Robin Riley

Ahhhh, nothing like capping the week with successful convening of open governance.

We just had our second full meeting of the @matrix Governing Board, with Committee and Working Group report outs and more.

I'm very pleased with how things are shaping up, and super grateful to everyone for putting their time and energy into it.

Full report to come soon from our illustrious Chair and Vice Chair ✨

I am, unfortunately, looking to consult with a California-based lawyer about a possible defamation case in which I (and possibly a couple others) would be the plaintiff.

Anybody have recommendations? This is new territory for me...

@matrix has gone from $0 to $561K in recurring revenue in just 2 years. But our expenses run $1.2M/yr.

We've burned through reserves and are at a crossroads.

It's the classic FOSS funding problem: use and adoption are at an all-time high, wealthy companies and countries use it, and secure decentralized comms have never been more important. And yet we can't pay our bills.

YOU have a role to play in shaping what comes next: https://matrix.org/blog/2025/02/crossroads/

#Matrix #FOSS #OpenSource #IndieWeb #Fediverse

Staying informed in the US is not going to get easier anytime soon, especially as old standbys fall to billionaires or preemptive obedience to the authoritarian regime.

I've assembled a list of 40+ outlets that I find valuable, prominently featuring:

* nonprofit, co-operative, and independent news rooms,
* outlets relevant to Petaluma and the Bay Area,
* international outlets,
* and, yes, a selection of for-profit outlets.

Many of them are on fedi or Bluesky.

https://blog.riley.pub/news-and-information-in-2025/

#News

"The UK’s war on encryption affects all of us" via @verge.

Indeed, the UK's actions imperil security across the globe.

It's worth highlighting that open source comms tools, like @matrix and @signalapp, empower researchers and users: you'll _see_ if a backdoor is added.

Not so with proprietary tools. Do you really trust Meta, Apple, or Google not to roll over on you?

https://www.theverge.com/policy/612136/uk-icloud-investigatory-powers-act-war-on-encryption

#FOSS #SoftwareFreedom #OpenSource #Security #Privacy #Encryption

How do you feel about the fact that in the United States people with disabilities can be paid a sub-minimum wage?

Today is the last day to submit a comment to the Federal Register asking for an end to this practice. Right now, people who profit off the back of this exploitation are flooding it with comments.

Allies: please don't miss the opportunity to even the score. It takes less than 5 minutes.

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/12/04/2024-27880/employment-of-workers-with-disabilities-under-section-14c-of-the-fair-labor-standards-act

#Disability #USPol #EqualRights

All the name change related infra updates gave me a great excuse to finally, and fully, get settled in with @thunderbird.

And wow it has come a long way! I've got it on my laptops and desktop as well as my phone, and it's playing nice with all my inboxes and calendars.

Huge thanks to everyone who contributes #Thunderbird!

#OpenSource #FOSS