2294
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] shrugal@lemm.ee 95 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

I've been removing Google services from my life bit by bit over the past year, and I have to say it is crazy how hard it actually is! They have inserted themselves into so many digital workflows, securing monopoly positions and preventing the rise of competitors and open ecosystems. In many areas the only alternatives are other tech giants, or accepting feature downgrades and having to set things up manually.

I'm really glad that the browser is one area where the transition is actually very simple and straightforward!

[-] slumberlust@lemmy.world 17 points 11 months ago

What lessons have you learned so far? I've switched to FF and DDG with great results, but still use Gmail/android/photos.

[-] 0x69@lemmy.world 19 points 11 months ago

I urge you to check out Kagi Browser[1]. I forgot how pain-free using a search engine could be. With Google, a relatively simple search had me typing:

sink tap gasket intitle:"replacement" OR intitle:"repair" filetype:pdf OR filetype:doc inurl:product OR inurl:details "made in" (site:.com OR site:.co.uk OR site:.de) -site:amazon.com -site:ebay.com

I am appreciative that I've gotten pretty good at finding obscure nuggets of info, and it makes Google Dork[2] searches even more fun, but when I simply need "where to by $x", Google shat out mindless SEO content.

I also highly recommend Fastmail[3] as an alternative email host. Far cheaper than Google Workspace for custom domains, and their masked email function is wonderful, even more so with 1Password[4].

Turning your back from the abusive Google can look intimidating to begin with, but it turns out it takes very little effort if you make a lil' plan of alternative services to use.

  1. https://kagi.com/
  2. https://www.exploit-db.com/google-hacking-database
  3. https://www.fastmail.com/
  4. https://1password.com/fastmail/
[-] Saone@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 11 months ago

I saw this thread on mastodon the other day griping about Kagi not understanding how inherently political tech is which doesn't fill me with confidence in their ability to proceed ethically: https://hachyderm.io/@inthehands/111707573907442638

[-] isVeryLoud@lemmy.ca 2 points 11 months ago

That's a darn shame, I just paid for a month of Kagi to try them out.

Saying "Politics finding its way into tech is one of the reason we do not have innovation any more." instead of answering the question is a way to dodge a question you don't want to answer. Super duper red flag. Unfortunate. I don't think I can even trust that their search results aren't biased.

[-] akrot@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

What's your take on Kagi joining partnership with brave?

[-] isVeryLoud@lemmy.ca 1 points 11 months ago

1password rocks big time, AND it's Canadian!

It even has a Linux desktop application to integrate with system authentication and the CLI for SSH keys.

[-] ShowMeThe@lemmynsfw.com 12 points 11 months ago

I can recommended proton to get away from gmail. They also offer a bigger suite with a few other services like cloud storage, VPN, password manager.

The transition is super easy, they also have a free tier if you want to try it out. Though if you like it I recommend sending some money there way, even with a basic subscription

[-] pathief@lemmy.world 2 points 11 months ago

I also moved to the proton suite. It's a tad expensive but I use all their services so it pays off. All their services feel half baked tho, especially in user experience.

[-] fiddlestix@lemmy.world 1 points 11 months ago

I'm going to drop a recommendation for Skiff here. Paid but their free tier (which I'm using) has plenty of good stuff.

[-] shrugal@lemm.ee 8 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

The biggest thing is probably that you'll have to pay for things if you want something that's ethical and preserves your privacy, either a paid service or some initial investment into self-hosting (what I did). It's 100% worth it imo though, being mostly free from big tech feels really nice!

More specifically, I can highly recommend getting a Synology NAS and your own domain name. They have great replacements for many Google apps, and you can also try out open source alternatives with Docker.

[-] doingless@lemmy.world 8 points 11 months ago

I'm barely feeding my family and paying bills at this point. Paying for privacy, email or storage isn't an option. I guess I need to up my hobby IT game.

[-] cman6@lemmy.world 1 points 11 months ago
[-] Based_and_Cool@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 11 months ago

I've been using gmx which is a free EU email service with encryption paid for through ads but they don't harvest data and I just use IMAP into my nextcloud email app

[-] qjkxbmwvz@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 11 months ago

Cannot recommend Immich enough as a self-hosted Photos alternative. Obviously not a drop in replacement, and if you don't want to self-host it's not really feasible. But it is just awesome.

[-] dangblingus@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 11 months ago

How many google services do you have? I just have one, and if I ever deleted it, all of the google apps I use would become worthless.

[-] 0x2d@lemmy.ml 2 points 11 months ago

i switched to calyx os yesterday and i love it already!

[-] rekabis@lemmy.ca -3 points 11 months ago

You need to have effective replacements.

This is why Apple is so popular… much more thoroughly integrated, in many cases a better product, and for the most part paying more than just lip service to privacy.

About the only Google services I still use is the search engine (while it is still marginally useful), and Maps (since so many people on FB Marketplace also use it, so sending an address using a maps link is the ideal solution).

this post was submitted on 08 Jan 2024
2294 points (97.7% liked)

Technology

60047 readers
1487 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.


Our Rules


  1. Follow the lemmy.world rules.
  2. Only tech related content.
  3. Be excellent to each another!
  4. Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
  5. Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
  6. Politics threads may be removed.
  7. No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
  8. Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
  9. Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed

Approved Bots


founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS