Lynn McAlister UE :mstdn:

Ottawa-based genohistorian, educated in Scotland, lived for years in Chicago. I like music, books & dogs (cats too). I like most people, most of the time.

MA #history (Uni of Aberdeen, Scotland), Certificate of Genealogical Research (Boston Uni, USA); member #APG, #UELAC, FSA Scot., Palam.

Former #librarian. #AuDHD. #TaiChi beginner. #AberdeenFC. #rollerskating

Occupation: mostly research
Politics: socialist since Maggie Thatcher
My websites: lmgenohistory.ca
other projects: www.apgen.org/users/lynn-mcalister/, dewarproject.com/

Public Key

npub1dyted0lnfrkh3staj9msymsjhu6rc446d5s6j79jjyvhfrxfwxtqhu66zv

NIP-05 Address

lmgenealogy_at_mstdn.ca@momostr.pink

Profile Code

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Publishing to

relay.primal.net

nos.lol

relay.damus.io

Author Public Key

npub1dyted0lnfrkh3staj9msymsjhu6rc446d5s6j79jjyvhfrxfwxtqhu66zv

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Published at

2026-05-28T15:55:32Z

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0 Metadata

Event JSON

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Last Notes

2026-05-18 21:23:42 UTC

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I read in a review that it doesn't really work on any browser other than Google or Microsoft, and I refuse to use either. If that's not true, though, I would certainly look into that - it makes every list I've seen of the 'top however-many alternatives to Zoom'.

2026-05-18 20:46:26 UTC

Question for people who have to do a lot of #videoconferencing. Can I use #Signal to videoconference with clients who are not on Signal, or would they have to sign up? Also, can videocalls be scheduled in advance? I'm increasingly finding #Zoom to be a hassle and would like to switch to something non-proprietarial, but I'm a one-person business, and I don't really want to force people to join yet another platform if they're not already on it.
Suggestions?

2025-12-31 22:34:33 UTC

Happy New Year, Mastodon. Hope 2026 is good for you all.

2025-11-20 22:12:09 UTC

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Open source, too!

2025-11-18 22:12:02 UTC

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I've been using LibreWolf. I can't find any definitive answer to its use of AI, but it doesn't seem to force it on us. DuckDuckGo, their default search, *does* use AI, but you can turn it off, and anyway I prefer StartPage.

2025-11-18 17:45:10 UTC

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I feel like it's been imposed on us. Decisions that affect all of us are now made by a few extremely powerful companies, and it doesn't matter how much we object. They tell us it's the next big thing, and other companies and even governments jump on the bandwagon. It leaves us with very little control. Whenever a service decides to force AI on me, I switch to one that doesn't. Sadly, there's nothing I can do about everyone else using it.

2025-10-18 21:53:29 UTC

My (American) husband wondered aloud what the point of the #NoKings protests are. "They won't do anything," he said. But they do. Completely aside from standing up to Trump, they let immigrants in the US know that an awful lot of people do not approve of what's happening to them. It lets people in other countries know that an awful lot of Americans (even many who voted for Trump) see what's happening and object. It lets people in the US who feel helpless in the face of what's being done know that they're not alone and shouldn't give up. I don't know what it will do to the administration, but I think those are important messages.

2025-08-26 22:35:18 UTC

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Seriously. Making it okay for armed people to run around with faces covered & no i.d. claiming to work for the government was basically giving permission to non-governmental thugs and criminals to adopt the same methods. There's a reason legit law enforcement agents are supposed to be identifiable.

2025-07-20 17:32:51 UTC

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I started doing cross stitch in college because I saw a particular project I liked. Then I realized, hey, I can actually make art this way (despite my complete lack of traditional artistic talent). Over the years I've learned to create my own patterns too. I discovered it's a fabulous way to spend time with my family when they're watching t.v. (because I can't focus to read if the telly's on, and I can't just sit still and watch tv).

2025-07-20 17:26:09 UTC

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Needlepoint is good.

2025-07-06 00:30:41 UTC

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Thank you.

2025-06-11 16:19:15 UTC

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Sigh. I like to think that this is why he was not elected, but perhaps I give people too much credit.

2025-05-20 23:26:36 UTC

People talk abt sensory issues, but it's usually bad. I have a thing with colour - certain colours are so vibrant and intense to me that I become almost mesmerized. I remember walking through M & S men's section, being stopped in my tracks by a shirt on display - the purple was so intense that I couldn't pull my eyes away, so I bought the shirt. That's a sensory kind of thing, but it gives me pleasure. Does anyone else have something like that or is it just me? #AuDHD #actuallyautistic

2025-05-11 22:41:25 UTC

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That's why I didn't comment on your observation that Bill Gates agrees with my assessment of Musk. Gates is kind of a fluke, in that he seems to have maintained his genuine desire to do good. But yeah, he's still got way more money than anyone needs. So my feelings toward Gates are complicated. But I do see a difference between him and many of his fellow billionaires.

2025-05-11 21:10:36 UTC

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In light of his destruction of USAID, CDC, and other keeping-people-alive entities, it could be argued that Elon Musk is himself a serial killer.

2025-05-02 13:00:06 UTC

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To be fair, they suffered a lot.

2025-04-27 00:57:23 UTC

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I voted early, but I took my son. (My husband isn't eligible, but maybe by the next election he'll be a citizen, and then I'll take him too!)

2025-01-25 16:32:28 UTC

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This is so true. People either see it as something everyone has, a trendy excuse, or (if they take it seriously), a minor inconvenience. They have no idea how incredibly exhausting it is!

2025-01-23 22:08:27 UTC

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Yeah, I took it as a joke. But I've seen some suggestions that appear trivial but might, added together, make a difference. Free trade agreements seem to limit much of what can be done, but people are really creative when they have to be.

2025-01-23 21:59:49 UTC

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We need to be brainstorming like this across the nation. People can come up with all kinds of creative solutions that stop short of overtly punitive tit-for-tat and benefit Canada in the process.

2024-08-12 22:32:55 UTC

An old tree plus a lot of rain.
https://cdn.mastdn.ca/media_attachments/files/112/951/417/609/043/843/original/aaa6401eb01663b2.jpg

2024-07-06 01:56:59 UTC

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All they can do is try to be good enough for long enough that the refs won't matter. It's the nature of the game.