Fw: Answering your privacy computer questions...

[Anne Underwood]

Some in the Valley Ham community may be interested in info contained in this forwarded email.. This is a learning experience for me also... I know hardly anything about Linux, but I am willing to learn and/or look onto it.

A.Underwood, KA1LSK

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From: Glenn Meder <in...@privacyactionplan.com>
Sent: Saturday, June 7, 2025 11:15:13 AM
To: Anne <underw...@hotmail.com>
Subject: Answering your privacy computer questions...

 

​ Answering your privacy computer questions... If you haven't watched this week's class yet... You can watch it here. Hi Anne I wanted to send you a quick message because we have been receiving a TON of questions about the class we held about private computers this week. Instead of answering every question one-by-one, I thought you may enjoy hearing some of the most common questions and answers... Before I share the Q&A, here are some important links... FIRST, catch the replay right here, which we will keep up until Sunday at midnight (this includes the live Q&A from the webinar). SECOND, if you haven't seen our line up of privacy computers, I recommend that you check them out here. Each computer is private out of the box, and include lifetime access to our special training course "Private Computers Made Easy". These sell out extremely fast! So make sure you order early if you would like to get yours soon. We plan to take both the replay and the special offer down Sunday night. Ok! Now on to the Q/A: Dave asks: I use Microsoft Office often, can I use this on Linux? Answer: There are fantastic free, open source alternatives to Microsoft Office on Linux. I personally like using LibreOffice. Another great alternative is OnlyOffice. Both software applications allow you to open Word, Excel, Powerpoint, etc. documents in them and you can even save the documents in the same way. The experience is very similar. And if you send a document to someone who uses Microsoft Office, they would never know the difference. This is a great example of how you can operate normally on Linux. Robert asks: Can't I just disable CoPilot or Apple Intelligence? Answer: This is a great question, and I get asked it a lot. It's a bit of a loaded question to answer, so let me in answer it in multiple parts. For the time being, you can "turn CoPilot off". But, that brings on the question... do you trust Microsoft? Microsoft is closed source, so even if we remove it from the surface who knows what they are capturing behind the scenes. Soon, you won't even be able to remove it from the surface. In October they will cancel support for Windows 10 computers, forcing people to move towards Windows 11 only. They are also starting to release AI hardware in all of their devices. A good analogy for this is how they are moving people to electric/surveillance cars. Canceling support (Or in that sense, making the excuse of carbon emission zones). Mary asks: Can I just use Windows 7 to protect my data from being spied on by AI? Answer: This is a fantastic follow-up question... and the answer is actually quite simple. You cannot use an operating system that is no longer being supported. This is EXTREMELY dangerous. Remember, there are three threats to online privacy and security. And although big tech and big brother are the largest big picture threat... hackers and scammers are the immediate threat. When an operating system is no longer getting updates to it, it becomes an extremely easy target for hackers and scammers. If you do not update to a supported and up to date operating system, the chance of being hacked and scammed goes through the roof. Todd asks: Do these computers work globally? Answer: Simply put, yes! These are not region restricted. If you are asking regarding shipping, I recommend reaching out to us at Sup...@PrivacyAcademy.com to see how the shipping works to your country. Susan asks: What is coreboot? Is it important to have? Answer: Basically coreboot is a open-source version of BIOS. BIOS is the operating system underneath the operating system. Coreboot is a much better option, because it is open source, it also offers a lot more security and privacy than other options that don't offer coreboot. So, simply put yes. It is very important. George asks: Are Linux computers reliable? Will I have to replace it in a year? Answer: Yes, Linux computers are very reliable! Windows computers are infamous for bloating and slowing down over time. Linux is very lightweight, and can last a long time. You should be able to use these computers for many years no problem! Martin asks: Is Linux hard to use? How can I learn it? Answer: Traditionally Linux has been only available for "tech-geeks" because of how hard it is to use. That has changed. Now with the right operating system, you can use Linux as easily as you can use a Windows or Mac computer. It really is a fantastic operating system. It is also open source. That’s why I created a comprehensive course all about easily switching to Linux. ​ ​ You can check out the computers here.​ They come with lifetime access to the course, as well as the live set-up trainings. The truth is Big tech companies will never respect your privacy. They are a glorified “wing” of big-brother surveillance. You need to take back your privacy today. Glenn P.S. I just wanted to give you a heads up, our computer suppliers are small businesses, and they cannot "print" laptops on demand like big companies (like Dell or Apple). In the past, we have sold out our suppliers' stock in 2 days, and some of the computers take months to restock. Please be aware that they may sell out very fast. P.P.S. Feel free to share this link with your friends and family, because this is essential information. ​ ​Unsubscribe | Update your profile | PO Box 82267, Lincoln, NE 68501

[Bob McCracken]

There are a lot of hams who are avid Linux users and I would highly recommend Linux to anyone who wants to get away from Microsoft.

Please know that there are many versions Of Linux out there to choose from. 

If you are a new Linux user and are looking for something that has that Windows feel, then I would recommend

you look into Zorin OS. It's based on Ubuntu which is a widely used Linux distribution package and it is FREE. 

Now Zorin OS does have a $$ Pro version that offers the Windows 11 look and feel if that is what you are after.

Zorin OS has been around for years, and trust me, you can make an old laptop or PC come alive again.  

For those interested here is a link that will give you an introduction, https://zorin.com/about/

Bob

N4JGO

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