Adderbox76

If I have a choice between buying a table and chairs from IKEA, or buying a table and chairs from my neighbour who loves making them bespoke in his woodshop, I’ll take the second option every time. As a society we need more of this…supporting our own labour efforts over mass corporate manufacturing.

Can’t do it. Gotta poop at home. Thankfully I’m in a small community where getting home and back again is quick enough to not be missed.

I think I read somewhere, but I’d have to go track it down, that the ISS was catching up on a whole lot of back-logged experiments with their unexpected addition to the team.

People are (rightfully) raking Starliner and Boeing for the shitshow that has been this project so far. But the positive to take from this flight, even landing without the crew, is the fact that the capsule itself performed fine. It was the service module that was being screwy. The actual “capsule” part in “capsule” seems to have had it’s issues ironed out. Just fix the shitty service module.

I thought it was a Canadian company that then contracted out right-wing American personalities.

I remember thinking when I heard it that it’s probably the smartest thing Russia could have done; sneak in the back door by using the Canadians as a go-between.

Please don’t lump us all together.

The full saying is “Free as in Speech, not Free as in Beer”

Basically the “Free” in free means that it’s free to do with as you please, modify, etc… But not free as in “here’s a free product…like getting a free beer”

Ha ha. No no. I’m pretty good. No problems with the old downstairs plumbing. But it’s not just for toilets. It’s for bathtub sinks clogged with hair. Kitchen sinks, etc… It’s just handy to have around the house. I even used it once to blow the dust out of my dryer vent.

I’m not really talking about development as simply programming. There are a lot of aspects that go into development, yes…programming is a big aspect.

But there’s also bug reporting (every user should know how to report bugs because it’s contributes to making the program better).

Heck, you can even download the documentation and give it a proof-read if you’re good with grammar and spot some errors if you don’t want to commit to helping to write it.

I know a lot of people who spend a lot of time in the various subs for the software, taking care to answer questions from other users who need help doing this or that. That again, is contributing.

Then there’s simply what we’re doing right now. Bringing attention to the projects online getting them more visibility.

Development of a successful FOSS app isn’t just about programming. And even small contributions count. If you can donate some coin, great! If you can’t, or don’t want to, there are a thousand other things that you can do to contribute to that apps community.

I emphasized the word community because that is exactly what it is. The ethos of Open Source; what makes it different than Propietary software, is that the users are an inherent part of the development process in ways both big and small. In propietary software, there is a distinct line between the developers and the users. Developers have multiple stakeholders of which the user base is certainly one, but also include advertisers, software makers, hardware makers, etc…

FOSS software, in contrast, is much more a communitee effort with the involvement of the community in the way of bug reports, literature, education and even simply championing the project because they don’t have millions of dollars in advertising budgets.

Sorry, I get a little passionate, so this is longer than I intended it to be.

But tl;dr, contributing isn’t just about money or just about programming. There’s a thousand ways big and small, and my issue isn’t with people not “paying” necessarily. But people who use it for free and don’t bother filing bug reports, don’t join the community online to help answer user questions, etc…

A good FOSS citizen should be an active part of the community. Or donate money to the project if they’d rather not.

It’s essentially a handheld air cannon. The kit comes with a handle and a suction that covers the toilet hole or whatever. You press down and yeah…it’s basically a air-gun shot to the clog.

And yeah. It works great. Not always on the first blast. But I’ve never had it fail me.

This little bad boy here has changed my life.

https://www.isicanadainc.com/product/one-second-plumber/

This software is extensively free (as in beer)

No…it’s not. It’s free to download and to use, but the expectation that people contribute in exchange for using it is how FOSS has always worked.

That doesn’t necessarily mean monetary. But contributing can be helping with user guides, or making youtube tutorials, or even just extending the reach of the program to friends and family by talking about it.

There are many ways to contribute, and money is one. But the notion that Open Source software is “free as in beer” has never been correct. Users have an expectation to contribute…period.

Unfortunately, there has always been the issue that a not-insignificant percentage of users of FOSS software believe the FREE part means “free as in beer” and take umbrage when asked to contribute.

I’ve long been a proponent (and I know I’m in a minority) that has advocated for a shift in the marketing of FOSS applications from “donation based” to “value based”. Meaning that the expectation is that if you enjoy the software, you pay an amount that you believe is commensurate to your use. This is voluntarily of course…if you can’t pay, than please use it and enjoy it. But those who can pay, should pay…at least a little bit, to offset the costs for those who can’t.

It’s more or less that the wording of FOSS apps needs to change so that you are expected to contribute if you can.

Just my opinion. Like I said, I know I’m in the minority. Just not a fan of the percentage of users that has always existed that (falsely) think that asking for money for your project is somehow anathema to the Open Source ideal and whine whenever they’re asked to contribute.

I’m willing to bet he’s stupid enough to think “Red White and Blue” will be so impressive to his idiot followers.

I’m pretty sure it’s the other way around. Heritage Foundation will be picking FOR him.

Trump is just a useful idiot that they can manipulate because he wants the power to stay out of prison. They put whoever they want in place, they’ll drop a binder of things for him to sign on his desk on day one, and in return, they’ll help him steal the election so he can make all his legal troubles go away.

That’s why he has no idea on actual issues or policy. Because he doesn’t care. It’s useless information to him since other people are in charge of that while he gets to pretend he’s important.

There’s a reason debt collectors refuse to deal via email.

We’ve come full circle back to pagers.

I’m sure I’ve still got mine in a drawer somewhere

I think the current economic and political system is failing a vast majority of Americans and like other authoritarian demagogues in the past, Trump misattributes that problem in ways that resonate with the bigotry and racism that exists in American culture.

You just explained in one sentence what I bumbled my way through in four paragraphs. Well written, my friend.

A lot of old-fashioned “good old homegrown” folks who feel that the world is changing and the economy is leaving them behind. Think of coal towns, mid-west mining towns, etc…

Insert a republican who tells them enough times that it’s not the fault of big business screwing literally everyone over, it’s actually the fault of the immigrants/LGBTQ+/Mulsims/Blacks (insert marginalised group of choice here) coming and taking what should rightfully go to Good Honest Working Folk/Christian Evangelicals (Insert the group you’re trying to court here) and then promise to change that.

The low-key greatest quote came from LBJ in an off-hand remark to an aide. Not even from a speech.

“If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you.”

True then. True now. And true internationally. There is no country where the Conservative Right Wing doesn’t play by that exact rulebook.

• The switch to progressive lenses happened far sooner than I was hoping.

• Graying in the beard stayed away for a long time, and then in a matter of a year, decided to attack with all of its might. (Probably the same on my head too, but I’ve been shaving it forever so I wouldn’t know)

• Heartburn troubles. Though that was less about ageing and more about gaining weight after quitting smoking twelve years ago.