Yes, there are a few good open-source office suites, but there are fewer that are server based, and actually collaboration based, like ONLYOFFICE DocSpace is (they also have a server version that installs from a Docker image).

Building a secure collaborative environment on a private Linux server definitely sounds like a good idea. Especially if you have to interact with other people and work with them on important documents, some of which might be confidential. In this case, you need a protected workplace with document editing and co-authoring features where you could set right the required access permissions for each collaborator.

ONLYOFFICE DocSpace is a new software tool that became available for local deployment not too long ago. In a nutshell, it’s a web-based collaborative platform designed to allow teams and individual users to manage and collaborate on documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and electronic forms in customizable rooms.

The platform is equipped with ONLYOFFICE Docs, an online office suite, that provides a complete set of formatting and editing tools for different content, including e-books and PDF files.

Moreover, the integrated office suite offers various features for real-time document collaboration, such as two co-editing modes, document review, version history, chat, comments, and video/audio calls enabled by the Zoom and Jitsi plugins.

And although there are paid hosted versions (that many organisations prefer to use for support purposes), you can also self-host a free community version, or even install on individual desktops for standalone use. Something I like about both ONLYOFFICE and FreeOffice, is that they both start up their apps just about instantly, whereas LibreOffice has a much longer lag to start-up. So it is always worth doing a bit of testing first before deciding on what you want to use.

See https://www.tecmint.com/install-onlyoffice-docspace-on-linux/

#technology #opensource #officesuite #collaboration

For over two decades, Captchas have been deployed as security checks by websites to block potentially harmful bots by presenting puzzles that are supposed to be straightforward for people to solve – but very difficult for computers.

Engaged in an arms race with bots, Captchas have since evolved into an annoying presence on the internet, becoming increasingly more and more difficult to solve for both bots and humans.

However, the new yet-to-be peer-reviewed research, posted in arXiv, finds bots are able to quickly crack Captcha tests with ease, suggesting global effort users put into cracking these puzzles every day may be more trouble than it’s worth.

The irony of this is just too much, and it's made me feel pretty stupid sometimes. I remember struggling for ages with the Epic Games website captcha (along with many others who were complaining). I see Cloudflare had been working on a more modern method (something to do with how the mouse moves to click inside the tick box) which is quicker and always seems to work for me.

But yes, I don't suppose the results of this survey will surprise anyone.

See https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/captcha-test-bots-better-humans-b2389998.html

#technology #captcha

Are you frustrated with trying to source news about your interests from busy social media bias, or all the clutter and distractions of actual news websites? Don't have time to visit 20 different websites to find your news? Or maybe your news for a site is only published every week or two, and you don't want to miss it? This is where a good RSS reader can help you!

Unlike most commercial online RSS reader services which have limitations, or self-hosted services which are a bit more complicated to install and set-up, a desktop RSS reader is quick and easy to get going with.

I explain in this video why you may want to use an RSS reader, and also demonstrate how easy it is to use Fluent Reader, and what it does. It is cross-platform for Windows, Linux, and macOS and can sync reading progress across devices and even with mobile apps.

Watch https://youtu.be/XLhZ-ROYv6c

#technology #fluentreader #opensource #RSS #news

Zoom's March 31st terms and conditions Clause 10.4 change stating user conversations could be used in any way they wished, without an opt-out, had ruffled some feathers. It has again been updated to now state they won't use customer content to train their AI without your consent. Still, it has got many to reconsider their use of Zoom, and in fact there are many other excellent choices out there.

One of my favourites is Jitsi Meet. Not only is it open-source, and you can even self-host it yourself, but it is packed with many features you'd find in most other video conferencing platforms. There are gallery views, breakout rooms, virtual whiteboards, virtual backgrounds, screen sharing, recordings, polls, text chat, raise hands/GIPHY, moderation tools, live streaming, speaker time stats, etc.

What I especially like is the very easy one-link invites to others to join via their desktop or mobile web browser, and that it does not have that 40-minute limit that Zoom places on free meetings. For two weeks running now Zoom has cut off our weekly family meeting early, first it was 17 seconds and last week it was a full one-minute early (despite what the meeting time clock showed).

Although it works very well in a browser, you can also install their desktop apps, or mobile apps for Android and iOS.

See https://meet.jit.si/

#technology #Zoom #JitsiMeet #videoconference

AntennaPod is a podcast manager and player that gives you instant access to millions of free and paid podcasts, from independent podcasters to large publishing houses such as the BBC, NPR and CNN. Add, import and export their feeds hassle-free using the Apple Podcasts database, OPML files or simple RSS URLs.

Download, stream or queue episodes and enjoy them the way you like with adjustable playback speeds, chapter support and a sleep timer.

Made by podcast-enthusiasts, AntennaPod is free in all senses of the word: open source, no costs, no ads. And this is also clear from the aspect that they have an integration with gpodder.net, which allows you to sync your podcasts, as well as playback progress, between your Android device and a Windows, macOS or Linux desktop podcast player.

This app does look like a pretty good alternative to Pocket Casts (which upset a few people with their big subscription increase). The app is available both via the Google App Store (a 4.8 star rating from over 500,000 downloads and 43,800 reviews) as well as F-Droid. The source code was updated about 3 weeks back, so it shows the project is quite active.

See https://github.com/AntennaPod/AntennaPod

#technology #opensource #podcasts #AntennaPod #privacy

Apart from many of the usual customisations, Neo Launcher also The Dash, and can handle categories or folder in the app drawer.

Being true open source, the app is not available on the Google App Store, so you can get it from F-Droid store or directly from the Github project site (as over 76,000 other users have done).

See https://github.com/NeoApplications/Neo-Launcher

#technology #Android #opensource

Actually, with most server based social networks your identity is linked to theirs, and their admin has final control over everything i.e. whether your account stays up, whether you can use a specific identity on their platform, what you are allowed to post from that identity, etc.

Some decentralised networks like Friendica and Fediverse accounts can allow a server-based profile to be migrated elsewhere, but it needs access to the original account to do so. A possible exception is Hubzilla, with its channel-based posting. A Hubzilla channel can be mirrored to other Hubzilla servers, using its Zot protocol. If anything happens to your primary channel, you can switch to one of your secondary channels and carry on posting with all your old content, followers, etc.

With Bluesky and its AT protocol, they have introduced handles based on a personal domain name that you own. So it could be that you go to a different AT protocol server and retain that same identity. But we have not seen this in practice, and it may not retain all your followers and other data.

There are networks where you do truly own your identity, but those are serverless social networks such as the peer-to-peer Aether, Secure Scuttlebutt, etc networks. Your identity is kept at your peer on your own computer, and you connect to others directly without passing through any servers. But these networks are more difficult to discover others, as well as to use across devices (often each device is its own separate identity).

And then there is also Nostr which also tried to solve this issue in quite a clever way with their Nostr protocol. Your identity is tied to a cryptographic keypair like someone has a PGP public and private keypair for encrypted e-mail or documents. Only you know the keypair, and it replicates your identity as well as your posts through multiple relays. Unlike P2P networks, if you sign in on a different device with your keypair, your identity (photo, name, ID, followers, following) is all replicated to that device automatically, and you can post from there as if on your primary device. The account will operate seamlessly from multiple locations.

So much like security, the greater the ownership and control, the slightly more complex the ownership becomes.

I suppose for most people, the Fediverse (Mastodon, Misskey, Pixelfed, Friendica, etc) does what they need. You can pick a network and a server that most closely suites your own values, and if you still have access to your account, you can migrate it away to a different server. With Fediverse networks, you are certainly not held to ransom by just one network owner.

It is the job also of the various mobile app creators to try to make the sign-up and migration processes as simple as possible, and to also provide intuitive and easy to use user interfaces. We are seeing more and better quality apps now becoming available for Fediverse networks.

See https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/08/x-user-super-pissed-that-musk-ordered-takeover-of-his-music-account/

#technology #socialnetworks #X #Fediverse

Wi-Fi extenders (basically just adding a remote router connected by an Ethernet cable, or even just Wi-Fi) are, on paper at least, quite appealing. And why wouldn’t they be? Who doesn’t like an inexpensive solution to a complex problem? Fifty bucks or less to finally get Wi-Fi all the way across your house or out to the corner of the patio where your hammock is set up sounds like a great deal.

And while, in some cases, a Wi-Fi extender can be a useful and economical solution to your Wi-Fi issues, it’s largely a band-aid slapped over bigger problems with your network. They introduce latency, airwave congestion, and impact your overall network bandwidth and user experience.

For the vast majority of people, but especially those in a large or sprawling home, switching to a mesh Wi-Fi system is a massive upgrade in Wi-Fi technology, overall power, and coverage. That’s because far too many people are using really old stand-alone traditional routers and/or relying on the bargain all-in-one Wi-Fi-router-modem combo unit their ISP gave them.

So yes, a mesh Wi-Fi system is often better because it is all new technology, it is the same brand working well together, and it is usually a few devices covering everywhere. It also includes smart software to help manage many devices moving around between those nodes. But they do cost a lot more!

My problem is just a weakish area in my back garden, and it did not justify me spending the money for an area I don't use regularly. I went for just adding a Wi-Fi extender router, but I cabled it with 1 Gbps Ethernet to the main router, and kept the same SSID to make it seamless. It also does it's DHCP from the main router, so I can still manage everything centrally. That said, my Asus RT-AC88U main router (powered by Asuswrt-Merlin software) is pretty smart, and it is not a basic 'free' ISP router.

So, although a Mesh Wi-Fi is best, you may want to still weigh up your options before diving in. The linked article expands on Mesh Wi-Fi a bit more, with some additional links to more information.

See https://www.howtogeek.com/818404/dont-buy-a-wi-fi-extender-buy-this-instead/

#technology #networking #routers #meshnetworks