised and concerned that the GDPR is being reopened and weakened at its core […]"

💬 Read the full article, including comments from Max Schrems and Markéta Gregorová, who is a European Parliament negotiator on the issue 👉 brusselstimes.com/1835654/secr…


Secret EU plans to allow Big Tech to train AI with our personal data

According to leaked documents, the EU is proposing changes which take aim at every element of GDPR that could limit AI usage.
www.brusselstimes.com

mastodon - Link to source

So last night, I tried Fedora 43. Fedora-Workstation-Live-43-1.6.x86_64.iso. The installer is now web based, making it really nice to use, even with just Tab and Shift + Tab. I was able to install it with no problem.

Now, first time setup had just one big issue, the timezone selector. It's keyboard accessible, and works like this: you start typing a city name, like Chicago, and then down arrow through suggestions and press Enter on the one you want. But Orca doesn't speak that there are suggestions available, and does not read which suggestion you select until you press Enter.

Other than that, Gnome desktop looks pretty good these days! The settings are much better, and that's about all I had time to test so far. Orca starts if you hit Alt Windows S at the installer and first setup, then starts after first setup is complete. The overview panel where you type to search doesn't read when it opens, but basically you just hit the Windows key and start typing what you want, and Orca reads what you hand on, and you can arrow through results. Notifications read too, and I'm thankful Gnome supports notifications.

#accessibility #blind #fedora #linux #foss @fedora

#Accessibility #linux #foss #blind #fedora @Fedora Project (F43 is OUT)

mastodon - Link to source

Mozilla announces more AI in Firefox, still failing to understand that at this point their market share is made of tech savvy people who do not want that.

Mozilla, please. Stop chasing the fads. Get your own values.

People use Firefox to get access to an open web, use a sturdy browser, and not to be tracked. Build in that direction and that direction only.

Nobody from your current user base will recommend Firefox with AI to their friends.

blog.mozilla.org/en/firefox/ai…

#firefox #ai #privacy


Introducing AI, the Firefox way: A look at what we're working on and how you can help shape it

AI Window is a user-controlled space we’re building in Firefox that lets you chat with an AI assistant and get help while you browse.
Kristina Bravo (The Mozilla Blog)
#firefox #privacy #AI

mastodon - Link to source
For those who use Suno, the team is looking for accessibility testers to join the early access program and provide feedback. You must have Discord to participate in the feedback reporting process.
The link to fill out to become apart of the testing pool is below.
forms.gle/58rGzLCadXNDVPj89
You must put your Suno handle in the form as well as your Discord username.

Suno Early Access Application

Do you enjoy using Suno? Have ideas on how we can make it even better? Want early access to new features and the chance to shape our future? If your answer is yes, you're in the right place! By filling out this form, you'll be applying to join Suno's…
Google Docs

mastodon - Link to source

Still struggling to find a secondary hosting provider in the UK who meets the following criteria:

1. Dedicated hosting (i.e. a server to ourselves)

2. Managed hosting (OS-level security updates, monitoring for disk use, failure etc.)

3. Enough members of staff to be resilient (not a one-person business)

4. Front-line staff who answer tickets know what they're talking about

5. Small enough to care about fellow SMEs

6. Not Mythic Beasts (because they're the primary provider)

This entry was edited (1 week ago)

mastodon - Link to source

RE: mastodon.social/@chris22smith/…

Definitely agree with @chris22smith here!

Just learned about public.monster from @dk that lets you make websites like it's the 90s again. (With a few quality-of-life improvements.)

Chris Smith (@chris22smith@mastodon.social)

I think that signing up for @piccalilli@front-end.social's emails has been one of the best things I've done this year. High quality, human curated content that interests me is underrated and hard to come by. https://piccalil.li/the-index/
Chris Smith (Mastodon)
@Dmytri @Chris Smith

mastodon - Link to source

The only important take-away from Anthropic's hype piece about an "AI-orchestrated" cyber attack:

Tech company valued at over $180 billion still can't make their product not do things they don't want it to do.

> They broke down their attacks into small, seemingly innocent tasks that Claude would execute without being provided the full context of their malicious purpose. They also told Claude that it was an employee of a legitimate cybersecurity firm, and was being used in defensive testing.

🤡

in reply to Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

mastodon - Link to source

miki

LLMs are a lot more like humans (or weird animals) than they are like computers. I think service dogs are a really great comparison. We don't quite understand how and why they do what they do (chemists still can't quite replicate a police dog's nose), we know they make tons of mistakes, but they're better / faster / cheaper / more useful than humans, so we keep using them.
in reply to miki

mastodon - Link to source

Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

@miki the fact is LLMs are not better nor more useful than humans, research shows. We just keep falling for the hype.

> After completing the study, developers estimate that allowing AI reduced completion time by 20%. Surprisingly, we find that allowing AI actually increases completion time by 19%
arxiv.org/abs/2507.09089

> For an organization of 10,000 workers, given the estimated prevalence of workslop (41%), this yields over $9 million per year in lost productivity.
hbr.org/2025/09/ai-generated-w…


Measuring the Impact of Early-2025 AI on Experienced Open-Source Developer Productivity

Despite widespread adoption, the impact of AI tools on software development in the wild remains understudied.
arXiv.org
@miki

mastodon - Link to source

Google is starting to retreat on its "developer government ID verification" plan, thank goodness.

But the devil will be in the detail, and Google's positioning that wanting to install software on your own device makes you a "power user" is concerning.

The notion that you need to be an "experienced user" to use @fdroidorg, for instance, is nonsense.

But still: keeping up the pressure appears to be working. A little.

android-developers.googleblog.…


Android developer verification: Early access starts now as we continue to build with your feedback

News and insights on the Android platform, developer tools, and events.
Android Developers Blog
@F-Droid
in reply to Matt Campbell

mastodon - Link to source

Quin

Apparently doing the following two terminal commands will do it, run at your own risk as I have not tested them.
sudo mkdir -p /Library/Preferences/FeatureFlags/Domain
sudo defaults write /Library/Preferences/FeatureFlags/Domain/SpotlightUI.plist SpotlightPlus -dict Enabled -bool false
and reboot the Mac.
Source: igeeksblog.com/restore-launchp…

How to Get Back Launchpad in macOS 26 Tahoe

Apple removed Launchpad in macOS 26 Tahoe. Miss it? Here’s how to restore Launchpad using Terminal, plus the pros and cons of ditching the new Spotlight.
Ravi Teja KNTS (iGeeksBlog)

mastodon - Link to source

Das Tilo Jung Interview mit Jimmy Wales (Mitgründer von Wikipedia) ist wirklich Peak Jung & Naiv.

Absolut sehenswert. Aber unbedingt Zeit mitbringen!

youtube.com/watch?v=uswRbWyt_p…


Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia's founder/co-founder - Jung & Naiv: Episode 792

Please support our work ► http://www.paypal.me/JungNaivJoin our forum ► http://forum.jungundnaiv.de/Our guest in the studio: Jimmy Wales, American internet e...
YouTube
This entry was edited (6 days ago)

mastodon - Link to source

Last year the Geospatial devroom only had half a day at FOSDEM, and we still ended up with a packed room and a queue down the corridor.

This year we have the whole of Saturday to ourselves, so if you have something geo-flavoured to share, whether it is maps, data, tools, clever hacks, fieldwork tech, city projects, OSM magic, climate work or anything else, now is the moment to submit a proposal.

The CfP is open until 1 December:
lists.fosdem.org/pipermail/fos…

#FOSDEM #Geospatial #GIS #OpenStreetMap #OpenData #Cartography #GeoTech #OSM #FOSS4G #Maps #Devroom #OSGeo

An empty lecture room with tiered seating arranged in a horseshoe around a central stage and projector screen. Taken before the Geospatial devroom began, the room later filled up with a full audience and a queue outside.

[FOSDEM] Call for Participation: Geospatial devroom at FOSDEM 2026

lists.fosdem.org
#fosdem #openstreetmap #gis #maps #opendata #OSM #devroom #cartography #geospatial #osgeo #foss4g #geotech
This entry was edited (1 week ago)

mastodon - Link to source

I want an AI Window and all this other AI crap in my browser as much as I want cesium-137 in my shrimp.

:firefox: blog.mozilla.org/en/firefox/ai…
[🗃️ Web Archive]


Introducing AI, the Firefox way: A look at what we're working on and how you can help shape it

AI Window is a user-controlled space we’re building in Firefox that lets you chat with an AI assistant and get help while you browse.
Kristina Bravo (The Mozilla Blog)
This entry was edited (1 week ago)
in reply to SK53

mastodon - Link to source

SK53

Lastly @trigpoint mapped most of the benches we saw.

A plea to all #OpenStreetMap folk: please map benches. Knowing where they are can help people like me with COPD and other breathing conditions. Benches make all the difference as to whether a walk is pleasant or not, and sometimes whether one is possible at all.

I find hat still being able to walk 8-9 km walk sustain nmy mental health. Any infrastructure which helps is invaluable.

10/10

@ultrazool @zverik @millerdl @gregorymarler

A wooden bench in Tentsmuir Forest
A wooden bench in Tentsmuir Forest
A wooden bench in Tentsmuir Forest
A wooden bench in Tentsmuir Forest
#openstreetmap @Ilya Zverev @trigpoint @David Lawrence Miller @Jo Walsh @Gregory Marler
Unknown parent

mastodon - Link to source

Delta Chat

current invite links are long-term usable, and multiple use.

As a link creator, you can scan/click your own link to disable it.

But publishing such invite links is not recommended, unless it's from a chat profile that you only use for people to get in contact with you but then continue chatting from a different profile that is not published.

If you have more questions please post to the support.delta.chat forum.


Delta.Chat

You need Delta.Chat support? Ask the Community!
Delta.Chat

mastodon - Link to source

Cat's out of the bag:
FEX, an emulator I've been working on these past 4 years, is going to be part of the Steam Frame to bring x86 Windows games to an ARM Linux VR headset! 😊

youtube.com/watch?v=OmKrKTwtuk…

Really happy to have been part of the journey and of the team that got FEX to where it is today. Can't wait for the release and community reception!

#steamframe


Steam Hardware Announcement

Learn more and wishlist now: https://steampowered.com/hardwareAnnouncing new Steam Hardware from Valve: Steam Controller, Steam Machine, and Steam Frame are ...
YouTube
#steamframe
This entry was edited (1 week ago)

mastodon - Link to source

Reminder that EVERYTHING Anthropic or OpenAI announce in public is propaganda designed to boost their market cap when they hit the IPO they're aiming for.

It's marketing, folks. There is no intelligence behind the artifice, it's just spicy autocomplete and hucksters in $5000 suits trying to pick your boss's pocket.
mastodon.social/@arstechnica/1…


Ars Technica (@arstechnica@mastodon.social)

Attached: 1 image Researchers question Anthropic claim that AI-assisted attack was 90% autonomous The results of AI-assisted hacking aren't as impressive as many might have us believe. https://arstechnica.
Ars Technica (Mastodon)
in reply to G. Clavier

mastodon - Link to source

André Polykanine

@Enthalpiste It's like calling a modern powerful PC a typewriter. Fundamentally yes, probably. But I experimented with AI: I opened a page to an AI that doesn't know anything about me, no signup, no login. And I gave out of the blue three words I invented, totally made up, and asked to choose. And AI deduced that one of them might be a name of a planet in a fantasy setting (which is true for that case). I repeat, I invented those words, I was not inspired by anything (like "Earst" for "Earth", far from that). So, call it autocomplete if you fancy, but it has enough training to evaluate made-up stuff and suggest anything upon it.
Of course, it hallucinates.
Of course, you don't commit AI-generated code to production, you don't send AI-generated emails without checking, you don't… you get it, of course that is absolutely true.
But I don't get why not to use it as a tool that can make processes far quicker and spare your time from boring stuff.
@G. Clavier
in reply to André Polykanine

mastodon - Link to source

Dave

@menelion @Enthalpiste
In the past few months AI has wasted far more of my time than it could ever possibly save.

One of the things I do in my day job is proof-read, re-word and fact-check matters of local history. I spent days trying to unpick a batch of information that simply didn't add up and couldn't be referenced. In the end it became apparent that someone had searched the internet for some background and believed the first things they read on those wretched AI overview search engine results.

@André Polykanine @G. Clavier

mastodon - Link to source
There's lots of talk about "digital sovereignty" – but what does that exactly mean? Well, avoiding vendor lock-in and economic dependency for starters. Learn how the Open Document Format (ODF) helps here: blog.documentfoundation.org/bl… #foss #openSource #freesoftware #openstandards

The role of ODF in digital sovereignty (digital freedom) - The Document Foundation Blog

Digital sovereignty, or the ability of nations, organisations and individuals to control their own digital destiny, is a fundamental issue of the 21st century.
Italo Vignoli (The Document Foundation)
#FreeSoftware #foss #opensource #openstandards
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