A Personal Blog, in 2023? Groundbreaking.
I've decided to make a blog! Admittedly, this has become a little cliche. I've become painfully jaded and disillusioned with big tech over the last few years. COVID made us all dependent on these companies who took advantage of that by driving political division and worsening mental health crises, but most importantly increasing their profits.
It's hard to feel like there's anything you can do in the face of such large companies that are so entrenched in how we communicate and keep up with the world. So what have I done to try to feel better?
Device & Service Changes #
I'm running Linux full-time on both of my computers, using free and open-source software where I can, and only using federated social media. I have a NAS for (completely legally acquired) media, and a cloud cluster running Matrix and Lemmy - the latter of which I have become particularly enamored with and want to write more about soon.
The compromises you have to make for privacy and control over your own devices and content are too much for the average person. I can't play either of my favorite games (Fortnite and Valorant) because of their Windows only anti-cheat software. I'm not going to explicitly say I want their invasive, kernel-level spyware on my linux machines, but I do hate having to reboot into a small Windows partition to play games with friends.
I've been increasingly tempted by the idea of running postmarketOS on a OnePlus 6T, a really wonderful phone I had many years ago. I have my concerns about how the hardware's aged going into 2024 though, especially compared to my iPhone 14 Pro. I'm spoiled.
If you thought Linux on a desktop was bad, try a mobile phone! Reading people's stories of missing phone calls from family members because of software issues makes me worry, and I'm not that good with Linux. There are many applications on Linux I've come to love through using it daily (AudioTube and Nheko come to mind) that I'd adore getting to use on my phone.
I'd go with a dumbphone or something like the Light Phone, but I drive a Tesla so my phone is my key. I could buy a fob, but I'd lose features like preconditioning (I could totally use Tesla's API and Twilio to send commands via SMS, but I am lazy) and remote lock/unlock.
I think a de-Googled Pixel running GrapheneOS may be the ultimate solution, as weird as buying a Google phone for privacy feels to me. I am still unhappy with my smartphone's role in my life, and my lack of ability to do as I please with it.
A Word About the Blog Itself #
It's very possible I end up rewriting this blog from scratch in the future - It's built using Gatsby and React, and I've found myself longing for the 'old days' of web development. I almost deployed WordPress, so I'm going through some sort of crisis here clearly.
These feelings are coming from a real annoyance with what web development looks like these days, however dramatic. I have spent weeks trying to decide on a tech stack instead of actually writing the things that made me want a blog in the first place.
Hosted platforms are bloated, and shockingly expensive in a world where Netlify and other static-first hosting providers with a free tier exist. I already have a paid Netlify account for cros.tech, so I'd prefer to stay here - I just really don't want to code.
So, I yoinked a Gatsby blog starter and tweaked the CSS until it looked suitable enough. I'm not attached to this design in the slightest, you shouldn't be either.
What to Expect #
I have a couple of posts I'm already working on! In the future, I want to write about my thoughts about mental health, queer and transgender identity, and technology and its impact on us as people.
When reading a personal blog, I get a picture of who that person is and how they've changed over time. I have always wanted a place to do the same for myself.
- after this i wrote: Standing Up For Yourself is Good, Actually