I would instead recommend running a tor relay or i2p node. That way you have encrypted traffic and are helping others and further legitimizing privacy by its everyday use
Slashdot, hacker news feeds and some communities here. I dont really try to keep up with commercial tech since most of it is bundled with DRM or spyware with exceptions such as the steamdeck.
I’m only interested FOSS stuff myself. I subscribe to some security and privacy communities here in addition to some technology ones. If the news is big enough we’ll hear about it one way or another.
Discoverability happens organically out of need. Eg search “split pdfs linux” and I’ll get a cli tool for it.
It is the parents job to watch their damn kids. Or force isps to include simple blocklist toggles in their supplied routers so the parents can make a decision.
Personally I use Debian stable but I’d recommend starting with Ubuntu if you are new. I’m using linux fulltime since 2008 if that makes any difference.
The reason is you are guaranteed to find support for a program if there is a linux version.
Most of the instructions online have specific Ubuntu instructions.
The default install is quite user friendly.
You will have access to more packages than many other linux distros. You still have flatpak too if your desired package is not in the Ubuntu repository ( or snap store).
You can always pick a different one later once you have some experience under your belt.
Doing this you will be able to become familiar with APT the Debian package manager. Used in Debian, Ubuntu, Mint, Raspbian and other Debian derivatives.
Getting the concepts here you can then just learn the differences if you switch distro such to an RPM (Different package format) based distro such as fedora.
In short use Ubuntu for now. Experiment and read up about it so you can build your knowledge. We are a community that like to share and learn. Also as a general rule backup your files before you install it and after you have set it up how you want. You can easily just copy the whole home directory for this 😉
The distro doesnt matter but it should not get in your way. They can all be made to look and act the same for the most part. The focus should be on knowledge. Linux is like digital Lego you can pick and choose the parts you like and layer them together.
I’m sure you are doing a great job. Ive no kids but likewise I have a shining example to guide me. Thanks , you too. Wishing you and your family health and happiness in the new year and the years to come ❤️
I have an ecovacs deebot n79S and it just uses a remote. You put it on auto and let it do its thing. The pathfinding isn’t great but it does the job and you can manually control it if needs be. There is an option for connecting an app but thats not happening. As long as it comes with a remote you should be good.
I should also add that its easy to clean and pop the front wheel and rear brush out as well as the 2 spinning brushes. The dust compartment slides out easily too.
We have had it for about 2 years so far and it still runs fine.