Bob K Mertz :distressedUS:

Coaster Enthusiast, Pinball Competitor, Data Center Technician, Podcast host...... Not a member of the red or blue parties.

WV/NoVA
:distressedUS:

got salt?

I try to tag all political posts with appropriate tags (uspol for us politics) and content warn when something is potentially extra upsetting.

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Last Notes

2026-08-06 00:35:13 UTC

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@nprofile…nekg
It hurts that Fetterman has ended up here. He was honestly one of my favorite politicians but it seems like he's been manipulated like lots of the MAGA folks.

2026-07-12 04:48:15 UTC

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@nprofile…7q7j
640k catsalads should be enough for anyone

2026-06-28 02:02:45 UTC

I think the thing with fascism in the privacy products is we are looking at it from a perspective of law and they are looking at it from a world where laws don't exist.
The Mullvad Co-CEO can come out and say whatever he wants from a legal perspective because the world fascists are building is a world where they would never be held accountable.
It's a gamble that their narcissism tells them they can't lose.
#Mullvad #Proton #Brave #Fascism #VPN

2026-06-26 14:42:04 UTC

There is AI hype in this article but reading between the lines I see signs of a bubble that it's going to have to pop soon. Playing with fake money is going to catch up to the market.
https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/06/26/why-sandisk-stock-crashed-on-friday/
#SanDisk #ArtificialIntelligence #AIBubble

2026-06-17 00:10:15 UTC

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@nprofile…nekg
This is exactly where I'm at. Years ago I subscribed to Apple TV and it was absolute hell because I don't have an Apple device or Windows so I couldn't get the 2 factor codes Apple tried to send me.
I still use RasPlex on a Pi3 in my bedroom and it remains my favorite interface but in my living room I'll occasionally use an app on my Roku for live TV or news and there just isn't any decent option... Not to mention I feel like my switch to Jellyfin will happen at some point.
I'm so tired of Enshittification...
@nprofile…0jpc

2026-03-23 17:54:51 UTC

That didn't take long at all *sigh*
Woman arrested and taken from her daughter at SFO airport by ICE
https://www.ktvu.com/news/ice-agents-arrest-crying-woman-sfo
#USPol #AbolishICE #CBP #SFO

2026-03-02 23:32:40 UTC

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@nprofile…k3ke
Sorry I didn't get a notification on your post (I assume because I blocked Graphene) until someone brought it to my attention but in the case of the article I read you would think that the modem would power down when you turned off the phone... That was the concern that was raised in the article.
My concern here is that Motorola could (at the request of the Trump administration, for example) add some hardware to the device with the intent of surveillance that doesn't reveal it's self to the OS.
Unfortunately all I got from them was a torrent of posts (that they now deleted) about Murena harassing them and what seemed to be attacking me for using a Fairphone. I'm genuinely concerned that they attacked me on something I didn't even bring up in order to distract away from the concerns that I (and others) had.
@nprofile…ytq5 @nprofile…n0m3

2026-03-02 21:38:03 UTC

Well I didn't have "getting harassed by Graphene OS and having to block them" on my 2026 bingo card but I guess I should have.
All I wanted was a comment from them regarding whether or not Motorola could place a device in a phone that Graphene wasn't aware of for the purpose of leaking data... No accusations, just a question.
I'm completely in awe at how this all played out especially with them deleting all of their posts.
#GrapheneOS #Graphene

2026-03-02 18:15:13 UTC

@nprofile…8d0p
It's not hardware that interacts with software that concerns me. I'm talking about hardware with it's own firmware that is capable of capturing data and sending it without the OS even being aware. I wish I could remember the model or find the article but a year or so ago I read that an android phone model was found to be communicating with networks even while the phone was powered off.
To be clear, it's not that I don't trust you. I just have a hard time trusting huge corporations who have no opposition to the current US administration especially when they are part of a specific industry that heavily tries to dictate what you can and can't do on your phone.
I'm not trying to downplay how huge of a deal this is and it is exciting but I an concerned as well and I think it's important to make that fear known.
@nprofile…n0m3 @nprofile…ytq5

2026-02-24 16:43:41 UTC

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@nprofile…g0e5
Had a hard drive sounding like that back in the late 90s. I was working on the machine on the floor and my friend kicked it (direct hit to the drive) with steel toe boots and the noise stopped and the system started recognizing it. That drive ran fine for years until that computer wasn't needed anymore.

2026-02-24 04:17:57 UTC

Father detained by ICE as 6-year-old daughter begins cancer treatment.
He has a SSN and permit to work.
https://www.wtae.com/article/sewickley-father-ice-daughter-cancer-treatment/70469827
#USPol #AbolishICE #FuckICE

2026-02-24 04:05:40 UTC

"Abolish ICE" and "Stephen Coldbert" are both going to be snowplow names in Chicago! I love it!
#Chicago #StephenColbert #AbolishICE
#nevent1q…aza9

2026-02-15 01:19:16 UTC

West Virginia bans sex with animals and there was actually a delegate that voted against the bill 🤯
That not bad enough? A delegate has been trying to make it illegal for years because police and prosecutors have been asking for it so they don't have to keep seeing cases dropped and she had been struggling to get it introduced.
https://westvirginiawatch.com/2026/02/13/wv-house-passes-bill-to-explicitly-outlaw-sexual-contact-with-animals-for-first-time-in-state-code/
#WestVirginia #NotTheOnion

2026-01-19 05:48:46 UTC

In light of Renee Good and the things MAGA are saying about her death it's important to remember that Anne Frank "died of typhus."
Denying responsibility is the modus operandi of authoritarians.
#USPol #abolishICE #AnneFrank #ReneeGood

2026-01-08 03:19:03 UTC

Is there an official @nprofile…7q7j index yet? Like do we know how many cat boosts mean Defcon 1?

2025-08-24 02:16:20 UTC

Sadly this is only the beginning. We have to stop AI and facial reignition policing NOW.
https://www.wtae.com/article/arrest-ai-police-lee-county-man-jacksonville/65878349
#artificialintelligence #facialrecognition #policing

2025-08-09 14:46:14 UTC

With AOL killing Dial Up Internet I was curious what still exists. I've found that there is over an estimated 160,000 people still using dial up in the US as their only connection (there are others using dial up as a fallback)
https://data.census.gov/table?q=internet+subscription
Earthlink quietly shut off dial up access in early 2024 (best I can tell).
Incredibly Juno and NetZero both still offer 10 free hours of dial up a month (and unlimited subscriptions).
#dialup #internet #aol #EarthLink #netzero

2025-07-24 11:22:24 UTC

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@nprofile…el4d
haha that's great.... But nothing beats Banner Mania printing banners for hours or days. The software even has a pause button so you can let your print head cool down.

2025-07-24 11:03:16 UTC

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@nprofile…el4d
It's now time to install Banner Mania!
#retro #vintage #retrocomputing #dotmatrix

2025-07-22 11:48:29 UTC

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@nprofile…el4d
The people that refuse to try generics, sure, I agree... Your post didn't really make that clear.

2025-07-22 11:42:39 UTC

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@nprofile…el4d
This is a horrible judgment that doesn't really look close enough. For one major example shopping at Costco generally gets you name band groceries cheaper than store brand at other stores. I recently switched to Costco from Target, have been saving money, and noticed that my cupboards have more brand items in them so this really hits me hard.
So many people judge those that are struggling financially and it's unthinkable to suggest that the problem is that they bought the wrong brand. Generics are fine in most cases but what if you have an allergy to something or a whole host of other reasons why a name band product might be needed?

2025-07-12 16:13:31 UTC

(1/8) I'm at that point that there are two halves of my brain fighting over reality while both actually know what the reality is. Mostly, I don't like that I'm trying to sustain life normally when I recognize that nothing is normal and that a normal life is no longer even a possibility for many people in the US. I am watching as our government rapidly descends into something that is beyond fascism and I watch people I know cheer on this descent because they somehow believe it's for the greater good. What's worse is many of those people are the ones who taught me about God's love and His compassion and yet they have been manipulated into believing that some people are no longer worthy of compassion.

2025-07-12 02:25:05 UTC

Well this should be fun
https://www.wtae.com/article/french-investigation-data-tampering-x/65383543
#Twitter #elonmusk

2025-06-18 15:44:08 UTC

We aren't racing towards tyranny... We are already here.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg430dx702o
#USpol #ICE #dueprocess

2025-05-17 00:49:32 UTC

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@nprofile…fynq
Ironically I've wanted to donate to 404 for a while but couldn't bring myself to do so when they had been forcing people to give them their email address in order to read articles. I like what they research and report on but reporting on privacy issues and requesting personal information or cookies with every site visit is a bit of a contradiction.
@nprofile…5neh @nprofile…ncxj

2025-04-06 14:09:35 UTC

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@nprofile…r0kn
I have confirmed that URLs for mastodon.social and beige.party also disappear into the void. Interestingly URLs to threads.net get through just fine.
@nprofile…7nr8
#SMS #Filter #Mastodon #tmobile #verizon

2025-04-06 14:02:11 UTC

It has come to my attention that sending Mastodon links via text message are being filtered by either T-Mobile or Verizon.... Specifically, at least in this case, links to infosec.exchange ... I shared something with my family in a group SMS last night and no one received it. Today I'm with members of my family and have confirmed that any message with a infosec.exchange link does not go through but all messages without the link do - this involves messages of JUST the URL and ones with text and the URL. I also tried SMS to just my nephew with the URL and it disappeared into the void as well.
I use T-Mobile and the entirety of my family uses Verizon. I have not been able to test to another T-Mobile customer as of yet. I will test with other instance links in a bit.
@nprofile…r0kn @nprofile…7nr8
#SMS #Filter #Mastodon #tmobile #verizon

2025-04-01 05:32:02 UTC

I'm tired of legal experts constantly saying that Trump can't do something. When you don't have enforcement of laws the laws don't exactly mean anything. The fact that he is talking about a third term this early ensures that he has nearly 4 years to warm his base up on the idea.
https://www.wtae.com/article/trump-says-hes-not-joking-about-serving-third-term/64344297
#USpol #constitution #trump

2025-03-27 22:29:11 UTC

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@nprofile…m8mr
Interesting. I had thought that Play Services was absent in Graphene. My Fairphone 4 came with eOS installed and they had a decent concept but it was a complete mess when it came to some Android apps and they had no interest in offering any information or support. Are paid and subscription apps supported as well? Is root access possible on Graphene?
The sandbox thing is cool. I've always kind of wanted virtualization so I could run an "insecure OS" in a container that I launched only when needed... Sandbox is probably next best.
@nprofile…dgqd @nprofile…r26y

2025-03-27 21:11:13 UTC

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@nprofile…dgqd
"Where they find their apps" is exactly the problem with mobile in general. I really want to use something like @nprofile…m8mr but it's hard for a lot of people to not have access to Play or the App store because functions of their daily life rely on apps only designed to work on Android and iOS. Banking and navigation are the biggest problems for me but others have propriety networks being used by their employer. The biggest problem is there aren't any real stepping stones... Those focused on security just say your only choice is to change your entire life overnight which I can appreciate their reasoning but it does nothing to effect change in the wider public and keeps security and privacy a niche and actively scares people away from it.
Linux is a difficult switch but many/most propriety things have web that function well on a computer browser but (intentionally) run like complete shit on a mobile browser.
@nprofile…r26y

2025-03-08 16:18:53 UTC

I am glad to see there is at least *some* checks and balances that are still functioning. I know the overall outlook still doesn't look great but seeing *something* is encouraging.
https://www.wtae.com/article/federal-judge-blocks-trump-administrations-medical-research-funding-cuts/64099060
#USpol #nih

2025-02-27 15:24:18 UTC

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@nprofile…9s8w
Seeing Shopify and Proton as sponsors is a little off-putting if I'm being honest. The way proton enshitified especially makes it worrisome.
@nprofile…lz7q @nprofile…lzvn