Or just don't use Snap at all, one of several reasons I run Mint on my machines. And even Mint is, unfortunately, relying on containerized packages for a significant portion of software from Ubuntu repos. But at least Mint provides native packages for all of the important stuff (Firefox, LibeOffice, GIMP, Audacity, VLC, Geeqie, Okular, Thunderbird, Pluma, Guvcview, Kdenlive, Wine, Meld, Claws, etc).

It is likely either LMDE (Linux Mint Debian Edition) or just plain Debian is in my future, though.

>"Simple, don't give TikTok permission to use your phone's location services. Problem solved."

I was wondering that myself. But I have experience with a variety of apps and many will "request" location services and if you don't give it, then the app will simply not work at all (even though there is no reason it should stop working completely). So it really isn't a "request" or "option", it is a requirement. I believe that should be against the "rules" to program an app that way.

>"It's easy to tap "agree" and keep on scrolling through videos on TikTok, so users might not fully understand the extent of changes they are agreeing to with this pop-up. "

99.9% are going to click on agree immediately and start scrolling.

99.9% of those who actually choose to pull up the agreement don't understand it or what actually changed.

So maybe 0.01% of users might be giving informed agreement.

And yes, I just went through one of those on some other software- I was in the 0.1% who tried to read it, and in the 99.9% of those who really didn't understand a lot of it (because it was obscure and in legalese).

>"I'll make you a deal, I'll pay the same rate Elon pays. Done and done."

You forgot to create several companies producing lots of useful things that are in high demand, hire and pay a eighth of a million employees (most for decades), contribute $474 million to charities, and pay many billions in business, payroll, and other taxes.

Musk's wealth is primarily in the form of stock, which is not taxed until sold (and has no actual/real value until sold). In 2021 he paid $12 billion in income tax, alone, when he sold shares of Tesla.

The loophole that the ultra rich use is taking out loans on unrealized assets like stocks. That should be closed.

If you believe that Microsoft follows its own policies and the closed-source code is doing what you tell it to do.

It is highly probably it is, but, in the end, we really don't know 100% for certain. It might forward that stuff to 3-letter agencies without your consent or knowledge. And/or it might have some super-secret back door set of keys.

He is also assuming that

c) a bad actor at Microsoft doesn't disclose the keys without a warrant

d) Microsoft's servers aren't hacked and then the keys are disclosed

And there are probably some other possibilities as well. Just assuming that because you want to protect your data, including from Microsoft, means you are doing something illegal and want to "hide it from the police", is a bad-faith argument.

>"Really, in the states where I've had training being aware of the traffic around you, defensive driving, has been a topic. Multiply that by a factor of hundred if the training is for a motorcycle rather than a car."

^^This. I have been a motorcyclist for decades. *THE* most important thing to know is that, literally, everything is out to kill you. Other vehicles, nature, the road, the weather, yourself, everything. You must drive (and dress) that way, always. It requires a lot of attention and defensiveness if you want to be accident and injury-free. You just assume that nobody can ever see you and everything is far more dangerous than it appears.

One person asked me if it is so stressful and dangerous, why do it? I replied, because for some people, there is a certain enjoyment in overcoming the challenges. One enters a different "mode" where other thoughts and troubles are put on hold while surviving the ride.

>"New Jersey Law Requires E-Bike Drivers To Have License, Insurance"

Is there such a thing as "E Bike Insurance"? Haven't heard of that before. Or are they just trying to classify it as a motorcycle, but not really. And if it is being treated like a motorcycle, shouldn't that also require a MOTORCYCLE license, not just a [car] driver's license?

And oh, estimates are that at least 1 in 7 licensed drivers (and some think it is higher) are driving motor vehicles around without any valid insurance. Making it a law isn't going to force it to happen.

>"Because you "bought the device on credit" rather than "renting the device", so the device is still yours to do with as you please."

Yes and no. Depends on the contract and the way it is worded.

>"The device being locked doesn't take the place of the contract, it's just an extra totally pointless burden on the customer."

The phone company is using the locking as a type of collateral to help assure the customer doesn't just stop paying on their obligation and move that phone, which is not "fully" theirs, to another service or sell it. Apparently that was/is a major problem. Probably because consumers were not smart enough to realize the actual cost of the phone is double or triple what they put as, essentially, a down-payment. Many car sellers do something similar as well, for those with high credit risk- they put a GPS tracker/locker on the vehicle.

For 99+% of people, there is/should be no issue with a phone being locked, unless their intent was, in fact, to try and break their contracts without paying.

I can see both sides of the issue. I do think it is intolerable you should have to ASK to have it unlocked OR wait, once your obligation is complete. That should be automatic.

>"if you purchased a device from Verizon's value brands previously, they would automatically unlock them after 60 days. Now, you have to wait 365 days, request the unlock because it doesn't happen automatically, and also have active service. "

I must be missing something... If you choose to not outright fully buy a phone, but sign an agreement for a heavily discounted/subsidized phone, contingent on having service for X months or whatever, why should Verizon unlock it if the terms are not met? If you want the freedom to do what you want, then fully buy your own unlocked phone, right?

I do agree it should be automatic once the agreement is met, however.

1) There are a million times more things than just notifications for which a smart phone is useful. Games, maps, translators, reading books/articles, network utilities, calculators, etc, etc, etc.

2) Why would you buy a new one every "one to three" years? I always keep mine for 4 to 6.

3) Would would it need to be a "lot" of money? I always buy a midrange. My last one cost $400 and is fantastic (Samsung A52 5G). Or you can get a lowrange for $150 to $200. People spending $800 to $1200 on a phone is usually completely unnecessary.

4) Having control over notifications and which apps are installed or used isn't "using it as a dumb phone".

>"Imagine you're Netflix, and a paying customer says "I am paying you to show me this stuff I'm not watching, and I am becoming somewhat disappointed. What are you going to do about this?What would you say to this paying customer, who is representative of millions of paying customers?"

I don't know. I guess make an alternate version available for them? Or add some plot summary available on hotkeys or menus in the app?

What would I say to the even more millions of customers asking why the movies have become incredibly stupid and redundant and start dropping service?

>"To insist that people who want to get off the smartphone ecosystem are somehow impaired or dysfunctional itself flies in the face of a growing body of research the other way 'round."

Yeah, totally crazy.

The major problem is that most people apparently have no self control, at all. You don't have to switch to a "dumb" phone to purge yourself of constant irritation and distraction...

1) Change your app notifications. Turn them OFF or make them totally silent (no audio/no vibe) based on which app. And/or set a schedule.
2) Turn off SMS notifications for unknown contacts. And stop handing out your phone number to companies. Give them an Email address. Encourage friends and family to send you Email, not SMS, if it is not urgent/important. Turn off Email notifications, check it manually a few times a day.
3) Remove apps that are distracting or those for which you have no self-control. Connect to those systems at home, on your desktop/laptop/tablet when you have time to dedicate to them. Plus you will have a real screen, keyboard, mouse, so it will be a better and faster experience, and you will time to actually think about what you are reading and posting.

>"However, IMO movie-makers should shorten their damn films and cut out so much fluff. I maintain that if you can't tell your story in 100-110 minutes, you don't know how to tell a story."

That depends. Not all GOOD stories can be told in that short of a time. I would rather have it longer than split into a SECOND PART movie that is released a year or something later. Even worse when they fill it with fluff AND split it up into multiple movies. Ug.

In any case, no way should movies be altered to deal with idiots who can't bother to watch what they are watching.

>"Could We Provide Better Cellphone Service With Fewer, Bigger Satellites?"

Define "better". Better than more smaller satellites? Better than land-based systems?

As an augmentation to land-based systems, satellite service can be a great boon. But it is also a scary "single point of failure" issue. Satellite service is easier to jam/block, will suffer from space-based radiation, requires more device power, has sky-visibility issues, and considering the apparent space hostility, easy to knock out a few targets and leave absolutely huge swaths of non-coverage. And replacing such a mega satellite will be very expensive and time-consuming.