Benjamin Donato-Woodger @ben_dw@social.privacytools.io
Dog lover. Leftist. Community organizer and trainer. Proud 🏳️🌈New Democrat. Project Management Enthusiast.
Joined Jun 2019
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
Hey-o! Just want to say if you're enjoying our Mastodon server, our Matrix chat, or anything else we're doing @ privacytools.io, I would really appreciate it if you'd consider donating any amount towards our costs 😄
We're currently spending around $60/month on servers and other infrastructure, and we'd like to be able to pay our team more in the future! We prefer https://liberapay.com/privacytools.io/ but there are many other contribution methods at https://www.privacytools.io/donate/ 😅 Thanks everyone!!
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
re: Fascism, Mastodon
Offer to share in the burden of moderation (following up on reports, researching instances being considered for blocks, etc.).
_Do a good job of helping to moderate._ This will entail blocking people and instances you'd rather give a second chance. (The greater one's privilege, the worse one's instincts in this regard.)
Donate to an instance's Patreon (even if you don't have an account on it).
Eject fascists from any space that you can (even if this means an awkward conversion with e.g. conference staff).
All of those will help.
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
Fascism, Mastodon
The initial success of Mastodon depended on the implicit absence of fascists et al afforded it by early obscurity. Now that Mastodon is popular, we'll have to defend it from them explicitly. Any claims to the contrary are likely revisionistic.
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
Have you seen this list of alternatives to Amazon's offerings? Not all entirely free/open, but definitely some options to say "not Amazon"
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
@ben_dw
For Linux, I convinced my brother to use it because he had problem with Windows licence and Office, also I convinced my friend to switch because of low chance of getting malware online and faster experience overall. As for Signal I've only convinced couple of my friends, but selling card can be "you can do SMS and IM from same app". Don't talk about privacy and stuff, that will only turn them away.
What techniques have helped you convince your loved ones to switch to #Linux and more secure apps like #signal?
1. Knowing they could start with a small group of friends and not everyone in their life.
2. Being beside someone to show them the ropes
3. Switching back to signal when they message over insecure lines
4. Seeing friends have these conversations
What else has worked for you? #security #communitysecurity
2/2 In a day of using #Fedora I thought, I like this, but its complexity will persuade no one. I am safer if my friends and I ditch big tech together— way more safer than if I am a perfectionist about it alone. #cybersecurity #linux #digital security
#security musings: I switched to #Ubuntu this week (don't track me enabled). In this eco-system, I am not a coder. I use things I am so grateful to others for making, and I can help other n00bs like me get better at security. One concept I find helpful is 'community security'. Because Ubuntu is simple, user-friendly, and usable, I can get tech wary friends to switch. 1/2
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
This place (this fed) is amazing.
Every time I login here it's what I always hoped Twitter was going to be but wasn't.
Nice people
People that actually talk /reply
No trolls
A fair and respected admin
Community
Thx for making Mastodon and privacytools my new home 🙂
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
"Only fight for what's real," the old warrior said. "Friends, family, neighbours. Only fight for what matters."
"What about vengeance?" the young man asked. "What about pride, and honour, and glory?"
"Only fight for what's real," the old warrior said.
#MicroFiction #TootFic #SmallStories
Today I switched my OS to #Fedora from #Windows. I spent so much time learning control panel, but doing it felt good. I really love #Opensource the more I learn, and switching to a non creepy OS is a huge step!
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
Open Document Format (ODF) is LibreOffice's native file format for storing documents. But how is it developed – and how can we all help to improve it? Regina Henschel explains all: https://blog.documentfoundation.org/blog/2019/07/11/what-is-the-open-document-format-odf-and-how-is-it-developed/
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
The data that our phones exchange with cell towers during basic connection procedures is being taken advantage of by third parties to invade our privacy. Here’s our brand-new report on how we think these attacks work.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2019/07/announcing-gotta-catch-em-all-understanding-how-imsi-catchers-exploit-cell
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
DO use authenticator apps as second step to protect all of your vital accounts. DON'T rely on SMS. DON'T ignore unexpected loss of network coverage.
https://www.engadget.com/2019/06/28/cell-phone-hack-is-ruining-lives-identity-theft/
Gotta ask as well, is switching to a #nextcloud cloud a good step? What tech so I need to do that?
As someone who started getting into #tech, #privacy, and #opensource things, I just want to say thank you — I am grateful for how much I have learned through this instance :)
Benjamin Donato-Woodger
boosted
All the resources you need to give yourself a world class computer science education Teach Yourself Computer Science #computer #science #online #learning #tutorial #curriculum https://teachyourselfcs.com/
Dog lover. Leftist. Community organizer and trainer. Proud 🏳️🌈New Democrat. Project Management Enthusiast.
Joined Jun 2019
