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Technology @lemmy.world
BoisZoi @lemmy.ml

In what ways has your use of technology/internet changed in 2023?

I figured this may lead to an interesting discussion in the comments.

How has your use of Technology changed in the past year? I'll start.

  • Due to the rise of streaming services and Sony/discovery removing content from libraries, I downloaded all my iTunes purchases onto a 2TB SSD (which I'll soon need to get another).
  • Like many, I've stopped using Reddit outside of Google search.
  • I've reduced my subscriptions to just two. (Apple One and Google One)
  • I've purchased DVDs/Blu rays of my favorite uncensored shows (Family Guy and American Dad) and ripped them and watch them through Cloud storage (Google Drive via Infuse for Apple platforms, and Kodi for Windows)(I've also purchased MakeMKV just because it is so damn useful)
  • I've used Google App Scripts to bypass some Gmail limitations to make filters that I otherwise couldn't. For instance, in Outlook.com, you can block email addresses and domains before you have ever gotten an email from them. In Gmail, you can't. The best you can do is create a filter that deletes them. In my case, I've created a Google App Script that runs every hour and looks for (@.mil) domain emails and marks them as spam. (I am in college, and I fucking hate that they give my email to recruiters.)
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  • I've started archiving my media much more vigorously. Due to the corpos enshitifying so much, the amount of media I have ripped and preserved on my own NAS has exploded.

    I started torrenting again for the first time since college.

    I gave up reddit and use Lemmy and Fediverse exclusively, except for the occasional tech issue I have and then search old reddits for advice/solutions.

    I watch YT exclusively through GrayJay, NewPipe, and FreeTube now.

    I've become much more active converting people to Linux. So far I convinced two friends to buy Steam Decks, one friend to buy a Framework laptop and put Fedora on it, converted my parents to Linux Mint, and may have two more people switching to Linux on their main computers in the coming year.

    I've also been pushing more FOSS software and hardware to family and friends, trying to convince them to care more about right to repair, FOSS and the like.

    This year I am planning to build a new NAS that will be a self-hosted defeater for streaming and get my close friends and family onboard using it to slow the hopefully eventually give up their subscriptions.

    We'll see how it all goes, but I'm very optimistic about FOSS tech in the coming months and years, so much great stuff happening!

    • I definitely feel the enshittification of such platforms will/has led to some great software, updates, and alternative front ends. It sucks seeing platforms decay, however, I love seeing the fightback from users who aren't going to tolerate bullshit from any company.

    • So good to hear! Well done

    • deleted my Reddit account. Only use it if I land there from a web search
    • Started using Firefox containers - keep Amazon, Google, Microsoft etc in their own containers
    • Deleted my Dropbox account when they started deploying AI tools late 23. About to delete Google Drive.
    • Migrated to paid Protonmail. Intend to wipe my Gmail data in next couple of months
    • Migrated to paid data backup service
    • Bought a steam deck, connected it to my living room TV and now PC game in my living room (had a steam link but never got into it before, but steam deck has changed how I play)
    • Cancelled most streaming services
    • Started using Freetube software and Libredirect to escape YouTube
    • Installed fdroid open source store on my phone and switched to many foss and non cloud apps.

    Basically mostly I've started taking my privacy and data much more seriously. I was already privacy "aware" but the explosion of so called AI tools in my industry (healthcare) has made me realise the value and importance of my data, and how much of it is being stolen and exploited by private interests. There are also examples of how private data is being extracted from this bullshit AI tools.

    I'm increasingly understanding how important it is now to actively protect my data and also fragment my internet presence as much as possible.

    • What backup service are you using if I might ask?

      • Not OP but I’ve been using duplicity for over a decade. Zero lock-in to any particular cloud storage, uses rdiff and gpg for the incremental computation and encryption… it’s awesome.

        Just this month I’ve switched over from S3 to Dropbox for cloud storage due to price, and other than the large first backup, my backup script worked flawlessly.

        I can’t recommend it enough.

  • I completely gave up on Google Search and started using Kagi which has changed the way I find things on the Internet.

    Switched from Chrome to Firefox.

    • I turned my old desktop into a home server, which let me cancel some streaming services.. and I set up an rpi4 as a kodi server.
    • Signed up for Firefox Relay (had a holiday sale) to have email masks and a proxy phone number, which should help with spam & marketing crap.
    • Stopped using Reddit in favor of lemmy (which I hope to contribute to this year)
    • Gonna have to find a replacement for mint, since it's dying this month

    • Firefox Relay and email relaying/forwarding services are so useful, not just from a privacy point of view, but also being in control of accounts simply by turning off forwarding for a specific email, or just deleting the forwarding email all together. I use iCloud's Hide My Email.

    • Started using Mastodon and Lemmy
      • Deleted Reddit account
    • Changed a lot of my apps to FOSS alternatives using NeoStore
    • Got a text-based launcher (Lunar Launcher)
    • Started contributing to community projects
    • Set up a JellyFin server

    Probably some more but I forgot. My case fans are really loud though when I keep my pc on at night to keep running the JF server for my users. Perhaps I should have bought a P600S case with the dampening foam. Looking into buying a Pi 4 this year to run services on instead of my main rig.

    Really am enjoying using FOSS software, even though it can be a little limiting in some ways. AAAAXY is a really fun game btw!

  • When my phone was up for renewal last March, I specifically went looking for an iPhone 13 mini, because I’m sick of my phone being the centre of my attention all the time. And it’s worked. The smaller screen means I’m far less likely to get it out and idly scroll the socials, instead waiting until I’m at my Mac or have my iPad. But the screen is still big enough for GPS and such.

    In terms of socials; I’ve been pretty much all in on Mastodon and Lemmy, having gone from posting twenty times a day on Twitter, to posting just six times in total. And that was to spam my Mastodon account.

    We ditched Netflix in April, and haven’t missed it at all. I signed up for it the very first day it was available for Apple TV back in 2012, so it felt weird getting rid of it. But ultimately, Disney+ feels like better value, so we’re on that for now.

    I have Apple Music, which is fine for in the car or while I’m at work, but I spent an awful lot of time listening to my library of ripped CDs on my iPod when I was out and about. I got the iPod in ‘22, but finally got it flashmodded early last year, and love it.

    • Switched from Gmail to Fastmail
    • Set email aliases for all registered services
    • Started hosting stuff myself

    • what are you hosting for yourself? I'm always looking for new services to add to my homelab.

      • currently not much, and none of the *arrs, since I have my own app built for streaming

        • vaultwarden
        • adguard
        • filebrowser
        • photoprism, but thinking about switching to immich
        • authelia, maybe switching to authentik

  • I finally installed RethinkDNS on my phone. I configured redirections to invidious and other alternative front-ends on firefox, desktop but also mobile thanks to the recent update. I stopped appending "!g" to all my duckduckgo searches. And i got so addicted to a new social network that I quit all others LOOKING AT YOU LEMMY

    • Nice! On iOS/iPadOS, I use "StopTheMadness Pro" to set up redirects, and it makes watching YouTube, TikTok, etc. videos that family sends to me so much more bearable!

      • Exactly! And I keep sending them strangenlooking links that spark conversations on open source, surveillance capitalism and emancipation

  • Ditched Reddit for Lemmy with a side of Kbin.

    Switched from SCCM to InTune at work.

    Switched from Sony Xperia to Google Pixel for my smartphone.

    Got a smart oven as a gift, so far, I'm liking it paired with the easy prep Tovala meals, but it seems like a pretty capable toaster oven/air fryer. Apparently it can dehydrate as well, haven't tried that yet. This is the first "smart" device I owned outside of a smartphone, and probably would have bought it for myself, but now that I'm using it, I have to admit, I like it.

    • I hope you enjoy your pixel! I had a Pixel 3 XL from 2019-2021, and outside of it running warm, Google's skin of Android was a delight to use, I loved having the assistant screen calls and using the hold for me feature, it's actually what kept me back from purchasing all in the Apple ecosystem for a while. I'd argue the most niche feature I loved is that the contact or phone app would allow you to send people directly to voicemail without showing a call screen (unlike iOS which will show you the call screen); it made college alerts, prescription alerts, etc. so much easier to handle!

      • Thanks, I hope I do too, but time will tell. Even if I don't like it, I got it for half off and a year of unlimited cell service so if I end up hating it, I'll just sell it on Swappa and keep the sim card for a phone I like better lol

  • I switched from Chrome to Firefox completely and from Reddit to Lemmy like 80% of the time, for me that is a huge upgrade.

    1. A slow diversion from Chrome. I used to use Chrome for 30% of my web browsing and games, but have switched that to Firefox and Vivaldi.
    2. I almost completely stopped using Reddit, and instead, switched to Lemmy.
    3. A big shift to majority of headphone usage being wireless, mostly due to the BT600ANC headphones I have with excellent noise cancelling.
    4. A renewed push to seriously consider dailying Linux. Windows 11 was just Windows 10 but with some UI changes running at 0.3x the speed. But MS keeps making Windows worse, and I'm scared of Windows 12.
    5. Considering Third Party Apps for existing software, whenever I could. Most recently, Steam has been super slow so I really wanted a third party launcher to bypass Steam. Same for EGS, except Heroic fulfills that duty, until it fails to work.
    6. Due to YT being especially greedy this year, I've soured on it enough to sometimes adblock it, use it less, and most recently and hopefully most devastatingly for YT, purchasing a year of Nebula to watch many creators videos there (ad-free) instead of YT. As a creator myself, I empathize with creators of all sizes.
    7. Oh, almost forgot. I stopped listening to the Linux podcasts I was previously listening to. I just find it more enjoyable to listen to music at the moment.

    Wait, actually forgot these:

    1. Purchased my friend's old PC for cheap. He likes to be on the bleeding edge and I'm perfectly happy with a water cooled 3900X + 32GB RAM + 2.5TB storage + everything except GPU for $400.
    2. And now the most unfortunate thing. My Facebook usage increased from basically zero to occasional use of the marketplace. It was how I found my GPU replacement for the PC, and my first motorcycle. I still adblock it hard whenever I can.

    Wait, how can I forget this one!

    1. Use of AI as a debugging tool has skyrocketed. I now default to ChatGPT before StackOverflow because on average it's way faster with ChatGPT.

  • I've been using the ever living heck out of Stable Diffusion. Shit is so fun. It's another tool for me as and artist to learn and utilize.

    • Same, but with Microsoft's Image Creator. At least for me, I like using it to create pixel art for my own personal GitHub repos.

  • I got a subscription to nebula, since my favorite creators are on there and YouTube’s subscription costs too much.

    Quit Spotify for Apple Music and PlexAmp.

    Slowly starting to phase out everything Google but it’s taking some time.

    I’m using Google search less and now Ecosia has become my primary search engine.

    Next thing on my list is to reduce streaming services. I quit Netflix and HBO in 2023 after having it for many years.

    Using a VPN more and more.

    I’m using much less Reddit, Facebook and whatever the fuck twitter is now. Instead I’m using Lemmy and Mastodon. Maybe this year I’ll delete all the old accounts finally for good.

    Started using RSS again for news.

    • Started renting a VPS and a domain. Now I have my own silly blog, a few services and a proxy to go to blocked sites (with the possibility to upgrade to censorship-resistant protocols if needed!)
    • Among other things got an IRC bouncer, so started hanging out on IRC a lot more.
    • Deleted my Twitter, Reddit and Insta (which were almost dead anyway but still).
    • Went from hating IT and thinking it's just not for me to studying it in uni, as well as learning some topics myself.
    • Degoogled my smartphone as much as I could with ADB (although barely noticed a difference, everything was from F-Droid anyway).
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