Both. If your hardware isn't designed like a server to run 24/7 it can be unhealthy for it, especially if it isn't properly maintained. It can cause wear to it. As far as the OS, restarting is good to clear caches, fully install some software, and keep the system sanitary overall.
Can I do this with NextCloud or on my phone without killing the battery?
I suppose not. That's a fair point. Although I will mention, if your camera supports it, location metadata can be embedded automatically. Aves and many other gallery apps support viewing photos with location data on the map.
That's a fair point, and I don't suppose Nextcloud or Syncthing would be quite as useful or as designed for photos. Thank you for helping me understand!
I've made a point not to perpetually leave my home computer on simply because frequent restarts are healthy for it. Another reason is compartmentalization. I would want to keep my selfhosted server separate from where I game or browse the internet, if at least to keep it more secure.
I mentioned in the edit: I'm not asking why things should be selfhosted instead of run on a cloud provider, I'm asking why things are selfhosted on a server that could be run entirely on-device. The latter I argue provides more privacy and less cost. Again, there are some cases as I mentioned in the post where selfhosting on a server is useful (storage or processing power), but I keep seeing a lot of server-based selfhosting that could instead be run on the device itself.
and allows us to share them publicly with others using explicit links.
That's something I hadn't considered. I'm somewhat used to everything being completely local, no exceptions. It's why I started selfhosting so late, I never saw much of a point to it. I also don't feel completely comfortable opening any part of my home internet to the public, but I'm sure there's safe ways of going about it.
Another bias of mine is having a lot of compartmentalization. For example, none of my desktop account credentials are stored on my phone's password manager, and vice versa. If one device is compromised, I want to isolate the risk as much as I can. That also means that if I were to ever set up a movie library, for example, I would want to keep those isolated per-device as well.
Backups are a bit of a special case. You can either selfhost an automatic cloud backup, or use something simple like a USB stick you manually backup to. Besides that, though, I would argue you maintain more control over software that doesn't rely on an external device to begin with. I gave examples, such as Aves, Joplin, or Feeder. If those are on my phone only (and properly backed up), I maintain full control knowing that I don't need to rely on my own server at home to manage the data that I have in my pocket.
This has helped me see some new benefits of selfhosting, though. I've spent my whole life without a SIM card, so it isn't always easy finding a network (especially a trustworthy one) to connect to on the go to connect to my server with. Even in the moments I could connect to a network, they had heavy censorship (blocked VPNs and certain IP addresses). That's why I like having everything on-device.
I will always find the idea of buying ordinary items with Monero to be a little funny. You spend years building up your privacy and go through the effort to have an anonymous Monero wallet and then... buy a towel, or a cup of sugar. I guess because it isn't fully "mainstream" it's just a little funny seeing such ordinary things cropping up as an option to spend it on.
Sure, and I agree backups are important. I still don't like that Immich requires another server to function in the first place. It would be difficult to recommend Immich as a gallery app to someone who doesn't have experience in selfhosting. I personally backup my phone to my own USB stick every few days or so, that way if my phone is ever lost or stolen I still have a backup without the need for a server.
If every app had their own selfhosted backup solution, it wouldn't be very convenient. I'd think it better to run Nextcloud to back everything up than to deal with setting each backup solution up individually. Is there a major benefit to Immich that I'm missing?
Hey, if you can manage it, and if that's what makes you happy, I respect it! I do agree there is more freedom on a desktop, but I've found a balance between minimizing my phone usage and still using it for what I need. I really only use it for messaging, news, pictures, and an occasional game.
A corporate OS on a mobile device with lots of sensors which follows you around everywhere - this is always going to be a privacy minefield.
Have you taken a look at GrapheneOS? It's a "de-googled" version of Android, which means it has none of the trackers and even has a network permission toggle for apps.
I'd love to see a website or app that has a full privacy roadmap. Even if there is one, I doubt it would be very good. You need something that constantly reminds you "Hey, you've been fighting for privacy for X months, and you've achieved so much! Look at how far you've come." It would also need to be tailored to each person, because some people already use Android, others don't, so the switch to a custom ROM may be harder for some people. It would have to make sure to have easy incremental steps, defined goals, threat modeling, "good" rewards, etc.
Sadly, I'm far from capable of coding that, even if I tried. Best of luck to that one Lemmyer that sees this and says "Hold my beer"
Being able to curate my own news without ads using an RSS reader, never needing to remember or come up with passwords thanks to a password manager, not a single ad thanks to uBlock Origin and Pi-hole, never worrying about songs becoming unavailable or price hikes on streaming services, increased battery life due to no invasive programs running in the background, faster and more reliable devices, and... the list goes on. In a way, you trade convenience in some areas to gain convenience in others.
I'd honestly love to share the whole crazy story of how I got into privacy in the first place, but it would reveal too many personal details about me and other people. It's not an easy battle, and I've certainly made plenty of mistakes along the way, but I wouldn't change a single thing about how it turned out. It takes a lot of time and effort, so it is unfortunate to see, as you said, many posts of despair.
Here you go! I had to take some time to consider its specific use case, but I've decided it's unique enough to be its own entry. Thank you!