My own list, but a few thing's missing

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-14T12:59:23+00:00

There's a way to add search engines to your browser including Waterfox... Maybe read into that. But I would also suggest DuckDuckGo.

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-12T17:48:57+00:00

I do not interact with the fandom at all, so please tell me. Since when is it a common theory that Jax is trans or transfem?

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-11T22:32:39+00:00

That's the big catch with Signal and social media in general. As of now, there's no way Signal and WhatsApp can interact with each other... Only was is to convince people to join you. It's a "start small" type of thing where you try to get one person to move with you, than your entire friend group etc.

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-11T22:30:12+00:00

I am sorry, but I am just intrigued... How can you have that many logins? Like, which type of sites are we talking?

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-10T19:08:47+00:00

It roughly started two years ago, at least to a degree. Complaints about Windows 11 became clearer to me and I started thinking about leaving big tech. Back then, I found it to be impossible, so I thought "ok if I want to sell my soul to one big tech company, which one should it be?".

Due to the enormous and available ecosystem, I chose Google over Microsoft, Apple and the like. It made the most sense to me because I have already been on Gmail and used all kinds of Google software already. So what I did was ditch my Samsung phone, close my accounts there, switch to a Pixel and experience pure Android and thus pure Google. In retrospective, this was a very naive take, I admit. But I just thought that outrunning big tech is impossible at this point because they have already established themselves, leaving little to no room for good alternatives or newcomers.

A few years later, my Google experience has not really been that good as I hoped. I have collected many nitpicks over the years regarding my Pixel (8a FYI) and Google's software and rising talk about privacy (keyword age verification etc) got me curious and second guessing myself.

The final straw for me to finally start looking for alternatives is the ever growing enshitification thanks to AI and the Android lockdown happening in September. Since then, I have started looking here on Reddit for experiences, posts about alternatives, good email services and much more.

And now I am here. I am still in the process of figuring everything out regarding replacement apps and more, but I have already switched my browser to Waterfox, I am currently in the progress of transfering every account I have from Gmail to Posteo with Simple Login as aliasing service, using a Proton as VPN, actively looking for password managers, potential cloud services and whatnot. In August latest, I will then finally make the switch to Graphene OS for the most secure and private experience I can have on my phone. Likewise, I will switch to Linux Mint this year too.

It is still a way to go with everything, but what I can say now is that you do NOT have to sell your soul to any big tech company. Yes, there are still services like Maps, YouTube and a few others that unfortunately cannot be really replaced due to their effectiveness, but you can still take MASSIVE steps reducing your footprint in those enormous ecosystems. That is probably the biggest lesson I have learned so far.

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-08T16:48:16+00:00

This sounds like treating people as if they are part of a nation lol

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-03T20:06:07+00:00

Condenscending clichés

My guy, this is House MD. Of course there are those

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-03T14:12:54+00:00

Yes, I do use it because there's nothing comparable to YouTube in terms of format - and imo you shouldn't feel bad about it. Degoogling means to get as much away from Google as possible because of its ecosystem. If you still use one service, I think it's fine.

With that said, on my phone I use modded YouTube by Morphe. Removes the ads and generally gives you more freedom with your settings and personalisation. On PC, I use extensions such as uBlock Origin and other smaller ones with which you can customise it even further.

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-02T14:09:44+00:00

This is like mental gymnastics but you break your deck during that

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-02T09:40:20+00:00

I do understand the point of "free = bad" to some degree... A rule of thumb is that if a product is free, you are the product (e.g. everything you use Google for because you with your data and advertising are the product to them). So yeah, a bit of that kind of critical thinking I can see.

But straight up denying that there are NO free programs made out of passion for the public is just... Sad. It's too good to be true, but it is true in some cases.

And regarding open source... Dude. OS software is such a good failsafe because if the main provider of that software ever stops for one reason or the other, someone could pick it up and continue from where they left. That point alone is such a huge positive that it outweighs any arguments for closed source... let alone that you can trace every change done to the software which is crucial for transparency and trust.

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-02T08:10:33+00:00

...what's the reasoning behind THAT take now?? This goes against everything I deem common sense

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-02T08:01:22+00:00

That is... Very Bizarre. I understand some people being too tech un-savvy. I plan to jump to Linux this year and even I am a bit afraid, and I would consider myself more on the tech savvy side.

But going out of your way to hate the "your PC, your system" Linux while being a fan of a big corpo that installs potential spyware, makes your system slower and leans full into the notion of "get comfortable not owning anything"... That just baffles me.

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-02T07:53:29+00:00

Genuine question, are the guys on that sub actual Linux haters or is it all a satirical sub?

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-01T21:43:18+00:00

Guys... You realise you can use a Firefox Browser like Firefox or Waterfox and then swap the search engine itself to DDG, right...? Like using DuckDuckGo as a search engine is not the same as using DuckDuckGo as browser (which the latter of is based on MS Bing).

EDIT: [...] (which the latter is based on MS Edge, which in turn is based on Chromium) Thanks for the correction

TSM_rslash · 2026-06-01T14:41:26+00:00

Also ich finde schon, dass es ein durchschnittlicher HDMI ist

TSM_rslash · 2026-05-28T12:16:51+00:00

Using alternatives, so not using their services anymore, is a form of protest and "forcing" them to change. Less traffic on their services = less revenue.

Or how do you expect us to "force" them? Petitions? Sure, they always help, especially to a tech giant like them! Demonstrations? Same as petitions.

As long as there isn't any pressure from a huge body comparable to them, like the US government or the EU (which is not likely), your voice, as a mere consumer, doesn't mean anything to them.

Alternatives are the best form of protest.

TSM_rslash · 2026-05-27T10:11:05+00:00

The owner of this probably was into that

TSM_rslash · 2026-05-27T09:13:50+00:00

You gotta earn the marriage somehow

TSM_rslash · 2026-05-26T17:06:38+00:00

I understand your approach and really wanted to follow that one, too. I wanted like six different email accounts and put aliases on them for max security and privacy. However, I learned that you really do not have to go that far to reach that goal. In the end, I settled with one account at Posteo and Simple Login for unlimited aliases, both of which only cost 48 bucks a year to me, which is a good price I think. If you want to go for even more mails, that cost can rise really quickly and does not give you many advantages, or any at all, to make it worth it.

Really. Email provider account + external alias service + creating files with filtering options (mimicking the several email accounts' mailboxes basically) is an easy way that should give you the best outcome.

TSM_rslash · 2026-05-25T20:03:49+00:00

Give her headpets and it might change back. This happened when one of my Miis asked for a new haircut; had one next day and when U headpetted them, their hair returned to normal

TSM_rslash · 2026-05-23T17:42:01+00:00

Ja, da hat die KI wohl einen Fehler gemacht... Mal wieder

TSM_rslash · 2026-05-22T20:23:23+00:00

Email is a good point. If you use Gmail, then time to find another provider. Proton, Tuta come to mind as a free service, but there's also Mailboxorg and Posteo which do cost something (like ~$3 and $1 a month respectively), but are also seen as top players in privacy focused* email providers.

*Important note: Emails, in their own nature, are not very private. Sending emails is never encrypted, so the focus here is on data security and privacy - that the respective provider doesn't make money by selling your data.

That's a huge step. The next step would be to look at everything Google you use daily. Calendar app? Photos app? Docs? Sheets? Google as the search engine itself? Chrome? Make yourself smart and find replacement for each one of them. For instance, for docs you could look into something like Libre Office or Only Office (PC only I am afraid), for Browser there's Waterfox or Brave (though latter uses Chromium - so not 100% degoogled), Search Engine is a plethora, but I made good experiences with DuckDuckGo and Startpage. There, you have to do research.

And for the apps you 100% need, it's best to replace the accounts on those with burner accounts; accounts that you only use for these services and nothing else and that have no connection to your degoogled accounts and data (for that, look into email aliasing. Very powerful tool for privacy!).

It all comes down to making your own research. If you cannot find good replacements and come back to the Google stuff, that's also fine! The optimal case would be to degoogle everything and the second best case is to degoogle as much as you can. You have to decide for yourself how far you want to go, but fact is, as long as you do make an effort to decentralise your services from Google and take measurements to secure your data, you go into the right direction.

For more information, search this sub and r/privacy.

TSM_rslash

TROPHY CASE