’Denmark Switches.’ A national campaign to collectively move off Big Tech.
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I've added a new 2026 Digital Resolution to my 'Denmark switches from Big Tech' goals.
I had already switched from Patreon to Steady. Thanks to @JohanEmpa for making that possible after he added Steady as a Mastodon.green payment option.
Now my Microsoft subscription is the only thing left on PayPal and I'm almost deMicrosofted. So I'll be cancelling, not renewing, that. So now I commit to deleting my PayPal account. Today. Inspired by @oldrup, who just did this.
@CiaraNi @JohanEmpa @oldrup My decades old digital kleptomania has left me with a lot of work to do.. i have been stashing files in multiple 1 TB onedrive accounts for ages. ugh.
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Before I could pick my 2026 goal for #DanmarkSkifter, I did a digital status. I was mildly surprised when I saw my 2025 digital changes together. I looked at the list and thought: ’Tell me you hang out in the Fediverse without telling me you hang out in the Fediverse.’
From Outlook to Tuta
From Office to Libre
From MS Authenticator to Ente Authenticator
From Google Play to F-Droid
From Spotify to AntennaPod
From Firefox to Vivaldi
From DuckDuckGo to NoAIDuckDuckGo
And I bought a back-up drive.@CiaraNi Honestly Google Play is just so incredibly bad. Even if I know what I'm looking for it feels like it is actively trying to block me from getting to it.
It is a far cry from the early days of smartphones where you could check app stores and find cool things. -
@CiaraNi @JohanEmpa @oldrup My decades old digital kleptomania has left me with a lot of work to do.. i have been stashing files in multiple 1 TB onedrive accounts for ages. ugh.
@johnlorimer Multiple 1TB OneDrives - oof, I sympathise. That'll take a while to untangle from. I have one, not even close to being anywhere near full, and still it's been taking me months to sort out my photos. On the plus side, I am deleting manically and enjoying that process a lot. A very therapeutic photo massacre! And also good for the environment, reducing storage waste. We'll get there, all of us, step by step
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@CiaraNi Honestly Google Play is just so incredibly bad. Even if I know what I'm looking for it feels like it is actively trying to block me from getting to it.
It is a far cry from the early days of smartphones where you could check app stores and find cool things.@drgroftehauge Agreed. I was so busy trying to get away from Big Tech that I didn't think deeply about what I was moving to. So it's been a pleasant surprise to experience that every open-source thing I've switched to so far is better and calmer and simpler to use. Including F-Droid, instead of Google Play.
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@drgroftehauge Agreed. I was so busy trying to get away from Big Tech that I didn't think deeply about what I was moving to. So it's been a pleasant surprise to experience that every open-source thing I've switched to so far is better and calmer and simpler to use. Including F-Droid, instead of Google Play.
@CiaraNi @drgroftehauge I know I'm supposed to be the techie out of us, Ciara, but how do you actually switch to f-Droid?
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@CiaraNi @drgroftehauge I know I'm supposed to be the techie out of us, Ciara, but how do you actually switch to f-Droid?
@CarstenBoll @CiaraNi @drgroftehauge first time you need to do it manually:
You can download the apk from the official webpage (click on the button: download f-droid): https://f-droid.org/en/
Then i suggest to open the apk from the file manager (to avoid giving install permissions to the browser), you will be asked for permissions with a scary page. After you install it you can remove the permits.
You will have to approve the install permission for f-droid the first time you install something
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@CarstenBoll @CiaraNi @drgroftehauge first time you need to do it manually:
You can download the apk from the official webpage (click on the button: download f-droid): https://f-droid.org/en/
Then i suggest to open the apk from the file manager (to avoid giving install permissions to the browser), you will be asked for permissions with a scary page. After you install it you can remove the permits.
You will have to approve the install permission for f-droid the first time you install something
@CarstenBoll @CiaraNi @drgroftehauge it can be installed directly from the browser but then I think it is advisable to remove the install permissions from the browser.
If you consider this complex, i can try to record a video showing it
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@CarstenBoll @CiaraNi @drgroftehauge it can be installed directly from the browser but then I think it is advisable to remove the install permissions from the browser.
If you consider this complex, i can try to record a video showing it
@antoniovr @CiaraNi @drgroftehauge nah, seems doable, didn't consider getting it from the browser. Doh.
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@antoniovr @CiaraNi @drgroftehauge nah, seems doable, didn't consider getting it from the browser. Doh.
@CarstenBoll @antoniovr @drgroftehauge Ah, it seems that it was an advantage for me to lack knowledge. I didn't know what I didn't know, so I just found something on their website that worked, without thinking that it was unusual or that there were steps to consider. Hey, maybe that's the safe way to install something technical - do it with a blissful lack of knowledge, like falling when drunk, so nobody gets hurt.
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@CarstenBoll @antoniovr @drgroftehauge Ah, it seems that it was an advantage for me to lack knowledge. I didn't know what I didn't know, so I just found something on their website that worked, without thinking that it was unusual or that there were steps to consider. Hey, maybe that's the safe way to install something technical - do it with a blissful lack of knowledge, like falling when drunk, so nobody gets hurt.
@CiaraNi @antoniovr @drgroftehauge I mean, most of the time it's a question of reading what it says on the screen and making an educated guess.
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@CiaraNi @antoniovr @drgroftehauge I mean, most of the time it's a question of reading what it says on the screen and making an educated guess.
@CarstenBoll Oh I never stop to read what's on the screen. I just click stuff while humming. If that doesn't work, I click harder while cursing. Works most of the time!
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@CarstenBoll Oh I never stop to read what's on the screen. I just click stuff while humming. If that doesn't work, I click harder while cursing. Works most of the time!
@CiaraNi @antoniovr @drgroftehauge hah. Well, if it works it works!
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@CiaraNi @antoniovr @drgroftehauge hah. Well, if it works it works!
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@Tutanota @gambolputte @CiaraNi
I admit that I don't really understand the Family option. I guess that the family option gives the possibility to add a family member to a subscription, so there is one "admin" for two (or more) persons.
But it costs the same as two separate subscriptions, so I personally don't really see the point.
It sounds good though, so is there perhaps another difference I am missing?Edit: I found out that it gives a shared storage and a shared email possibility. Hmm...
@Tutanota @gambolputte @CiaraNi I made an account for my wife a week or two ago. So far, after using Tuta Calendar a week or so, it works flawlessly.
It is very simular to gcal and can easily handle our busy scheduled week, with two or even 3 appointments at the same time.The Android widget is a bit different from gcal, but it is clear and works well in my opinion. And the calender app is then just one click away.
Next up: moving shared Google Docs to... ?
#danmarkskifter -
’Denmark Switches.’ A national campaign to collectively move off Big Tech. March 20th is Big Switch Day. I’ve named my goal now. I’m already almost deMicrosofted, except for my photo archive. I moved to Libre & Tuta mail and have been purging photos as I await the release of Tuta drive. Now I’m committing myself to just get the photos off OneDrive and on to my computer, that I own, in my house, by March 20th. Then I’ll delete Microsoft. Then I’ll boast about it on the Fediverse.
@CiaraNi
> Now I’m committing myself to just get the photos off OneDrive and on to my computer, that I own, in my houseI've heard a thought that information which exists in just one copy can be considered unimportant. One copy can become no copies very quickly, so important things should be backed up, ideally in geographically separate locations.
I'd suggest to take a look at Hetzner StorageBox (just backup service) or StorageShare (managed Nextcloud, where you get your own storage, online photo album, contact sync, documents, etc). -
@CiaraNi
> Now I’m committing myself to just get the photos off OneDrive and on to my computer, that I own, in my houseI've heard a thought that information which exists in just one copy can be considered unimportant. One copy can become no copies very quickly, so important things should be backed up, ideally in geographically separate locations.
I'd suggest to take a look at Hetzner StorageBox (just backup service) or StorageShare (managed Nextcloud, where you get your own storage, online photo album, contact sync, documents, etc)."information which exists in just one copy can be considered unimportant"
I've just been thinking about this very idea, as it happens. I've been massively deleting files and photos, as I remove my stuff step-by-step from Microsoft's cloud. The process has made me think harder about what's important and what's not. The files I am removing from the cloud go on to my computer and also on to an external hard drive, and I think I'll do a further cull of those later. It's a useful process.
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@CiaraNi
> Now I’m committing myself to just get the photos off OneDrive and on to my computer, that I own, in my houseI've heard a thought that information which exists in just one copy can be considered unimportant. One copy can become no copies very quickly, so important things should be backed up, ideally in geographically separate locations.
I'd suggest to take a look at Hetzner StorageBox (just backup service) or StorageShare (managed Nextcloud, where you get your own storage, online photo album, contact sync, documents, etc)."I'd suggest to take a look at Hetzner StorageBox (just backup service) or StorageShare (managed Nextcloud, where you get your own storage, online photo album, contact sync, documents, etc)."
Thank you for these recommendations. I have been waiting for Tuta drive as I already subscribe to Tuta mail and calendar, but there's still no sign of it so I am interested now in other European alternatives. The managed NextCloud one piques my interest. Tak - I appreciate the tips.
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@Tutanota @gambolputte @CiaraNi I made an account for my wife a week or two ago. So far, after using Tuta Calendar a week or so, it works flawlessly.
It is very simular to gcal and can easily handle our busy scheduled week, with two or even 3 appointments at the same time.The Android widget is a bit different from gcal, but it is clear and works well in my opinion. And the calender app is then just one click away.
Next up: moving shared Google Docs to... ?
#danmarkskifter@Orewoet Good to know that it's working well. I hope you can find an equally useful alternative to Google Docs
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@Tutanota @gambolputte @CiaraNi I made an account for my wife a week or two ago. So far, after using Tuta Calendar a week or so, it works flawlessly.
It is very simular to gcal and can easily handle our busy scheduled week, with two or even 3 appointments at the same time.The Android widget is a bit different from gcal, but it is clear and works well in my opinion. And the calender app is then just one click away.
Next up: moving shared Google Docs to... ?
#danmarkskifterOne option could be
https://cryptpad.fr/
Should be easy to try out, unfortunately I don't have experience with it personally, but I've seen it recommended
