A few years ago, the UK Justice Minister called for a ban on the sale of tiny, lipstick-sized mobile phones that came with a voice-changing function built in. (Article) They were being smuggled into prisons and the convicts were using them to commit crimes from the inside, including making intimidating phone calls to witnesses etc.

What a sad day that would be for legitimate rectally-insertable, voice-changing cellphone enthusiasts!

Someone should do this for members of the Fraternal Order of Police.

And it’s already St. Patrick’s Day-themed!

Is that Jumpin’ Jack Flash? I don’t think I have thought about that movie in over 3 decades.

That. Is. Bonkers.

Not even tape will save you from Ringu Cat

So you’re saying the Titanic took down the Twin Towers?

ZOMG The Titanic took down the Twin Towers!!!

I’m also interested. Every now and then, I try to find one.

The last time I think it was Fasto TV Lite from this list:

• https://github.com/iptv-org/awesome-iptv?tab=readme-ov-file#android

But IIRC it just would not go full screen (you need to buy the full version for that I think) and I soon uninstalled it.

And the last time I tried IPTVnator on Android, it couldn’t handle a large playlist, like IPTV-org.

ATM I’m using a proprietary app, Televizo, or the website https://tv.garden/ .

I do like the idea of a P2P system. I used to be on ZeroNet but there were just too few people and too little content to stick with it. I hope something like this takes off.

You’re welcome :)

A great app. I use the (FLOSS) LibRedirect browser extension to automatically send YouTube links to FreeTube.

• https://libredirect.github.io/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utopia_(1981_video_game)

So AI is just three Netflix executives in a trench coat?

中西 圭三 - Woman
Nakanishi Keizō - Woman
(Japanese; my Japanese only good enough to catch a few snippets)
One I came to love because the guy in the room next to me when I lived in Japan kept playing it over and over until I did. Also featured in my first (and last!) attempt at doing karaoke in front of Japanese people.
https://youtu.be/xYe0d9QFLIA

Время и Стекло - Тролль
Vremya i Steklo - Troll
(Russian)
The Ukrainian crunk equivalent of “No Scrubs”? (IIRC read an article explaining how the song is about terrible men hitting on her)
https://youtu.be/q--5Ht49vNY

Anders Nelsson - 鬼新娘
Anders Nelsson - Ghost Bride Song
(Cantonese)
From the soundtrack of 殭屍先生 (Mr Vampire, 1985), Hong Kong horror-comedy about the hopping dead.
https://youtu.be/q9DHRNREzlk

Tabou Combo - Konpa Mania
(Haitian Creole & English; I only know a few words in Creole)
A konpa track I think sampled by Wyclef Jean. https://youtu.be/McUmXoB_9yw

I disagree.

Good points.

The important difference, though, it that Apple offer a service and release software that are black boxes that users and other interested parties cannot examine for backdoors and other issues.

Canonical release open source software, the vast majority of it actually put together by other parties (like volunteer Debian packagers) and whose checksums are verified, which the FLOSS community can go through with a fine tooth comb.

On a further note, while the Investigatory Powers Act and what the govt have been doing with it are very concerning, the very fact that we know about the Apple case and the recent XZ Utils backdoor have demonstrated/reminded us that large, well-funded, well-lawyered orgs in their jurisdiction are not the easiest target for intel agencies.

The true low-hanging fruit, the weakest links in the chain are small, understaffed, underresourced, underappreciated but crucial volunteer projects.

A. How many packages are there in a major Linux distro like Open SUSE? Thousands? Tens of thousands?

B. How many developers contribute to those programs and utilities?

C. How many people packages those programs and utilities?

D. How many people approve those packages for inclusion in the distro?

Add up A, B, C & D, and I suspect you end up with a very large number of people. Can Open SUSE (or any distro for that matter) guarantee that just because their distro’s HQ is in country X, that not one of those people is subject to the laws, pressures or inducements of country Y? E.g. how many packages in Open SUSE have some kind of involvement of someone in the UK subject to Investigatory Powers Act? It’s probably greater than zero.

So while there are benefits to the distro’s HQ being in Germany, I don’t think it’s a guarantee.

/TED talk

Is there any evidence that open source Ubuntu has ever been compromised by an intelligence agency (as opposed to things like that search marketing deal they had years ago)?

That really ties the room together.

or excavating the spiderhole Musk or Trump [delete as applicable] will be eventually found in?