One of my to-dos to get
One of my to-dos to get ready for next year:
Is there a respecting self-hosted reader server/daemon which has clients for and , or hosts a website, and synchronizes read and bookmark state between devices
Bonus points if it runs in a mode discarding all and/or doesn't load images etc unless I click a button to further reduce
Our visit also included traveling to the home villages of some of our hosts and seeing the gardens that TTK is helping to build. Being in essence confined to a much smaller area than they historically ranged, the Ju/'Hoansi have had to pursue another way of life. Gardens were one of the things they specifically named as a priority, along with the school, under the auspices of which we were there. The third priority was a soup kitchen for patients being treated for tuberculosis.
:Google: verbessert Schutz vor heimlichem - in :android: Security
NextDNS: My favorite tool to increase privacy, security and mindfulness online
Dear Realists,
I would love to share with you a tool that has revolutionized the time I spend online.
I am being reminded of Steve Jobs unveiling of the first iPhone in 2007, when he said:
Every once in a while, a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything. Were introducing 3 revolutionary products of this class.
Jobs teased that he would introduce a wide screen iPod with touch controls, a breakthrough internet communication device and a mobile phone. And of course his big reveal during the presentation was that these were not 3 separate devices but one: the iPhone.
Well, today I want to tell you about one revolutionary tool that can:
- Increase your privacy online, blocking advertisements and third party trackers
- Enhance security, blocking domains known to distribute malware and to launch phishing attacks
- And it can block at the source any website you wish to avoid visiting (because you spend too much time on it and you cant control yourself) or maybe websites/apps that you dont want your children to access.
A fantastic perk in all of this is that your online experience will be faster too because advertisements and third party trackers wont slow you down.
This all comes in one tool, called and I wouldnt dream of browsing the internet on my computer or on my phone without it.
How I discovered it: from Pi-Hole to NextDNS
It sounds weird but for years, I had been daydreaming about building a .
What is that you may ask
I will let Pi-Holes Wikipedia page do the explaining:
Pi-hole is a Linux network-level advertisement and Internet tracker blocking application which acts as a DNS sinkhole and optionally a DHCP server, intended for use on a private network.
In simpler terms, one could program a (a $30 credit-card sized computer that runs the operating system Linux) to run a Pi-Hole on their home network. This would allow people to block unwanted advertisements and third party trackers at the source on all the devices one uses to connect to the internet.
If your eyes are glazing over and you think this sounds a little too technical well this is precisely why I never built a Pi-Hole for my home network. I do have a Raspberry Pi but the whole process seemed too long and convoluted.
I discussed this on Twitter and my friend Pierre suggested I check out instead because it acts exactly like a Pi-Hole, but is configurable online in very quick and simple steps.
So I tried it. And became instantly smitten with it.
Introducing NextDNS
NextDNS was founded in May 2019 by two French men: Romain Cointepas and Olivier Poitrey (best known as the founder of DailyMotion, a popular European alternative to YouTube).
NextDNS markets itself as the new firewall for the modern Internet.
DNS stands for Domain Name System its an internet protocol that translates domain names into a specific IP address, so that your browser/app can load the website you want to visit. You are using a DNS right this minute to read this post. Your DNS queries are sent to your Internet Service Providers (ISP) DNS servers. And the ISP then matches your query to the corresponding IP address aka the site you want to visit.
What NextDNS does is supersede the work of your ISP. It runs its own DNS that is programmable to block any advertisements, third party trackers, and specific websites.
Ill show you what my setup looks like.
1) Security
a screenshot of NextDNSs interface showing toggles for Threat Intelligence Feeds, AI-Driven Threat Detection and Google Safe Browsing
In the Security tab, you can see all the enhancements NextDNS provides, such as:
Block domains known to distribute malware, launch phishing attacks and host command-and-control servers using a blend of the most reputable threat intelligence feeds all updated in real-time.
Block millions of threats detected by our AI technology a proprietary AI engine designed from the ground up for DNS with hundreds of signals, terabytes of training data and real-time decision making.
Prevent the unauthorized use of your devices to mine cryptocurrency.
2) Privacy
a screenshot of NextDNSs interface showing blocklists that can be enabled
Under Privacy you can select blocklists updated in real time that block ads and third party trackers. All the work has been done for you, you just have to select the blocklists you are interested in and turn them on.
3) Parental Controls
Under Parental Control you can block specific websites, apps and games that you deem harmful, or too tempting as a time suck.
The list is all encompassing: theres Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Fortnite, Twitch, Minecraft and you can block them at the simple touch of a button.
a screenshot of NextDNSs interface showing parental controls and social apps that can be blocked
Say you find the approach a little too extreme you want to allow some of these apps and websites but only for a limited amount of time each day. You can do that!
NextDNS has a feature called Recreation Time that allows you to select at what time of the day any of these restricted apps/websites are allowed:
My favorite feature: you can block bypass methods.
I may not use most social media sites but my Achilles heel is Reddit so I added it to the blocklist and this is what I see when I try to access it:
You may say: but I already use Screen Time on my iPhone or iPad. Well, where do I get started Screen Time limitations can be turned off at the touch of a button. Its too easy to bypass. NextDNS is something else
Because NextDNS is device-specific, it means that bypassing it is hard also on phones and tablets.
Say you have a teen that visits a friend and tries to connect via their friends home network to websites/apps you dont want to allow. Well, tough luck, NextDNS will keep blocking these sites because its where all internet traffic goes through whether its another persons Wifi network or 4G/5G.
Last but not least:
NextDNS is free to use for up to 300,000 queries a month. If you wish to run unlimited queries, you could buy a Pro account for 19.90 Euros a year. Their privacy policy is rock solid and you can select whether to store logs, for how long and in which country / region:
I am in no way affiliated to NextDNS. I truly truly love this service.
If anything, I hope to one day interview its founders for .
If you enjoyed this post, please share it widely.
#adBlocker #advertising #digitalLiteracy #firewall #guides #nextDNS #PiHole #privacy #security #surveillanceCapitalism #tracking #tutorials
Das ist notwendig zum Schutz der Kinder in Deutschland und der EU.
Kritik u. a. wegen Overblocking und Zensur.
Microsoft, Google, Facebook, etc. untergraben Jugendschutz mit personalisiertem Tracking.
Ihr msst alle in einem vorgegebenem, berwachten Rahmen leben.
If I can track my dog with a little chip in its neck why havent the techies created trackable glasses yet Id pay good money for that!
is dead. Long live !
Of course, Google /#Chromium, Microsoft and Apple still don't give a shit about
Eine renommierte die ich bisher geschtzt habe. Allerdings strt mich zunehmend die Vermarktung und das der Besucher auf ihrer Homepage. Persnlich werde ich die Seite daher kein zweites Mal besuchen. Wre es nicht besser, von Anfang an eine klare einzufhren So wsste jeder Besucher direkt: Entweder zahlen oder auf die Inhalte verzichten.
Location data firm helps police find out when suspects visited their doctor
A location-tracking company that sells its services to police departments is apparently using addresses and coordinates of doctors' and lawyers' offices and other types of locations to help cops compile lists of places visited by suspects
TrackingTHIS is why the data trade needs to be banned.
The itself couldn't resist using it to push an agenda via .
I respect the EU - they are doing more than others to impose on - so this is sad news.
But it shows that the temptation shouldn't be there...
Google improves protection against secret Bluetooth tracking in Android
In addition to Apple with "Find my", Google has also launched a "Find my device" tracking system. Android gets better protection.
Google verbessert Schutz vor heimlichem Bluetooth-Tracking in Android
Neben Apple mit "Find my" hat auch Google ein Tracking-System "Mein Gert finden" aufgezogen. Android bekommt besseren Schutz.
Not posted any music in a lil' while so here's a little tune out of me archives from 2002, iirc I think this ended up remastered on a nice collection many many years later :) <3
..cripes it doesn't feel like 22yrs agox
L'information inutile du jour qui fait trop de bruit :
Mozilla retire la fonction On s'en fout, y a pas un seul gros site qui le respecte de toute faon...
Goodreads Et Al
Recently people wanted to move from Goodreads to open alternatives to move away from the grasp of Amazon. I wanted to do the same so I moved to two or three apps and used them for a while. I stopped using them for one simple reason.
They don't have an extensive library of books, so when you start to read a book you can either spend several minutes adding all the information about the book you're reading into the system, or you can save time and stick with Goodreads. When you're reading audiobooks and e-books you might not have all of the relevant information.
Another flaw of these apps is that they have a monthly or yearly cost. Bookly wants 31 CHF per year, So does Bookmory. That's 62 CHF per year if you choose to have both apps, which most will not. With Bookly you can spend 150 CHF for lifetime ownership.
31 CHF per month, for apps where you have to manually enter the books you're reading. For that you could set something up in Excel or a similar app for free. We would pay, and we would get to do the work for them.
With Storygraph you get an experience that uses AI to give you more data about your reading habit but for this they charge 40 euros a year.
If they had a web app then this could make sense. With a web app it would take a few seconds to add books into the database. If we enter books manually on a phone we are likely to create duplicates and make mistakes.
The Experience
In my experience of Twitter, waze, Instagram, Goodreads, Strava, Zwift and more we start out investing in them, using them, giving them our data and then they sell themselves to the highest bidder. YouTube did this too. Yes, I love the ideal of independent apps, and yes I would contribute financially to use them but every app I have invested time and effort into has been sold.
It's not just that they get sold, once they have the right valuation. There are a dozen apps to choose from. How do we choose which app or apps to use How easy would it be to migrate from App A to App B, and from Goodreads to App C and from App C to Goodreads
Do you want to have your entire reading history on each app, which can take several days of effort, or do you want to use a different app each year, and with time choose the one you want to stick with
Initially I loved the idea of switching from Goodreads to other reading apps, until I realised how much work it would be, and then I reverted to Goodreads. It's just easier.
One Last Thing
Although I speak of all these apps Audiobookshelf offers me a "year in review" that is a little skewed. According to this app I have finished 43 books, read for 14 days, through 1263 sessions and counting. My top narrator was Larry McKeever, the top genre was Literature and Fiction and the Top AAuthor was James A. Michener.
Of course I did not read this many books. It's that this is how many books I added to Audiobokshelf as read, this year.
#apps #books #reading #tracker #tracking
Flights are great, but when you're flying unprepared, flights feel longer than they need to. Fortunately, there are great gifts for travellers.
Firefox will no longer support do not track feature
nodds in agreement
It's high time / / just hands over to / so they can make the new for .
- Seriously, could've been the best option and I wished and would've mandated the recognition of to the point that those and banners would've been and as anything not "" would've been criminalized.
And the only "technically necessary" are - (and like -cookies)!
this is not surprising, but the gullible do not notice it. In my opinion, commercial is always exploitative and has little to nothing to do with the apparent exchange of content.
Bluesky has an impersonator problem:
Cryptoscammers tried to trick me using fake profiles of tech personalities. I am not alone.
by Melissa Heikkil
Downloading an open access paper via sci-hub because the website of the publisher is so full of unnecessary javascript and tracking nonsense, that the pdf does not load there...
Location data firm helps police find out when suspects visited their doctor
Firefox removes do not track support Will other web browsers follow this move
This is a perfect example of unnecessary AI use.
Why not just have the description of that delivery service saved in some database
Just wasting resources.
hach ja ich hatte es immer eingestellt aber ohne Hoffnung das es was ntzt. Da helfen ein paar Plugins fr Firefox in seinen Klone mehr.
Weitgehend ignoriert: Firefox entfernt Haken fr "Do Not Track"
Seit Jahren kann man in Firefox einstellen, dass man keine Verfolgung des Surfverhaltens wnscht. Weil das zumeist ignoriert wurde, wird diese Option entfernt.
Sicher surfen ohne Tracking und
Beim sind wir nie allein. Unzhlige schauen uns permanent ber die Schulter. Hier erfahren Sie was ist und wie Sie es unterbinden.
Location data firm helps US police find out when suspects visited their doctor
A location-tracking company that sells its services to police departments is apparently using addresses and coordinates of doctors and lawyers offices and other types of locations to help cops compile lists of places visited by suspects, according ...continues
See
Location data firm helps US police find out when suspects visited their doctor
My 2024 in the app (thestorygraph.com) up until now with an explanation in drops. I stopped doing reading challenges at the beginning of the year because it was feeling like work, but I do love and stats!
Not new.
Not surprising.
But still not good. At all.
Fantastisch grosse Stnde auf dem Chaos Congress aufbauen, (an denen ich sehr selten jemand angetroffen habe).
petit paquet ist nicht trackbar. Hat aber eine Sendungsnummer, d.h. nach meinem Dafrhalten schon die komplette Verfolgung fr DHL, nur nicht fr den Kunden (da Aufpreis). Wenn das Pckchen nicht ankommt, gibt es eine Mglichkeit zumindest die Entnahme aus der Packstation und die Verarbeitung durch DHL zu erfahren Gab schon mehrfach die unschne Erfahrung, dass die Packstation Tren mit den Sendungen von Dritten geffnet hat. Danke fr Feedback und Erfahrungen.
Lets reconsider adopting the Consent API
is in a position to lead by example and provide site operators built-in and extensible means to address the and implications around respect for user consent and . This proposal seeks to gather consensus around adopting the WP Consent for inclusion in .
heise+ Amazon und DHL: Pakete tracken mit Python
Vor Weihnachten kommen einen Haufen Pakete an. Mit Python haben Sie aktuelle Zustellungen immer im Blick und lassen sich per Push-Nachricht informieren.
Human, leaf, and creature along the Pierce Road, .
Ein Leben ohne ist mglich
Whrend fast alle Apps im Play Store mit Trackern und Werbung verseucht sind und jede Menge Berechtigungen einfordern, bietet -Droid datenschutzfreundliche, nicht kommerzialisierte Apps.
Huntsville-born engineer license plate readers nationwide: I dont like being tracked
This is a kind of unlike tracking on your phone, because on your phone you can opt out just by simply not using your phone or not using services that do things with your data that you dont like, but with these you cant opt out of that.
Today I added three new entries to my pi-hole block lists - x.com, twitter.com, and facebook.com
Wozu 2024 NICHTS gemacht hat: - fehlt was
sie haben 2024 ganze 4 (vier) pressemitteilungen produziert:
2022 hatte der Laden 1.232.477,54 Einnahmen. Leute kndigen reihenweise. Was machen die mit dem Geld bidde
are more than just the android keyboard (which is great btw - a privacy respecting alternative to SwiftKey).
They also fund/own and
I like their stance: keep it open source, but people should pay with money, not , if they appreciate and use the software. How things used to be before took over in the of the internet.
Vaddio IntelliSHOT-M ePTZ Auto-Tracking Video Conferencing Camera - Microsoft Teams - - Exmor R CMOS Sensor - Auto/Manual
vaddio Microsoft