In the recent years, as I feel powerless facing the enshittification in mainstream tech and social media, I've opted for alternatives to many of my previous favorite digital places and tools, namely:
- Audible β‘ AudioBookShelf (or Plappa on iOs), alternatively Jellyfin (also supported by AudioBookShelf).
- Google search engine β‘ DuckDuckGo.
- Chrome browser β‘ Brave.
- Google Calendar β‘ Fastmail.
- Gmail β‘ Fastmail.
- Google Tasks β‘ TickTick.
- Google Office β‘ Obsidian.
- Google Reader β‘ InoReader β‘ FreshRSS β‘ Miniflux.
- Google Authenticator β‘ Aegis and Vaultwarden.
- Google Play Store β‘ F-Droid, Aurora Store.
- YouTube β‘ SkyTube (Android).
- Browser* Passwords Manager β‘ Vaultwarden.
- Trello β‘ Google Tasks β‘ TickTick.
- Spotify β‘ Navidrome, Seeker (Soulseek client), DSub (Navidrome client), AntennaPod (Podcasts).
- WordPress β‘ After looking for SSGs, I'll likely go raw HTML/CSS.
- Wallabag β‘ Shaarli and with my own tool, Tapas.
- InvoiceNinja β‘ Replacing with my own invoicing software.
- Netflix, Amazon Prime Video β‘ Plex.
- Windows β‘ Linux, MacOS.
- GitHub β‘ Gitea.
- LinkedIn β‘ Account closed, didn't attempt alternatives.
- Facebook β‘ Account closed. Attempted Mastodon, didn't like it.
- Instagram β‘ Account closed. Attempted Pixelfed, but it's too buggy.
- WhatsApp β‘ I use it mostly because everyone is on it, but I use Signal instead ideally.
- SensCritique β‘ Account closed due to their authoritarian moderators.
- Lobste.rs β‘ Account closed due to their elitist culture.
- Twitter β‘ Account closed due to their enshittification. Attempted Mastodon, didn't like it.
- OVH β‘ Account closed. Hostinger.
- Docker Hub β‘ Docker Registry self hosted.
- Dropbox, iCloud β‘ Replacing some of it with Syncthing.
- Zerobin β‘ Privatebin.
- Most Newsletters β‘ Kill the Newsletter! + Miniflux, alternatively Changedetection.
- Last.FM β‘ ListenBrainz / MusicBrainz.
This is an ongoing list and non exhaustive, plus it's only about my digital life. I have a lot to say about work and housing as well. Opting for alternatives has also expanded my technical knowledge and independence (see also https://sive.rs/ti).
The main lesson: diversify, stay in control of your life, stay curious and choose freedom, privacy and security over convenience.