In 2019, I did a live show called “Linux Sucks: In Space". (The most recent installment of the Linux Sucks series, which has been viewed millions of times over the last few years.)
That 2019 show was a total trainwreck. In nearly every conceivable way.
Significant portions of the video were lost.
The entire slide deck was lost (seriously).
I had two of my kids with me (3 and 8) as my wife was at home with our newborn – and my 3 year old managed to get into several portions of the video (and audio)… being as I don't want to publish widely distributed video of my kids, those chunks became totally unusable.
Add to that the fact that some portions of the show just went off the rails anyway… Whew! What a mess! What can ya do, eh? :)
Luckily there were some really fun, usable clips.
I have stitched all of those together (roughly 17 minutes worth) and am presenting them as “Linux Sucks 2019 - The Lost Recordings".
Was going to send this out to all you lovely Locals supporters on Monday. But I'm laying in bed and felt like... why the heck not. Not doing a Lunduke & Friends tonight, so why not upload this ridiculous little show. :)
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.
Linux YouTube Channel Hits 1 Million Subs... or Did It?
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.
Sessions on "Databases and Diversity" and "intersectionality" are featured in the FOSSY conference later this month. Where masks and daily Covid tests are encouraged.
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.
Well, I haven’t been around much. This new job has had me so busy I’ve barely had time to do anything other than work and sleep. It’s also the first time I’ve 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 I’ve ever had. Anyway, I’m glad we’re all on the mend and I’m hoping to get some time to do some more tinkering soon. Now it looks like I’ve got about a month and a half’s worth of Lunduke videos to catch up on, lol.
It’s an “Articles Only” Week at The Lunduke Journal
Instead of the regular shows (audio podcasts & videos), The Lunduke Journal will be publishing only articles for the next week.
I’m traveling this week, and recording shows is a little tricky. But there are some great stories that deserve to be told — so articles it is!
Be sure you’re following The Lunduke Journal on any of the four platforms where articles are published (all are free to follow be alerted to new articles).
The DOJ v. Google case — which found that Google has been violating antitrust laws related to its monopoly position in the Search Engine market — 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 Mozilla’s yearly revenue… and force the company to dramatically downsize.
During the court trial earlier this year, the Mozilla CFO testified that, should this happen, Mozilla “may be forced to scale back operations”.
At the same time as the DOJ v. Google case is moving quickly towards a conclusion, the US government has pulled Mozilla funding — 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 “global crew of activists” 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? We’ll 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 “global crew of activists” to avoid significant layoffs?
According to multiple sources within Mozilla — who have spoken to The Lunduke Journal on the condition of anonymity — 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 revenue… 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?
Heck… what will Mozilla look like this time next month?
It’s going to be interesting to watch as this unfolds.
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Bonus: At the bottom of this page you will find the invite link to the super-secret Lunduke Journal Discord Chat Server. This is only available for full subscribers, which makes it a nice place to hang out. No riff-raff.
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