Fitheach

Ceud Mìle Fàilte

Thank you for dropping-by, I hope you enjoy your visit. The main content is to be found in the blog, where I discuss everything and anything, but, topics including: photography, nature, technology, food, movies, music, politics, and life in the Highlands of Scotland, make regular appearances.

I commonly write reviews of movies (or films, if you prefer). Some movie reviews are short, others will be discussed in more detail. The scope covered will be mainly mainstream English language movies from the 1930s until the present day.

About me

My name is Iain MacDonald, and I live in the Highlands of Scotland (although I have lived elsewhere in the past). I use Fitheach as my online pseudonym, on this website, on Mastodon, and on Matrix. I am a big fan of Free & Open Source Software, which I use both professionally and at home.

Computing and technology tend to infuse themselves into my other interests, as once you learn some skills in one area it is convenient to use them to solve problems in other spheres.

When not tinkering with computers, I am likely to be found repairing things because living in the countryside you learn to be resourceful.

Of course, man doesn't live by SSH tunnels and kerosene vapour burners alone, so, food, as a subject, makes regular appearances, too.

My latest Life articles

My most recent ramblings can be found in the Life section.

My latest Mastodon posts

Mastodon is a microblogging app that is part of the decentralised web known as The Fediverse. See this article for more details.

Fitheach

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 12:35:26 +0000

When I warn folks about the privacy implications of using services from Big Tech I usually get one of the following reactions:

* everyone else uses it
* it can't be that bad
* too technical for me
* nothing to hide
* I don't believe you
* I have to use it because [reason]
* I must do something about that

That last one is akin to "the cheque's in the post".

[Read more]

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 09:41:36 +0000

Of course, just because a service or app is or doesn't guarantee one's privacy, although the chances are better. Plus, a federated service or app will likely have alternatives available should there be privacy concerns.

The communities surrounding a federated service or FOSS app are more likely to make fellow users aware of any privacy concerns.

I do my best to make friends and acquaintances aware of the dangers, but, it is an uphill struggle.

[Read more]

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 09:07:26 +0000

I'm noting that Twitch is now (by default, unless disabled) mining user's streams to train Amazon's AI.

This reminds me that users of corporate controlled services have to maintain constant vigilance to have any hope of securing any privacy. The thing is though that most folk won't know (not on Fedi, for example), don't have the technical knowledge, or can't keep-up with all the changes to all the sites.

Best approach: stay away from corporate silos.

[Read more]

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 22:06:35 +0000

I'm sad to see Strathmore Hotels have gone into administration. The hotel group did run the following hotels:

Alexandra Hotel - Fort William
Ben Nevis Hotel - Fort William
Ben Wyvis Hotel - Strathpeffer
Cairn Hotel - Harrogate (England)
Cumbria Grand Hotel - Lake District (England)
Nethy Bridge Hotel - Nethy Bridge
Royal Hotel - Oban
Salutation Hotel - Perth

Administrators are trying to sell them as going concerns.

[Read more]

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 20:38:42 +0000

Good to see people have been quick creating the memes. 😃

[Read more]

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 17:02:11 +0000

That's par for the course. It has been bright, sunny, with blue sky all day. A celestial event (partial solar eclipse) will happen in just over 1 hour. So, of course, it starts to cloud over. 🙄

[Read more]