Based on my own experience as well as taking into account the suggestions of other people, here are the top three Linux distros for beginners:

• Ubuntu
• Linux Mint
• Pop!_OS

These are basically just “install-and-go” distros; no need for advanced setup.

It’s the same issue with a lot of open-source software projects. Many use proprietary/closed-source services to communicate with users or develop the software itself. It’s quite ironic, really. 🤦‍♂️

For my website, I went with my two favourites: Ubuntu for sans-serif and Cascadia Code for monospace. I think it’s a good combination. 🙂

Linux Mint is a great beginner distro.

I got my dad, who is very non-tech, to switch from Windows 10 to Linux Mint; he has been using it for over 2 years now. He went from using Edge, Microsoft Word, and Outlook to using Firefox, LibreOffice and Thunderbird.

I cancelled my Netflix and Spotify subscriptions long ago after content would get taken down for whatever reason. This reminded me that I’m only renting the content from these services; I don’t actually own them.

Fast forward to now, I selfhost a Jellyfin server and pirate all the content I want. Feels good to have total control and ownership over my music and movie collection.

There is no certainty in flesh except death.

If you’re trying to DeGoogle, you can receive some help and info by checking out the https://lemmy.ml/c/degoogle community.

I suggest you check out Runbox as another alternative webmail service. You get the first month free to try it out before having to pay for the subscription. I’ve recently switched my mail from Gmail to Runbox.

I think a good first step is to use free and open-source, non-profit alternatives (Firefox, Lemmy, Mastodon, Matrix, etc). The next is to help grow these technologies by contributing to their development. You can contribute by fixing bugs, translating text, or just donating money.

It will take a while for most people but try to DeGoogle, DeMicrosoft, and DeApple your life. It’s quite liberating to not be tied to any of these company’s DRM, policies or rules.

Welcome! It won’t be long now until you start using tiling window managers on Arch. 😉

People need to realize that you do not own the games that you buy from stores such as Ubisoft and Steam. You are renting these games at best. These companies can deny access to your games at any time they see fit. Whether it’s deleting inactive accounts, a change of policy, business going bankrupt or any act of god.

This is why I only buy games from stores such as GOG or itch.io where I actually receive a DRM-free copy of the game. It’s mine forever so long as I back it up; which is not hard to do since storage is so cheap nowadays.

I use Cinny. It’s a desktop app for Matrix.

For me it’s OpenRCT2. I’m not sure if it counts since it’s basically a mod that requires the base Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 game to play.

Never heard of itch.io. I like how it has a collection of open source games. I have bookmarked it. Thanks.

An always online requirement is just another form of DRM. If a game has DRM, I simply don’t buy it.

I just use rsync to backup my home folder to my NAS.

Right now I’m really getting into old school games or games that have the old school look. Here’s a few which have native Linux support:

• Stardew Valley
• Broforce
• Carrion
• Dusk
• FTL: Faster Than Light
• Huntdown

What you’re describing is just another Reddit. Where, eventually, a few select individuals with all the power make the wrong decisions and this entire disaster happens all over again.

Lemmy (and the fediverse) is a chance to change all that. It brings power back to the people, to the community.

I love how certain problems like this only come to light once a certain amount of activity is reached. It wasn’t much of a problem before the Reddit migration when this place was a lot less active. New posts slowly dripped in… but now it’s a constant flow.

I actually see this as a strength/advantage. There is no single point that can be controlled. All the more harder for the greedy to rule over the entire fediverse.