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Fix Ubuntu

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Re: Fix Ubuntu

#191

Post by bronson »

mdeslaur wrote: post #123
rlpb wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's open source. Since it sounds like you won't trust Canonical's claim on this anyway, why don't you take a look, or ask somebody who can, instead of creating fear about it? If it turns out that searches leak out despite the setting, I'm sure you'll hit the front page of HN. Since this hasn't happened, and Canonical have been under considerable scrutiny about it, I think it's safe to say that your conspiracy theory…

If the searches leak out despite the settings, I would like to know about it so I can promptly issue a security update.

Shouldn't you explicitly ask the user's permission before letting the searches leak out?

Re: Fix Ubuntu

#192

Post by danielweber »

Nursie wrote: post #47
danielweber wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And then I find out that all the old ways I had of managing the box are out-of-date. /etc/ files give way to gnome-config-* gadgets, and don't even get me started about sound.

Yeah, sound on Linux can still be an absolute arse, which is surprising to still have to say in 2013. I have no idea how to make my system detect headphone insertion and switch output without a bunch of manual steps. That said I've had problems trying to get windows doing 5.1 sound over HDMI too. Gnome configs are only an issue if you still use gnome :) In general things are moving to a more "it's all done for you" w…

> Gnome configs are only an issue if you still use gnome :)

See, that's the problem. The old system is abandoned and I have to decide "is it worth learning the brand new system?" Keep in mind this brand new system will not be used in 5 years, either.

I also don't sit around watching the forum discussions so when someone says "oh you need to uninstall gnome and install farknootz" I just say huh.

Re: Fix Ubuntu

#193

Post by 0X1A »

levesque wrote: post #190
zx2c4 wrote: post #102

Solution: stop using Ubuntu. There are lots of other very able distributions out there, many of which not only have better privacy features but also are technologically superior in one way or another. In no particular order, these are all very capable operating systems for a variety of needs: * https://fedoraproject.org/ * http://www.centos.org/ * http://www.opensuse.org/ * http://www.mageia.org/ * https://www.archli…

The problem with other distros is the lack of a design. Ubuntu was the first Linux distro I used that did not look like a donkey's ass (back in 2008~). Even today's Gnome Shell does not look as good as Unity... it also does not scale well for my display's 1600x900 resolution (top bar icons are way too small). The other distros might work well technically, but imho they don't look as good and they require more tweakin…

That is completely subjective. A lot of people hate Unity, the same way people hate every DE that exists. So much so that some do not even use a DE. Using a DE as an argument for Ubuntu's advantage is weak as they're usually ambiguous. I say usually because it tends to be that Unity, like Mir, isn't really adopted into any other distribution in official repositories. Even more so after Mir's release, since it'll be dependent on it.

Re: Fix Ubuntu

#194

Post by prg318 »

keithpeter wrote: post #186
l337n1nj4 wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mint is based off of Ubuntu, but also has a version based off of Debian, as zx2c4 has pointed out. The biggest difference is that Mint uses the Cinnamon desktop environment, as opposed to Unity, which was forked from Gnome 2. Also, they use Nemo, which was forked from Nautilus, which has more functionality and features as opposed to Nautilus.

I thought MATE was the Gnome 2 fork, and Cinnamon was based on GTK3? Disclaimer: don't use either, I use CentOS on the serious work machine and Debian (non-free) on the playpad.

You are correct: MATE is the GNOME 2 fork that uses GTK2. Cinnamon is a modified version of GNOME3 that uses GTK3 and provides extensions to the GNOME3 desktop so that the default desktop looks and feels like a default GNOME2 desktop.

Linux Mint uses Cinnamon.

Re: Fix Ubuntu

#195

Post by bronson »

rlpb wrote: post #146
stolio wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll respond, though I'm sure the reason nobody's responded is they're as tired of this conversation as I am. 1) Yet. When boiling frogs it's best to turn the heat up slowly. Canonical isn't providing a service for free here, they make money mining your searches and sending them to 3rd parties like Amazon. Compare this with its parent distribution's Social Contract. [0] Especially the phrase "We will be guided by the…

I said that there is no privacy violation. None of your arguments demonstrate otherwise. > 1) [profit motive] The Mozilla Foundation's main source of income is making money through Google searches. If you accept Mozilla in the GNU/Linux world, then you accept this motive on your own terms. > 2) Real users may not realize they have a choice, or that sending searches to 3rd parties is NOT normal in the GNU/Linux world.…

There is a big difference between typing "calendar" in Firefox's search box and typing it in the local desktop's search bar. You seem to imply that they're equivalent.

If Apple felt the need to monetize me every time I typed "Terminal" into Spotlight I'd switch platforms fast.

Re: Fix Ubuntu

#196

Post by keithpeter »

Mikeb85 wrote: post #34

This whining about Ubuntu is ridiculous. Removing the shopping features is easy enough anyway, without devoting a site to it, never mind posting it to HN. Furthermore, there's plenty of choices out there. The best of which (IMO) are openSUSE, Fedora, and Arch/Manjaro. Mint is terrible - like a buggier version of Ubuntu or unstable Debian... Furthermore, Canonical puts alot of work into Ubuntu. They deserve to get pai…

"Maybe consider actually using Amazon through their app as a way of contributing?"

Affiliate site for when I am searching for products to buy, yes no problem, and link Rhythmbox in as well so Amazon can suggest music.

Pointless, intrusive and potentially embarrassing (slow Internet) automatic searching of Amazon for random desktop searches, no thanks.

Re: Fix Ubuntu

#197

Post by keithpeter »

OHMYGODUSETHIS wrote: post #161

Use Arch. Problem solved. Yes, it takes a bit more work, but you get a much better understanding of your system and learn how to block or eliminate things (like this ad-serving search crap) you don't like.

Or: CentOS with EPEL and Nux repos for slightly older but solid packages,and just get work done...

Conservative VS leading edge I suppose.

Re: Fix Ubuntu

#198

Post by Mikeb85 »

Karunamon wrote: post #140
jenius wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While I see why people are unhappy with the sale of their data and ads, I have to agree with you on this. While obviously I don't enjoy having my information collected and sold without me really knowing by default, they do need to get money somehow. I feel like we're in a weird transitional period where the "free internet" in which all major apps and services we used were VC funded and growing, completely free with n…

Somehow, every other publicly available Linux distro doesn't need to include spyware in order to do their job.

Alot are community projects produced by people in their spare time, and a few (openSUSE/SLES/SLED, Fedora/RHEL) are backed by large commercial entities who make money selling services and support. Canonical is the only one giving away their commercial distro for free... (openSUSE and Fedora are slightly different from their SuSE and Red Hat cousins)

Personally I'm partial to openSUSE, but I certainly don't fault Canonical for the way they choose to do business.

Re: Fix Ubuntu

#200

Post by mdeslaur »

bronson wrote: post #191
mdeslaur wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If the searches leak out despite the settings, I would like to know about it so I can promptly issue a security update.

Shouldn't you explicitly ask the user's permission before letting the searches leak out?

When someone uses a box marked "search online sources", they probably don't need to be asked "Are you sure you want to search online sources?"
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