Time for a history lesson.

You may not realize this (relax, most don’t), but computers were never meant to network together. Hell, decades ago the word “networks” wasn’t even originally used for when PCs would interconnect with each other. We used to call them “workgroups.”

Remember Windows 3.1 for Workgroups? Maybe you don’t, but that’s alright, it was a thing before the internet as we know it. In fact, do you realize that the first web browser for Windows PCs – which up until the past few years was the most installed and used operating system on the planet (only to be usurped by Android) – didn’t have a web browser until 1995, and even then, was only an add-on, not part of Windows by default?

Windows was around for a decade before it ever even had a web browser. Try to imagine that today: a computer without a web browser. Sheer madness, you say!

Is it?

Consider that the foundation of everything we understand a computer to be – the underlying technology of the PC you use at work, your laptop at home, the video game console connected to your TV, or the smartphone in your pocket and all required software – were not intended to be interconnected with the rest of the world.

(NOTE: Certainly, there were dreams and schemes of computers being interconnected since the 1960s [SEE: The Mother of All Demos, Stanford Research Institute], but remember at that same time it was considered laughable that everyday people would ever have computers in their homes. The thinking went that computers were only meant for corporations, governments, and militaries – but I repeat myself. Ha! The hubris!)

An awful truth that most developers and tech company CEOs don’t want to admit is that many of the security exploits, malware, and cyber-attacks that plague every computer (including your smartphone) often comes down to the fact that the code running on the computer was written before the internet was in the wild. Security wasn’t a concern, because to the software developers’ sensibilities, their code would never leave your computer. Was privacy and encryption a concern? Not at all! A corporation or government agency couldn’t even look at your data without bursting into your home and stealing your PC, and back then people/communities didn’t look to kindly on that kind of intrusion.

Is this shortsightedness on the developer’s part? Or did they realize something that eludes our present interconnected society?

I would argue the latter. And that’s why I always argue for keeping your data/information local. You can consider this the digital version of the popular “Go Local” campaigns. And just like it’s easy to find a jar of a honey from a local farm/business, I assure you it’s just as easy to find software and apps that actually let you use them locally, on your device, away from malicious actors and unsavory prying eyes.

Now, I’m not saying you shouldn’t encrypt your data, or that you can’t connect to it remotely while you’re on the go. I’m saying you don’t have to store it in “the Cloud” for all the world to (potentially) see at any given moment or via the latest data leak by some corporation or government that swears your data is totally safe in their hands.

Let’s be honest, there’s no such thing as “the Cloud” – only someone else’s computer. And would you put that particular picture, text, or whatever-file on someone else’s computer and trust it? I’m sure we can all operatically sing in unison: “Nope”.

So, you ask, how do you keep your data and your connections on your own computers and smartphones, or within your family or chosen community? It’s a lot easier than you may think (no, you don’t have to install that-thing-called-Linux if you don’t want to, but it does help if you use its “cousin”: Android), so read on newly minted intrepid pioneer of the “private digital frontier”!

First off, let’s talk about hardware – what devices should you use? Again, are purposes here are to give you control of your data, and this requires a certain agility of devices and app choices. And in our modern interconnected world, you essentially have two options: 1. Apple. 2. Everything else.

Apple does a lot of things right, especially when it comes to security. But Apple is also no friend to giving the user options and control (and it’s only getting worse), and if you use Apple products for what we’re discussing, it essentially forces everyone else in your circle to use Apple products. In my opinion, that’s not a good way to start.

But number two was “everything else”. And what I mean by that is just that: Windows, Android, Linux, Chromebooks…whatever’s available. “Everything else” finds a way to play with everything else (again, unlike Apple), and so this gives you the most choice and interoperability with apps and devices. Keep in mind, though, we’re talking about not storing your data on some other company’s computers/servers/Cloud, so when you’re getting your fancy new devices, make sure they have plenty of storage (128 gigabytes to 2 terabytes, at least), or have the option for expandable storage (many smartphones and PCs have microSD card slots where you can add hundreds of gigabytes that rest securely in the device).

So now you have your Android smartphone and/or your laptop/PC-that’s-not-Apple, and you’re ready to start installing software/apps and taking control of your data and communications.

SIDE OPTION: We could do an entire column on a device class called a NAS (Network Attached Storage). These “computers without a screen” essentially become your own personal server, and your own personal internet, allowing you to share and store documents, music, videos, photos, or any file you can think of – encrypted – and only share them with people of your choosing. A good NAS will also allow you to use mobile apps that can access what you store on it. This is the ultimate in “going local” with your data, and have become very plug-and-play in recent years. My personal favorites are made by Synology (https://synology.com).

Again, the recommendations here are just for starters. The “private digital frontier” has many options, and more being developed all the time. Note that my recommendations are generally for Android smartphones and are available in the Google Play Store. However, with Android apps being natively made available on Chromebooks and Windows 11 computers (and capable of running on Linux with a little effort) or desktop PC versions available, you should be able to install these options on most devices.

Briar app (https://briarproject.org/): What if you could communicate with anyone nearby, without an internet/cellular connection, using only your Android smartphone? That’s what the Briar app allows for. Briar is a text messaging app that end-to-end encrypts (meaning, it’s done on the device, where it should be) everything you send and receive, and can do so using the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radios your device already has, no internet required. Granted, this can limit its range, but if you do have an internet connection, it can use your internet/cellular connection and “tunnel” all of your messages through Tor for extra anonymity and security. Briar has other features including blogging and message boards. Great for local communities!

Plex app (https://www.plex.tv): “But what about Spotify, or Netflix, or Google Photos” you may ask? I want to introduce you to the world of Plex. Plex is a “media server” that you can install (trust me, it’s not hard) on your PC, and can stream your own music and video files to any other device, be it a tablet, smartphone, laptop, or even app-enabled TVs. It also has the capability of backing-up and allowing you to view your photos from your smartphone. It is also an excellent podcast app. And you can even download media from your Plex account to keep it offline if you need it. Granted, you need your own music/video files to stream, and the computer those files are stored on needs to be powered-on and connected to at least your home network (it can work without an internet connection), but the benefits of not paying for a bunch of monthly subscriptions and having direct control of your media is a powerful one. You can even share your media library with others!

Obsidian app (https://obsidian.md/): Available on desktop PCs and on smartphones, if you were wondering how you were going to write things or make lists without Google Docs or Microsoft Word, fret not. Obsidian is a powerful (and, in my opinion, beautiful) word processor app that is free to use and allows for cross-device syncing via your own locally-stored “vaults”. This keeps everything you write – shopping lists, novels, poetry, code, you name it – stored locally but constantly synced and updated across your devices. Obsidian also has a mind-mapping feature that makes it much more than just a text editor.

Virtual Assistant apps: But what about a virtual assistant app like Alexa, Siri, or Google Assistant? Virtual assistant software can be incredibly helpful in our increasingly complex day-to-day lives, but this software often comes at the cost of your data, privacy, and (in many senses) security. How do you feel about having someone constantly listening to and recording you from 1000 miles away? Exactly, I’m not a fan either. This kind of technology is very resource intensive (especially to work well), which is why it’s usually only offered by tech giants like Meta (aka Facebook), Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, or Google. But recent strides have been made to make this functionality available without using (and giving your data over to) the tech giants. Stanford’s open virtual assistant Almond (https://almond.stanford.edu/) as well as a project called JARVIS (https://j-a-r-v-i-s-ai.github.io/) or both options, but these can be more than a little complex to set up, and as of this writing are best run on desktop computers due to their resource intensive nature. That said, they’re still worth mentioning and keeping an eye on, and in the future could potentially replace many of the apps and devices you feel you need to use. Personal, private, remotely available virtual assistant technology is exciting, but it is in the early stages. You’re definitely a pioneer if you start experimenting with it now, though!

Now with your data re-localized, and after all of these options I lay before you – and the many more individual-empowering apps for you to discover – I say to you: welcome to the frontier!

Dr. Brian Sovryn is the creator and host of the popular science and tech podcast Sovryn Tech (sovryntech.com) a weekly show that concentrates on how the latest developments in science and technology can empower and liberate the individual. sovryntech.com