- cross-posted to:
- usa@lemmy.ml
- technology@lemmit.online
- hackernews@lemmy.bestiver.se
- cross-posted to:
- usa@lemmy.ml
- technology@lemmit.online
- hackernews@lemmy.bestiver.se
Wild they still play the “think of the children” card while ignoring the Epstein files.
This will make finding children much easier for Palantir and its pedo owners. They could even identify more susceptible children more easily.
Oh they’re still thinking about them.
Won’t somebody please think of the children!?
No, not like that!
While masturbating furiously.
For a moment I freaked out that they were only gonna exclude Linux and not open source in general but it seems they exclude based on the license based on this article which is a good thing. The dozens of OpenBSD and FreeBSD users may rest safely now
Doesn’t matter. The thin edge of the wedge is going to get in. In 5 years Linux will be forced to comply.
I guess, California is killing Windows without knowing.
The proposed amendment specifically states: “Operating system provider” does not mean a person or entity that distributes an operating system or application under license terms that permit a recipient to copy, redistribute, and modify the software.
That’s one way to encourage people to move to open source software
Imagine if that made MicroSlop and Apple open-source Windows and Mac OS. That would be a wild world.
Enforcing it on android/apple/windows/steamos/chromeos is still problem tho.
Tho I do wonder how they handle chromeos. Do each student have to put their age every year?
My steam account is old enough to legally drink. Wonder if that’ll factor in.
That doesn’t prove anything. There’s no proof that the person currently using it is the same person as the person who created the account.
By the way, you might also notice this argument also works against age verification systems where the user’s age is verified only once. Unless you intend to check their identity every single time they log in.
Age verification is just a ham-fisted way for the state to try to take over a role that should be exercised by parents. Parental controls exist, people!
Parents not raising their kids right is why we can’t have nice things. It’s always used as an excuse for some draconian measure.
the parental control thing is a thin smokescreen. Its about control.
The reality is our OSs and the websites we visit know exactly who we are. They know our blood type, they know if you are pregnant before you do. Why would they need your ID?
Unless you intend to check their identity every single time they log in.
or rather every single second the device is being used
SteamOS, ChromeOS and Android are Linux basedoperating systems though. Especially SteamOS is literally just an arch fork with steam preinstalled.
They are talking about how steamos might still be included. Due to the proprietary portions. I’d assume android would fall under that as well.
Most Linux distros contain proprietary packages, it’s one of the reasons why for example Fedora isn’t considered beginner friendly, they don’t ship proprietary stuff so it doesn’t have codecs, etc by default.
But there is a difference if it is part of the base experience or unavoidable, like you need a Google account to do anything on an OEM Android Install, like install any app and such. I guess same is true for steamOS, since focus on the OS is the steam app.
isn’t patents the reason fedora doesn’t have hardware accelerated codecs? mesa has the drivers, fedora just doesn’t compile those drivers in
Yes, it is the patent shenanigans.
steam os can be modified, but chromeos is explicitly locoed down. yet, people say even steam os might not be exempted by this
I was too lazy to lookup what license steamos uses for distributing lmao. Article says that would be the defining bar for the pass meaning BSD included in this.
Wao, I am gladly surprised by this. I would have never thought this would be possible, yet here we are.
California software companies have serious lobbying power.
I mean… yeah. OpenAI is a California software company and it’s the biggest lobbying force behind the age verification bills.
California is making computers shittier for the rest of the world. Sorry for lashing out, fuck you!
Colorado also has a bill and there is one in the works at the federal level. But yes, its bullshit.
“We’ll come around to you next time”
There is a time limit an exception like this will be held. Once it becomes normalized on proprietary systems they’ll expect it on the rest.
Common Linux double u.

Suddenly, Android and Chromebook become Linux. Maybe Apple will become Unix again.
Read the article. The amendment says nothing about Linux. It talks about open source where the user has a license to modify and redistribute. So unless Google makes android fully open source they will still be included.
Yes, I know AOSP is open source. But they are also talking about how steam os wouldn’t be exempt despite it being arch based. Due to the proprietary portions.
I think that is exactly what they mean, Google abuse/subverting the floss ecosystem creating a de facto closed system, and would have to open up to be a really open source OS if they want to get exempt. Same with apple and the BSD kernel and base (although it can be said that they are not subverting the spirit of the code they use since BSD licenses ate by design made to allow closing the source, etc).
In any case I am pretty confident that all big tech want to eagerly embrace age verification since it is another data point to sell and for their ad machinery.
Steam already kinda has age verification on their store - you need to register your credit card to access adult material. Honestly seems like one of the easier and better ways to do this. I don’t know if that existing check could be carried over to their OS, their OS and store are pretty much a bundle already.
what’s worth considering is even on android forks that are deemed foss, they need lots of driver blobs for all the hardware, and some people intentionally install google servives via opengapps. how will those count for this law?
and then don’t forget that due to drivers, relatively few open source desktop installations are fully open source
Not as long as they’re bending the knee to Trump
It doesn’t even makes to collect age on any OS unless the OS is PornOS or something. What exactly is the threat? What exactly does verification do?
IIRC, they want to have browsers automatically report age, and have OSes restrict access to software (like browsers that don’t do that) based on age as well.
I believe the “goal” is to restrict access to information to younger persons. Porn is the threat they most often wave around, but many advocates also want to restrict access to social media, and apps that have in-app purchases, etc.
Absolutely the law is still dumb, and people that use FOSS OSes should still fight it. But with this change, as least you won’t have to compile your own version of systemd (and NOT distribute it) to escape the insanity.
I bet this will be as easy to circumvent as changing the user agent of your browser and most developers outside of the US wont even bother to introduce age verification for a small fraction of their users.
Age verification laws are cropping up in far more jurisdictions than California (which is already quite large both in population and economically).
Anti-circumvention laws already exist. If OSes and browsers do start reporting ages, you can expect Apple, Google, and Microsoft to use the DMCA to (at least) shift liability (potentially criminal liability) onto users that adjust their browser to report an inaccurate age.
If this proposed law the “end of the world”? No. But, it is yet another contribution to both tech and government panopticons and should be resisted, even WITH a POSS carve-out.
As several people I follow try to remind me: “Users of non-FOSS software deserve privacy and safety, too.”
I mean every OS is pornOS lol, they just can’t get over people watching porn, puritanism still messing with us hundreds of years later
This reminded me of a joke patch someone sent to Firefox to rename incognito mode to porn mode.
Idk about you but my system is always a little nervous.
See you in a year or 2.
Play as old as times:
- Company announces garbage change
- People freak out
- Company says ok we will only do half of the garbage
- People calm down and forget
- Company later does the rest of the garbage
- Nobody cares because half of it is already there
This isn’t exactly it.
First or isn’t a company or is the government. 2nd, that legislation is just plain dumb and open source systems like Linux, BSD can’t comply with it, even if they wanted to.
The whole law should be repealed though. They use children as excuse, bit it is about surveillance.
Foot in the door technique is a timeless way to get what you want. People seem oblivious to it.
I hear frogs experience the same phenomenon with hot water.
Actually they only stay in the boiling water if their nervous system is impaired
Good thing humans dont have nervous systems
Hm? Did you say something? Sorry, I was distracted.
Also works the other way around.
I mean it makes total sense the minute you think about it at all.
- some middle managers year end goals include this unpalatable feature
- they release it
- public freaks out
- pr walks it back a bit
- that managers back at work the week after trying to get that feature in because they need to justify the work they just did on it for better compensation
It’s the same with laws.
It’s very hard to get the electorate united to oppose something but if they manage to unite and oppose a bill the lobbyists are back at work on Monday pushing it by a different name.
Laboyists are the scourge of democracy. Every last one of them has a rope and spear with their names written on them.
100% Microslop.
Are you implying that CA regulators do exactly what disgusting corporations do?!? I am shocked sir!
That reminds me. We are quickly approaching the date discord postponed age verification to.
Technology makes everything cheaper, including changing minds.
At some points it was unfeasible to abuse consumers because they’d object. Now, if it’s on a large enough scale and valuable enough, you can just pay to convince the majority of them that it’s fine.
also known as TESTING the waters, gauging public response. so they can adapt under a different scheme.
Plucking the goose with a minimum of hissing.
The principle that Bullshit, sprayed around often enough, becomes Air Freshener.
It’s called “parenting.” Yes, it’s harder these days with the internet and literally everything “right there.” But it’s still your job as a parent.
ANYTIME ANYONE imposes restrictions “for the children” - there’s something nefarious going on. If it’s a politician-they are looking to build a database for $. If it’s your priest-he’s banging the alter boy after ccd, or hates himself so much for being gay he’s lashing out at the lgbtq community. If it’s a company-they’ve either been threatened into doing it or more likely are on the take with a fat payday. If it’s a developer adding it into Linux, they should expect fierce skepticism and backlash from the community.
It’s NEVER about the children. It’s always an alternative motive. If they actually cared about kids, they’d make sure they were fed at school, they’d invest in their education, or they’d invest into social programs to help out those less fortunate.
The california law isn’t actually age verification. It is unchecked age assertion at the operating system level. He is also there specifically for the parents to fill out.When a new device is purchased. I have no doubts.It will be misused and lead to age verification in the OS with a third party verifying the age, but that isnt want the bill is now
Everything you said is correct, but at the same time: “We’re not driving off a cliff (yet), we’re just moving in for a closer look.”
That is true that we’re headed towards a cliff. The way the California bill is structured.It can only be used to filter algorithms, make content and cannot be used for content moderation or filtering. It does nothing to stop what other states or the national government will want to do with it once it’s in there. It also does nothing to stop companies from requiring actual age verification or having accounts. You know , someone like microsoft would love to tie an Id to the computer and make you have a microsoft account to use it.
I don’t think it’s any coincidence that this is occurring at the same time companies like Palantir are signing government contracts left and right and mega-sized data centers are sprouting up all over the country.
Just like it’s never really about FREEDOM™
The only way to “protect” or “target” any demographic is to first identify everyone to see if they’re in that demographic.
That’s almost always the only reason it’s done.
Thats not the case here.
- “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people!”
- “Reduce, Recycle, Reuse.”
- “Only you can prevent forrest fires.”
- “Be All You Can Be in the Army!”
- “Parenting!”
Shift all the blame. Guns? America? Fuck that, it’s the individual, not the industry.
The internet is always two things. The web, access to information on all levels (good or bad ), should be available. It needs to be regulated bc META and anything Elon is apart of, still exist.
Parents are fighting, “literally everything” ! We as a species, is losing to whatever the “internet” is. We need real regulation.
Ear me out: make tools for parents to restrict their child themselves instead of restricting everyone and rob data
Oh you mean the thing that worked for 20+ years? Are you crazy? Think about the profits and data we won’t collect.
And the worse part, we DO have tools for parents. Either they don’t know these tools exist or they don’t know how to use them. Mostly because they’re tech-illiterate. Kudos to the parents who educate themselves.
This is a benign example, but I was talking with a fellow parent about our dislike of Paw Patrol and told them I had to remove that as an option in Netflix. They were shocked that was possible and I could see the gears turning in their head with that new info. Granted I’m not parenting a teenager yet, but it seems like most of the functionality in bigger platforms generally exists, people just don’t know it’s there and to set it.
Hmm I guess I’m not paying enough attention. What’s wrong with paw patrol?
paw patrol is just so over stimulating with frequent cuts and it’s clearly designed to hook kids short attention spans / does not help develop longer attention spans. It’s a classic problem that kids don’t want to stop watching and have tantrums if you enforce screen time and turn it off. All of this to sell huge toys that kids think they want and will play with one time.
Also the stories are not really that great, and suck to watch as a parent. They always introduce an issue which is immediately resolved, triggering that instant gratification in your kids brain, without teaching them about conflict resolution or anything really useful. This isn’t even about the idea of Adventure Bay being a police state or promoting the privatization of communal services.
It’s an unfair comparison, but a show like Bluey has great storytelling and while not being purely educational, teaches kids how to emphasize with others and deal with conflict that isn’t easily solvable, even for adults. The music, illustrations, and stories are a work of art and a more valuable use of time than Paw Patrol.
Those are valid points that I haven’t thought of. Thanks for the response.
It’s already available and parents are not utilizing it.
But I also don’t see the problem with this. As long as there’s savvy and smart children that did get educated on safety, the knowledge can propagate to those that did not.
It’s already available and parents are not utilizing it.
The parents have determined that it’s not needed. They’ve determined that trying to strictly regulate exactly what Little Johnny can and can’t see online does him far more harm than porn ever could. This hyper-authoritarian nonsense needs to die in a fire.
Or we regulate the use and teach how it properly works. Tools for parents are get but it’s not a fix.
We as a species, is losing to whatever the “internet” is. We need real regulation.
And none of that regulation will have anything to do with age, if you want real effectiveness. A teenager seeing a dick and a dick, a vagina and a vagina, or a dick and a vagina, being mashed together isn’t concerning in the big picture. The stuff that is worrying about the internet affects adults just as much as children, like social media.
You missed the point completely. My example was Meta and Elon’s companies not teens fucking.
Age verification is pointless. The post I responded to, was talking about it is the parent’s (individuals) job not the government’s (regulation). That would be wrong.
And none of that regulation will have anything to do with age, if you want real effectiveness.
That is an extreme view and I believe a dangerous one. Regulation like not experimenting on teen females which caused some to take their life. That seems pretty age related.
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/11/facebooks-dangerous-experiment-teen-girls/620767/















