A libre program is a program that fulfills these 4 basic freedoms.
- The freedom to run the program as you wish, for any purpose (freedom 0).
- The freedom to study how the program works, and change it so it does your computing as you wish (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
- The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help others (freedom 2).
- The freedom to distribute copies of your modified versions to others (freedom 3). By doing this you can give the whole community a chance to benefit from your changes. Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
- Bonus points if it is cross-platform (can run on Windows or MacOS) or replaces a proprietary program
Jitsi Meet
Jitsi Meet is a free software program that allows users to create video calls with each other. Licensed under Apache 2.0, anyone is able to launch their own Jitsi Meet instance and be able to talk to their friends and family without having their freedoms revoked.
This application can be used to replace proprietary video conferencing apps like Zoom and Google Meets which in addition to being nonfree, un-auditable programs have also shown time and time again to disrespect its users even further such as forcefully integrating AI anti features and forcing users to be trapped in their cultivated video conferencing garden of stings.
- Read more about the security of Jitsi if you're interested.
Jitsi Meet can be run on any operating system that has access to a web browser. There is also offline binaries for Linux distributions from Flathub. It's also available on mobile operating systems in both F-Droid and proprietary app stores.
How can I use it?
Jitsi Meet can be used gratis on the behalf of Jitsi here, however it requires the user to sign in with either Google, Facebook, or Github; all proprietary platforms.
Luckily, Framasoft still has a fully gratis Jitsi Meet service at Framatalk which does not require a third-party login.
Stop Zoomin' and use Jitsi Meet, self host one if you can to further ensure your freedom and your community.
Share your favorite Free software program here and help others!
Day 4 of libreposting :-)
FreeCAD is an extensive CAD program that can do a ton. It's a little daunting but totally worth investing the time to learn!
KiCAD is a fantastic electronics schematic and PCB design software that totally eclipsed EagleCAD in the hobbyist and prosumer market over the last decade or so.
FreeCAD is dope as hell. There are a lot of things about it I prefer over Creo Parametric. The Fillet tool can drive me insane though.
I smuggled a copy of RealThunder's branch into work which I use it to create 2D geometry in the sketcher workbench which I then feed into D.P. Systems Esprit (hella proprietary) to generate toolpaths for wire EDMs. Most of these are one-off jobs, but we have one production job which originated as a FreeCAD sketch. I also model a bunch of random shit in Part Design for my 3D printer at home.
Here's the last project I worked on:
This is so rad. Been going back and forth whether I should buy a printer since I'm not super well-versed in 3D modeling (some experience with SketchUp and Blender is all)
Blender is nice specially if you want to make more "artsy" prints. Another good one for the Freedom list too!