With the Linux Suck Archival project done, time to turn my attention to a side project that I've been needing to tackle for some time:
Building out a mobile studio space.
Over the last (close to) two years, we've been living while we travel the country. Which has been the best possible thing for my family -- the kids have been able to spend time with family across the land and go to museums and national parks in every state we visit.
One of the major downsides is that I don't have a dedicated recording space. Either for podcasts or videos. When we lived back in Portland I had a great little studio set up. Soundproofing. Nice backdrops. Space for lighting and equipment. Was amazing.
And, with my list of "Video Projects I'd Like To Do" growing ever longer -- and doing regular audio podcasts -- it's time to figure out a way to make that work while living a "mobile lifestyle".
I've been going back and forth on the best way to do that.
Part of me wants to get a simple cargo trailer and outfit it. I spent some time, a few years back, with a production company that did something similar for doing voice over work for reality shows while on location. Worked really well. Soundproofing, chair, desk, gear setup and storage.
Big benefits there: Cost is low (no more than a couple thousand total with the equipment I need) and it can be set up permanently as a studio space when we finally settle down and get a house again (and it won't take up too much space in a garage / driveway / carport).
The other option I've been considering is to do something similar... but with a small cargo van instead of a cargo trailer.
The drawbacks there are two-fold: The initial cost (and future maintenance) are a little higher... and the overall size is a few feet larger.
The benefit is that it wouldn't need a tow vehicle to move. Which could also make it really fun to take on location at tech conferences and the like.
I'm leaning towards the cargo trailer route (as it's a bit cheaper and more flexible). Of course, then I still need to figure out how to fund it (subscriptions are covering living and operating expenses nicely nowadays... but not with enough extra to be able to justify the added expense).
Really just thinking about this out loud. Trying to see if expressing the ideas help me to solidify exactly how best to approach it all. š
Based on available data, as of June, 2025, there are as many as 72 Million Desktop PCs running Linux. Which is more than all Apple Ils, Amigas, & Win 3.1 PCs combined. Ever.
The "Learn Linux TV" YouTube channel hit 1 Million subscribers. But how many of those are bots? At first glance... a lot. Possibly most. The Dead Internet Theory is real.
Ads are filling the entirety of the Web -- websites, podcasts, YouTube videos, etc. -- at an increasing rate. Prices for those ad placements are plummeting. Consumers are desperate to use ad-blockers to make the web palatable. Google (and others) are desperate to break and block ad-blockers. All of which results in... more ads and lower pay for creators.
It's a fascinatingly annoying cycle. And there's only one viable way out of it.
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Those in power with openSUSE make it clear they will not allow me anywhere near anything related to the openSUSE project. Ever. For any reason.
Well, that settles that, then! Guess I won't be contributing to openSUSE! š¤£
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https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4619051/lunduke-journal-link-central-tm
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Update on the new job:
Well, I havenāt been around much. This new job has had me so busy Iāve barely had time to do anything other than work and sleep. Itās also the first time Iāve really felt challenged by a job since I first got started in IT about 6 years ago. Truth be told, I had definitely gotten complacent on the help desk and repair side of things and am having to break some bad habits.
Also got sick last week with the flu. The whole family got it. That sucked something terrible. Probably top 3 sicknesses Iāve ever had. Anyway, Iām glad weāre all on the mend and Iām hoping to get some time to do some more tinkering soon. Now it looks like Iāve got about a month and a halfās worth of Lunduke videos to catch up on, lol.
Instead of the regular shows (audio podcasts & videos), The Lunduke Journal will be publishing only articles for the next week.
Iām traveling this week, and recording shows is a little tricky. But there are some great stories that deserve to be told ā so articles it is!
Be sure youāre following The Lunduke Journal on any of the four platforms where articles are published (all are free to follow be alerted to new articles).
-Lunduke
The DOJ v. Google case ā which found that Google has been violating antitrust laws related to its monopoly position in the Search Engine market ā is weeks away from ending the remedy phase. Judge Mehta is expected to issue his final decision some time in August (next month).
Significantly for Mozilla, one of the most heavily pushed (by the DOJ) remedies would block Google from paying Mozilla for default search engine placement within Firefox. This would, effectively, end over 80% of Mozillaās yearly revenueā¦ and force the company to dramatically downsize.
During the court trial earlier this year, the Mozilla CFO testified that, should this happen, Mozilla āmay be forced to scale back operationsā.
At the same time as the DOJ v. Google case is moving quickly towards a conclusion, the US government has pulled Mozilla funding ā resulting in renewed, desperate pleas from Mozilla, asking for donations to attempt to cover the lost tax payer revenue.
Mozilla appears to have a four pronged approach to securing funding and staying in business:
Fight the DOJ v. Google case (both in court and public opinion).
Rebrand (and re-focus) on political activism in the hopes of securing new funding sources. (They are now a āglobal crew of activistsā focused on Marxist causes.)
Monetize data collected from Firefox users. (See: Firefox recently changing their Terms of Use to allow Mozilla to collect user data.)
Encouraging users to donate.
Many questions remain in this saga:
Will Judge Mehta tell Google to stop payments for Search Engine placement? Weāll find out very soon.
Will Google appeal after the remedies are handed down? (Most likely.)
If so, what will the outcome of that appeal be? And how will default Search Engine payments be impacted during the appeal?
Will Mozilla see enough success in their new business of being a āglobal crew of activistsā to avoid significant layoffs?
According to multiple sources within Mozilla ā who have spoken to The Lunduke Journal on the condition of anonymity ā employees have deep concerns about the future of the company, the leadership currently in power, and the stability of their jobs through the end of this year.
Now, Mozilla has several hundred million dollars in cash on hand. Which means, even if they experience the loss of 80%+ of their revenueā¦ they have enough runway to keep them afloat at least for a little while. But burning through savings to keep a company afloat is not a great long term strategy.
What will Mozilla look like this time next year?
Heckā¦ what will Mozilla look like this time next month?
Itās going to be interesting to watch as this unfolds.
To all of you amazing nerds who have signed up for a new Lunduke Journal subscription today, thank you! You make The Lunduke Journal possible!
If you havenāt snagged yours yet, the ā50% off everything, even the Lifetime Subscriptionsā deal is available today and tomorrow (through Saturday, May 31st).
50% off Monthly ā Now $3 / Month (was $6 / Month)
50% off Yearly ā Now $27 / Year (was $54 / Year)
50% off Yearly MP4 Downloads ā Now $27 / Year (was $54 / Year)
50% off Lifetime Subscriptions ā Now $100 (was $200)
All the details on how to grab each type of subscription is right here. Thereās also an audio podcast and video of me rambling about it.
Once again, thank you for all of the support. It truly does make a difference.
-Lunduke
