Christine Hall

Are you ready to pay Meta for a premium WhatsApp subscription? - BetaNews WhatsApp is just one of so many apps and services switching to a multi-level subscription model. While there is currently no suggestion that a free version of

If I won't use it when it's free...: Are you ready to pay Meta for a premium WhatsApp subscription? buff.ly/HJk2aOi

Google Cuts Play Store Fees After Epic Games Lawsuit Google will cut Play Store fees to 20%, allow third-party app stores, and support alternative payments after settling its antitrust case with Epic Games.

Will reduce its long-standing commissions, introduce support for competing app stores through a certification program, and permit developers to use payment systems outside Google’s billing platform: Google lowers Play Store fees and opens Android to rival app stores buff.ly/IrT7O5I

Linux From Scratch 13.0 Released as First Systemd-Only Version The Linux From Scratch project has released LFS 13.0 and BLFS 13.0, featuring updated packages, the 6.18.10 kernel, and a systemd-only build.

We're seeing a lot more of this lately: Linux From Scratch 13.0 Released as First Systemd-Only Version buff.ly/dbgAgND

Donate to FOSS Force's 2026 Independence Drive, organized by Christine Hall Our Fundraising Drive: Like Listener-Supported Radio, Without Breaking Into Progra… Christine Hall needs your support for FOSS Force's 2026 Independence Drive

We're still $449 short of our mini goal to raise enough to pay our writers for the work they're doing in March. Please help us! We'll stretch a $10 donation and make it go a long way. We'll stretch a $10 monthly donation even further. Help us make FOSS Force even better! buff.ly/yL772su

How I used CloneZilla to fully back up my PC in case disaster strikes (and it's free) If you've ever had to deal with a dying computer, you know the challenge of ensuring you have a good backup. Clonezilla makes that easy.

Personally, I just use Deja Dup: How I used CloneZilla to fully back up my PC in case disaster strikes (and it's free) buff.ly/N9MSIx6

Flock 2026 Financial Assistance Applications Due March 8th – Fedora Community Blog Apply for Flock 2026 financial assistance by March 8th. Get help with your travel and hotel costs to attend the Fedora contributor conference.

Wanna go to Flock but you're financially challenged?: Flock 2026 Financial Assistance Applications Due March 8th – Fedora Community Blog buff.ly/2HPX7N7

Just published on FOSS Force: Request to the European Commission to Adhere to Its Own Guidance fossforce.com/2026/03/requ...

"Sovereignty" is the word of the day: LibreOffice for Education: Regaining Digital Sovereignty - TDF Community Blog buff.ly/lOX5UT1

Haiku OS Pulls In WiFi Driver Updates From OpenBSD, Other Improvements In February The BeOS-inspired Haiku open-source operating system project had an eventful February with a number of driver improvements and a variety of other enhancements.

Raise your hand if you remember BeOS: Haiku OS Pulls In WiFi Driver Updates From OpenBSD, Other Improvements In February - Phoronix buff.ly/grylxH1

Oracle Updates Free Solaris CBE For Open-Source Developers / Non-Production Uses Four years ago Oracle announced Solaris CBE as the 'Common Build Environment' version of Solaris 11.4

Of course, since it's only for "non-production use," it's neither open source nor Free Software: Oracle Updates Free Solaris CBE For Open-Source Developers / Non-Production Uses - Phoronix buff.ly/jtubTwh

The Double Whammy Of The CBS, Warner Brothers Mergers Will Be A Layoff Nightmare You might recall that Paramount and CBS had only just started to lay off workers in the wake of the merger with David Ellison’s Skydance. Now, after Ellison (or more accurately his dad and th…

Because, of course it will: The Double Whammy Of The CBS, Warner Brothers Mergers Will Be A Layoff Nightmare buff.ly/PJnqIlc

Sick of Microsoft and Google? This new European office suite is a private, open-source alternative Built on open-source software, this European cloud office suite aims to keep your data out of Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.

Built on the open-source Nextcloud Hub, Office. eu bundles file storage and sharing, email, calendar, online document editing, and chat plus video calls into a single, browser‑based platform: Sick of MS and Google? This new European office suite is a private, open-source alternative

Just published on FOSS Force: Parrot OS 7.1: Security Distro’s Surprisingly Good Daily Driver fossforce.com/2026/03/parr...

Just published on FOSS Force: FOSS Force: Authenticity, Independence, and Expertise Worth Funding fossforce.com/2026/03/foss...

I was MIA today because I spent the day in the car. Something of a family emergency for my life partner to handle, I we took a 600+ miles car trip. Tomorrow partner will be dealing with family, and I'll be sitting at my laptop in the motel room practicing tech journalism. Luv you all. I missed you.

Just published on FOSS Force: AI’s House of Lies: Fake Deals Create Fake Booms fossforce.com/2026/03/ais-...

Just published on FOSS Force: Keep Your Linux Notes Encrypted with Lockbook fossforce.com/2026/03/keep...

If between now and Wednesday night, 10 people donate $10 each, and make "monthly," our fundraiser would be back on track. Donate to FOSS Force's 2026 Independence Drive, organized by Christine Hall buff.ly/yL772su

Gentoo Starts Exit from GitHub’s Microsoft and Copilot‑Infested Walled Garden - FOSS Force When Microsoft turned up the AI pressure on GitHub, Gentoo started packing for Codeberg, butting open source principles first.

We published this on Monday, in case you missed it: Gentoo Starts Exit from GitHub’s Microsoft and Copilot‑Infested Walled Garden - FOSS Force buff.ly/dlGnDXq

OpenAI’s ‘Red Lines’ Are Written In The NSA’s Dictionary—Where Words Mean What The NSA Wants Them To Mean Within hours on Friday, the Pentagon blacklisted one AI company for refusing to drop its safety commitments on surveillance and autonomous weapons, then turned around and praised a competitor for s…

The words in OpenAI’s contract likely don’t mean what most people think they mean: OpenAI’s ‘Red Lines’ Are Written In The NSA’s Dictionary—Where Words Mean What The NSA Wants Them To Mean

DistroWatch.com: Put the fun back into computing. Use Linux, BSD. News and feature lists of Linux and BSD distributions.

Oracle Linux-based distribution designed to perform threat hunting, enterprise security monitoring and log management. -- Distribution Release: Security Onion 2.4.210 (buff.ly/GALCGTa News) buff.ly/eBN5P6L

ChatGPT uninstalls surged by 295% after DoD deal | TechCrunch Many consumers ditched ChatGPT's app after news of its DoD deal went live, while Claude's downloads grew.

Good! As you know, I haven't trusted OpenAI since the beginning. Something about a closed outfit putting "open" in its name didn't set right with me: ChatGPT uninstalls surged by 295% after DoD deal | TechCrunch ift.tt/Pez5W7k

A lot of hardware runs non-free software. Sometimes it's in ROM, sometimes in flash, and sometimes not on the device at all, but pushed into it at runtime. We typically refer to this software as “firmware”: To update blobs or not to update blobs

The Return Of Measles Is Bad. A Polio Comeback Would Be So, So Much Worse We’ve talked a lot about the resurgence of measles in America over the past 14 or so months, and for good reason. It’s a horrible disease of historic significance. Equally historic was …

America achieving elimination status of the measles 26 years ago, only to see that almost certainly fall away thanks to the incompetence and inaction by Secretary of HHS, RFK Jr: The Return Of Measles Is Bad. A Polio Comeback Would Be So, So Much Worse buff.ly/ngwOgSd

Getting started with OpenClaw: Complex tasks from a simple chat | We Love Open Source • All Things Open OpenClaw is an open source autonomous agent framework that executes tasks through chat interfaces. Learn how it turns natural language into automated workflows.

OpenClaw is an open source autonomous agent framework to execute advanced tasks through chat interfaces such as WhatsApp or Telegram. Unlike traditional AI chatbots that stop at text generation, OpenClaw takes action: Getting started with OpenClaw: Complex tasks from a simple chat

DistroWatch.com: Put the fun back into computing. Use Linux, BSD. News and feature lists of Linux and BSD distributions.

Immutable Fedora-based distribution ships with the CachyOS Linux kernel 6.19.3 and the COSMIC desktop 1.0.8: Distribution Release: Origami Linux 2026.03 (buff.ly/GALCGTa News) buff.ly/VJHciUa

The candidate that Silicon Valley built is now the one they want to tear down | TechCrunch Ethan Agarwal, a 40-year-old tech entrepreneur with no political background, told TechCrunch on Monday evening that he is running for California's 17th congressional district.

A Democrat and possible 2028 presidential candidate. He's publicly backed the California wealth tax. With Bernie Sanders he backs a 5% annual wealth tax on those worth over $1 billion: The candidate that Silicon Valley built is now the one they want to tear down

LLMs can unmask pseudonymous users at scale with surprising accuracy Pseudonymity has never been perfect for preserving privacy. Soon it may be pointless.

Pseudonymity has never been perfect for preserving privacy. Soon it may be pointless: LLMs can unmask pseudonymous users at scale with surprising accuracy buff.ly/WcvpALr

GOP “Antitrust Concerns” Magically Disappear Now That Larry Ellison Is Buying Warner Brothers You might have noticed that when Netflix was attempting to acquire Warner Brothers, Republicans were suddenly and uncharacteristically interested in media consolidation and antitrust reform. Republ…

You might have noticed that when Netflix was attempting to acquire Warner Brothers, Republicans were suddenly and uncharacteristically interested in media consolidation and antitrust reform: GOP “Antitrust Concerns” Magically Disappear Now That Larry Ellison Is Buying WB

OpenAI changes deal with US Department of War after backlash - BetaNews OpenAI has updated its agreement with the Department of War to further restrict how its AI systems can be used in classified environments, particularly with

A few days earlier, and with spectacularly bad timing considering what was about to happen with Iran, OpenAI announced it had reached a deal to deploy advanced AI systems in classified settings: OpenAI changes deal with US Department of War after backlash