Resolve to have a freer 2025
Now that 2024 is coming to an end, many people are looking forward and thinking about what they want their 2025 to look like. This thought process looks different for everyone, from more general hopes for the New Year to highly specific goals for each month. For others, they say: "just leave me alone with this whole nonsense. It's still 2024, after all!" When I think about how I want to live my life next year, living in freedom is often at the front of my mind. Why not join me in adding a few computer user freedom resolutions to your vision board for next year? The sky is the limit with software freedom, but here are a few New Year's resolutions and tips to get started.
In 2025, I want to:
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Replace one proprietary program I use on a regular basis with free software. I recommend having a look at our Freedom Ladder campaign for examples of libre programs that are easy to adopt.
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Switch to a federated social media platform that respects my freedom, such as Mastodon.
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Read DRM-free e-books, listen to DRM-free music, and watch DRM-free movies. There are plenty of suppliers and resources in our Guide to DRM-free Living.
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Improve my mobile phone freedom. I will use a free repository like F-Droid for installing new apps, and will replace at least one of the proprietary apps I use on my phone. On the LibrePlanet wiki, you can find suggestions for mobile phone apps that respect your freedom and are easily adopted.
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Encrypt my emails. You can start by learning how to use encryption with our Email Self-Defense Guide.
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Stop using a nonfree wireless card. Have a look at the FSF's Ethical Tech Giving Guide to find a free replacement.
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Switch to a free operating system. The FSF has a list of free GNU/Linux distributions that you can switch to.
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Share free software with someone and help them install their first free program. Check out the FSF's Free Software Outreach Guide for tips and tricks on how to introduce your loved ones and colleagues to free software.
Of course, these are just suggestions, and it doesn't matter how big or small the goals you set yourself are! You also don't have to wait until the beginning of a new year to live a little freer or help others live in freedom. If you don't want to have any resolutions at all, or you've already accomplished as much as you can on an individual level when it comes to user freedom (fabulous!), that's just as good. Only you know what works for you.
Share your New Year's resolution(s) on social media using the hashtags #newyear and #freesoftware. Knowing that others know about your goals will help you to stick to them, and it could also encourage others to take their first steps towards living more freely.
The FSF is currently having its year-end fundraiser. Donate to help us reach our fundraising goal of $400,000 USD!
Have fun with your New Year plans!
Images Copyright © 2024 Free Software Foundation, Inc., licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. The photo was taken by Ondrejk in Bratislava in 2004.