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Joined 2 years ago
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Cake day: July 10th, 2023

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  • Sure. That’s one possible vector. Is it “Open Source” software? Yes, they accept contributions for the community. It’s is “Libre” software? No, they depend on closed source software.

    I’m trying to illustrate that the definition of “open source” can be weaponized for no good reason. Dismissing Signal because it doesn’t fit a narrow definition of “open source” makes everybody less secure. I have a hard enough time convincing my non-tech-savvy friends to switch to Signal. There’s a snowball’s chance in Hell I’ll convince them to use something even more obscure.








  • What if you don’t know anyone willing to help you get a job?

    Ask them for who they know. Heck, even if they are willing to help you, still ask them for more contacts.

    It legit took me over a decade of work experience to finally realize that “networking” was really just a simple graph-traversal algorithm for finding friends. If those friends need help with something that pays, then offer your help.


  • In many ways, I feel similarly. However, “this one weird trick” got me out of it. Think of networking as something you do to find like-minded complex-abstract-problem-solvers. You’re just finding friends. If one of those friends has a particularly tough problem and they’re willing to pay you, then, congrats! You now have a job offer!

    The algorithm is simple: ask people what they do, why they do it, and, crucially, who they know. Then contact each of those people, name-drop their friend, mention interests you might have in common, and ask to meet you talk about fun stuff. Repeat. Follow up with people to let them know you appreciated meeting with them (or not…if you didn’t really appreciate meeting with them). If you get the sense that someone is looking for help and you’re interested in what they’re doing, offer your help. The worst thing that can happen is they say no.