Hi everyone! I'm still pretty new to the foss world and am actively working to de-google my life. I got a cheap used laptop and just installed Linux Mint so I can get some practice with Linux in general (raised as a Windows kid) and I have definitely appreciated the ease of Linux Mint, but I do plan to explore many other distros in the future as well.
I currently have the following:
Email: ProtonMail (and looking into Thunderbird and Tuta).
Messaging: Signal as my main, but I also have Molly that I am planning to migrate over once I can get my family on board.
Browser: Been heavily experimenting with this as I used to use the default browser (I have a Galaxy S23FE) and then switched to Firefox Focus while simultaneously checking out Brave (no, it's not still on my phone), however I am currently using IronFox as my main on my phone and LibreWolf as my main on my computers.
File storage: Proton Drive
Calendar: TimeTree (for friends/family) and Proton Calendar for personal.
VPN: Proton (I have the package deal) but have also been researching Mullvad as a possible future alternative.
Password Manager: Proton Pass (would be open to suggestions on others. I've heard BitWarden thrown around)
YouTube alternatives: Still playing around with LibreTube, FreeTube, and PeerTube, but I really like LibreTube's layout, just wish they'd pull the comments section too :/
Images/Videos: Also Proton Drive, but that's more of just a backup of them. Any suggestions in this area would be appreciated too!
I haven't had a chance to look heavily into it yet, but does anyone have any resources/knowledge on any banks that are foss-friendly? I'm in the US and there's plenty of laws around mandatory data, but if anyone knows of a bank that stops at that, I'd love to hear! I do eventually plan to go all-cash/pre-paid gift/credit cards, but a bank account seems necessary for now...
Anyways, please feel free to give me any and all suggestions! Thanks!
The Google homepage and search box is a thing of the past. I just decided one day a few years ago to not set my homepage to google anymore. I used to have a simple HTML local page but now I'm using Linkwarden. I keep all my links organized and searchable. Sounds funny and useless but let me tell you what is funny and useless.... Chrome, and google search and Gemini. Google is now an asshole company to be avoided like we did to Yahoo and whatever MSN used to be and the other facebooks...Orkut, and that other famous one. Likos! Go get Google! Mr. Jeeves, make sure you guys make room in the forgotten spaces of the web for Google.