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Gnu Privacy Guard relies on one underfunded person (2015)

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Re: Gnu Privacy Guard relies on one underfunded person (2015)

#61

Post by sooheon »

keeler wrote: post #57
Digit-Al wrote: post #21

It seems like so much of the internet is reliant upon technology created by, and supported by, people who get little to no reward or recognition for their important contributions. An idea (not a serious one, but a point for discussion): in civil society we have a government that collects taxes that are used to fund the vital infrastructure that allows the society to function. How about if all ISPs were to charge a ve…

> How about if all ISPs were to charge a very small levy to customers? How about levying such a tax on ISPs themselves? They're the ones making a profit off of the infrastructure you're talking about.

They mean the same thing (if implemented properly). The taxes will be split by the ISPs and the consumers.

Re: Gnu Privacy Guard relies on one underfunded person (2015)

#62

Post by damnfine »

na85 wrote: post #56
ianai wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

it seems too much to both not support a thing directly and also decry potential support as unfit.

The ISPs would not support it. They would take the levy and find some clever loophole to steal it or to use it to reinforce their own walled gardens. You're talking about possibly the scummiest, least moral companies in the global tech industry.

LARGE ISPs. The small ones are fighting tooth and nail to survive and bring the local people better internet. It has to be folly to be in it for the money at many local scales unfortunately. Thats why I get one choice of 2mb internet here. There are local guys working out of a pickup truck laying copper and fiber to local business. #notallisps

Re: Gnu Privacy Guard relies on one underfunded person (2015)

#63

Post by nickpsecurity »

LeoPanthera wrote: post #10
stephenr wrote: post #5

GPG is used by some for email sure, but it isn't the only option. S/MIME has native support in pretty much all native mail clients, and is more pragmatic about how you trust an identity.

I bet that all the non-email uses of gpg are actually greater than the email uses. Its used as a component of many Linux distribution package managers, for example.

I always tell people to just put the content in files that they then encrypt with GPG. Then, send them over some transport (eg email, IM, postal service). Makes usage really simple where you only need to know a few commands. Those can be turned into a shell script or GUI client if someone wanted to put work into it.

Re: Gnu Privacy Guard relies on one underfunded person (2015)

#65

Post by mmirate »

cuckcuckspruce wrote: post #43
gilrain wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The broad altruism in tech that has allowed this situation, and which still underfunds the projects' modest needs? Yes, astonishing generosity.

It's almost like the "I got mine, buzz off" attitude is prevalent in not just the cartoon caricatures of but is prevalent in society as a whole.

Even further, it's almost like that attitude is the Nash equilibrium of human life. (And if it is, then we cannot expect rational people to deviate from it without significant imposition of force upon them.)

Re: Gnu Privacy Guard relies on one underfunded person (2015)

#66

Post by damnfine »

DonHopkins wrote: post #53
stephenr wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You still can but they're a bit of a pain to use, and honestly anything that's not Comodo would be nice. After their shitbird response to LetsEncrypt, I'd rather pay someone else than use their "free" option. Edit: for those who didn't follow it at the time, this sums it up: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/06/800-pound-comodo...

Wow, I missed that story the first time around. Just catching up on the details. That Comodo CEO Melih Abdulhayoğlu is such a dishonest, incompetent buffoon! I had no idea how terrible a company Comodo is, but now I do thanks to the CEO's own words and actions. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7Wl2FW2TcA&feature=youtu.be...

JFC I knew it was bad but... just.. f..k.

I feel like a fool for not being hip to this.

Re: Gnu Privacy Guard relies on one underfunded person (2015)

#67

Post by LolWolf »

wiz21c wrote: post #20
another-dave wrote: post #14

The fact that someone of his ability can take an intern's wages to do this, and for that long, shows the incredible altruism in tech.

That shows his own personal altruism. I'm afraid that in tech, like in any other domain, altruism in gifted people is something rare (just because altruism is rare plus being gifted is rare). Now, everybody is doing his share, most of us are a bit altruist and a bit gifted in a way or in another. It's a question of scale.

I'd argue that P(altruism | largely gifted) > P(altruism), but that being said, I completely agree with your statement. It's still a minimal amount of people in general (and with some good economic reasons, too).

Re: Gnu Privacy Guard relies on one underfunded person (2015)

#70

Post by dang »

gilrain wrote: post #31
sdrothrock wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I had no clue! That's useful information.

It's also useful to learn not to spout off when you "have no clue".

More important still is not to be rude or uncivil on HN. We ban accounts that do that, so please don't do it again.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

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