Bobylonian

Samsung and Tizen OS(that comes with store) is already an alternative for South Korea. Though, so far Samsung has profited from cooperating with Android, as it gained unprecedented share for smartphone market.

iPhone has branded itself as status symbol that people are rich and can pay and maintain lifestyle that includes ipHone - Androids, well - it is replacable and will be eventually.

Android is supported by others as well - it is not effort of Google only...

Yes, it is true, that there are other stores - like Samsung has it's own store on Android, so technically there is a choice of stores. Apparently Google would not fight store wars with the producers of hardware... but there is nothing that prevents them to disable any other stores by any other means - by simply sabotaging their app.

The issue here with Google Play is that it assumes, that Google Play has monopoly of money transactions for that publisher outside of Play store, even if the app has a choice to receive money through oher means - crypto, Paypal or cards. Same issue is with Apple store - they did not wanted to allow to transact money in Epic store(and wanted their cut on those), where you could make transactions in the Epic website from your card.

>>> Everyone keeps repeating this assumed idea that it's "just" a payment processing fee which is simply not true and never has been.

When you are buying a phone, you also pay price that includes price for OS of the phone, that includes development costs of SDK and development tools. Some of the phones nowadays has a choice to BUY and install different OS, that comes with different stores.

Unlike your assumption, payment processing is completelly different ecosystem and Apple is simply using monopoly on iPhones and not letting other stores on their hardware and software. Alphabet does not produce phones... so IMO it is acting worse, that it makes up these stupid tales. This is one of the reasons why I am switching my phone from Android, because that is MY phone, that I paid for! Besides, Android still snoops your data without your consent and I'm not even paid for that data!

Besides, the only concern about payment processing that YOU should have is not development costs(they can't be that HUGE...), but if your payment processing is safe and protected!!! That is the only costs, that stores should have - to ensure protection of those many many transactions, where maintenance and development costs are miniscule and to be even considered is laughable topic.

What this article assumes is that people in control and in research 1-2 years ago "knew everything about covid" or knew what we know now. They didn't.

What we should assume is that 99% of people in general are morons and not specialists - just like you and me are not specialists and belong to the same 99% and can't comprehend these things and because they can't understand these things, they are also failing in explaining that to public. Explanation takes understanding and thinking. Government officials(including in health) does not do thinking - they only act according to instructions.

We more or less know right now what is going on and IMO it is still debatable if mandatory masks are long-term solution. What general public has forgotten is that eyes are as good open doors for covid infection(and so far only distancing, good sunny weather and relaxed unstressed healthy people has prevented spread of virus or they have getting through covid sickness without noticing it - without symptoms), not to mention that masks does not offer 100% protection, but more like 80%, not to mention that people are 100% unprotected when they have to eat or drink or if they are entering without spacesuit in highly infectious rooms. So, in short - it is easier to tell people to wear masks - but it would take a lot of explaining all iffs, where covid infection can be passed from one to another, so correct information would be that masks can reduce covid infections, but not prevent it fully.

Besides the main problem here is that covid is not deadly virus for healthy people, but it affects mainly people who are already living their last days. It just is mind bogling, that people in general have no idea how many people are dying every year and that that number is too big for what medical services were meant for.

As for seatbelts - some of the deaths in car crashes could be avoidable if seatbelts were not worn, as passenger might have been ejected out of car and could have a chance of surviving impact(if it is not a wall or other car, but grass or bush) after landing, instead of burning alive inside of crashed car. So, everything depends on situation and timing to receive that help where it is possible to help.

Visual Studio has been top product from the beginning of M$. If it was not open, then it was heavily pirated for personal use.

No. I must be doing something differently. To be fair, Edge is not forced upon me, as I am using Firefox, but the only thing I do not like is that Windows 10 is updating itself whenever it wants.

Ah, and I installed Windows 10, that does not use Microsoft account(you might had to disconnect internet cable for that), so it might be the main problem.

Not sure what is meant by where "desktop is today" unless you have a desktop that consists of thouchscreen display and no keyboard and mouse, but I would not want a phone that is operated as Linux desktop, because phone has to be phone first.

There are some others - Sailfish OS, Pure OS, Plasma Mobile and Manjaro for ARM - there are a lot of Linux based phones nowadays(Android is one of them).

Never knew that kik had video call feature, but I dropped to use it not long after it appeared.

There was Duo for Android to make video calls. Might be still around, but it is only for calls and not chat, so not really useable if you have to find other ways to send chat.

Skype was one of them that I still use, but it is probably ancient technology for younger people. Skype was offered to use for free of data charge by telecom company, so you could make video calls everywhere.

The problem with Whatsapp is that it comes together with Facebook and whatsapp is terrible for privacy - you have no control over how your number and other available information will be shared with other apps, who will collect that information and someone will publish that information available as database.

My mom has exactly the same system with her two debit cards and I have not taught her that - she is naturally smart. So proud of her and you too ;) Cheers!

I think, that the information provided here is true. From the information I have gathered from sources that are running their small retail businesses, my take is that VISA is offering charge in tiers - for example(number are exagerated and hypothetical): tier 1: 1- 10 000 - 3,5% tier 2: 10 000 - 100 000 - 3% tier 3: 100 000 - 1 000 000 - 2,5%

etc. you get the idea, so if VISA credit has low transaction count, then expenses for the transactions are a lot higher than for VISA debit transactions - if the user base for VISA credit is couple of tiers lower than for rest of cards, it makes sense for these "rare" users to switch to other cards, so Amazaon does not have to subsidize their loss of income from VISA credit cards.

You probably have a decent salary or pension, where credit card is a common thing, because you are a big spender. I am in that category where people are considered poor.

Debit card is basic choice to people who has low income(you can look up statistics and that is biggest share of demographics in UK). Credit cards usually comes with charge and the last time I checked(~10 years ago) there were no credit cards that were for free. Things might have changed, but for anyone out there it is too much hassle to change bank accounts and it is for me and I know what I want and if I need credit card I will have one, but if I don't want one, I will have no use for that, like I don't have any use for that now so I don't have it.

As for general advice - my observation is that population, especially in UK, are somewhat very gullible and will believe anything and even fool themselves and that is the reason why banks are giving very simple and not deep enough information. The key difference between debit and credit card, when it comes to fraud are none - they both can be scammed equally easy(or equally hard). If I was a scammer, my logic would be that people with credit cards are filthy rich and I would go and order something for 1000 or even 10 000, but debit card is small fish - in most cases scammer might not be even able to order a pizza for themselves and that is the thing, that scammers ordered from my card... I know people, who empty their debit cards as soon as they get money in their account, so - meh... what is normal for you is not the norm for everyone.

Credit and debit cards have exactly the same information on their surface and scamming is exactly the same, however scammers can only take from debit cards only that money, that is on your account, but with credit cards - they can take all your money, that is in your account AND also get you in the debt. To mitigate this risk, banks are offering safety pillow, which has longer time limit on how much banks are going to reimburse your losses on credit cards, but they are still reimbursing losses on debit cards, if you report within 48 hour limit after scamming has happened - you have to look after your credit card as well, but the time limit here is longer. But if you have not been looking after your account for 6 months and if scammers were emptying your account in that time, it does not matter if your account is credit card or debit card - that money is gone and with credit card it is even worse - you are in debt now.

So, my general advice is to consider risks - I can't repay debts, so I don't own credit card. If you can afford to pay for losses and can earn enough money, well - that is not a thing you should worry about anyway.

More likely, that the user base of VISA credit cards in UK is not big enough to pay for using it.

After Brexit both Master cards and VISA cards have increased costs, so this can't be the reason.

Most of UK customers are VISA debit card users. To be fair, I was completely convinced, that Master cards are the credit cards and VISA are debit cards... who knew.

Anyway - it appears that it is not my problem and I don't care.

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Oh dear - this is also laughable issue, because combating CO2 is depriving trees of their food. Whole Sahara has become greener from climate change and CO2 avaibility - maybe it is worth to grow trees in Sahara. Forests of Sahara - what a great name!

If you feel that you belong to that corner of Africa, why you are still in US and not on the route to your homeland? No one is barring you from leaving US! Though, I wonder - what are the people you are going to identify with - descendants of slavers, that massacred tribe of your long gone ancestors?

Not long before Europeans appeared in Congo basin, most of the local natives of area were robbed of their lands by new arrivals of taller black people. Their co-existence with these new masters is nothing less than slavery even in modern times. I wonder... how deep is that box of Pandora, that you want to open? Are you ready to pay for sins of your ancestors or is this exclusive thing to Whites only? Are you even aware, that significant part of Europeans in US initially were brought to US as slaves?

Europeans did not brought slavery to Africa and neither to US, where locals were happily enslaving each other. 500 years ago before arrival of Europeans with rare exceptions, any society in Africa had slavery. History is unpleasant, but that has hardly anything to do with ongoing war, that has reached heat in modern US. Btw, Hitler also eradicated Jews with the exactly same ideas about Aryan race, but you might need to get past 500 years in your history book to realize that.

Well, I hope this all is once in a blue moon event :D

I've let myself astray and not concentrating on the tasks I really have to concentrate and not this type of entertainment.

Sadly, no. The one that I got information about those snails was YT video about eradicating some specific snails, to disrupt lifecycle of mosquitoes, as their larvae was living in these snails. I kinda feel regret(on other hand my regret is memory of having this extra information) that I have not saved link, because it was very long and very informative video and showed all the different issues, to do that task. I would highly recommend it to watch it, but you have to find it by yourself - may the RNG of YT is on your side in this task.

>>>Do you think most of the people referenced in the article would not trade their current lifestyles for a middle class life in the US or Europe today?

I'm very realistic about this and trees will be chopped to insure that these people advance towards that lifestyle. Either that or they will migrate.

My take is that everyone has read in that article what they wanted to read. Even if presented here as a "saving tree" issue, this article is hardly about saving trees - at best that is a story about developing country, that has similar problems that US and previously Europe endured. Also, in the light of COP26(that everyone here has long forgotten), where rulers of Earth arrived in private jets, it really starts to show that most of people are mindless parrots and not individual thinkers, that Humans could be.

>>>but rather westerners who want to drag the world back from technological progress in a misguided attempt to save it.

I'm sure that no one wants to give up their lifestyle to do so. But that doesn't mean that they can't preach it to others...

>>>1) increasing quality of life for the most people possible, 2) preventing x-risks. I mention this so you can understand where I'm coming from.

That is a noble task and the only price for that is punishment of a Saviour. Though, I'm slightly sceptical about members of ex-colonizers providing help to ex-colonies, as from the common memory of my people, centuries old hatred does not wane if "oppressors" are still lingering around with their help...

>>>I just don't think that a malthusian/degrowth mindset will help anyone.

Neither is helping a denial about crisis. Malthusian theory is scientific attempt to describe common pattern of growth and collapses of societies. Unfortunatelly there does not seem to be anything better to describe those. Also, despite your claims, it seems, that you have that same mindset you are so dreaded about as the whole article about disappearance of trees belongs to the same doom scenario that can happen in future. Well, I for one am very deeply disappointed in those, because according to UN in 1980s, Kiribati had to be under water by 2000 and it is still there... I know, I know - the speed is not fast enough and Kiribati will face it's doom in about 100(not 50) years, but I have exactly the same attitude to other doom scenarious. Yeah, by that time people will learn how to breathe CO2 and it is outrageous, that there is an idea to deal with that, too...

>>>what if we need global coordination on a problem like asteroid avoidance or a supervolcano and humanity is extinguished because we don't have the requisite technology to tackle it?

Honestly, not our problem. Worrying about something that is not preventable is not very sane and constantly living in fear is not healthy. Anyway, if there will be such event, get your best drink and enjoy it while it lasts.

Snails are part of lifecycle of parasite that is spreading malaria.

That's not really an excuse to use derogatory language. What else are you thinking about those people?

I think, that agreement here is about foreign aid, where op was offering it as a solution.

Depopulation of overpopulated countries is the only viable solution if rich overpopulated countries are demanding to other countries to save their forests. That is also a chance to show solidarity in preservation of forests. Claims, that forests are long gone and nothing can be done are childish - they can be restored and regrown back to their natural original glory. One of the commenter here had a very "sensible" solution to cram population of those overpopulated countries into some small areas and free up rest of the land for forests...

And by the way - did you read that article or are you here only because of comments, that you had to do something about them? Oh, those comentators - you can't let them roam free...

>>>Other comments have responded robustly to your depopulation comment.

Were you refering to yourself when created this new account?

>>>I personally can't stand this degrowth mindset that would bring us back to the hunter gatherer era

Your derogatory language towards forest-gatherer lifestyle means that you have not read article - that article is about hunter-gatherers who live in forests. Where else they can get their grubs, to cook? Where they can gather meat and wood?

>>>Europe's forest coverage is increasing rapidly[0], and growing every year[1].

bushes

Statistics include under "forests" also bushes and young trees. There is also issue with understanding of what forest mean - forests are not trees, but includes soil, that is built up by trees over millenia and animals - without them forest is just a plantation - animals need older trees to use them for their habitat or for gathering food. Single species of trees, that are planted in inpenetrable rows are devoid of life of what natural forests have.

>>>If you made LA county the same density as Paris, you could house every American.

Where they will get water? How they will get food? How many roads and transportation and wasted energy will be required to deliver these bare necessities? Where they will dump their shit and garbage? I sure hope - not in the Ocean! My wild guess, dude, is that you will still need rest of USA to feed and support that concentration of population. Not to mention need for mental health support, because of encroaching of personal and communal space. People might be very social animals, but they are not sardines.

>>Stop eating meat

Consumption of meat - in particular, cooked meat, only in 3 million years made primates into humans. In that light, abandonment of meat also can lead to evolutionary changes and lack of protein, that meat is providing will affect brains.

Not raising cattle mostly shifts land usage to single culture crops, which are no better for environment and lead to impoverishment of arable lands. The main reason why animals are raised is economy - it takes less effort and energy to raise animals, compared to money you would earn from raising crops - to reach the same amount of money by raising crops, you need more arable lands and resources to maintain them - not to mentioning, that raising that amount of single crops will decrease their price value(because of open market) that will affect all crop growers and in the end they will be impoverished - not some dude in CA, who dos not have to tend crops.

>>>More UK specific

In UK many highrises from 1970s are razed to the ground and in their place are rebuilt family size houses, because highrises are extremely expensive to maintain, not to mention, that in crisis situations they are unmanageable - if there is a fire, then death is in 10s - even hundreds, if there is a single crime, then affected is not just one household and neighbouring families but the whole highrise.

UK is transforming some of the lands of defunct mines into forests, because it is dangerous to build house in place, that can suck it up with all the inhabitants. Wetlands are contantly exposed to tides from sea - also not viable place to build a house. Well, you can build house anywhere - in space, on the botom of the ocean, even on the active volcano, but it all comes of unsustainable costs for most of us out there. No one is holding you back to do what you preach - on your own expense.

"Housing crisis" in UK is not about lack of houses in a market, but lack of social welfare houses, that can be offered to people, who are living on welfare - and the main crisis here is that such people share in UK has reached significant share among population.

But can you think and provide any reasonable solution on how to restore historical uninterrupted forest, that once covered most of Europe and which now is highly urbanized area?

And I would suggest to read the article - the main issue that locals are concerned about is not preservation of trees, but receiving profit share from cutting these trees. Fate of trees is not uncertainty - they will be gone to give place where to grow crops.

Most of CDR population does not use electricity, but if they were using electricity, they would have even more needs and trees would be cut out in even bigger rate, to sustain that lifestyle.

Industrial countries of modern age are also China and India and most of countries that are manufacturing goods for export.

If China is "exploiting" DRC, it clearly is not going to pay for trees, that it can't get. Prosperous countries can give money to save some tress and locals will accept it and will also sell the tree to China - that's double profit ftw!

DRC is not governed by colonizers and is doing this on their free will. My people were oppressed by Russian Empire longer than DRC was colonized by Europeans and when they gained freedom, they in short time gained prosperity. It is an insult to the Congolese people, to consider them unable to think for themselves and make their own choices and sacrifices for their better future and that someone from US, who is not living in DRC has better understanding what is best for them.

Trees are not only producing oxygen, but they are also consuming it, so in total oxygen production value of trees around equatorial regions is 0. Threes might produce more oxygen further away from equator, only where days are longer, but they have never been a reason why on this planet there is an oxygen.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/why-a...

Oxygen is produced by plankton. Trees did not appear on this planet before oxygen, so you are breathing air not because of trees. Human species also are multicellular species...

Here is another problem to think about how humans are changing environment - forests and nature(with animals) are a source of diseases. If it is acceptable to massacre out of existence whole species of snails, that are part of malaria cycle, then destruction of forests in this is least concern.

Congo is one of the countries, that is already receiving foreign aid, so claiming, that it is not receiving any is simply a lie.

>>> They (we) would have to pay to Congolese people a competitive price for each tree saved from cutting.

The biggest issue of all of the foreign aid is corruption. The output of aid in most cases makes few mega rich billionaires from Africa and total poverty for rest.

There is hypocricity in the whole "save the forests" idea, because the only way to save forests is by dramatically reducing population - I don't see reappearance of forests(where squirrel can run wild and free without the need to touch the soil) in United Kingdom, where money should not be the issue. DRC has population >100 million - that fact alone is making unsustainable maintenance of forests, for a population, that has basic needs, that include roof above their home, clothing and food.