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Digital Prepping, Part 1 - Off-Line Websites & Maps
The first step in making your computer usable when the Internet goes away. Because it will.
August 05, 2023
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This is Part 1 in a series of articles on “Digital Prepping” — preparing your computers and smartphones for the possibility of any number of events… which could leave you without Internet or power for an extended period of time.

The Internet is an amazing tool, to be sure — an always connected network which we can use to look up nearly any piece of information we might think of.

Historical tidbits, recipes, maps, technical engineering details, how-to’s, song lyrics… you name it.

But what happens… when that “always connected network”… is no longer always connected?

What if, for whatever reason, you are left without Internet access for an hour? A day? A month? Or, dare I even say it, what if the Internet is simply… gone forever?

These are not far-fetched notions.

  • The Internet has only existed for a short period of time — there is no reason to believe it will continue to exist indefinitely.

  • There are regular Internet outages all across the world, with some impacting large areas.

  • And, let’s face it, the Internet infrastructure is darned fragile — with huge numbers of critical points of failure.

Plus… There are areas you may travel to where you simply will not have Internet access. Or, heck, you might not want Internet access for some reason.

In other words: How do you get access to all of that information… when you cannot access the Internet?

Luckily… it’s pretty darned easy. You’ll just need to plan ahead a little bit.

Off-Line Websites

The first — and possibly the easiest — thing you can do is to grab an “Off-Line Web Browser”. Which is exactly what it sounds like: an application that lets you use websites — which you have pre-downloaded — when you have no Internet connection.

There are multiple options available but, for now, I recommend starting with Kiwix. Which, as luck would have it, is available for nearly every major computing platform you can think of (Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS).

Seriously. You can run Kiwix just about anywhere.

Kiwix works by loading a website archive file format known as a ZIM file — which, essentially, takes a whole website… and sticks it into a single, searchable file for your use when Off-Line.

Once installed, you can then proceed to download any of a number of website archives that have been pre-created — on a huge range of topics. Including archives of Stack Exchange Q&A’s, Wikipedia, Project Gutenberg, cooking & prepping resources, and so much more.

Those .ZIM website archives can be downloaded both from the website, as well as directly from within the Kiwix application, itself. Extremely easy to use, no account necessary, and it runs almost anywhere.

Once downloaded, you can use Kiwix almost like any normal web browser. Except it’s not connected to the Internet.

Depending on how many websites you’ll want full archives of, this can take up quite a large amount of space. The full archive of Wikipedia, for example, is 89 GB in size (luckily they’ve also broken that down into categories if there are only a few topics that interest you).

Want all of Wikipedia, Stack Overflow, Project Gutenberg (which gives you over 60,000 eBooks, including a huge number of classics), and the full archive of wikiHow (because instructional articles are handy)? You’re going to need several hundred GB of storage ready (and, hopefully, a pretty fast Internet connection to grab them all).

Luckily, once downloaded, those .ZIM archives can be backed up, copied around, and re-used on any device.

Off-Line Maps

There was a time when all maps were “Off-Line”. They came on paper, and every car had a collection of them in the glove compartment. And everyone had a road atlas (at least one covering the area they lived).

Nowadays? Almost everyone has become reliant on services like Google Maps to find their way around.

Loose access to the Internet? This can become a big problem in a hurry.

Luckily we have solutions.

The first, and most simple, solution is to use the “Off-Line Maps” feature of Google Maps. This allows you to download a large portion of the location data for an area that you select. You will then be able to use Google Maps (somewhat) regularly for that region.

This is handy. And, if you use Google Maps, I highly recommend doing this for at least the area where you live. It truly does work pretty well.

However: There are some serious downsides to this mechanism.

  • Your “Off-Line” map is not going to be available to you on all of your computers and smartphones.

  • It is only going to function as long as Google’s software allows it to function. And, since that software is all closed (and typically reliant on an Internet connection), we have no idea how long that will truly be.

  • It assumes you can (or want to) use Google Maps.

Which means: You’re going to want another solution as well.

My personal recommendation: OpenStreetMap.

OpenStreetMap is a free — volunteer built — map database which, in my experience, is extraordinarily complete. You will, on occasion, find gaps in information… but usually only for the most remote areas.

There are a large number of applications, for a number of platforms, that can utilize OpenStreetMap data while Off-Line. But, for my money, the best available is Marble.

Marble is available for Linux, Windows, Mac, and Android… and has an absolutely huge number of features. Including the ability to download sections of a map, or download entire map databases — including modern maps, satellite views, and a wide range of historical maps and globes dating back hundreds of years.

All of this makes Marble not only an excellent choice for modern mapping and driving/walking direction needs… but also for educational and historical purposes.

Note: If you have trouble running Marble on recent versions of Android, there are several OpenStreetMap applications available for mobile platforms (including OsmAnd).

This is just scratching the surface

As you begin your “Digital Prepping” journey, you’re going to quickly realize just how much of your day-to-day computing is utterly reliant on an active Internet connection (or, at the very least, an occasional connection).

Music, language translations, software installations and updating, operating system setup, communication… the list goes on-and-on.

What we’ve done here, today, is the first step towards preparing yourself for a complete and total loss of Internet connectivity — an eventuality that is all but certain to occur (even if just for a short period).

As we continue through this series of articles, we will also be touching on some other aspects of “Digital Prepping” that are a bit more… let’s just say… intense.

  • Computing when there is no electrical power grid.

  • Creating your own “Mini Internet”.

  • Short, medium, and long range data transmission.

  • Preparing for EMPs (electromagnetic pulse), floods, fires, and other physical threats to computers and data.

  • Effective and safe backups of critical data on physical media.

Your Homework for Part 1

It’s one thing to know these options are available for having access to information Off-Line… it’s another to put it into practice.

With that in mind… I’ve got some homework for you. Nothing difficult… should take no more than a few minutes, at most. But, when you’re done, you’ll have taken your first steps towards becoming a true Digital Prepper.

  1. Install both Marble and Kiwix on one device. The links are above.

  2. Launch Kiwix and download one website archive that interests you.

  3. Launch Marble, select “Open Street Map”, zoom in to the town you live. Select the File Menu, and click “Download Region” to make an Off-Line copy of that map area.

(If you don't want to -- or can't -- use Marble... no problem.  Simply choose a different Mapping alternative from above.)

Shazam! You now have your local area mapped for when the Internet goes down… and you have something to read!

See you in Part 2 of “Digital Prepping”… where we will prepare your Operating System for being completely Off-Line (including installation, drivers, updates, and installing new software).

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The Unpublished Anti-Lunduke Hit-Piece
A Tech Journalist interviewed me for a hit-piece article. But the questions made them look bad, and they shelved the story. So I'm publishing their hit-piece for them.

Back in September, shortly after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, I was contacted by a Tech Journalist writing for FossForce.com (a smaller, Open Source focused publication) who was working on an article around Open Source, Antifa, and the Lunduke Journal’s coverage of those topics.

This particular outlet had, several months prior, run an “anti-Lunduke” hit piece without first reaching out for comment — which resulted in their most popular article (at least on social media) in quite some time.

With that in mind, it seemed reasonable that they’d want to repeat that success with another “anti-Lunduke” story.

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But, it would appear that the answers they received were not conducive to creating the hit-piece they were hoping for — my guess is they realized their questions made them look like the villain in the story. The villain they, clearly, hoped to portray me as.

They opted to not publish the piece.

So I’m publishing their hit-piece for them.

Below is every question — and every answer (with no edits) — which I was asked, on September 19th, by a Tech Journalist by the name of Christine Hall, writing for FossForce.

Fair warning: This is very, very politically charged.

Enjoy.


September 19th

Hall:

The last time I mentioned you in an article, you castigated me for not reaching out to you beforehand. Well, I’m reaching out now. We’ll see what comes of this.

You do recognize that the vast majority of organizations using the term antifa as a descriptor are not in the least bit terrorist and pose no threat to society -- and indeed, the only threats they might pose to fascist groups are not physical or life-harming?

Lunduke:

Hello Christine! Nice to hear from you!

Many, if not most, of those proclaiming support for Antifa (within Open Source) have also made statements encouraging or supporting violence and discrimination.

Regardless of that fact -- which I have documented extensively in Lunduke Journal coverage -- when violent acts are committed (such as murder, riots, and lynchings) in the name of “Antifa”, to turn around and immediately declare yourself to be “Antifa” is a clear declaration of support of that violence.

Hall:

And why did you feel it necessary to call out Danielle Foré’s [the founder of the elementary OS Linux Distribution] trans status in such an ugly manner?

Lunduke:

There is a noteworthy overlap between “Trans activism” and support for political violence -- including in the recent murder of Charlie Kirk (the murderer’s boyfriend was “Trans”).

In the case of Daniel Fore, he, a leader of an Open Source project, regularly calls for discrimination (and violence) against people he disagrees with -- often in conjunction with his self-declaration as “Trans”.

Thus, his declaration of being “Trans” becomes a part of the overall story.

It is worth noting here that The Lunduke Journal has never -- and would never -- call for discrimination or violence against someone because of how they identify or who they may (or may not) vote for.

This is in stark contrast those, such as Mr. Fore, who consider themselves “Trans” or “Antifa” -- who actively advocate for both discrimination and violence.

Hall:

Mentioning a person’s trans status in ways that are pertinent to your argument necessates rudeness such as calling her a “dude who likes to wear dresses”?

Lunduke:

Dan Fore is, in fact, a dude who likes to wear dresses.

The only reason to view that as a negative is if you view dudes wearing dresses as a negative.

Hall:

I’ll quote you on that, which I’m pretty sure won’t bother you in the least.

Lunduke:

Absolutely! Quote anything I say here. In fact, I suggest quoting absolutely everything I’ve written to you here, today.

Hall:

You also understand, don’t you, that voicing disagreement with an assessment made by POTUS is not only legal but a healthy part of the national dialog.

Lunduke:

Absolutely! Did I say somewhere that it was illegal to disagree with a politician? It seems unlikely that I have ever said that.

Hall:

Also, how would you reply to this:

There have been very few murders linked to individuals associated with Antifa, some incidents of rioting attributed to Antifa supporters, and no credible evidence of lynchings conducted in the name of Antifa. Compared to far-right groups, violence attributed to Antifa is much less frequent and lethal, with only one suspected kill—Aaron Danielson in Portland, by an anti-fascist activist—officially confirmed in recent U.S. history.

Lunduke:

Murder is bad. I am opposed to all murder.

In the context of these discussions, bearing in mind the Kirk murder is important (as many statements were made in response to it). The murderer of Kirk appears to have been pro-Trans and pro-Antifa (based on all available information).

Hall:

Is there any evidence that the suspect was part of an antifa group? I haven’t seen any.

Lunduke:

I have seen some reporting to this effect (including statements from family and messages he wrote).

But, far more important to this story, is the response to the murder among Antifa supporters (including those within Open Source). A large portion of Antifa supporters have celebrated the murder as justified because it killed someone they considered to be a “fascist”.

Hall:

Also, no group should be held responsible for what some deranged person who identifies with the group has done.

Lunduke:

I agree that a broader group should not be held responsible for the actions of a small number of individuals.

However, and this is critically important, it is entirely appropriate to hold people responsible for their own statements and actions.

With that in mind: The overall messaging of Antifa (and Antifa supporters) tends heavily towards violence. Punching, killing, molotov cocktails, etc. are all common messaging used by Antifa (including by those I quote within the Open Source world -- many of whom have advocated violence against myself).

Advocating for violence, then celebrating when violence is committed, are not good things.

Yet we see a great deal of that among Open Source supporters of Antifa.

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That “50% off” sale ends tonight at midnight. So you have a few hours to snag a discounted subscription, if you haven’t already.

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To all of you amazing nerds who have picked up a Lifetime Subscription already this weekend: You are awesome. You’ll be receiving a confirmation email, with all of the Lifetime Subscription details, by tomorrow (if you haven’t already).

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See you all on Monday!

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