Notices by 𝓻𝓻𝓪 (rra@post.lurk.org)

"AI therefore currently, and under current conditions, only helps to carry on with business as usual[...], and sustainable #AI only works as change placebo resulting in placebo change; or to put it more concisely: “sustainable AI is the technical solution to the #climate crisis from a techno-solutionist vantage point simply reproducing the status quo."

https://policyreview.info/articles/news/impossibility-sustainable-artificial-intelligence/1804

Wow this struck a chord, it seems I was not the only one who was not aware of this story!

Some additional info:

@teclista shared that the protagonists are on the fedi as well (of course they are!):
https://mas.to/@teclista/113872887620692513

@__nate__ wrote about the episode in several papers (for example: https://networkcultures.org/cpov/2011/01/15/spanish_fork/) and also a book: https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/W/bo19085555.html

@rwg also wrote about the episode in a book:
https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt14bssk4.9

"in the light of US tech oligarchy setting its sights on Wikimedia Foundation" was referring to things such as https://hachyderm.io/@molly0xfff/113868325221306547

Finally, I don't have a soundcloud to promote, but I'd really like to see the first paid position for Trust & Safety on the fediverse get funded:
https://givebutter.com/givingmastodon

please chip in if you care about digital commons

In light of US tech oligarchy setting its sights on Wikimedia Foundation, a historical detail I did not know before: #Wikipedia became the non-profit it is today partly as the result of a labour strike of Spanish Wikipedia editors who disagreed with the proposed inclusion of advertisements. Initially, it was not clear what revenue model Wikipedia would get, and Wales moved towards a for-profit model already a year after launch. However, rather than working for free, so Jimmy Wales could profit from their labour via advertising, Spanish contributors forked Spanish Wikipedia as the Encyclopedia Libre Universal. Under the threat of losing the editorial community of such a large language, Wales conceded and set up the non-profit.

That is to say, however imperfect they are, all the digital commons we have are the result of ongoing struggle and hard work to keep them as commons.

Via Las Redes Son Nuestras (https://www.consonni.org/es/publicaciones/las-redes-son-nuestras) by @teclista

@ayoub have a look at the archive of The Rest Is History!

@dymaxion @hugo @iraantlers Yeah tbh I think self-repair is overrated when it comes to phones. Pixels have a lot of spare parts sourced from original phones that you can order online and then bring to a local technician for professional repair. You will *have to* with Pixels because they are incredibly fragile in my experience. Speaking of sys-adminning a phone in scandinavia, I have two identical models so that when one breaks *again* I can hotswap while waiting for repairs without losing access to public institutions 💩It is such a sad state of affairs.

"Community servers for interdependent #feminist trans*feminist free/libre self-hosted #federated autonomous collective #cooperative community and #art servers "

A thorough historic overview by @monoskop

https://monoskop.org/Community_servers

How to Build an Electrically Heated Table?

https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2024/12/how-to-build-an-electrically-heated-table/

With once again great illustrations by @marieverdeil

Here is one for #lazyweb

What year(s) would you say #cloud #computing broke through and why was it that year?

And connected to that: When did VPS (virtual private #server ) technology become mainstream?

I'm not looking for a date those first appeared, but rather when they became mainstream parts of hosting and development practices?

:boost_requested:

TLSv1.3 (OUT), TLS handshake, Client hello

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atcqMWqB3hw

This piece about bitcoin mining and noise pollution has such a density to it..

the notion of noise pollution and its effects

the way the mine looks, where it is, why it is there and how it sustains and necessitates fossil fuel plants

the way the noise pollution wilts humans, animals and the trees and how the article centers discusses them (that portrait of the atrophying dog)

the former oathkeeper, trying to address it but so firmly stuck in his ideology of "non-political"

Only oversight is that they could have really underscored that decibels are a logarithmic scale and an increase of 3db is double the power emitted.

https://time.com/6982015/bitcoin-mining-texas-health/

https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2024/03/15/poetin-komt-tanken-bij-vlissingen-a4193179

Last week the NRC reported about a little-known refueling (bunkering) point in the south-west of the #Netherlands, at the entrance of the Schelde near #vlissingen. The newspaper uncovered that it is being used by a #shadow #fleet of often badly maintained and very old tanker vessels which play a pivotal role in turning sanctioned Russian #oil in to not sanctioned oil. The vessels make their way from Baltic ports along the North Sea, either to India or Turkey. The newspaper called this bunkering point "Putin's petrol station", because on the way back the sanctioned vessels stock up on fuel. The ships all fly under several different "flags of convenience" and as their companies get put on sanction lists, the ships move to other owners.

It is not often that international politics, global capital, supply chains, the news and infrastructure congeal the way it does at Putin's Pitstop so I had to go take a look #infrastructours.

infra thread!

> In relation to other struggles in Germany, with this occupation, we want to take the next step in the fight for climate justice, because we are trying to bring in water as an issue, and we are trying to debunk the narrative of “green growth,” the idea that electric cars are solving the problem. At the same time, this occupation is related to the anti-fascist movement, because Elon Musk is also part of the fascist problem.

https://crimethinc.com/2024/03/08/germany-the-fight-against-the-tesla-gigafactory-some-occupy-the-forest-some-shut-down-the-power-grid

@CrimethInc

Low-Tech Magazine explores techniques of the past and combines them with the knowledge of today to propose more sustainable futures.

Based on this idea, Kris de Decker and Roel Roscam Abbing organize an evening exploring concepts from the Internet's history that can help create a more sustainable future internet. With talks by Kris De Decker, @rra and @timrodenbroeker

How about systems where independent publishers could own their platform? Or what about media where you actually get to see posts from those you follow?

The evening will start with short talks and then make space for a larger discussion and chats over a drink. Are you curious what fresh ideas from the past can tell us about the future and who are the people working on them? Join us at #Akasha Hub in #Barcelona on the 21st of February.

More info: https://www.meetup.com/es-ES/akashabarcelona/events/299157033/

Poster design by @johannagratzer

In 2015 I organized a tour of data centres, internet and energy infrastructures to explore the question why data centers are built where they are built (https://test.roelof.info/projects/infrastructours/).

After the tour there was a lunch where people could make their own Double-Irish Dutch Sandwiches.

The recipe helps complete the picture of what makes "a good environment" for a multinational company and their data centers.

I rediscovered it again the other day and added it to my blog: https://test.roelof.info/log/double-irish-dutch-sandwich/

#broodje #kaas

Smartphone manufacturers have recently begun announcing they will support their newer models of phones with at least five years of software updates. They like you to believe they are taking responsibility by themselves at the benefit of us the consumer.

The reality is that the new EU #Ecodesign guidelines are forcing them to do this if they want to stay on the European market:
https://repair.eu/news/new-eu-rules-smartphones-and-tablets-will-follow-new-ecodesign-requirements-by-june-2025/

via @jessika_richter

@tchambers @mastodonusercount In the chapter "Seven Theses on the Fediverse" (https://monoskop.org/images/c/cc/Mansoux_Aymeric_Abbing_Roel_Roscam_2020_Seven_Theses_on_the_Fediverse_and_the_Becoming_of_FLOSS.pdf) which was written at the end of 2019 we have 3.5M accounts and 5000 instances.

When was the last time you saw a CW? Is it just me or did these fade out of use?

Did you know gas stations in Sweden have an ingredient list for fuels? Did you know some 'bio diesel' is almost 100% animal fats?

The Dutch public broadcast organization NPO ( (like a BBC or PBS) is now running its own mastodon instance with handles on its main domain!

Radio 1: @nporadio1

The instance itself is at https://social.npo.nl/

@despens forget the facebook algorithm, people will get red pilled on about:blank now