The French government is ditching U.S. videoconferencing services such as Zoom. Over the next year, civil servants will start using an open-source videoconferencing platform called Visio. This is part of a family of programs, Suite Numérique, designed to eventually replace all collaboration tools used by the French administration. Here's more from ZDNET.
Flipboard Tech Desk
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Wouldn't it be cool to say that your home was heated by the Large Hadron Collider? A new blogpost on CERN's website says that is exactly what's happening in the French town of Ferney-Voltaire. Here's how it works.
Wouldn't it be cool to say that your home was heated by the Large Hadron Collider? A new blogpost on CERN's website says that is exactly what's happening in the French town of Ferney-Voltaire. Here's how it works.
The German gov recommends NOT going to the #US because it's not safe
Makes total sense
GhostOnTheHalfShell
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France's biggest consultancy company, Capgemini, is helping ICE.
RE: https://fosstodon.org/@Gina/115971969079898929
Do the French like a riot? Does anybody know? /s
France's biggest consultancy company, Capgemini, is helping ICE.
RE: https://fosstodon.org/@Gina/115971969079898929
Do the French like a riot? Does anybody know? /s
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THE PROVEN TRACK RECORD:
France isn't experimenting—they've been doing this successfully for 20 years. The French Gendarmerie (national police, 100,000+ employees) pioneered this approach:
TIMELINE:
• 2005: Migrated from MS Office to OpenOffice
• 2008: Started Ubuntu desktop deployment (GendBuntu)
• 2014: Majority migration complete
• 2024: 97% of workstations running Linux (103,164 computers!)
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
• €2 million/year in licensing cost savings
• Additional savings from eliminating 4,500 servers
• Total 2004-2008: ~€50 million saved
STRATEGIC INVESTMENT:
In October 2025, France became the FIRST national government to officially partner with the Matrix Foundation—not just using it, but funding its development and participating in strategic decisions. This ensures the protocol evolves to meet European government needs.
So when we say France is "building bundles," they're really packaging, hardening, and supporting mature upstream FOSS (Linux, PostgreSQL, Matrix, etc.) with French hosting, governance, and integration—not reinventing everything from scratch.
GendBuntu: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GendBuntu
Gendarmerie case study: https://canonical.com/blog/la-gendarmerie-nationale-upgrades-85000-pcs-to-ubuntu-desktop-edition
#Matrix
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HOW EASY IS IT TO MOVE FROM MICROSOFT?
TECHNICALLY: Very feasible. Strong FOSS alternatives exist for everything:
Windows → Linux (Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora)
Office → OnlyOffice, LibreOffice
Exchange/Teams → Matrix/Element, Nextcloud
SQL Server → PostgreSQL, MariaDB
Benefits: No per-seat licenses, data sovereignty, transparent security, longer hardware life, no forced obsolescence.
THE REAL CHALLENGE: Organizational, not technical
Legacy Windows-only apps & VBA macros (need rewriting or VMs)
User retraining & change management (people lose muscle memory)
Political will & leadership commitment (critical!)
External partner expectations (.docx, Outlook, Teams)
SUCCESS FACTORS (proven by Lyon & Gendarmerie):
• Strong political backing at highest levels
• Adequate budget & realistic timeline
• Comprehensive training programs
• Willingness to maintain hybrid systems during transition
• Local/regional procurement (Lyon: 100% French contractors)
CURRENT MOMENTUM:
Denmark, Germany (Schleswig-Holstein), Netherlands, Italy, and Slovenia are all pursuing similar digital sovereignty initiatives through FOSS
Bottom line: #France proves that digital sovereignty through open source works at massive scale (103K+ workstations). They're not reinventing wheels—they're making smart use of mature, proven technology with European hosting and governance.
Lyon Register article: https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/26/lyon_leaving_microsoft/
#OpenSource #DigitalSovereignty #Linux #FOSS #France #Lyon #PublicSector #Ubuntu #Matrix #GendBuntu #Europe #Microsoft
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GhostOnTheHalfShell
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When the bosses try to take our job, what do we do?!
Stand up, strike back!
Ubisoft worker unions reportedly vote to strike as publisher proposes 200 voluntary redundancies in France
When the bosses try to take our job, what do we do?!
Stand up, strike back!
Ubisoft worker unions reportedly vote to strike as publisher proposes 200 voluntary redundancies in France
France is rolling out Visio, a homegrown secure videoconferencing platform, to all government employees by 2027.
The move aims to replace American tools like Teams, Zoom and Webex that currently fragment public administration communications and create security vulnerabilities.
The platform already has 40,000 regular users and is being deployed to 200,000 agents. Major institutions like CNRS are switching over this quarter, with CNRS replacing Zoom for its 34,000 staff and 120,000 affiliated researchers by late March.
Visio runs on French sovereign cloud infrastructure certified by ANSSI, uses AI transcription technology from French startup Pyannote, and will add real-time subtitling from French AI lab Kyutai by summer 2026. Beyond security and digital sovereignty, the switch generates real savings of about 1 million euros per year for every 100,000 users leaving paid license solutions.
Minister David Amiel frames this as essential to protecting sensitive government data and scientific exchanges from exposure to non-European actors while supporting French tech companies.
https://numerique.gouv.fr/sinformer/espace-presse/souverainete-numerique-etat-visio-solution-visioconference-agents-publics/ #France #Greenland #MAGA #DonaldTrump #tarrifs #France #Google #MicrosofTeams
Alex, the Hearth Fire
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‘Off the fossil fuel rollercoaster’: 10 countries pledge €9.5bn for North Sea wind projects.
At-sea wind farms will soon be connected to multiple countries across Europe, thanks to a landmark declaration.
It’s expected to create over 90 000 jobs and reduce power production costs by 30% in the next 15 years.
#WindEnergy #NorthSea #FossilFuels #Energy #RenewableEnergy #Europe #Belgium #Denmark #France #Germany #Iceland #Ireland #Luxembourg #Netherlands #Norway #UK
Ericka Simone
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It's been an eclectic few weeks for #MirloMondays, with crowdfunded comedy, analog dub, live electronic sets and searing punk among our finds. Today's discovery was recorded at Cully Jazz Festival in front of 1,200 people! 🎙️🐦⬛
Listen below:
https://mirlo.space/knobil/release/comete-live
#Jazz #France #Live #Mirlo #Music #NewMusic #Musicians #NowPlaying #NowListening
‘Off the fossil fuel rollercoaster’: 10 countries pledge €9.5bn for North Sea wind projects.
At-sea wind farms will soon be connected to multiple countries across Europe, thanks to a landmark declaration.
It’s expected to create over 90 000 jobs and reduce power production costs by 30% in the next 15 years.
#WindEnergy #NorthSea #FossilFuels #Energy #RenewableEnergy #Europe #Belgium #Denmark #France #Germany #Iceland #Ireland #Luxembourg #Netherlands #Norway #UK
It's been an eclectic few weeks for #MirloMondays, with crowdfunded comedy, analog dub, live electronic sets and searing punk among our finds. Today's discovery was recorded at Cully Jazz Festival in front of 1,200 people! 🎙️🐦⬛
Listen below:
https://mirlo.space/knobil/release/comete-live
#Jazz #France #Live #Mirlo #Music #NewMusic #Musicians #NowPlaying #NowListening
Music Channel
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📝 Plot:
In suburban France, a group of friends immersed in hip-hop culture navigate adulthood, loyalty, and disillusion. Between dead-end jobs, music dreams, and streetwise humor, their everyday struggles reveal tensions between ideals and reality. Blending comedy with social observation, the film captures a generation caught between rebellion, friendship, and the desire to define its own path.
#OldSchool
#Comedy
#UrbanCulture
#HipHop
#France
#Youth
#Friendship
📝 Plot:
In suburban France, a group of friends immersed in hip-hop culture navigate adulthood, loyalty, and disillusion. Between dead-end jobs, music dreams, and streetwise humor, their everyday struggles reveal tensions between ideals and reality. Blending comedy with social observation, the film captures a generation caught between rebellion, friendship, and the desire to define its own path.
#OldSchool
#Comedy
#UrbanCulture
#HipHop
#France
#Youth
#Friendship
Music Channel
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🎬 Old School (2000)
Subtitles available:
🇵🇹 Portuguese
⬇️ Download https://app.box.com/s/fs7pqe4xu8v4p34aeusbd2ey0xxw83ej
🎞 IMDb https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0248254/
▶️ Watch the video here 👇
https://darkiworld15.com/titles/483166/old-school
#OldSchool
#Comedy
#UrbanCulture
#HipHop
#France
#Youth
#Friendship
#CultFilm
Old School (2000) - DarkiWorld
DarkiWorld
🎬 Old School (2000)
Subtitles available:
🇵🇹 Portuguese
⬇️ Download https://app.box.com/s/fs7pqe4xu8v4p34aeusbd2ey0xxw83ej
🎞 IMDb https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0248254/
▶️ Watch the video here 👇
https://darkiworld15.com/titles/483166/old-school
#OldSchool
#Comedy
#UrbanCulture
#HipHop
#France
#Youth
#Friendship
#CultFilm
Old School (2000) - DarkiWorld
DarkiWorld