HI there,

Klaas, that’s my name. So not Klass I have been fond of open source about 15 years now. Moving up to a different Android OS was a logic step for me. Now, I find myself caught up in the custom ROM world. I have contacts with the Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) which embraces the custom ROM movement. The FSFE thinks it’s a universal right to be able to install every piece of software they wish on their devices.

To help people use their smartphone longer, I organize flashing meetings (also called flash parties). For now I do that at repair cafés.

My relationship to internet and related tech, like Android devices, is a love-hate one. I think living in the offline world and have physical contact with people is better than living on the digital highway. Still, I seem to like the tech more than I thought. And it is interesting what the interaction with the real world will bring. Think of AI in that respect. But it brings concerns too.

Like the FSFE, I feel the internet should be a free place where you are not followed by companies who want to earn money with your data. Instead I prefer to spend money on software I use because developing software costs time and money.

Apart from my interests in internet related tech, I am a big music fan and Spotify fills in a great deal of my spare time. Another love is nature, especially birds. I recently installed the app BirdNET with which you can record bird sounds and send it through a database to discover which bird it is. Great stuff.

I hope I will be using /e/OS a long time.