I don’t know, but that’s a great idea! I hope someone else here can answer.

Maybe I can bring it up in the group during the challenge. Any idea what good hosting alternatives are, especially for huge businesses?

Thank you!

Thank you! I WISH I could help people de-AWS. Do you think it would be worth writing to the biggest companies that use it–or companies that may be more amenable, like Signal–and asking them to use alternatives like X, Y or Z? I could always float that idea in the group after the challenge starts.

It’s just about doing what we can. I read an article by a tech journalist who experimented with de-AWS-ing, and it was pretty much impossible to use the internet. If you have any tips on how challenge participants can do that even to a small extent, that would be fabulous! But otherwise we’ll be disengaging from Amazon shops, Amazon-owned businesses, etc.

Oh yeah, I don’t think we’ll be getting off AWS or Google Cloud anytime soon unless the big websites decide to look elsewhere for hosting…but we are doing everything we can!

I can’t remember, but I think I wanted to be sure anti-tracker extensions was after installing a new browser…otherwise you’d double your work. This is not an iPhone guide; later in the course we talk about getting a privacy-forward phone OS.

Thank you! You think I should create a degoogling megathread in /privacy? (Sorry, I’m new.)

I closed it yesterday so we’re all starting in the same place. If you give me your signal handle I can add you manually!

Thanks for your comment! I’m fairly new at this myself…I started degoogling, etc. maybe 2-3 years ago.

If it helps, this article has info on a service that lets you buy throwaway numbers for verifying accounts. I used it once and it worked, and cost only a couple bucks: How to Verify an Account Without Using Your Real Phone Number

I think you only need your number to verify Signal, right? If that’s the case, this could work. (Or can you use your MySudo number?) I hope it helps, and hope to see you in the group!

Sounds like you are a lot more advanved than me!

Yes, those look amazing and are next on my list!

Hi there! We’ll be following the checklist I linked to in the main post. It will be very casual, and we’ll all just do the best we can!

Appreciate it! If this goes well I might do a de-Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, or something else…or run this one again.

Thank you!

I’m only about 3/4 of the way through but I love it! I’m on a trip, but as soon as I get back I can’t wait to try this. I’ll also share it with some groups I’m in. THANK YOU.

We should even make a video where I interview you on some of these things for a MUCH less techie audience. There are a LOT of retired people I know who have money, they have time, and they hate what’s happening here…but I would never be able to convince them to do some of this stuff. And these people are ignored!

What do you think? I could ask the most very basic questions on why this is important, how to make it as simple as possible, etc. (I’m a semi-retired journalist so I have LOTS of experience interviewing. :)

I hope you’ll join my 5-week degoogle challenge! https://signal.group/#CjQKIPfv-Xa5mSVIES2Rwx5-8tQHT8wgADjmXXAp6Glu23V-EhCM50toN-KpLV4lXJg1TM3Q

Wow, thank you! I’ll check it out later!

Thanks! I recommended SimpleSearch because it’s good for people who can’t/don’t want to stop using Googl Search.

Fixed, thanks!

Thanks for the tips! Yeah, it’s hard to know where to draw the line, but since I’m focused on beginners, I figured these tools/platforms were the basics.

Good idea to bundle mail and calendar. I can do that with a few tweaks. And will fix the extra mention of uninstalling Chrome.

Thanks again!