The main gripe here is, I think, that many people trade away privacy and flexibility without even understanding what they're doing. Most people who read HN don

The main gripe here is, I think, that many people trade away privacy and flexibility without even understanding what they're doing. Most people who read HN don't do that, even if they choose platforms that tilt towards those sorts of services and software. For instance, I'm pretty firmly in the Apple ecosystem, but I could migrate to something else pretty easily IF I wanted to (I don't). I'm not locked in here. My data is stored locally (though I use Dropbox to make it available across multiple devices and platforms). I use proprietary formats very very sparingly. I feel pretty comfortable the "cage door" can't close on me without me changing these choices pretty drastically. I'm sure there are Android/Windows people here who do the same thing. Sure, Windows does some invasive things, but if you're careful, you can avoid most of it, and preserve your ability to switch to something else without much difficulty. No cage door there, either. The trick is to avoid getting SO enmeshed with a vendor that you cannot easily leave. This is one reason why companies like AT&T want you to bundle cell service and home Internet and cable and telephone, because it makes it harder to "fire" them when they screw up. This "trick" is pretty easy, again, for the sort of person who reads this site. It's a lot harder for your uncle Larry who just wants to read ESPN and balance his checkbook and cares not one whit about the privacy implications of Google docs or whatever.