Google Backups & Alternative
What to do when Google is down???
Google service outage was interesting I never really thought about these services being out because they've always been there even when the local ISP is out I could pull the email services and the documents or YouTube from my cellular data. I always like having the ability to do that. But Monday 12-14-2020 any of my logged in accounts or services were unreachable because of that huge worldwide outage. So this video from cold fusion I think really covers this topic well.
On Monday 14 December, 2020, for a duration of 47 minutes, customer-facing Google services that required Google OAuth access were unavailable. Note from Google Link
You can see it above I am putting a list together of backups and things that you can do. I think this would also help Google Antitrust case as I like what Google offers and would like most things to just stay how they are.
- Gmail. https://protonmail.com/signup
- Docs https://www.libreoffice.org/
- Google Maps https://www.openstreetmap.org/
- Google Photos Amazon Prime or your own external hard drive or NAS
- YouTube Music https://www.simplemobiletools.com/ has an MP3 Player app
- YouTube OTA TV and other websites VLC
- Nest thermostat vs programable thermostat I am not a big fan of IoT
- Chrome //www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/ Firefox
- Play App Store https://f-droid.org/ or just get APK files for Android
- Google search engine https://duckduckgo.com I have other Alt ways too
Sub-Reddit and other places with good info.
https://restoreprivacy.com/google-alternatives/
My List
1) Email options
ProtonMail is an end-to-end encrypted email service
Its free for up to 500mb of usage I see this mostly as a backup service that I could send something out if I needed to. There are other providers like your ISP and Yahoo etc... but I just don't think they have the fearutres or space that Gmail offers but I think ProtonMail really offers something that is different.
2) office suite
LibreOffice free and open-source office suite, a project of The Document Foundation. The LibreOffice suite consists of programs for word processing, creating and editing of spreadsheets, slideshows, diagrams and drawings, working with databases,
I mostly use Google Docs for notes and keeping information that is longer together. Its also free but is web based. I like that LibreOffice works downloaded and offline. I think MS office still dormmates the office landscape but I think Google is a close 2nd and then LibreOffice is nice to have. I think its a good option for students in school. When I looked at taking classes at the University of Iowa they had a technology fee even Kirkwood has that fee. I think that fee goes to subsided Microsoft Office subscription service.
When I got my 1st computer that was my computer and not shared with family. It ran windows XP and had Microsoft Office 2003 preloaded. I enjoyed that software and still have that old PC in my basement it has never been online before and I use it to create retro art with Clipart and other options.
3) Maps
OpenStreetMap (OSM) is a collaborative project to create a free editable map of the world.
OpenStreetMap has a lot less features and information but is free and still something useful to know about. I also like having printed maps so that I have a backup reference for different towns and areas I will be, a lot of times you can get free printed maps and atlas for areas the ultimate analog backup.
I have cellular data now I only got that in 2019 before that I was only using Wi-Fi and locally downloaded Google Maps which I like. At one point I was one of the top contributors in Iowa at least to Google Maps. I just really enjoyed it and leaving my mark on places either by reviews or adding photos making edits for times open etc I really added value to Google Maps and feel Google Maps add value to my life. https://www.openstreetmap.org/
4) Photos
I am really into photography and enjoy taking a ton of pictures its a big hobby of mine but I guess any teenager with a smartphone and some apps will say the same too.
I am scanning a lot of pictures for Google Photo before the Data caps hits in June 2021 but they did give us 6 years of unlimited storage at no cost. I feel that another set of websites like Flickr and other website can offer things like Google Photo but not as well. You can use External Hard Drive to make backups locally at your home. https://lifehacker.com/the-best-alternatives-to-google-photos-1845655473
5) Music
When I was in middle school I got a CD player and was able to play CD's and swap out the discs. I think I had a Sony Walkman CD player later on in high school I got a Sony Walkman MP3 player I still have that player but have not booted it up in years the music. I have that music backed up on my old Windows XP machine I have also backed up that music to USB sticks and loaded it into Google Music.
6) Video Viewing
Points 4-6 could almost be combined as they are all ways in which multimedia content can be stored and viewed. YouTube is different from anything before it or since it has come to the market I love it and watch it everyday when the YouTube outage happen I was trying to watch 1982 Honda CM450: Regular Car Reviews at 6AM or so on 12/14/2020 the day and around the time the outage happened.
I have a Roku that I use to view online media from my TV I used an old Chromecast so I could watch HBOMax and was not a fan of the Chromecast. I only have a DVD player with no Wi-Fi on it and no Blu-ray. To watch Live TV I have a rooftop TV antenna and am able to get PBS CBS FOX ABC NBC ION over the air at no monthly cost. I donate money to Iowa PBS and Iowa Public radio as I think both of those groups add something of value to the airwaves.
Here is a link to a media player
https://www.videolan.org/ for VLC media player
The state public boardcasters you can get over the air or online.
https://www.iowapublicradio.org/
7) thermostat & IOTs
For my day job I have worked in telecommunications since I was a teenager at one of my former employers they had this BIG dream of doing a bunch of Internet o[Of Things they just thought this was going to be a great market and with a lot of other big Telco's getting out of the market now is a great time. Well that turned into a million dollar+ boondoggle for this small CLEC ISP and really added no value to the company or for the customers. So just giving you an idea of where I am coming from with my perspectives of IoT.t
I think it very hackable I don't think most places in the USA have the infrastructure in place to really fully support this system either because of data caps or just bad network management.
Just buy a programable thermostat and LED lights but not the "Smart Lights" that use data and sense your mood etc..
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https://duckduckgo.com/ is an Internet search engine that emphasizes protecting searchers' privacy and avoiding the "filter bubble" of personalized search results.
Lifehacker offers some good Alt like reddit & https://answers.yahoo.com/
I think Library really have a lot of use full information that people under value
917-ASK-NYPL,Every day, except Sundays and holidays, between 9:00 am and 6:00 pm EST, anyone, of any age, from anywhere in the world can telephone 917-275-6975 and ask a question.
I use Google Voice as my main number and have done so for over 10 years! But I am into SIP Tunks and other telephone tech...
I like JMP (jmp.chat), it handles messages/SMS through XMPP (Conversations.IM is a really sweet FOSS app that handles XMPP), allows number porting, and also supports the SIP protocol for voice. Allows you to signup 100% anonymously as well, don't even need to give them your email.
I will edit this and add more to it as I go.
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