I want a computer that I own • Hacker News Board

Re: I want a computer that I own

#551

Post by mwcampbell » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:14 PM UTC

sammorrowdrums wrote: post #484

fxtentacle wrote: post #445

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The issue with open hardware is that DRM vendors don't support it. A fully open phone doesn't have hardware DRM keys so you won't get FullHD in Netflix. And now you've lost 90% of the market.

Yeah, even when you boot up into Netlfix in Epiphany browser or something and discover you can't. It's not a great OOTB experience for new Linux users, never mind being locked out entirely. But that said, I don't really know how to fix the DRM problem without first making progress on open hardware. Viability and market share in spite of the adversity is the only chance I can see. It still might fail. We try because w…

I think the solution is to convince more people that we can live happy lives without access to big-budget entertainment. I've been mostly going without for about two years now, though I've wavered a few times.

Re: I want a computer that I own

#552

Post by didericis » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:15 PM UTC

bmn__ wrote: post #397

sammorrowdrums wrote: post #346

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well it is early days but Librem and System76 (and several others like Pine64) are making huge headway in the open hardware space. I know there have been lots of failures in this area but I think we are getting to a threshold point where building on top of these companies acheivements is quite possible. Linux on Mobile and open EC and Coreboot etc. are all making rapid progress at the moment. I would still say we are…

> desktop Linux user like me, open hardware is already a reality Power or RISC-V ISA hardware are in low stock, have very few, specialised vendors and are not affordable. I have great sympathy for people who refuse to pay the outrageous difference to off-the-shelf hardware that can be bought anywhere just to gain a level of privacy that they should have in the first place. AMD and Intel have rootkits in their hardwar…

If you’re referring to Intel ME and the AMD PSP, people who have analyzed the PSP seem to think it’s safe: https://youtu.be/bKH5nGLgi08?t=47m14s

Re: I want a computer that I own

#553

Post by JasonFruit » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:15 PM UTC

theshrike79 wrote: post #294

ROARosen wrote: post #269

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Letters sent with homing pigeons were mostly private...

Trained Peregrine Falcon: Hold my beer.

Typical: we started with a technical problem, and started bikeshedding it, so now we have drunk falcons.

Re: I want a computer that I own

#554

Post by sircastor » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:17 PM UTC

jpttsn wrote: post #545

Computers have come a long way in a short time and are very complex. Maybe the diffuse ownership (that OP bemoans) is necessary for that complexity, or at least for it to develop so quickly. If I want a typewriter, car or handgun I “truly own”, I might be able to build one, as a last resort. But building a satisfactory computer without the global supply chains (that impose the bemoaned limitations) seems impossible.

The unspoken statement here is “what do you want the computer to do?” A typewriter or gun both have very narrow application. Any computer can do what any other computer can do provided the right software, data, and time. An Apple I can be built with discrete components pretty easily. But what utility does having an Apple I give you?

Re: I want a computer that I own

#555

Post by oytis » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:18 PM UTC

DocTomoe wrote: post #529

oytis wrote: post #464

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It may have something to do with the fact that in another rant the author complains about how HTTPS makes webmasters dependent on certificate-issuing bodies.

And he is not wrong about that. The HTTPS/SSL infrastructure is byzantine and less concerned with actually encrypting information, but establishing trust that whoever you as the browser are communicating with is in fact the server that you expect them to be. This is not an easy problem to solve... For the longest time, this introduced the ecosystem to professional certification authorities, which are essentially prof…

At least in Linux distributions it's up to the distro, not the browser. Not to say you can add your own root certificates you trust if you don't trust your distro. You have to trust someone eventually, that's for sure, nothing can be done here.

Re: I want a computer that I own

#556

Post by hrvTGKFyDyko3aK » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:19 PM UTC

vbezhenar wrote: post #393

kokx wrote: post #15

I have a similar feeling, but with modern smartphones. Owning my computer is still relatively possible. I can build a computer from parts which I can choose, and have a choice in which operating system to install on them. Laptops are slightly more closed, but even on those I can choose the OS myself. Modern smartphones however, seem like walled gardens in which I have no control at all. I cannot choose any of the par…

I can somewhat relate to you, but in different aspect. I own iPhone and I'm thinking about some home automation. I can program iPhones, I tried to find out some way to put my code onto my phone without restrictions and I did not find any. I can use web app, but it's restricted and I might need some API that's not available for web. I can install my development build, but it'll expire in a few days and I don't want to…

You can use AltStore to easily sideload apps to your iPhone without a developer account[0]. You only need to be on the same WiFi network as your computer once every 7 days to "refresh" the sideloaded app.

[0] https://altstore.io/

Re: I want a computer that I own

#557

Post by lukec11 » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:28 PM UTC

tokamak-teapot wrote: post #408

_abox wrote: post #383

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Indeed uBlock Origin is the #1 reason I use Firefox on Android. #2 is dark reader.

AdGuard works pretty well on iOS. I don’t think there is a way to do a ‘dark reader’ specifically though perhaps pages honour the OS’s ‘dark mode’ setting these days? I would guess support is spotty.

Sites that use the prefers-color-scheme media query honor the OS setting on iOS, but it obviously doesn't work on sites that haven't implemented it - Dark reader[0] takes a invert-colors approach and makes it a little easier on the eyes.

[0] https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/darkreader/

Re: I want a computer that I own

#558

Post by Freak_NL » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:30 PM UTC

fouuler wrote: post #386

Freak_NL wrote: post #377

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> and, if I want to go to a bar, there's a risk I won't be allowed to pay. Are there situations where paying without a smartphone is not practically possible? In the Netherlands people sometimes pay with smartphones, but these use the same infrastructure as the ubiquitous debit cards, so it is not an issue here. (Cash on the other hand…)

In Norway, some businesses use Corona as a pretext and say that credit cards are dirty too. What's the cash situation in the Netherlands? Aren't businesses legally bound to accept cash?

Supermarkets, sure, but plenty of small businesses require one of the so-called contactless payment methods these days — a trend that started pre-corona. This means either a debit card or a smartphone with a virtual debit card on it. It is a point of concern that this excludes people without a bank account, but as this doesn't impact essential services it is tolerated. I don't think we have a law that mandates cash, but of course supermarkets would face criticism if they closed the last cash register (there is always one that accepts both kinds of payment).

These payment terminals and the Dutch debit cards are by now all suitable for this type of contactless payment: you either lay the card on top of the terminal or hover it there, or hold it near the side (depending on the model); it can be done completely without terminal and card touching, and of course only the card carrier touches the card (i.e., you don't hand it over as is sometimes done with credit cards).

Credit cards are rarely used for payments in shops here, and are often frowned upon by merchants (and often refused). It's all debit cards (either as a physical card or virtual in a smartphone) and some cash — although covid may well proof to put cash that much closer to the grave.

Re: I want a computer that I own

#559

Post by Zetaphor » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:31 PM UTC

chasil wrote: post #550

franga2000 wrote: post #417

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I seriously doubt either Intel or AMD ship different silicon to the NSA or whoever else. At least from what I've read, the only difference (at least on Intel) is the "NSA bit", that can actually be turned on on any chip these days. System76 actually ships machines with it enabled by default.

The Intel Core 2 Duo/Quad was the last CPU where the "Management Engine" could be completely wiped and disabled. This is my experience in removing the ARC firmware code from two different HP desktops (I attached both BIOS images): https://github.com/corna/me_cleaner/issues/233 These PCs are quite inexpensive. I run OpenBSD with hardened Chrome on one of them, for all of my finances.

If you're going through all that effort, then why bothering with hardening Chrome? Why wouldn't you start with Firefox, which doesn't require unGoogling to be considered secure?

Re: I want a computer that I own

#560

Post by Terretta » Tue, Mar 09, 2021, 3:37 PM UTC

vbezhenar wrote: post #393

kokx wrote: post #15

I have a similar feeling, but with modern smartphones. Owning my computer is still relatively possible. I can build a computer from parts which I can choose, and have a choice in which operating system to install on them. Laptops are slightly more closed, but even on those I can choose the OS myself. Modern smartphones however, seem like walled gardens in which I have no control at all. I cannot choose any of the par…

I can somewhat relate to you, but in different aspect. I own iPhone and I'm thinking about some home automation. I can program iPhones, I tried to find out some way to put my code onto my phone without restrictions and I did not find any. I can use web app, but it's restricted and I might need some API that's not available for web. I can install my development build, but it'll expire in a few days and I don't want to…

To your point, Apple Developer does not require the $100/year Apple Developer Program fee to load software on your iPhone, but does by default require a weekly cert refresh.

However, the $100 is less a permission slip, and more buys you access to Apple services infrastructure that is largely worth the money so you don’t have to do it yourself and so your users can trust a single brand experience.

(For example, notifications before Apple’s notification service were insane, the app “Growl” made a lot of money just trying to tame the dozens of different ways confounded users’ expectations with notifications. Similarly, updating apps was crazy-making for users, then there was Sparkle, now you get the app hosting and distribution included in the $8/month.)

Just these few services are well worth $8 a month if you compare what you get to any other SaaS we’re buying all the time from HackerNews startups:

    - App discovery, hosting, distribution, updates
    - CloudKit, iCloud Documents, iCloud K/V Store
    - Push Notifications
    - Sign-in with Apple
    - etc. (NFC is also in the list)

See this link for detailed differences between free Apple Developer and paid Apple Developer Program (also compares Enterprise distribution):

https://help.apple.com/developer-account/#/dev21218dfd6

Since you specifically mention push notifications which of course require an infrastructure to run reliably for you 24/7, there’s a good value for the $8/month. The systems behind making these “just work” for users are complex and expensive.