After Switching to Linux, This App Helped Me Drop Google for Good.
Tired of Google’s grip on your data? After switching to Linux, I found the perfect self-hosted app to replace Google Drive, Photos, Calendar, Docs, and more, all on my terms. Here’s how I took back control of my privacy and my data.
When I first made the jump to Linux, I felt like I’d taken a huge step toward digital independence. No more forced updates, no more invasive telemetry, no more bloated systems doing who-knows-what in the background. But even after switching operating systems, I was still deeply tied to something I wasn’t comfortable with: Google.
My emails, calendar, photos, documents, and even to-do lists were all locked into Google’s ecosystem. Sure, I was running Linux now, but Google still had a stranglehold on all of my data, public and private.
The products and services are not the problem. There’s no doubt that Google makes excellent products. They’re smooth, convenient, and they all talk to each other like magic. But that convenience comes at a cost—your data. Everything you do is tracked, stored, analyzed, and often used to build a profile for advertising.
Plus, there’s the issue of control. If Google decides to shut down a service (remember Google Reader? Google Plus?), you’re out of luck. And let’s not forget account suspensions or data access issues. They’re rare, but devastating when they happen.
I wanted to own my data. I wanted a cloud that was truly under my control. That’s when I came upon Nextcloud.
