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7 months agoI tried searching up what hardware they run, but I got nothing. Do you know what hardware they run?
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Cake day: May 10th, 2025
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Lots to cover so let’s start one by one: Firstly, even trying to put my GNU biase aside, canoeboot is just libreboot with the non free stuff removed. The problem with that is it has been shown to allow some non-free firmware in a recent version, and so, I feel like using a more independent free bios would be better atleast for me. I understand the fact about the chip itself being non-free, but as for a laptop, that’s just the most free you can get right now (do correct me if I’m wrong), so it’s better to use the most free option rather than using a less free option because the most free option isn’t fully free. I completely agree and can’t emphasise that enough: The FSF and GNU are not made for security. A lot of people especially the ones complaining how not allowing microcode updates allows for security risks don’t understand that the FSF’s and GNU’s goals are to protect user freedom. I don’t believe in a society without phones, it’s just if those phones exist, they should be free, transparent, and respect user privacy. Finally, I did know about riscv, but as you mention, I also knew that there were no 100% free boards. By designs, they still need the proper tools and need to be done by a proper computer engineer right? The framework board isn’t 100% free right?
I’m simply providing an alternative. We all know ultra-processed food is bad, but that alone doesn’t help anyone be healthy. They need to know what to eat (in this case) use instead. Yeah I carry it by putting it in the same light and small backpack I put my other stuff in when going out. I do not use WhatsApp and do not have a phone number. Counterintuitive to go through all the troubles of being as free and as private as possible and then use WhatsApp spyware and a phone number
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I personally don’t own a phone. My solution to messaging, recording, and navigation is my Thinkpad X200T running parabola GNU+Linux-libre as the os and GNU boot as the bios. It’s as anti-surveillance pro-piracy pro-freedom you can get. For protests, just turning off bluetooth and wifi on it pretty much gets you off the radar. The only problem is that it’s camera really sucks. Photos are doable, but videos might not. Also, for protests, physical privacy is important too, so I hope you are wearing bandana to protect you from being identified in addition to protection (helmet, knee pads, and maybe a gas mask depending on how big the protest is)
Suckles DWM is amazing. No bloat at all. There is only 1 config file, and you edit it with pure C like a gigachad. Like all suckles software, it strictly obeys the Unix philosophy, and it has been the cause of the most lightweight set ups that are also cool hacker-looking
You make amazing points, and I completely agree with you. I will continue to use Jami since it’s good enough for me to talk with my friends. I mean now the only replacement which is not a replacement just another thing I use to chat is GNU Emacs. I hope the development speed and motivation increases and please do inform me if you found an alternative
If it’s not fully free, I don’t trust it. I don’t understand how someone in a privacy community doesn’t understand how much a few lines of code can track someone so easily no matter how much of the program is free software.
Yeah, this is just the reality of unpaid free software developers, they don’t have the recourses to work on every single bug as quick as a paid developer, but that doesn’t justify not reporting bugs and working with the developers to fix them. Like you said, Jami is grest ethically so why not make it great function? Also, don’t you have a computer and a phone? Test on those. I don’t own a phone, so I can’t test the phone, but I do gladly test on my laptop.
That’s not the full picture. That’s exactly the problem I was highlighting. The issue isn’t whether some of the code is “FOSS”, it’s about whether all of it is. If even small parts remain proprietary (as you mentioned), then we can’t verify what those parts are doing. And those parts could theoretically significantly affect the data collection. Also, I didn’t make up a lot of stuff. The Signal Foundation themselves have confirmed that certain UI and build components are not fully libre. As the GNU project puts it, if part of your system is closed, then you’re trusting a black box, no matter how well-lit the rest of it is.
And we should report problems and fix them ourselves to make it better
Ignore the comment saying signal is “end to end encrypted” “private” etc They are simply stuck in a delusional state where they try to convince themselves that signal is the best option so they can continue using it. Nothing is private if it isn’t fully libre because you never know what the proprietary code is doing. The signal protocol itself has its source code released, and the encryption and security code is publicly available, but the signal Foundation has stated that it uses both free code and proprietary code. Their reason is UI, but it’s hard to make sure whatever proprietary code is being used for because you simply can’t see it. As GNU puts it: “You’re walking in a pitch black cave”. Jami is fully libre and is a GNU project. You don’t even need any phone number!
Why must the device be new and still in production? The current devices that are currently in production/new both at that price point (sub 40$) and more expensive (up to 3000$) are consumer grade garbage that will last at most 2 years. They’re not repairable, not durable, not built well etc. I personally use a GNU booted Thinkpad X200T /T500 and a GNU booted ASUS KMCA-D8- both running Parabola GNU+Linux-Libre splendisly with the proprietary wifi-card replaced. The cost of the X200T was about 30$ and the T500 was about 20$. I understand that you might not care as much of freedom to get either the X200, X200T, T400, T400s, or T500, but it is important to understand that most of the operating system components you are runnning were made with freedom in mind. If you still don’t want to sacrifice performance for a cheap, libre experience, then just get a newer Thinkpad. It’s not as libre, but they still could be found (more easily) for very cheap prices. But keep in mind the newer you get the shittier it’s going to be. I still suggest the models I reffered to though- esspecially if you want to tinker. You can remove about every component and replace it, and you can replace the BIOS with a fully free bios (GNU Boot).
By the way, most operating system distributions based on Linux as kernel are basically modified versions of the GNU operating system. Richard M Stallman and contributers began developing GNU in 1984, years before Linus Torvalds started to write his kernel. Their goal was to develop a complete free operating system. Of course, they did not develop all the parts themselves—but they led the way. They developed most of the central components, forming the largest single contribution to the whole system. The basic vision was theirs too. In fairness, the GNU project ought to get at least equal mention. https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/philosophy.html https://www.gnu.org/gnu/gnu.html#gnulinux https://www.gnu.org/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html
Thank you for your helpful comments. I’ll look into Canoeboot more, but will probably still flash GNU Boot.
I took into consideration what you said about security, and overall, I believe you’re right.
In conclusion, I appreciate your advise and will look further into canoeboot, security, and the framework Risc V motherboard in addition to Risc V in general.