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#1 Re: Devuan » Age Verification » 2026-03-21 14:35:22
Someone did quite a bit of research on this. Meta is behind the push for OS-level age verification.
The TBOTE Project
https://tboteproject.com/
Meta Platforms: Lobbying, Dark Money, and the App Store Accountability Act
https://tboteproject.com/git/hekate/attestation-findings
#2 Re: Devuan » Age Verification » 2026-03-20 23:45:38
A recently published video about this topic that I just finished watching:
Age Verification Mandates: The ‘Protect the Kids’ Scam That’s Building a Permanent Surveillance Grid
https://rumble.com/v76jf94-age-verification-mandates-the-protect-the-kids-scam-thats-building-a-perman.html
#3 Re: Freedom Hacks » How will life be without gvfs? » 2026-03-19 03:45:18
I created a stripped down Debian live CD back in 2017. I wanted to make sure that it would actually fit on a CD, so I excluded as much unnecessary stuff as possible, including gvfs. The lack of gvfs didn't cause any problems that I am aware of.
#4 Off-topic » Keep Android Open » 2026-02-22 12:57:16
- pcalvert
- Replies: 0
This is very bad news:
“In August 2025, Google announced ↗ that as of September 2026, it will no longer be possible to develop apps for the Android platform without first registering centrally with Google.”
Keep Android Open
https://keepandroidopen.org/
#5 Re: Off-topic » Opinions about keypassXC » 2026-02-20 22:54:23
As you may have read in this thread, installing keypassXC requires network access by default.
If you want keypassXC without any networking code, you have to compile it yourself.
ffp asked about keepassxc-minimal.
Quote:
“This package includes only the bare minimal functionality, and no security complications like networking, SSH agent, browser plugin, fdo secret storage. See keepassxc-full if you absolutely need those.”
#6 Re: Devuan Derivatives » Is there a Devuan derivative targeting old hardware/laptops? » 2026-02-20 22:17:54
Although it's not a Devuan derivative, my plan is to install Alpine Linux on old laptops. I was given a couple of old Chromebooks, and one of them only has 2 GB of RAM. It doesn't make much sense to me to install Devuan on it when I can use Alpine instead.
#7 Re: Freedom Hacks » About installers » 2026-02-20 22:06:55
1. Don't like the debian installer at all
Neither do it. What I very much dislike about the Debian installer is that it does a bit and then stops to wait for more input, does a bit and then stops to wait for more input, does a bit and then stops to wait for more input, and so on. And that means that I have to babysit the thing instead of answering a bunch of questions at the beginning, clicking OK, and then walking away to do something else. It wastes my time. There are other things I dislike about it, but that is the main one.
#8 Re: Devuan Derivatives » Refracta ready for Excalibur? » 2026-02-16 07:58:38
Check /etc/default/grub for GRUB_TIMEOUT=0 or anything with GRUB_HIDDEN.
I finally got around to checking this a few days ago. I couldn't find anything I did that caused the GRUB menu to disappear (which makes sense since it was working fine before the upgrade). Not knowing what to do, I purged several GRUB packages and then installed them again in order to start over with the default configuration files. It didn't help; the GRUB menu is still invisible.
On a whim, I decided to install rEFInd. Using rEFInd, I could see that GRUB is being started from EFI\debian\grubx64.efi. rEFInd also gave me the option of booting from EFI\grub\grubx64.efi, but that was completely broken and didn't do anything. Although rEFInd didn't help me solve this problem, I like it and will probably keep it installed.
#9 Re: Freedom Hacks » UDisks2: Security Considerations » 2026-02-15 00:34:30
Don't copy AI output to here, @igorzwx, or anyone.
A possible exception to this is:
You wrote something yourself, and you asked an AI to proofread and improve your writing because you aren't very good at writing, or because English is not your native language.
#10 Re: Off-topic » XFCE is building a new WM and compositor for Wayland » 2026-02-08 19:33:21
With Xfce, you are not required to use their window manager (xfwm4); you can replace it with a different one. For a couple of ideas, consider using Openbox or IceWM (with the taskbar hidden) instead.
FYI:
Using another Window Manager
https://wiki.xfce.org/howto/other_window_manager
#11 Re: Desktop and Multimedia » virt-manager qemu/kvm install excalibur » 2026-02-06 09:17:49
Why are you trying to install virt-manager? Is it something that you've used before?
#12 Re: Devuan » Proposal "Devuan User Repository" » 2026-02-01 11:51:43
The DUR will only have the recipes. A user would need to build the package themselves with the recipes. The built packages will not be added to the main archive. Security will be on the users.
In that case, perhaps this could be hosted on something like GitHub or GitLab? That way, you don't need anyone's "permission" to do it. You simply do it, and whoever wants to use it can use it.
#13 Re: Devuan » Proposal "Devuan User Repository" » 2026-02-01 01:41:20
This isn't directly related, but I wanted to mention that there are other potential ways of getting additional software on Devuan. For example, Debian has a deb for the Nix package manager; however, it is (unfortunately) geared toward systemd. Perhaps it could modified so that it would work without systemd.
#14 Re: Other Issues » Healthy drive, bad fs (inodes, alternative superblocks, groups) » 2026-01-30 17:03:45
Look into file recovery software as a possible solution.
A few relevant links:
Package: testdisk
(Partition scanner and disk recovery tool, and PhotoRec file recovery tool)
https://packages.debian.org/stable/testdisk
#15 Re: Off-topic » Microsoft and encrypted data » 2026-01-28 15:18:59
I haven't trusted Microsoft since, years ago, I read what some guy reported regarding Windows 2000 Professional. He was poking around in Windows 2000 and found two keys, and one of them was named (literally) "NSA key".
#16 Re: Off-topic » AI in Firefox or Waterfox » 2026-01-26 10:53:15
And for the "reasons covered in this article", you may want to rethink your choice of using Linux:
Believe me, I am. And even if I do decide to keep using Linux, it most likely won't be running on "bare metal", but in a VM on a Qubes-like system.
#17 Re: Installation » [SOLVED] how start ntp? » 2026-01-26 08:55:34
I don't know about Devuan, but Refracta comes with ntpdate installed. That's what I use.
Although it should run automatically, I run ntpdate manually every day, right after the system boots up and right before I shut down. I do that because my computer is only connected to the internet when I am actively using it.
#18 Re: Off-topic » AI in Firefox or Waterfox » 2026-01-25 14:51:01
I have chosen "none of the above" for the reasons covered in this article:
Firefox and Chromium
https://madaidans-insecurities.github.io/firefox-chromium.html
Actually, I will most likely still keep Firefox around, it just won't be my primary web browser anymore.
#19 Re: Devuan Derivatives » Refracta ready for Excalibur? » 2026-01-20 19:04:29
In mid-December I upgraded a Daedalus-based Refracta to Excalibur. Since I don't use this system regularly, it is taking some time to identify whatever problems there are. Today I noticed two: The GRUB menu never appears before the OS boots up, and the background for LightDM is a black screen. I thought that running update-grub might solve the GRUB menu problem, but I was wrong -- it had no effect.
#20 Off-topic » Sculpt OS » 2026-01-12 20:56:03
- pcalvert
- Replies: 0
I discovered this yesterday and thought I'd share my discovery here for anyone who might find this type of OS interesting. By the way, the disk image file for the latest version of Sculpt OS is a mere 35 MB.
“Sculpt is an open-source general-purpose OS. It combines Genode's microkernel architecture, capability-based security, sandboxed device drivers, and virtual machines in a novel operating system for commodity PC hardware and the PinePhone. Sculpt is used as day-to-day OS by the Genode developers.”
Sculpt OS
https://genode.org/download/sculpt
A casual Sculpt OS walkthrough
https://genodians.org/nfeske/2025-01-30-sculpt-os-walkthrough
#21 Re: Hardware & System Configuration » Cannot install Tomcat10 - depends on systemd » 2026-01-11 23:49:59
What happens when you try this?:
aptitude install tomcat10 -s#22 Re: Other Issues » Looking for advice on VMs. » 2026-01-11 22:42:50
I could replace the screen and I could buy a new laptop but I am irritated by those options.
I did some quick research on this, and apparently this problem could be caused by a faulty cable. Or maybe even just a loose cable. The fact that warmth seems to help is a clue that the cable may simply be loose.
I could run Windows as the host and run however many Excaliburs in VMs. But I think that is a retrograde step.
Since gaming is important to you, I see nothing wrong with doing that.
#23 Off-topic » Kicksecure » 2026-01-11 04:24:51
- pcalvert
- Replies: 0
Kicksecure is a Debian-based "distro" that supposedly requires systemd. That being the case, it appears that it would not be possible to easily "Devuanize" Kicksecure.
Explanations for why this is (supposedly) the case can be found here:
Non-Systemd - Systemd Development Discussion
https://forums.kicksecure.com/t/non-systemd-systemd-development-discussion/766
systemd
https://www.kicksecure.com/wiki/Systemd
A question for the more knowledgeable folks here: Considering the systemd features that are being used in Kicksecure, is systemd really as essential as Kicksecure's lead developer implies?
#24 Re: Off-topic » Is AI going to become a Frankenstein monster? » 2026-01-11 03:45:21
“The danger is not only that AI systems might behave unpredictably, but that fear of that possibility will legitimize permanent emergency governance—centralized control over computation, research, and information flows—on the grounds that there is no alternative.”
How a Techno-Optimist Became a Grave Skeptic
https://brownstone.org/articles/how-a-techno-optimist-became-a-grave-skeptic/
#25 Re: Desktop and Multimedia » Xscreensaver version in ports is still out of date » 2026-01-11 01:33:54
Look at the changelogs:
https://www.jwz.org/xscreensaver/changelog.html
https://metadata.ftp-master.debian.org/changelogs//main/x/xscreensaver/xscreensaver_6.09+dfsg1-2_changelog
Comparing the two, something seems a bit off to me. Then again, this is the first time I've done such a comparison, so maybe this is "normal" for Debian?
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