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> You can definitely use Ubuntu without it having to "phone home". How do you know? You're assuming they aren't phoning home, probably because it's open source

> You can definitely use Ubuntu without it having to "phone home". How do you know? You're assuming they aren't phoning home, probably because it's open source, but you've probably never verified it. And you're unlikely to be enforcing that or proactively monitoring it. So how do you know an update didn't change the rules? You don't. You just have trust. And you can equally use Chrome OS with the same level of trust that it's not phoning home after you turn off the analytics that tell you they are phoning home. It's not actively malicious spyware. The settings aren't ignored.

benologist 8y ago
Google have actually been fined for circumventing privacy settings more than once. In addition to the civil penalty, the order also requires Google to disable all the tracking cookies it had said it would not place on consumers’ computers. https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2012/08/google-will-pay-225-million-settle-ftc-charges-it-misrepresented https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2012/08/googl... https://venturebeat.com/2013/11/18/google-privacy-settlement/ https://venturebeat.com/2013/11/18/google-privacy-settlement...
- kllrnohj 8y ago
  Google made no promises on that setting. Apple offered a setting, failed to implement it properly, and Google got fined for it. That's what happened there. But regardless what clearly did not happen in that case is Google violating one of Google's own settings. Which is what we're talking about here - the settings Chrome offers being violated. There's no evidence of that.
amelius 8y ago
The problem is incentives. Ubuntu has no incentive to take your information. Google has. That means that even if you change the settings, you don't know if they will ask you in some obscure dialog box to turn it back on, etc. Or they will say "you upgraded, but you didn't turn off the setting again? that's your fault then". Sneaky tricks like this are happening all the time. Only if the incentives are right I can begin to trust that they will not abuse my information. And if Ubuntu starts to abuse my trust for some reason, I will switch to a different distribution. I can already say that I don't like that Amazon shopping logo in the Unity interface.
- kllrnohj 8y ago
  > Ubuntu has no incentive to take your information. Of course they do, money. Why else do you think they sold out to Amazon and sent them all your search data? https://www.zdnet.com/article/shuttleworth-defends-ubuntu-linux-integrating-amazon/ https://www.zdnet.com/article/shuttleworth-defends-ubuntu-li... What's the old saying, "if you didn't pay for it you are the product"? How much does Ubuntu cost again? Oh, right, you don't pay for it.
  - amelius 8y ago
    Ubuntu backed out of the Amazon search deal after community pressure: https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2016/01/ubuntu-online-search-feature-disabled-16-04 https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2016/01/ubuntu-online-search-fea... But you're right, if they pull another trick like this in the future, I'm switching to a different distribution. I think the comparison with Google is still way off, by the way. Android is basically ad/malware, and there is no reason to believe ChromeOS will be much different.

benologist 8y ago

Google have actually been fined for circumventing privacy settings more than once. In addition to the civil penalty, the order also requires Google to disable all the tracking cookies it had said it would not place on consumers’ computers. https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2012/08/google-will-pay-225-million-settle-ftc-charges-it-misrepresented https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2012/08/googl... https://venturebeat.com/2013/11/18/google-privacy-settlement/ https://venturebeat.com/2013/11/18/google-privacy-settlement...

kllrnohj 8y ago
Google made no promises on that setting. Apple offered a setting, failed to implement it properly, and Google got fined for it. That's what happened there. But regardless what clearly did not happen in that case is Google violating one of Google's own settings. Which is what we're talking about here - the settings Chrome offers being violated. There's no evidence of that.

amelius 8y ago

The problem is incentives. Ubuntu has no incentive to take your information. Google has. That means that even if you change the settings, you don't know if they will ask you in some obscure dialog box to turn it back on, etc. Or they will say "you upgraded, but you didn't turn off the setting again? that's your fault then". Sneaky tricks like this are happening all the time. Only if the incentives are right I can begin to trust that they will not abuse my information. And if Ubuntu starts to abuse my trust for some reason, I will switch to a different distribution. I can already say that I don't like that Amazon shopping logo in the Unity interface.

kllrnohj 8y ago
> Ubuntu has no incentive to take your information. Of course they do, money. Why else do you think they sold out to Amazon and sent them all your search data? https://www.zdnet.com/article/shuttleworth-defends-ubuntu-linux-integrating-amazon/ https://www.zdnet.com/article/shuttleworth-defends-ubuntu-li... What's the old saying, "if you didn't pay for it you are the product"? How much does Ubuntu cost again? Oh, right, you don't pay for it.
- amelius 8y ago
  Ubuntu backed out of the Amazon search deal after community pressure: https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2016/01/ubuntu-online-search-feature-disabled-16-04 https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2016/01/ubuntu-online-search-fea... But you're right, if they pull another trick like this in the future, I'm switching to a different distribution. I think the comparison with Google is still way off, by the way. Android is basically ad/malware, and there is no reason to believe ChromeOS will be much different.