Good software is as little software as possible
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After some current events, it’s come to my attention that some of you might want to know more about my tech stack.
I hold a few key principles in order to remain in right relationship to software:
- Plain text only.
- Subscriptions for infrastructure.
- Don’t use unpaid software.
- Disengage from fascism.
- Know what battles to fight.
In practice, this means that my tech stack is quite small & simple, and you will be able to point out all sorts of hypocrisies in it. For example:
- I’m typing this on an iPad, which was built by a company that has pledged fealty to a fascist regime. I would rather use the iPad than, like, Linux. Fine.
- Most of my domains & DNS are hosted by a former client whom I’ve known for 12 years. They are a tiny, family-run business. That being said, I also have a single domain that’s hosted by Hover, because it’s a .it domain and the Italian government hates tiny businesses. Scandal! Fine.
With that in mind, I have:
- A notes folder full of plain text files, including this one.
- Websites that run quickly, on a host that operates simply, with domains that are run by a different business that I know well.
- A small social media account on an independent server that I run myself. No accounts on unpaid social media, of course, have you looked outside at all lately.
- An email provider run by someone who I can text with whenever I want, who also happens to be an active client.
- A bare minimum of subscriptions, entirely for infrastructural matters. My only Apple subscriptions are for AppleCare and a text message filter that should be table stakes on iOS but is not for some reason. No other software on subscription. No fonts on subscription. No games on subscription, my god. If something goes subscription, I stop using it.
- One smart device at all, ever, which took eight years of discussion and a near-intervention to put into place. I just recently bought an oven, and they tried to put wifi in it. What.
I try to keep the number of domains that I own to a bare minimum, and I try to keep the attack surface of my tech footprint relatively redundant. I own a .org domain, and there was a scandal with .org domains a few years ago, so I now own a few redundant domains on other TLDs that I can switch over to if I need.
The goal is not technology based on some sort of arbitrary programmatic principles, but as little technology as possible to do a job that is fundamentally rooted in technology. Own every device, buy everything once, and move on.
I imagine many of you have questions about how all of this gets pulled off, so I’m happy to answer ‘em when I get back from vacation in a couple of weeks. Until then!
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