RMS talks still a thing?
I began learning about/researching free software over the summer of 2019 and got my libre computer in September. I've never had a chance to see an RMS talk (I wasn't aware free software was even a thing), and since he has resigned from the FSF I am wondering if he is still giving any? I would really love to go to one, but I have no idea how to find out.
>I've never had a chance to see an RMS talk (I wasn't aware free software was even a thing), and since he has resigned from the FSF I am wondering if he is still giving any?
His speaking schedule still links to an FSF page, but the schedule is currently empty: http://www.fsf.org/events/rms-speeches.html
You can contact him: rms at gnu dot org
He would probably enjoy hearing from you. Maybe you can help schedule a talk in your area.
Thanks! I had seen the FSF page that you linked before, alas it was after his resignation.
I'll try and send him an email, I still need to learn how to use PGP (or is it GPG?) to encrypt before sending to him!
> I'll try and send him an email, I still need to learn how to use PGP (or is it GPG?) to encrypt before sending to him!
There's a good Thunderbird tutorial here: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/digitally-signing-and-encrypting-messages
I am a member!
On 11/05/2019 12:53 PM, name at domain wrote:
>> I'll try and send him an email, I still need to learn how to use PGP
> (or is it GPG?) to encrypt before sending to him!
>
> There's a good Thunderbird tutorial here:
> https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/digitally-signing-and-encrypting-messages
>
What's wrong with the FSF's own guide?
https://emailselfdefense.fsf.org/
--
Caleb Herbert
KE0VVT
816-892-9669
https://bluehome.net/csh
Caleb Herbert <name at domain> wrote:
> On 11/05/2019 12:53 PM, name at domain wrote:
>>> I'll try and send him an email, I still need to learn how to use PGP (or is it GPG?) to encrypt before sending to him!
>>
>> There's a good Thunderbird tutorial here:
>> https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/digitally-signing-and-encrypting-messages
>
> What's wrong with the FSF's own guide?
> https://emailselfdefense.fsf.org/
It still steers users to use a proprietary service to distribute their pubkeys:
I am a member!
Not all services run by proprietary software are a concern. What
matters is what the service does, how it is used, etc. If you've read
all of Stallman's writings, you would know this.
--
Caleb Herbert
KE0VVT
816-892-9669
https://bluehome.net/csh
Caleb Herbert <name at domain> wrote:
> Not all services run by proprietary software are a concern.
It does not run on proprietary _software_. The issue with keys.openpgp.net is that it is not a node of SKS network but a isolated proprietary centralized _service_.
> If you've read all of Stallman's writings, you would know this.
If youʼve read through all (or at least some) the correspondence I enclosed, you would know this.
Mr. I-know-this, please reply to https://trisquel.info/forum/podcast-app-doesnt-censor#comment-144173 where, weeks ago, I asked for detailed explations in reaction to your supposed understanding of the problems Internet services raise.
> > What's wrong with the FSF's own guide?
> > https://emailselfdefense.fsf.org/
>
> It still steers users to use a proprietary service to distribute their
> pubkeys:
>
Having read through the thread you shared, it seems that the issue is
that Enigmail defaults to a non-standard, centralized keyserver. The
solutions I can think of are (a) recommend an another addon for using
PGP with Icedove, (b) recommend another email client instead of Icedove,
(c) distribute a fork of Enigmail which reverts the undesired change but
otherwise stays synchronized with upstream Enigmail versions, and
recommend this instead of upstream's version. What do you think should
be done?
I am a translator!
Riseup has a lot of gold on their website. One tiny fraction is about gpg --> https://riseup.net/en/gpg-best-practices
> Riseup has a lot of gold on their website. One tiny fraction is about gpg
> --> https://riseup.net/en/gpg-best-practices
This looks great. I just learned that I have some bad habits to change.
Thanks for the quick reply. I unfortunately can't use any email program because I'm using protonmail for free and the SMTP/IMAP activation requires a paid account. I was thinking of just encrypting plaintext then copying and emailing the crypttext.
> I unfortunately can't use any email program because I'm using
> protonmail for free and the SMTP/IMAP activation requires a paid
> account. I was thinking of just encrypting plaintext then copying and
> emailing the crypttext.
Or switch to Disroot. They don't require you to pay for basic
functionality like the ability to use your preferred email client,
although I'm sure a donation would be welcome if you like what they're
doing and can afford it.
Thanks I'll check it out. I was looking at the email page on the FSF website and there were a lot of cool ones like riseup and an italian-sounding one, but I'm not an activist so I never really tried to get one of those accounts.
At first glance the registration for disroot requires js, but I enabled it through noscript and there's no registration area.
> Thanks I'll check it out. I was looking at the email page on the FSF
> website
Keep in mind that that page is very out-of-date.
> and there were a lot of cool ones like riseup
RiseUp is a good option, if you know someone who can give you an invite
code.
> At first glance the registration for disroot requires js, but I enabled
> it through noscript and there's no registration area.
Is this the page you are looking at? I don't have JS enabled, and it
doesn't look like any elements are missing, although I did not try to
actually submit the form.
I found the signup link, I was being stupid going to the wrong part of the website :D
name at domain wrote:
> I was looking at the email page on the FSF website
Thatʼs evidently a bad place to look at, itʼs full of nonsense like:
— VFEmail. “Uses google syndication, and captcha - both non-free” — ‘recommended’.
— Mail.ru. “Sign up, sign in, and webmail all work smoothly” — ‘not recommended’.
— Tutanota. Even clearer attack on email network, than protonmail.com is: no standard access and thus no ability to encrypt mail even for paid users — ‘looks promising’.
> At first glance the registration for disroot requires js
Why does it actually bother you? Do not you try to say that registration on protonmail.com does not?
It doesn't bother me :P. I even said I disabled noscript, but I couldn't find the registration link...
What email would you recommend?
Is it not of concern that all emails, unless encrypted by the user (with gpg for example), are stored on the Disroot servers in plain-text?
> Is it not of concern that all emails, unless encrypted by the user (with
> gpg for example), are stored on the Disroot servers in plain-text?
I don't see how Disroot is unique in that regard.
So, given that RiseUp is not a generally available service (since a current user is needed to give one an invite code), would you regard Disroot, despite how e-mails are stored on its servers, as the second best option for replacing a mainstream e-mail provider like Google, Yahoo and the like? (The question does not consider hosting one's own e-mail, which I assume, if done correctly, would be the best option in any case).
> So, given that RiseUp is not a generally available service (since a
> current user is needed to give one an invite code), would you regard
> Disroot, despite how e-mails are stored on its servers, as the second
> best option for replacing a mainstream e-mail provider like Google,
> Yahoo and the like?
I have not thoroughly looked into RiseUp because I don't know anyone who
could give me an invite code. I do think that for a traditional email
service Disroot is pretty good. I'm not into the nonstandard approach
taken by Protonmail. It does simplify the process of setting up
encryption, but encryption only works with other Protonmail users. This
undermines the decentralization of email as a standard and looks
suspiciously walled-gardeny.
> (The question does not consider hosting one's own e-mail, which I
> assume, if done correctly, would be the best option in any case).
It would be the best, but it's hard to do. My ISP blocks port 25, so I
don't think it would even be possible for me unless I rented a virtual
server owned by someone else, which somewhat defeats the purpose.
In your opinion, what factors should one consider when choosing an e-mail provider; what should one look out for in all these various organisations/foundations etc., which propose an e-mail service that is respectful towards freedom and privacy?
I am a translator!
>because I don't know anyone who
could give me an invite code
Well, I can give you one, mate chaos. Feel free to mail me.*
*only chaos, random mails from random people will get ignored..
name at domain wrote:
> Thanks for the quick reply. I unfortunately can't use any email program because I'm using protonmail for free and the SMTP/IMAP activation requires a paid account
Then you definitely have to cease using it as soon as possible even if you are fine with insecure mail.
> I was thinking of just encrypting plaintext then copying and emailing the crypttext.
No, thatʼs a bad idea.
Isn't that what an email client does though? Just encrypt text within the email using the recipient's pubkey and thus only they can read it?
If I were to manually encrypt with RMS' pubkey and copy paste that encrypted bit what would be different about it?
Only thing I can think of that would compromise it is that in a MITM attack I use the wrong pubkey.
RMS will read your email even if it is not signed/encrypted. That said:
- if https://www.fsf.org/events/aggregator does not list his talks anymore (it should), then https://stallman.org would, but there is no announced talk on either page;
- RMS receives tons of email: I would not write to him only to only get his talk agenda (apparently empty, at least for the next months);
- if you want to organize such a talk (finding funds for his travel, having him stay at your home, etc.), then it is a different.
I'm a student still living with my parents, I doubt I can organize the talk and help RMS out in that regard haha. I am willing to travel along the East Coast US even if the talk was kind of far however.
I know encryption isn't necessary to send him an email, but I gotta do it for the man the myth the legend.
> use PGP
Install
kgpg.
name at domain wrote:
> I've never had a chance to see an RMS talk (I wasn't aware free software
> was even a thing), and since he has resigned from the FSF I am wondering
> if he is still giving any? I would really love to go to one, but I have
> no idea how to find out.
In lieu of seeing him in person you can see and hear many of his recorded
talks at https://audio-video.gnu.org/
They're worth hearing and thinking about; some of the talks cover larger
issues like ethics, copyright law, patent law, and why we need to consider
our terminology carefully.
It hasn't been updated for quite a while. RMS has been looking for volunteers to manage and update that site, but nothing happened so far.
name at domain wrote:
> It hasn't been updated for quite a while. RMS has been looking for
> volunteers to manage and update that site, but nothing happened so far.
While true, that amounts to being a dismissible detail because that makes
virtually no difference to what Stallman says in those talks. Similarly
with Stallman's essays on https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/ most of those
essays predate the talks on https://audio-video.gnu.org/ but are still
relevant and eminently useful to someone "learning about/researching free
software" as the original poster in this thread said.