{"id":77711,"date":"2025-05-18T23:34:59","date_gmt":"2025-05-18T23:34:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2025\/05\/18\/after-switching-to-linux-this-app-helped-me-drop-google-for-good\/"},"modified":"2025-05-18T23:36:37","modified_gmt":"2025-05-18T23:36:37","slug":"after-switching-to-linux-this-app-helped-me-drop-google-for-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2025\/05\/18\/after-switching-to-linux-this-app-helped-me-drop-google-for-good\/","title":{"rendered":"After Switching to Linux, This App Helped Me Drop Google for Good"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Uninterested in Google’s grip in your knowledge? After switching to Linux, I discovered the proper self-hosted app to exchange Google Drive, Pictures, Calendar, Docs, and extra, all on my phrases. This is how I took again management of my privateness and my knowledge.<\/p>\n

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After I first made the bounce to Linux, I felt like I\u2019d taken an enormous step towards digital independence. No extra compelled updates, no extra invasive telemetry, no extra bloated techniques doing who-knows-what within the background. However even after switching working techniques, I used to be nonetheless deeply tied to one thing I wasn\u2019t comfy with: Google.<\/p>\n

My emails, calendar, images, paperwork, and even to-do lists had been all locked into Google’s ecosystem. Certain, I used to be working Linux now, however Google nonetheless had a stranglehold on all of my knowledge, private and non-private.<\/p>\n

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\n Why I Wished to Ditch Google
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The services and products should not the issue. There is not any doubt that Google makes wonderful merchandise. They\u2019re easy, handy, and so they all speak to one another like magic. However that comfort comes at a value\u2014your knowledge. All the things you do is tracked, saved, analyzed, and sometimes used to construct a profile for promoting.<\/p>\n

Plus, there\u2019s the problem of management. If Google decides to close down a service (keep in mind Google Reader? Google Plus?), you\u2019re out of luck. And let\u2019s not overlook account suspensions or knowledge entry points. They’re uncommon, however devastating after they occur.<\/p>\n

I needed to personal my knowledge. I needed a cloud that was really beneath my management. That\u2019s once I came across Nextcloud.<\/p>\n

\n Your Personal Private Cloud on Your Phrases
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In easy phrases, Nextcloud is a self-hosted, open-source various to Google\u2019s suite of companies. It offers you file syncing, doc modifying, photograph administration, calendars, notes, and an entire lot extra, all 100% beneath your management.<\/p>\n

I set it up on a modest dwelling server working Ubuntu Server and put in Nextcloud as a Snap package<\/a>. In lower than an hour, I had my very own private cloud up and working\u2014no third-party servers, no knowledge assortment, no subscriptions.<\/p>\n

However the true magic occurred as soon as I began exploring what Nextcloud might really do.<\/p>\n

Right here\u2019s how I changed practically each Google service with Nextcloud and didn\u2019t look again.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\tThese Are My Top 6 Linux Distros for Running a Server
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Sure! You possibly can arrange your individual Linux server. This is how!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n Google Drive Substitute: Nextcloud Recordsdata
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Nextcloud\u2019s file system works similar to Google Drive, with desktop and cell apps for computerized sync. You possibly can create public or non-public share hyperlinks, management permissions, and even recuperate older variations of recordsdata. Encryption? It\u2019s inbuilt.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t6 Linux Replacements for Google Drive
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Listed below are 6 various options to Google Drive that present full Linux assist!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n Google Pictures Substitute: Nextcloud Pictures + Facial Recognition
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This was the massive one for me. I’ve hundreds of images and movies, and I didn\u2019t need them caught on another person\u2019s server ceaselessly.<\/p>\n

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Nextcloud\u2019s Pictures app is surprisingly strong. It has timeline views, albums, tagging, and because of neighborhood plugins like “Acknowledge” or “Recollections”, even facial recognition. That\u2019s proper, you may auto-tag faces in your individual non-public photograph library with out ever sending your photos to Google\u2019s AI. It\u2019s not fairly as polished, but it surely\u2019s non-public, and it really works.<\/p>\n

And sure, you may auto-upload images out of your telephone utilizing the Nextcloud app similar to Google Pictures.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\tHow I Ditched Google Photos and Built My Own Photo Server
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Goodbye Google.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n Google Calendar Substitute: Nextcloud Calendar
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The built-in calendar app integrates superbly. It helps WebDAV, so you may sync it with Thunderbird, Android (utilizing DAVx\u2075), or your favourite Linux calendar app. You possibly can share calendars, set reminders, and even create public read-only views. It simply works.<\/p>\n

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\n Google Docs\/Sheets Substitute: ONLYOFFICE
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Sure, you may edit paperwork, spreadsheets, and displays proper in Nextcloud. I opted for ONLYOFFICE integration. (Utilizing Collabora On-line is one other accessible choice.) I can share, collaborate, and work with paperwork in my browser or with the ONLYOFFICE desktop apps. I can do every little thing I used to do with Google’s workplace apps.<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s not fairly as slick as Google Docs, but it surely\u2019s greater than usable and also you\u2019re not handing over your content material to an advert firm.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\tCollaborate Better Thanks to ONLYOFFICE DocSpace\u2019s Zoom App
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This publish is sponsored by ONLYOFFICE.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n Google Preserve Substitute: Nextcloud Notes
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When you like taking fast notes or organizing ideas, the Notes app is ideal. It helps markdown, tagging, and syncs throughout gadgets. It is the proper software that can assist you hold monitor of the little belongings you’d overlook in any other case.<\/p>\n

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For energy customers, you may as well combine Joplin, which provides you a full-featured note-taking app with encryption and net clipper assist. I do not want it (but), but it surely’s good to know it is there if I modify my thoughts.<\/p>\n

\n Google Gmail Substitute: Nextcloud Mail + Your Personal Area
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When you\u2019re working your individual electronic mail server or utilizing a privacy-focused supplier like Mailbox.org or ProtonMail Bridge, the Mail app allows you to handle it proper inside Nextcloud. It\u2019s a fundamental webmail shopper, however clear and practical.<\/p>\n

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I\u2019m nonetheless utilizing a third-party supplier for electronic mail, however accessing it by means of Nextcloud retains every little thing organized and accessible in the identical place.<\/p>\n

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Wish to de-Google your cloud life? <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Syncing contacts is so simple as enabling the Contacts app and connecting it to your telephone or desktop utilizing DAVx\u2075. You get grouping, tagging, search, and clear administration of all of your contacts with no advertisements, no bizarre ideas, and no thriller duplicates.<\/p>\n

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\n Different Advantages of Nextcloud
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Except for simply changing Google in your life, Nextcloud additionally offers you different advantages reminiscent of:<\/p>\n