you’re fine using lineageOS with microG and utilising it for cloud messaging, i.e. notifications. the actual content of the notfication doesn’t go through google (or apple), a push message just signals the telegram client there’s activity. then the telegram client wakes up, fetches the message from telegram servers, constructs the notification in-app and then displays it.

google doesn’t have access to the contents of it, but harvests lotsa metadata that microG (as opposed to full-featured play store services) somewhat ameliorates.

having said that, you should make every effort to ditch telegram as well, for a buncha reasons.

you’re running way too old a distro for what you want. debian 12 has its merits as a server, you install it and leave it be and it just works.

what you want - fluidity with power management, dock/undock, etc - although achievable with tweaking this and that isn’t being worked on, not on X, not on debian 12, so it’s not like those things will eventually get there. so you need a semi-modern distro, like ubuntu or fedora or even trixie.

wayland isn’t new, it’s default on a lot of distros since 2021 or so, so you can be sure that your use case was previosly met and solved. costs you nothing to boot e.g. F42 off a USB and try it out (has to be 42 as earlier live sessions default to X11). if you have lots of RAM, add the rd.live.ram switch so it copies the image to RAM and everything is super-snappy for testing and it doesn’t touch your SSD.

piracy didn’t start with the internet and won’t end on it. like with porn, it always finds a way.

good start, but in the next iteration (as you’re the dabbler) try to replace tailscale with wireguard. the majority of that stack is not needed for your scenario, and you’ll also not dick around with authentication and such.

gnome sushi (installed by default in gnome) handles the press space to preview file. not a fully fledged editor but still miss the thing in plasma.

kodi and its derivatives are not something you should be using. it’s shit software on so many levels and we should burn it in the deepest volcanos we got.

try one of these:

1. run lineageOS TV (konstakang images) on it and install regular ATV apps for the services mentioned. so, like googletv except there’s no spying and ads and shit.

2. create a normal linux box that has a DLNA sink e.g. using macast. there’s no remote control, you use your android/iOS device to send it stuff, like movie from Jellyfin or a youtube video, and it plays it back and allows some control (pause, play, rew/ff, etc)

3. dedicated Jellyfin box; same as 2) but boots right into jellyfin client. it can be run in TV mode where it reacts to only up/down/left/right/enter/back, via gamepad or remote controller. if yours isn’t recognised, you can emulate it with InputRemapper.

not familiar with how twitch does stuff.

you also have the option of installing a normal raspi distro and then using a wireless keyboard and mouse/touchpad to run it, but I am of the opinion that once the device gets placed by the TV, it loses all keyboard and mouse privileges and should only be operated via the TV’s remote.

you must’ve me confused with someone who does shit on your behest, go find out yourself.

this is just for onlookers, as it’s obvious it’s weirdo’s shill: the term in the ToS is “all comms must be readable by all other clients” which an E2EE capable client would be in breach of and would be promptly kicked off telegram’s infra, as was mentioned by those same FOSS developers in lemmy threads regarding that subject. as for you, plonk.

except, implementing E2EE via 3rd party FOSS clients is explicitly against Telegram’s TOS, which I’m gonna assume you already know as you’re parroting weirdo’s stance “all crypto is broken by NSA, so we’re better off without”. take care.

appreciate the effort, but kinda went overboard with the deets :) I run several prosody XMPP servers so I’m familiar with the underlying tech. what you describe should be feasible with it as well, but there are constant issues with devices not being able to access history, so I was wondering if things were better on your end.

so, based on this, I’ll spin up a snikker docker and try it out for a coupla weeks, see what’s what. many thanks.

your argument boils down to “the fully functional and loaded gun is in this weirdo’s holster and he won’t use it”.

the whole point is not relying on the benevolence of the weirdos out there and not letting them even be in the position to do any harm. encrypt my 1on1 comms and I don’t give a fuck what happens in the pedo/terror/carding/etc public groups. ample time to implement that in the past decade+ and be on par with practically every messenger out there. but he/they won’t implement it, they insist on all your shit being in the “cloud”, in plaintext, forever. there is no scenario where there’s not a malicious intent behind that.

I’ve been using Telegram since the early days. it was phenomenal vs the crap of its day - magical, even. like many, I was enamored with the vision of durov the folksy hero battling the forces of evil (in a bozo nightmare) and bequeathing us this tech marvel.

but I can’t trust it with anything any more. if weirdo can’t be trusted about some stuff, then he can’t be trusted with anything. enough for me, YMMV.

sorry for reiterating, so cross-device sync is totally impossible? or just something you don’t use?

aside from the dogshit UX and the uber reliance on Evilcorp’s infra, having more than two devices (I know, shocker in this day and age!), the arduous migration process to a new device, the limited chat history (I think it’s 40ish days) and many more.

same way Telegram adamantly refuses to implement E2EE, and not only that, it actively prevents 3rd party devs (a number of clients are FOSS) from implementing it on their own.

both PJ Harvey and durov respond the same way when asked about any of them things - smokescreens, FUD, whataboutisms, etc.

any of them things woulda been acceptable in 2015, here’s a PoC looking for funding, limited devs and resources; remember TextSecure and RedPhone? nowadays, they are nothing short of malicious.

how’s the chat history with snikket? I had issues with prosody, namely multiple devices coming and going and maintaining the same chat history between all of them, as well when there’s a disconnect (device gone forever, new device connects)

just skimmed their confusing web site, it’s free for selfhosting, right?

although it’s interesting research, I think it’s a weak text if you’re even tangentially aware of Telegram’s bullshit narrative as it focuses on the wrong thing. the main point should be “this dude was caught lying on a number of occasions and throws out smoke-screens and FUD when confronted about super-simple stuff. therefore nothing that comes outta his mouth is to be trusted” which should’ve prompted a mass exodus from this bullshit platform a long time ago.

the way more important issue is the collective action problem of dumping this crapware - leave it for what?

I run XMPP and Matrix servers and use various clients, along with Signal. all of those things are fucking dogshit software, there isn’t one that can come close to Telegram’s UX. if you fell into a coma in 2014 and woke up now to Element of Fluffy or whatever, you’d think someone’s pulling your leg. this is what a decade of development looks like?!

http://archive.today/Ocm8S

this thing is so far off on the horizon based on “things we need”, it’s not even worth discussing. if you’re not a founder whose startup someone acquired for bags of cash and are looking for ways to burn it, skip reading.

the estimation of like $1200+ for the thing is so disgustingly off the mark, it’s comical.

instead of 20 teams creating their contenders form scratch, what’s truly needed in this space is scouting out the thinkpad of the existing models. something that’s a gen or two behind but still widely available with at least 8 GB and fast storage. original manufacturer is exiting production to focus on newer generation models and the subcontractor that actually makes them has the tooling to keep 'em coming.

who’s not gonna take a swing at using the thing when they can have the unit new for $200 or flash a used one for like $50? before you know it, you have a user base. then, when you have the user base and a proven track record, you can try inventing a new paradigm outta thin air.

for the presentation part, watch standup. watch them construct the story, the path they guide you through, how it all comes together. notice how they lay it out, every syllable, every stutter, how it’s all in the service of delivery. planting and harvesting the callbacks. inadvertently, you’ll start picking up on techniques and implementing them and you’ll notice people hanging on your every word.

as to the actual part converting them over, determine who you’re talking to. if people are aware of the issue but are apathetic about implementing change, that presents one set of issues. if they’re completely unaware that there’s a problem, you’re better off changing environments.

I have an easy job, in my roles I implement the privacy aspect for tech-illiterate people from a security standpoint and I have a dictatorial position - they have to listen to me. I also don’t have tech debt when I implement their IT strategy, i.e. there’s never an issue with an OS or app they love or are used to. all of that is way, way harder when faced with someone who can’t imagine life without a $1000 easily breakable/losable/stealable slab of glass with the blue bubble and the tiks and toks and whatnot.

edit: there’s this thing https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/may/24/what-i-discovered-when-i-asked-amazon-to-tell-me-everything-alexa-had-heard I just saw at HN. this dude having a blissfully ignorant walk down melancholy lane, pondering the details of his decade-long spyware-ridden life, completely oblivious to their most intimate family shit just being out there in the world, for anyone to abuse just so he can be a more effective consumer. reaching those people, although possible, is such a tremendous effort I don’t think it’s worth it.

you can remove firmware and other software that doesn’t pertain to your system. the regular upgrade process will be shorter and you’ll save some SSD space.

however, you’ll lose the ability to take this SSD and plug it in a completely different system, like e.g. an intel laptop, and have it boot right up, unmodified.

every mobile device I ever owned is encrypted and protected with a reasonably secure pass-phrase so losing it is no big deal. it is conceivable someone could forensic the shit out of my setup but that is highly unlikely; it’s far more likely it’ll get wiped and sold or parted out.

I’ve done no benchmarks but I haven’t experienced any issues ever. the oldest linux device I own is a 2011 MBP (i7-2635qm, so quadcore) and I don’t perceive any speed degradation; it’s possible 1st gen Core i5/i7 could have issues as those don’t have AES-NI in hardware or sumsuch plus they’re SATA2 only, but those would be 15+ years old at this point.

with btrfs that has on-the-fly compression, copy-on-write, and deduping, everything works seamlessly, even when I have database-spanking applications in local development.

so the only thing I’ve changed recently is encrypting every device I have, not just the mobile ones. the standalone devices get unlocked with a key-file from the local filesystem so they boot without the prompt. selling/giving away any of those drives, mechanical or SSD, is now a non-issue.

for future reference, encrypt your drives from the get-go. even if it’s not a mobile device, you can use on-device keys to unlock it without a pass-phrase.

source: used shred on a couple of 3.5" 4 TB drives before selling them, took ages…