Nearly 75% of Americans are frustrated that the streaming platform they subscribe to keeps raising their prices. With 40% having cut back their streaming subscriptions in the last three months due to financial concerns and rising costs of living.
These companies continue to raise prices, hoping inertia will prevent most people from switching. This is true not only for streaming sites but also for all these platforms.
We need to move away from businesses that exploit their monopolies and try to get your content or goods directly, where possible.
Some alternatives you can check out…
Media:
- Nebula
- Dropout TV
- Corridor Digital
Music:
- Qobuz (buy directly from artists)
- Soundcloud (artist-driven)
- Bandcamp (buy directly from artists)
The same principle applies to Uber, Amazon and many others.
The level of DIY needed to set up Linux Mint or Jellyfin is an essential life skill. It is sad that people are that afraid of putting the circle-shaped block in the circle hole, but that doesn’t make the recommendation incorrect.
Of course if someone is as illiterate as a grade schooler even as an adult, just telling them to fix it isn’t helpful. Something is holding them back from learning in a healthy way, and that blockage takes emotional support or even therapy to clear.
It really isn’t
People will spend more hours of their lives looking at screens than at the faces of their children. This is not some sort of niche expertise, this is a massive part of people’s lives. Their quality of life would increase so much if they could get over that psychological hurdle.
Installing Linux Mint is easier than driving a car. It’s easier than safely changing a lightbulb. It’s easier than assembling ikea furniture. It’s easier than navigating to this comment to reply to it. It’s easier than filing taxes and it’s easier than making a budget.
I understand people aren’t familiar with it, but please, for your own sake, get familiar with it. You will benefit from it for the rest of your life.
But are you willing to walk me through it?
Sure, but imagine an expert in reading recommends people who cannot read learn how to read.
Does he think it’s easier to learn than it actually is? Probably.
But does that mean reading is any less valuable of a skill, that you should forego it because it is harder than he thinks and anyway there’s TTS now? No.
What if I want to but can’t somehow? I’ve always struggled with tech stuff, and not in a completely tech illiterate boomer way. Google sends me in loops when I search something like that. Even searching VPNs only gets me best and worst ratings. I’m not dumb but I am exhausted and sad for personal reasons. I’d be willing to pay someone for a couple hours of setting me up. Do I go on fiverr and hire someone for something I should do for myself? Is it wrong that I want someone to do this for me, or is it the same as hiring a plumber for something I could theoretically do myself? Do I just crave having my hand held?