Something to be avoided at all costs. I use gmail out of convenience but have a POP3 email account on a server that I pay for (this website and a couple others that I host). Likewise, software subscription - if I buy some application, I want to be able to own it and to use it ten years from now if I need to. If I want additional features, I will pay to update.
I am specifically not using Adobe software for this very reason. Darktable is an excellent free alternative to Lightroom and the Afinity suite (under $200 for all three) is perfect for photo editing and desktop publishing. Inkscape (free) for vector editing and DaVinci Resolve for video/audio editing and processing - I ponied up for the commercial version of that for $300 but used the free version for a couple years.
This is just a taste of what big tech working with big government has in store for us
From the MIT Technology Review:
A million-word novel got censored before it was even shared. Now Chinese users want answers.
Imagine you are working on your novel on your home computer. It’s nearly finished; you have already written approximately one million words. All of a sudden, the online word processing software tells you that you can no longer open the draft because it contains illegal information. Within an instant, all your words are lost.
This is what happened in June to a Chinese novelist writing under the alias Mitu. She had been working with WPS, a domestic version of cloud-based word processing software such as Google Docs or Microsoft Office 365. In the Chinese literature forum Lkong on June 25, Mitu accused WPS of “spying on and locking my draft,” citing the presence of illegal content.
The news blew up on social media on July 11 after a few prominent influencer accounts belatedly picked it up. It became the top trending topic on Weibo that day, with users questioning whether WPS is infringing on their privacy. Since then, The Economic Observer, a Chinese publication, has reported that several other online novelists have had their drafts locked for unclear reasons in the past.
Mitu’s complaint triggered a social media discussion in China about censorship and tech platform responsibility. It has also highlighted the tension between Chinese users’ increasing awareness of privacy and tech companies’ obligation to censor on behalf of the government. “This is a case where perhaps we are seeing that these two things indeed might collide,” says Tom Nunlist, an analyst on China’s cyber and data policy at the Beijing-based research group Trivium China
Just say no. These "elites" want to "nudge" us into what they think is best for us.
They are idiots. Out of touch. Solipsists. Sociopaths.
Always back up locally. Also, have one portable hard drive that you keep somewhere else - a friends house - something. If your house or office burns down, you want to be able to recover your data. Do not leave the portable hard drive connected to your computer - too many instances of ransomware out there. They encrypt your data and require payment to restore them.
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