cogitoprinciple

cogitoprinciple, 6 months ago

Do you know what model it is? That price is hefty considering the condition. I try to avoid buying old thinkpads over $150AU if possible.

Generally I will try to get them under $100AU. That’s considering that they are usable and in working condition.

If it were a newer model like a T480 I’d be willing to spend between $300-$350AU. But it would depend on CPU and Display Panel used, as well as the condition of it, of course.

You could try figuring out what parts need replacing and seeing how much those parts would cost on eBay, Gumtree or AliExpress (if you’re comfortable with this final option).

Edit: It honestly looks like someone bought a laptop, it got damaged so now they’re trying to get their money back by selling it on FaceBook Marketplace. I’d be careful with this seller.

cogitoprinciple, 6 months ago

Bruh what?

cogitoprinciple, 6 months ago

Thanks for this, I think I will give Arch Linux a go, and avoid GUI file management. My plan is to daily drive my X220 for more lightweight tasks as it’s a nice laptop to use. So using Arch on it may just force me to have to use Arch as a daily driver if I want to use a nice laptop keyboard.

cogitoprinciple, 6 months ago

I really like these suggestions, I’ve always wanted to contribute to FOSS software, but always felt underskilled. I will add this to my list of things to do to challenge my Linux and basic programming skills.

cogitoprinciple, 6 months ago

Thank you

cogitoprinciple, 6 months ago

Sounds interesting, I’ll give this project idea a go

cogitoprinciple, 6 months ago

Thanks for the additional info. I installed Arch, it was far less daunting then I anticipated. In fact, it was prettt straightforward. I’ll look into your suggestion.

cogitoprinciple, 7 months ago

Do pinebooks use Arm CPUs?

cogitoprinciple, 7 months ago

Only potential security issues, would be related to a lack of maintenance on a particular project. If an open source tool has not been updated for over a year or more, then it may have security vulnerabilities. I usually won’t use something if it has not been updated for a year or more.

However, people who make that claim, seem to subscribe to security by obscurity. They may think that the source code being public makes it more likely to be exploited for vulnerabilities. But I would say that is a strength, since many people can verify the security of a project and can have patches applied. In standard proprietary software, a security vulnerability could exist for years, without being patched because no one knows it’s there. It may or may not be exploited within this time.

It is our responsibility to choose the digital tools we use wisely, and to be mindful of a lack or drop of maintenance on a particularly project.

cogitoprinciple, 7 months ago

I’ll give it another go with your suggestion

cogitoprinciple, 9 months ago

Apologies for the wall of text. I wanted to give a comprehensive answer.

I tried using a Nokia dumb phone at one point. At another point I used the LightPhone2 as well. I honestly found usability very difficult. The Nokia was arguably more functional. Though it had a web browser (not sure if you are hoping to avoid that). However it was limited to 3G, which slowed things down. Calling was fine, on the Nokia and Lightphone. Texting on the LightPhone and Nokia is a pain. I didn’t like that I had to go through the LightPhone website to upload music I owned to it. Also, it had a very limited amount of storage. I didn’t like that I couldn’t stream music. The Nokia, I had also did not have music streaming functionality. However, it did have a micro SD card slot, which I liked. The camera quality was bad. Also at the time, I needed a way to scan QR codes, which neither phone had the ability to do. Both did not have any GPS functionality (at least at the time), which made me rely on a GPS in my car, which was not great overall. Google maps is a lot better. I hate Google, but use Google maps, as it is what I’m comfortable using.

Also, I had concerns on the security of these devices. I care a lot about digital privacy and security. The privacy policy of the LightPhone was not something I was comfortable with. Additionallly, I avoid text message, and opt for signal, as text and phone calls are very insecure and are far from private. Also, Google own KaiOS, which is what the Nokia phones use. So privileged admin access is given to Google to collect whatever telemetry that they enforce in the privacy policy of the Nokia dumb phones. I now use GrapheneOS on a Pixel phone.

What I will say is it is definitely harder to be distracted by your digital devices, when using these phones. I found it very hard to not have a smartphone for the time I tried both of these options. I didn’t have the will to stick it out. I also noticed, my internet addiction moved to my laptop. So it didn’t actually solve the issue. I understand the struggle of internet addiction, and how consuming it can feel at times. You may find a dumb phone is a viable option for you personally. I would suggest exploring other options before the LightPhone, as it is quite expensive, and if you don’t like it, you may feel as if you spent a lot for a phone that feels clunky. The Nokia’s may be an option depending on what you’re hoping to get out of it.

I see a lot of people on YouTube, finding it has had a positive impact on their lives. At least in terms of distractibility, which appears to be your goal. If you are willing to stick it out, it may work quite well for you. But you will need to make some trade-offs and be willing to stick with it.

On the note of blocking apps, there may be options that are reliable. Lock me out works quite well on Android. But you have to pay for the full functionality, and it is proprietary software. I use it anyway, because it works very well for me. It is a trade-off I am willing to make. On iPhone, I’m pretty sure you can use the default screen time rules, and get a good friend or family member to set a password for you. It is very difficult to bypass both of these options, if setup correctly.

Best of luck with your decision, either way. Feel free to ask any additional questions, if you want to know more.

cogitoprinciple, 9 months ago

No worries, I hope it works for you

cogitoprinciple, 10 months ago

It may be Windows, but it looks epic

cogitoprinciple, 10 months ago

Orwell tried to warn us. Apparently that wasn’t enough. The implications of the neurolink, a chip in our brains, seems like a bad idea. The meme is on point. Constant ads, which are out of ones control, might drive people to madness. Imagine having no space to think?

cogitoprinciple, 10 months ago

If what you proposed was put into practice, we wouldn’t have hundreds of distributions. I think the amount of distributions that exist may actually be overwhelming to a new user. If there were only a few distributions to choose from, you wouldn’t have so many people distro hopping, which is a waste of time (in most cases). You don’t like the desktop environment? Install something else. You don’t like floating windows? Use a tiling window manager.