Free and Open Source Software

i dont like apple, but i understand why people do. the ecosystem seems convenient, the promises of privacy, etc. but as a techy person i dont like to use them, it feels too constricting and overpriced. and they havent innovated in a long time (with the exception of vision pro, which although i find ridiculous, at least they finally did something innovative)

I do think apple's new ARM chips are neat. Other than that, it's been so long since I last used anything made by Apple that I can't say I have much of an opinion on them. My opinion on mobile phones in general is that I have a pick between two ecosystems (android or iOS), both of which have their own significant issues for me personally. I want a third serious competitor in that space more than anything.

I do think people outside the tech field should look into FOSS stuff, but not necessarily that they should drop everything they're doing and install linux (unless you really want to, in which case try it out in a vm, or backup all your files and go for it lol). Tbh unless you've got issues with your current setup, just keep using what you're using as long as it makes you happy. Odds are you already use some open source stuff, since a ton of libraries/components used by various programs are open source. There's a ton of FOSS applications that are cross platform, so you could always try those out on MacOS or iOS.

Ethical consumption is nearly impossible to actually achieve which is why the best way to solve corporate bad practices is a healthy dose of regulation and government. It never hurts to, if you can, avoid doing business with certain bad actors if you'd like but often times you're trading one bad actor for another in a different way.

Personally though I'm not a fan of Apple products. They can be well made and their silicon is incredible. Very fast and energy efficient and for a few years it was far ahead of other arm offerings and in terms of efficiency is still ahead of mobile x86 offerings(though the gap isnt that gigantic anymore it does still offer far better single core performance per watt at low levels). Their software manages to be well designed and whether I agree with it or not manages to get certain features in the mainstream.

That said I prefer the more open way of doing things. Like for example take moving files into and out of an iphone. Pre-airdrop you had to use all kinds of syncing software in order to move files out whereas on android I could just plug it in and navigate my files like a usb. Post airdrop, well airdrop only works on apple products as a means of keeping you locked into the ecosystem. I dont think a good chunk of the way they do things is necessarily better, and they rarely do things first, and worst of all when they do it's often a proprietary way that is not compatible with other devices and OS.

I think FOSSS shouldn't be some kind of religion, if you like Apple, great, go for it. However if you truly value privacy (while beeing better than Microsoft, Apple still collects some of your data) and freedom it certainly won't hurt to try out some alternatives. If you like them better it is a win-win situation, if not switch back.

Things you can do if you are interrested in FOSS, that don't necessary need you to change everything:

• Try some software alternatives for programms you are using (LibreOffice instead of Word, Gimp instead of Photoshop etc.) This lets you search for alternatives.
• Spin up a Linux VM and try it, or try to install linux on an old laptop. -And when you do that, look into KDE Connect as it offers connectivity between devices, that even Apple does not offer in some cases.
• If you are truly into it, you can even contribute to FOSS, to make them as good as Apple products.

@IronTwo Yep. I don't use Apple primarily because their ecosystem is too closed and you gotta register and buy a programming license from them to do any programming.

Screw all that, I'm staying where the ability to program my devices is guaranteed and I can load and run free software if I want and I don't have to get permission from mega-corp to change the apps I run.

Apple is absolutely preferable in the phone world to Google, to my eye. Beyond that, I understand the attraction to the ecosystem, but I have actually not had a practically great experience with it.

I own a pair of Airpods that I've had for about five years now. They're... fine, for podcasts, but they have never been as seamless as I wanted them to be with my phone. They have always been quirky with how they pair; either one doesn't pair and the other one does, or there is a delay in pairing, etc. Overall, though, they have been a good product.

I made a genuine attempt to like the Apple watch, but I just couldn't. Much of it was un-intuitive and getting it to work seamlessly with the Airpods and phone was a nightmare. I was actually a little shocked at how bad the integration was, given all I had heard about the ecosystem. Traded it back in for credit.

My wife uses a Macbook, and I have been tempted by the new silicon's battery life, but I realize that I just don't have an interest or a need to use Mac OS. Linux is quirky, too, but familiar. I tried using her laptop and I struggled to navigate the basic menus; that's not a comment on Mac OS, but rather my own inability. I'm getting old and have used Linux for too long.

Use what works for you. This isn't really a moral issue. I think FOSS is inherently political to a degree, and of course I think it is better for society, but at the end of the day what matters is what you accomplish with the tool, much less the tool itself. You are a physician and the most important thing is that you take good care of your patients.

This could be a huge philosophical discussion but I think it boiles down to a couple things. First and foremost, we all have to play the game with the cards we’re dealt. We don’t always have the luxury of choosing FOSS in our daily lives simply because of the way our society works. Apple does a great job at making devices integrated into our world that just work with a focus on privacy. I use them for those reasons. Sure some of their stuff is expensive. I didn’t buy my laptop, but it’s my 5th, and the best I’ve ever used. I think it’s worth it for the most part. Phones are on par with other big manufacturers anyway.

Everything else I can I use foss. My main power pc is EndeavorOS. I have another pc running Ubuntu server using docker to host services for myself.

Point is supporting things like the right to repair is important and you should where you can. But when it comes to the devices we need to use to participate in life, I like Apple.

I'll admit I'm not the biggest FOSS evangelist, so this comes with a grain of salt. From a right to repair standpoint, I don't care for Apple's policies at all. But from a security and (perhaps counterintuitively) user experience standpoint, I agree with Apple's walled garden approach, locked down OS, and single app store. We see the alternatives in Android, and we see how much worse its security is.

I've decided that if I have to be in an ecosystem, it'll be Apple's. I currently have an iPhone, a Apple Watch, and I use the Airpods Pro daily.

I'm a programmer, and an engineer. I love to tinker with stuff. electrical, mechanical, software. *Most *of the time. But as I get older (now 26 so not too old, but old enough to remember my mom's tiny blue Nokia as the first cell phone in the house) and busier with life, I've realized that there's some stuff I want to just work. I don't care if I can customize it, I don't care if I have to spend a few minutes getting used to a new layout change that was "forced" on me.. For me, my phone isn't something to fool around with, hack, or mod out the wazoo. It's a business tool. My watch helps me keep track of my health, and all I have to do is put it on and keep it charged. The Airpods are so seamless to use it's silly. For this part of my life (phone, watch/health, listening), I want the absolute lowest amount of friction.

I can also defer software updates as long as I like, which is more than I can say for say Windows. I used the same OS from 2016 to 2020 because I didn't want to update to the new layouts. My iPhone would ask me to update every so often, but I'd just hit cancel and that'd be it until the next major update.

Apple is also a hardware company to begin with, as opposed to other companies with ecosystems, so with that I at least feel like they care a little bit less about making money off my data because they're already making money off me buying the hardware and iCloud.