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California introduces age verification law for all operating systems, including Linux and SteamOS — user age verified during OS account setup (www.tomshardware.com)
submitted 6 months ago by to c/technology@lemmy.world
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[–] 107 points 6 months ago (3 children)

How will this affect embedded os like freertos or vxworks? There are lightbulbs that have operating systems these days, am I going to have to show ID to turn on my light?

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  • [–] 25 points 6 months ago

    My guess would be these OS's just wont do it and stop doing business in that state.

    Lucky for you, you can just download them anyway.

    My guess is also that these lawmakers dont care nor considered other OS's than Windows, MacOS, iOS and Android.

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  • [–] 14 points 6 months ago (2 children)

    As those are not general purpose computing devices, and additionally have no app store - no, and no.

    From the law text:

    (c) “Application” means a software application that may be run or directed by a user on a computer, a mobile device, or any other general purpose computing device that can access a covered application store or download an application.

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  • [–] 14 points 6 months ago (1 child)

    cool, then neither is my desktop pc. i get all my software on 5 1/4" floppies.

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  • [–] 4 points 6 months ago (1 child)

    The quote is that it can download an application though

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  • [–] 3 points 6 months ago (1 child)

    it can't.

    try to disprove me.

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  • [–] 3 points 6 months ago

    I forgot to include nm and wpa supplicant to my arch install before I committed it to disk and am now stuck installing everything from offline pacman caches carried to my via local homeless people in the form of random USB sticks found in parking lots. Prove me wrong.

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  • [–] 6 points 6 months ago (1 child)

    The law defines a public webpage as a covered app store. Anything that can run doom and view a webpage is potentially covered.

    It's way overbroad and unclear how it could be implemented, and likely to be challenged in court if it even gets that far.

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  • [–] 1 point 6 months ago*

    Definitely broad and "just trust us bro" energy.

    I'm looking for orgs fighting the Colorado one. I got "replaced" by AI recently, so I have all the time in the world to write letters, make calls, and go to town halls. I just don't want to do it alone.

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