today's leftovers

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Mar 28, 2025

Distributions and Operating Systems

• Puppy Linux and EasyOS

  • Barry Kauler ☛ Surgery on eyelid

    A year ago, I posted about surgery on my thumb, after having drilled a hole through it.

    Arrived home from hospital today, after surgery on an eyelid. I'm posting about this, as it affects current projects, in particular the Meanderer trike project.

  • Barry Kauler ☛ More Limine Installer fixes

• Canonical/Ubuntu Family

  • Ubuntu ☛ Ubuntu Confidential VMs Now Available on Google Cloud A3 with NVIDIA H100 GPUs [Ed: This has absolutely nothing to do with security but about outsourcing to untrustworthy, spying, privacy-hostile companies under the false premise of confidentiality (there is none; it's a lie and mirage)]

    Canonical is thrilled to announce the availability of Ubuntu Confidential VMs on Google Cloud’s accelerator-optimized A3 machine series, featuring the groundbreaking NVIDIA H100 Tensor Core GPUs. This powerful combination brings a new level of secure and high-performance AI computing to the cloud, enabling you to confidently tackle previously impossible use cases.  Ubuntu is the only operating system to support Confidential GPU on Google Cloud.

• Free, Libre, and Open Source Software

  • Audiocasts/Shows

    • Bryan Lunduke ☛ Tor, F-Droid, & Let's Encrypt Lose Tax Payer Funding, Go To Court

      The US tax payer funded Open Technology Fund has lost Federal funding and is taking the Convicted Felon administration to court.

  • Openwashing

    • Open Source Initiative ☛ Ensuring Open Source Hey Hi (AI) thrives under the EU’s new Hey Hi (AI) rules [Ed: More Microsoft "hey hi" openwashing]

      In 2024, the European Union approved the Artificial Intelligence Act, the world's first legal framework for AI. Part of the law mandated the creation of a Code of Practice for General Purpose Hey Hi (AI) for Hey Hi (AI) developers.

    • Open Source For U ☛ Essential Open Source Tools for Budding Data Scientists

      Let’s explore some of the top open source tools that are widely used in data science today. Mastering these tools will not only enhance your understanding of how data science is shaping industries but also help unlock job opportunities in this fast-growing field.

  • Web Browsers/Web Servers

    • Mozilla

      • Mozilla ☛ 4 accessibility tools to try in Firefox

        The internet is for everyone, but not everyone experiences it the same way. For many of us, harsh brightness, hard-to-read text or a webpage that doesn’t work with a screen reader can turn simple tasks into frustrating obstacles.

      • Mozilla ☛ Mozilla Open Policy & Advocacy Blog: Mozilla shares 2025 Policy Priorities and Recommendations for Creating an Internet Where Everyone Can Thrive

        Mozilla envisions a future where the internet is a truly global public resource that is open, accessible, and safe for all. An internet that benefits people using online services, prioritizes the right to privacy, and enables economic dynamism. Our commitment to this vision stems from Mozilla’s foundational belief that the internet was built by people, for people and that its future should not be dictated by a few powerful organizations.

        When technology is developed solely for profit, it risks causing real harm to people. True choice and control for Americans can only be achieved through a competitive ecosystem with a range of services and providers that foster innovation. However, today’s internet is far from this ideal state, and without action, is only set to become increasingly consolidated in the age of AI.

  • Education

    • Krita ☛ Twinimation Studios Presents Their Next Krita Workshop: Becoming an Artist on a Budget

      Within this workshop, we provide tips and tricks on how one can begin their art journey for completely free. After reviewing a list of affordable resources to learn art skills, we recommend numerous free art programs with a special spotlight on Krita! We explain how versatile Krita is, and how it can be used across numerous different art frields, such as animation, comics, and painting! Following some other drawing tutorials, the workshop concludes with a special lesson on entrepreneurship, where we explain how aspiring artists can create a paid hobby or full business through their artwork while remaining on a budget.

      With so many people wanting to enter the art scene and build a career from it, we hope this workshop will be a helpful guide for all of those who wish to create their own artistic brand. Additionally, we have many other Krita focused animation courses on our website!

  • Openness/Sharing/Collaboration

    • Open Access/Content

      • Wired ☛ Inside arXiv—the Most Transformative Platform in All of Science

        Nearly 35 years ago, Ginsparg created arXiv, a digital repository where researchers could share their latest findings—before those findings had been systematically reviewed or verified. Visit arXiv.org today (it’s pronounced like “archive”) and you’ll still see its old-school Web 1.0 design, featuring a red banner and the seal of Cornell University, the platform’s institutional home. But arXiv’s unassuming facade belies the tectonic reconfiguration it set off in the scientific community. If arXiv were to stop functioning, scientists from every corner of the planet would suffer an immediate and profound disruption. “Everybody in math and physics uses it,” Scott Aaronson, a computer scientist at the University of Texas at Austin, told me. “I scan it every night.”