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I've tried that editor year or so ago, and was disappointed that it ever tried to connect to the network to do all sort of stuff. Don't really remember any deta

I've tried that editor year or so ago, and was disappointed that it ever tried to connect to the network to do all sort of stuff. Don't really remember any details, I think there was some analytics, auto-updates etc etc. I'm certain that it can all be disabled, but is there any ready to use recipe to do so? I mean, I want all the non-network-related software I use to literally never try to do anything network-related (besides loopback connections, okay), except when explicitly told to do so.

tetrep 11y ago
If you're concerned about applications using network resources, I'd highly recommend an outbound firewall. Not only can you actually guarantee your applications aren't making arbitrary network connections, but you can also use applications that attempt to, and simply block them when they try. Assuming OSX (because Atom), Little Snitch solves this issue quite nicely.
- drdaeman 11y ago
  Thanks. I do use outbound firewall. Yet, I don't want to rely on it as a primary means to control network access by local software, because sometimes things break. I mean, I want local software (esp., FLOSS one) to be configured civilized enough on its own to not do anything I don't want it to do, even when the guardian tools leave them unmonitored. That's why I've asked if someone possibly already did so and has a configuration preset or something like that.
fivesigma 11y ago
I don't know why this is being downvoted. Atom automatically downloads updates and also hits a google analytics URL every time you open it. The latter can be prevented if you disable the metrics package but you can't turn off update auto-download. This is unacceptable for what essentially is a text editor.
- hollerith 11y ago
  Unacceptable to you. I'm OK with it -- at least when (like Atom) the code that does the data collecting is open source. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that using the internet to collect data on usage patterns is a sufficiently powerful technique that if web apps were the only apps able to do it, web apps would probably eventually drive out native apps (and I don't think I would like that).
  - drdaeman 11y ago
    I just wrote that some default settings didn't match my personal preferences and asked if someone has a readily available guide on controlling that behavior. I suppose, would I've asked if there's a guide on, say, how to make fonts larger everywhere in the UI - it likely wouldn't raise anyone's eyebrow. Don't really see why disabling any non-explicitly-requested outgoing network connectivity is suddenly a controversial question that drove any up or downvotes.
  - ParanoidAct 11y ago
    > In fact, I'd go so far as to say that using the internet to collect data on usage patterns is a sufficiently powerful technique No-one is saying that's a bad thing. What's bad is that it does this automatically without your consent, so long before you can even disable it, it's already leaking data. What's even worse is that it also send potentially sensitive data that appear in exceptions to bugsnag.com and AFAIK, there's no way to disable that by disabling the metrics collection. In fact they don't seem to tell you about it at all. https://github.com/atom/atom/issues/4966 https://github.com/atom/atom/issues/4966
- ParanoidAct 11y ago
  Don't forget it also automatically sends arbitrary data, possibly sensitive to bugsnag.com when an exception occurs and AFAIK, this is not covered by disabling analytics and possibly not by the privacy policy either. https://github.com/atom/atom/issues/4966 https://github.com/atom/atom/issues/4966

tetrep 11y ago

If you're concerned about applications using network resources, I'd highly recommend an outbound firewall. Not only can you actually guarantee your applications aren't making arbitrary network connections, but you can also use applications that attempt to, and simply block them when they try. Assuming OSX (because Atom), Little Snitch solves this issue quite nicely.

drdaeman 11y ago
Thanks. I do use outbound firewall. Yet, I don't want to rely on it as a primary means to control network access by local software, because sometimes things break. I mean, I want local software (esp., FLOSS one) to be configured civilized enough on its own to not do anything I don't want it to do, even when the guardian tools leave them unmonitored. That's why I've asked if someone possibly already did so and has a configuration preset or something like that.

fivesigma 11y ago

I don't know why this is being downvoted. Atom automatically downloads updates and also hits a google analytics URL every time you open it. The latter can be prevented if you disable the metrics package but you can't turn off update auto-download. This is unacceptable for what essentially is a text editor.

hollerith 11y ago
Unacceptable to you. I'm OK with it -- at least when (like Atom) the code that does the data collecting is open source. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that using the internet to collect data on usage patterns is a sufficiently powerful technique that if web apps were the only apps able to do it, web apps would probably eventually drive out native apps (and I don't think I would like that).
- drdaeman 11y ago
  I just wrote that some default settings didn't match my personal preferences and asked if someone has a readily available guide on controlling that behavior. I suppose, would I've asked if there's a guide on, say, how to make fonts larger everywhere in the UI - it likely wouldn't raise anyone's eyebrow. Don't really see why disabling any non-explicitly-requested outgoing network connectivity is suddenly a controversial question that drove any up or downvotes.
- ParanoidAct 11y ago
  > In fact, I'd go so far as to say that using the internet to collect data on usage patterns is a sufficiently powerful technique No-one is saying that's a bad thing. What's bad is that it does this automatically without your consent, so long before you can even disable it, it's already leaking data. What's even worse is that it also send potentially sensitive data that appear in exceptions to bugsnag.com and AFAIK, there's no way to disable that by disabling the metrics collection. In fact they don't seem to tell you about it at all. https://github.com/atom/atom/issues/4966 https://github.com/atom/atom/issues/4966
ParanoidAct 11y ago
Don't forget it also automatically sends arbitrary data, possibly sensitive to bugsnag.com when an exception occurs and AFAIK, this is not covered by disabling analytics and possibly not by the privacy policy either. https://github.com/atom/atom/issues/4966 https://github.com/atom/atom/issues/4966