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We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
951–960 of 1001 posts
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#952> It should be possible to run Android on an iPhone and manufacturers should be required by law to provide enough technical support and documentation to make the development of new operating systems possible As someone who enjoyed Linux phones like the Nokia N900/950 and would love to see those hacker-spirited devices again, statements like this sound more than naïve to me. I can acknowledge my own interests here (ha…
It being difficult is different from it being possible. If a company wants to raise $50m to read all the documentation and build an alternative OS to run on this crazy piece of hardware, as the consumer I still benefit. If you'd prefer, let's stick with repair? I also need all of that information to be able to repair my phone, but again, it wouldn't necessarily be ME who repairs my own phone: I take it to a third-par…
I feel like adding more laws for this kind of stuff won't really stick. Like a pie-in-the-sky sort of thing. We can hem and haw about what the government should do all we want but like... I mean, the Digital Markets Act certainly made a HUGE impact. And the GDPR is definitely a net positive for society.
I think the thing you brought up at the beginning is the most practical path forward, someone with the technical know-how and business acumen needs to start a company. Apple and Google are quite weak now, and there are lessons to be learned from the Librem 5 and PinePhone. If enough people try, someone will eventually break through.
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#953Earlier quoted context omitted.
> If you decide you don't want a relationship with either of those companies you will be extremely disadvantaged. Even more worrying is the inverse of this - if Google and/or Apple decide for whatever reason they don't want a relationship with you (aka they ban you for no reason) - you are completely screwed
Even if they ban you for a reason, you're screwed. Granted, the ban may have been warranted, but you're essentially put into a societal prison with no due process or recourse.
Yes, I am feeling like technology is being used as a authoritarian trap.
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#954Earlier quoted context omitted.
Clearly the logical threshold is when a single private corporation becomes the gatekeeper to your life. The internet itself is decentralized so that's fine. Mobile phones as a concept is also fine.
Almost. Having access to the internet requires a device, or public computer if available. A just society would at least maintain ability to interact with all government services through in-person and through post office. Universal access.
I hope people can see what I am saying here, but this is just what the Affordable Health Care Act was in the United States. The government forced up to buy health insurance from private companies, and no one saw a problem with that.
So having health care was dependent on a private third party.
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#955Earlier quoted context omitted.
Even if they ban you for a reason, you're screwed. Granted, the ban may have been warranted, but you're essentially put into a societal prison with no due process or recourse.
Let's hope people remember this and don't cheer the precedent when it's set against "undesirable" like it was with Alex Jones. It always starts like that.
Can you explain a bit more? As far as I was aware, Alex Jones was found guilty by a court of law.
I didn't really follow his case or anything about him though. Did he get banned from Google/Apple for no reason?
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#956I think the conversation needs to change from "can't run software of our choice" to "can't participate in society without an apple or google account". I have been living with a de-googled android phone for a number of years, and it is getting harder and harder, while at the same time operating without certain "apps" is becoming more difficult. For example, by bank (abn amro) still allows online banking on desktop via…
I think that may indeed be a less abstract, more understandable way to frame the problem for the public. But regardless of how you frame it the root cause is the same:
Why can't you participate in society without an Apple or Google account? Because you need an account with them to install apps on your phone. (Or soon will, with the direction Android is now going.) Why do you need an account with them to install apps on your phone? Because you don't control what code runs on your phone, Google/Apple does. Comprehensively solving the latter problem also solves the former, and I think it's best to tackle problems at their root, not just address symptoms.
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#957Earlier quoted context omitted.
That is a great analogy. There are countries where a police can throw you into a lifetime jail with zero option for justice unless you are a famous person from a well known western country. Those countries are North Korea, Iran, Russia, Google and Apple.
The US has done just that to Abrego Garcia, and is now giving him the choice between confessing to a crime that he hasn't been convicted of (and likely didn't commit) and deportation to a country he has never been in.
Abrego Garcia has attorneys working his case through the US justice system. That is a key factor that the other entities lack.
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#958"We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own"
When it comes to my views, this relates to a recent Nintendo Switch 2 post.
At the end of the day, it is up to the purchaser to know if the product they are buying is going to do what they want. If it doesn't... ie do not provide the freedom they want with the hardware (or even software) then you are also free to reject it.
However - we don't normally know what the restrictions are until we get home, generally speaking. The rules in place are not under public scrutiny. It is typical complaining when you reach a certain point. We moan but we try to continue best we can. If we can find a workaround, we will.
Focusing on the Switch 2 (again) who knew about the restrictions until they had purchased it? It is an assumption that whatever Nintendo has done with their previous console (and older ones) would continue the same ruleset. As we all know -- atleast now -- rules change.
Moving away from Nintendo, we also have Google, or Apple... or Microsoft. It is not to any surprise (atleast from me) that these companies will do whatever to claim control. Little by little, a right or freedom is taken away. The older generations are likely to cry the loudest and the cycle repeats itself.
I guess a lot of this boils down to convenience vs freedom.
It is convenient to have a feature easy to use on.. say.. an Android, that starts to make things harder when you stop... or those that never participated but slowly forced to use or go in that direction --- because everyone else is.
As I mentioned in a recent comment -- I am always reminded of Windows 95. The End User License Agreement. It basically reads similar to "You have the rights to use the software" -- You do not own it.
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#959I think the conversation needs to change from "can't run software of our choice" to "can't participate in society without an apple or google account". I have been living with a de-googled android phone for a number of years, and it is getting harder and harder, while at the same time operating without certain "apps" is becoming more difficult. For example, by bank (abn amro) still allows online banking on desktop via…
Have you tried buying a Windows computer recently? Add Microsoft to your list of companies where it's nearly impossible to go without having a registered account. At least in the western world.
It's a different story in other parts of the world. Chinese brands like Beelink and Minisforum still sell Windows 11 PCs that provide you with a local account. That's because their primary market is located in a jurisdiction that has historically allowed PC users to engage in mass piracy without legal consequences, for better or for worse. Old Windows 10 installs are also not going away any time soon.
While you can install whatever software you like on a standard Windows 11 PC, the lack of a software signing certificate from Microsoft require users to fight the built in browser, SmartScreen, and Windows Defender before they can run your software. The end result is closer to Apple and Google than people realize.
Re: We should have the ability to run any code we want on hardware we own
#960Earlier quoted context omitted.
Even if they ban you for a reason, you're screwed. Granted, the ban may have been warranted, but you're essentially put into a societal prison with no due process or recourse.
Yes, I am feeling like technology is being used as a authoritarian trap.
Always has been... pertinent example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_and_the_Holocaust