#Alternatives

[thirdity]

For me fiction is a way of asking: what if things were other than they are? And a central component of that is to ask: what if I was different than I am? I have always found the practice of writing fiction far more an escape from self than an exploration of it.

Zadie Smith, "The I Who Is Not Me"

[alradeck]

Anti AI alternatives to DA and my experience. by ALRadeck. I originally meant to post this to twitter but this works here too. For folks who have a DA site and hate themselves. 

[anarchywoofwoof]

Alternatives to Mainstream Online Platforms

Facebook | Diaspora, Friendica

Twitter | Mastodon, Pleroma Left/Anarcho/Alt friendly sites: todon.nl, todon.eu, ni.hil.ist, kolektiva.social

Reddit | Raddle

Youtube | Peertube Left/Anarcho/Alt friendly sites: Squat!Net Peertube, Kolektiva Peertube

Gmail/Hotmail |

Free Riseup, ProtonMail, Tutanota, Disroot email, Autistici email

Paid Mailbox, StartMail

Instagram/Imgur/Flickr | Pixelfed

Forums | Discourse, Disroot Discourse, nodebb, Raddle

Wordpress.org | noblogs.org, network23, Pleroma

Whatsapp, Telegram, SMS | Signal (Centralized), Matrix, Briar, Silence

Slack, Discord | Matrix, Rocket Chat, Pixie.town, Revolt (Unencrypted), Mattermost, IRC, XMPP

Google Docs | CryptPad, Disroot nextcloud

Political Organizing | Amplify, Mobilizon

Events Agenda | radar.squat.net

Craigslist | Freecycle

Apple Maps, Bing Maps, Google Maps, Yahoo! Maps | OpenStreetMap

[tightwadspoonies]

What To Do... Hygiene Edition

If you don't have a toothbrush-

The goal of brushing teeth is to prevent tooth decay. Prevent tooth decay by preventing bacteria buildup on teeth. Plaque (the slimy film that appears on teeth after a day or two) is a buildup of bacteria, saliva, and tiny food particles. If you can remove this once or twice a day, before it becomes hard (tartar) you are much less likely to have cavities and gum disease.

You can do this without a toothbrush by taking a small piece of rough cloth (like the corner of a washcloth or towel) and rubbing it all over your teeth twice per day. Rinse it well afterwards and let it dry completely (preferably in the sun) between uses.

If you don't have toothpaste-

Toothpaste is a paste containing rough particles, flavorings, and other chemicals that remove and may help prevent plaque and tarter from forming.

If you're doing a good job brushing your teeth to disrupt that plaque formation, you technically don't need toothpaste. However, if you would like a little bit of freshness or feel like you need more than just a brush or cloth, you can take a pinch of baking soda and (optional) add a drop or two of flavored extract (like vanilla or peppermint- DO NOT USE ESSENTIAL OILS FOR THIS). Put this on your toothbrush or cloth and brush as normal.

If you don't have deodorant-

Deodorant is not absolutely necessary for health, but if you work somewhere that has a "hygiene code" or some BS you probably need to smell like something other than a human.

The recipe is the same as toothpaste above. A pinch of baking soda and (optional) a drop of extract like vanilla or peppermint. Rub under each armpit.

If you don't have lip balm-

Lip balm is often necessary in colder or dryer climates to prevent cracking and infection. Any fat can be used as lip balm, for example, petroleum jelly (Vaseline), lard, butter, vegetable oils, your own face grease, etc... Just put a drop on a finger and rub on your lips until it rubs in.

If you don't have toilet paper-

You will need a plastic cup and a wash cloth. Use the plastic cup to pour water over the soiled area. If it's poop you'll need to use your hand to make sure everything washes off. Once clean, use the wash cloth to dab up any remaining water. Wash your hands well afterward.

This might sound horrible if you're used to toilet paper, but it is used all over the world and leaves you a lot cleaner than TP does.

If you don't have soap-

For handwashing- use water to wash anything visible off the hands, then follow with hand sanitizer or a few drops of rubbing alcohol to sanitize.

For body washing- You don't actually want soap for most of your body, including your privates. Wash with water only. For hair (since it tends to look greasy if unwashed), use a few teaspoons of baking soda or tablespoons of lemon juice and rub it in. This will help get rid of dirt and grease when soap or shampoo is not available.

If you don't have nail clippers-

Use sharp scissors. While these might be more challenging the first time and you'll need to be careful, you can absolutely use scissors for nail clippers, it's what everyone did before the invention and popularization of nail clippers.

[s-n-arly]

Hey, are there any alternatives for google.doc?

It depends on what you're using Google Docs for. If it's a word processor, I really love the Libre Office suite. It's got a match for everything in the Microcrap Office suite and it doesn't piss me off the way Word does. If you are using Google Docs for collaboration and sharing, it's probably the easiest and cheapest option, especially if you are sharing with people not on the same network and you want to have access to the same documents at the same time. If you don't need access simultaneously, you can ship a text document (doc/docx/odt/etc) via email and use track changes to identify who made what changes. Microsoft has One Drive, which is supposed to be good for file sharing, but it is not. It sucks and made me want to poke out my eyes with sticks.

Hope this helps.

[basicallyanotherwitchesthing]

Psychic Life, Vol. 5 No. 6, Deja Vu Pub., 1985

[minu-moni]

Looking for possible alternatives for Google Docs

Considering the state of the world currently and especially regarding AI, I wanted to get a hold on possible alternatives for Google Docs, but nothing I’ve seen so far has appealed to me

I’m looking for apps that might be used for writing with these features:

1. Mobile portability

I write primarily using my phone, but to post stuff on ao3 I need to use the computer because the interface is awful on mobile, so it has to be an app I could use both on my phone and on my computer.

2. Offline usage

I don’t always have internet and don’t want to lose all progress I might have done offline.

3. Free or cheap (preferably free)

I’m Brazilian. Everything that costs a dollar will cost FIVE TIMES the price to me, so I’m not doing the bullshit that Scrivener does that would force me to pay for TWO licenses, which would unironically cost HALF the money I make in a month. It’s either free or under 100 reais (about 20 dollars, but the number might go down if the dollar gets more expensive).

4. Simple and ORGANIZED interface

I’m a slow learner and frankly don’t care about fancy writing stuff that I’m never gonna use. Please, I don’t want those apps that have a shit ton of stuff splashed on the screen, they’ll just confuse me more than anything and I’ll never use any of that trash. Just give me a word counter and I’ll be happy.

— —

For now I’m sticking with Google docs, it’s the best option to me even if it starts lagging after about 40k words. It seems better than every other option I’ve come across.

But if anyone knows of a better app I could use, please let me know! 🙏🙏🙏

[normystical]

Alternative word for "simp"? Apparently that's AAVE and I'm misusing it. I want something that can mean "person who is attracted to a character" but I don't want to replace, for instance, "Vox simp" with "Vox lover" or "Vox fangirl" because I do carnally desire him but also I fucking hate him. I am not in any way his fangirl nor do I love him. What other words can I use? Please and thank you

[evilhorse]

Sometimes shame is the cause, Rachel. It was the best option we had.

(Rise of the Powers of X #3)

[punkbakerchristine]

it’s starting to get cool at night again (ah, life at high altitude), and thus, it has me in a fall mood. so, are you like me and tired of seeing pumpkin spice everything by the time the end of august rolls around (especially when you’re like me and you don’t really like pumpkin, anyway)?

last year, i compiled a list of flavors to substitute pumpkin spice.

allow me to be like robin hood with these 🔥🍂

apple cinnamon 

ginger snap (gingerbread, too)

mexican hot chocolate 

apple + honey

orange + cloves

maple syrup, cinnamon, and nutmeg

white chocolate + cranberries 

pear + ginger

maple + bourbon with goat cheese 

allspice + vanilla

hazelnut and vanilla almond 

bonus: chai latte (coffee, black tea, milk, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cardamom), chai latte breve (the above but with heavy cream in lieu of milk)

there’s also the flavor combo used in my spice cake: cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, and apple, which doesn’t get more september-october to me 🍂

[lord-here-i-am]

Halloween, celebrated on October 31, has origins in the ancient Celtic festival Samhain, a pagan tradition marking the end of the harvest season and the start of winter. Samhain included rituals to ward off spirits, as people believed this day blurred the boundary between the living and the dead. Over centuries, it was Christianized to become “All Hallows’ Eve,” the day before All Saints' Day.

Reasons to avoid "Halloween"

Halloween’s focus on death, ghosts, and the supernatural can conflict with Christian values, which emphasize the celebration of life, light, and goodness over darkness and death.

While often just in fun, dressing up as demons, witches, or monsters can trivialize or even glorify evil.

Celebrating Halloween without awareness of its deeper meaning may inadvertently desensitize people, especially children, to concepts of good and evil, fostering a casual attitude toward things.

Alternative "Holyween"

Christians celebrate by hosting “All Saints’ Day” parties where children dress up as saints or positive historical figures. Many communities hold fall festivals or “harvest nights” with wholesome games, activities, and treats, celebrating the season without darker themes.

[lieselotte-sky]

Typora alternativy

Při psaní různých článků používám Typoru, protože to umí export do HTML a obecně se to chová mravně. Pokud to má být něco většího, používám LyX, protože napsat menší knihu v markdownu, no to fakt ne…ikdyž Markdown aktuálně umí matematiku úplně stejně jako LaTeX/LyX, ale stejně je to takové meh a končilo by to tak jako tak v LaTeXu. Samozřejmě že jsem tu věc neupdatovala, protože proč updatovat něco, co funguje, takže na to došlo až s instalací novějšího systému do notebooku. A k mému zděšení se při tom zjistilo, že Typora nadále není ani otevřená a ani Freeware. Takže co teď. Zaplatit 15$ je jedna možnost. Ale jde mi tak trochu o princip a také o to, že je to závislé na nějakém dalším serveru, prostě něco, co se jednou někam nespojí a jaxi budu bez softwaru. Tohle odmítám akceptovat, takže jsem začala zkoumat alternativy a našla jsem tři:

ghostwriter (https://github.com/KDE/ghostwriter)

MarkText

Zettlr

MarkText je patrně nejblíže Typoře, je to prakticky stejné, jen to má nějaké funkce navíc, no a je to opensource. Bohužel je to také docela moloch napsaný v electronu (Typora je mimochodem taky nechutný moloch), takže ve Flatpaku 3.5GB na disku. Dobře, dá se s tím žít, ale definitivně to není dobré řešení. Flatpak je problém sám o sobě, vhodně doplněno electronem, no, myslím, že by to šlo lépe.

ghostwriter je pravým opakem předchozího. Je to napsané v C++, je to rychlé, UI mi s rozdělením na vstup a výstup připadá daleko přehlednější, jenomže to má vadu — neumí to inline matematiku. Já se upřímně řečeno snažím matematice v markdownu snažím vyhnout, protože export do HTML tak, aby se to následně dalo naimportovat do bloggeru, je problém, občas to udělá nějaké nepěkné věci a potom je ze zveřejnění článku zábava na několik hodin (za normálních okolností to trvá minuty…BTW blogger by se už taky mohl naučit Markdown…nebo bysem já mohla přejít na něco jiného). Čili tohle je nepříjemnost, ale nikoliv překážka. Budu to používat v případech, kdy je mi jasné, že matematiku nebudu potřebovat.

Zettlr je zhruba uprostřed, není to vyloženě malá věc, má to spoustu funkcionality, kterou Typora nikdy neměla, podle všeho by v tom mělo jít napsat knihu. A má to perfektně zvládnuté exporty, mimo jiné i do OpenOffice.

Takže alternativy existují, dovolím si říct, že každá z nich je v něčem lepší, přičemž, ano, jedna z nich je horší v tom, že neumí inline matematiku.

Update: Ukázalo se, že pod názvem ghostwriter se vyskytují (minimálně) dva programy.

[unicornlovers10]

Do you peeps know of an alternative to deviantArt? Specifically one that doesn't support AI "art".

I want a place to host my artwork alongside Tumblr. dA has been fucking up way too many times over the years, and I'm planning on jumping ship soon. The latest ones that I can recall, and that are my breaking point, are dA supporting AI "art" with open arms and their ~political views~ to say the least.

I won't be supporting them in the future because of these fuck ups, but I will have to go back there soon. If only to remove my artwork from there, and to update everyone there of my indefinite departure from dA.

[willowren]

[saw-bathroom]

guys what do u all think of bluesky??

a lot of users from instagram and twitter are saying we should move to bluesky, I have an account on it ! also I have SpaceHey :3