Linux Out Loud

In this episode of Linux Out Loud, Wendy, Nate, and Bill start in the server room and end up staring down new “for the children” age‑verification laws aimed squarely at your operating system. They talk through wrangling tablets and printers with CUPS, why Framework laptops keep surviving industrial abuse, and how Deskflow brings Synergy/Barrier‑style magic to Wayland setups. From there, they dig into the new FIRST LEGO League robotics kits and what might be lost when classroom‑friendly AI kits replace hands‑on engineering. Finally, they unpack California and Colorado’s OS‑level age‑verification bills, what “OS providers” really means, and why small Linux and BSD projects are already threatening to block entire states rather than bolt surveillance rails onto their distros.

Show Links:

CUPS (Common UNIX Printing System) – https://www.cups.org/

LibreNMS – network and printer monitoring – https://www.librenms.org/

Framework Laptop – https://frame.work/

Deskflow – seamless multi‑computer control – https://cubiclenate.com/2026/02/13/deskflow-seamless-multi-computer-control/

Third Reality Zigbee devices – https://3reality.com/

LEGO Education Computer Science & AI kit (new FLL robots) – https://education.lego.com/en-us/products/lego-education-computer-science-and-ai-45522

LEGO Education SPIKE Prime set – https://education.lego.com/en-us/products/lego-education-spike-prime-set-45678

California AB 1043 – Digital Age Assurance Act overview – https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca/2025-2026/ab1043

Nate – Data has weight (but only on SSDs) – https://cubiclenate.com/2026/03/04/data-has-weight-but-only-on-ssds-blathering/

Chapters:

00:00:00 Intro

00:00:52 Bill is a pro, trust me bro!

00:02:19 Printer monitoring, SNMP & copier contracts

00:07:01 Framework laptops in industrial environments

00:09:24 Framework durability, cases & drop protection

00:14:14 Deskflow – Wayland-friendly Synergy/Barrier

00:19:59 New FLL robots – kits, AI & concerns

00:33:10 Age verification laws hit Linux & BSD

00:38:58 Fines, liability & open-source maintainers

00:40:02 What counts as an “OS provider”?

00:44:43 Surveillance, mission creep & “for the children”

00:46:22 Future of OS compliance & responses

00:50:54 Guard rails

00:55:16 Wrap-up, jokes & closing banter

00:57:30 Data has weight

01:00:27 Outro

Connect with the Hosts on Discord:

Matt – @Dark1ltg

Wendy – @Wendy.sh

Nate – CubicleNate.com @CubicleNate

Bill – @ctlinux on Mastodon
Special Guest: Bill.

In this level of Linux Out Loud, Nate takes player‑one controls with Wendy and Matt as co‑op buddies for a run‑and‑gun through data disasters, platform drama, and hopeful Linux gaming news. Matt kicks things off with a catastrophic cold‑storage failure that turns into a hard‑earned reminder about backups and the limits of data‑recovery tools on both Windows and Linux. Wendy then opens a side‑quest about Discord’s upcoming age‑verification changes, why that’s a problem for community privacy and moderation, and what it might mean for the future home of the Lobby of Loudness. Nate rounds out the host updates with Linux Saloon going fully independent, moving show notes and polls onto CubicleNate.com so he controls the platform and the ad dollars. For the main mission, the crew dives into GOG calling Linux its “next major frontier” for GOG GALAXY and hiring a senior C++ engineer to help make Linux a first‑class gaming citizen instead of an afterthought. Along the way they talk heroic launchers, Proton and Wine, and what a “good citizen” GOG client on Linux should actually look like for home‑labbed and multi‑PC setups.

Show Links:

GOG job posting – “Senior Software Engineer (C++ GOG GALAXY)”:

https://www.gog.com/en/work/senior-software-engineer-c-gog-galaxy

Linux Saloon show notes and polls:

https://CubicleNate.com/LinuxSaloon

https://CubicleNate.com/polls

In this episode of Linux Out Loud, Matt takes squad leader role while Wendy and Nate rejoin the party for a high‑FPS catch‑up on life, Linux, and loud gaming sessions. They swap updates on Wendy’s robotics teams heading deeper into competition season, Nate’s battle with basement water and building a proper home lab spawn point, and Matt’s quest to keep a local‑only media server running on modest hardware. From organizing racks and labeling gear to wrestling with Starlink latency and debating cloud gaming versus real ownership, the crew dives into how their real‑world chaos shapes the way they run Linux, host services, and play games. If you like robots, home labs, and arguing about whether you really own your digital library, this one’s for you.

Show Links:

Discord Invite: https://discord.gg/73bDDATDAK

Bookbinder JS (booklet maker): https://momijizukamori.github.io/bookbinder-js/

Bookbinder JS on GitHub: https://github.com/momijizukamori/bookbinder-js

PS4 controller USB‑C upgrade guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGKyBJVDXDQ

BattleTech on GOG: https://www.gog.com/en/game/battletech_game​

Cloud RTX on Tux | Linux Out Loud 119 digs into NVIDIA’s new native GeForce NOW client for Linux and Fire TV, and what cloud gaming means for folks with aging GPUs, handhelds, and serious subscription fatigue. ​ Bill and Wendy also chat staycation gaming, NAS and home-lab cleanup, Ubiquiti and travel routers, the DaVinci Speed Editor, and the tragic tale of tea spilled directly onto a Steam Deck.

Show Links:

Main topic – GeForce NOW on Linux and Fire TV:

NVIDIA GeForce NOW CES 2026 announcement (Linux + Fire TV): https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/geforce-now-ces-2026/
Gaming & distros mentioned:

Bazzite (Fedora-based gaming OS): https://bazzite.gg
Home lab / networking / travel:

Synology DiskStation DS1825+ (Bill’s NAS): https://nascompares.com/2025/05/07/synology-ds1825-nas-released-in-the-east/

UniFi Travel Router (UTR): https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/wifi-special-devices/products/utr

Special Guest: Bill.

In this cozy holiday episode of Linux Out Loud, Wendy, Nate, and Bill juggle Christmas chaos, retro joy, and serious tech lessons. Nate shares the excitement of finally getting his Commodore 64 Ultimate under the tree and rebuilding vintage Christmas trains, while Bill tells a powerful story about stepping into a network left behind after a colleague’s passing—and why planning password and account access for loved ones matters more than any gadget.

From Synology NAS upgrades and “you can never have too much storage” energy, to Fedora gaming projects, Bazite and Nobara, and the realities of traveling as a digital nomad, the crew covers a lot of nerd ground. They also dig into Home Assistant dashboards, smart bulbs and Christmas displays, securing IoT networks, and why Linux printing is still a little spicy even as it improves. Whether you’re here for legacy planning, blinking LEDs, or just some winter-flavored banter, this episode wraps it all up with community love and future-topic teases.

Find the rest of the show notes at: https://tuxdigital.com/podcasts/linux-out-loud/lol-118/

Visit the Tux Digital Merch Store: https://store.tuxdigital.com/

Connect with the Hosts:

Contact Form: https://tuxdigital.com/contact

Matt – @MattTDN on Twitter

Wendy – @WendyDLN on Mastodon

Nate – CubicleNate.com

Bill – @ctlinux
Special Guest: Bill.