AmericanEconomicThinkTank

Excuse me, but self respecting mathematicians calculate it properly.

Now let's see, it was Dolly Parton had...

It's more the inverse, the host OS running a VM will fingerprint any information you are sending out.

If your plan is to just run it offline through a VM, then it's unlikely to leave much persistent information.

Tails is meant as a secure non-persistent tool for communication at it's base, and that's what it is best for. I might recommend looking at running a properly containerized environment on your VM for getting similar effects if you're working on software and OS testing, it's how I go. Think rolling vs production environments.

Yes and no.

It's point is to limit identifiable information for any operations done on the os. Using it within a VM only sets it within a box, any use of the OS to connect to the outside world, or create some file with longer term persistence will finger print you as that main OS is the pass-through between the VM and the outside world.

Giving an example of how I might use it would help:

If I'm speaking with an international activist, early career reporter, or high-risk private sector worker, I have a custom tails that I can flash and offer them to use.

For a private sector worker it has a doc on some basic information on requesting whistle-blower protection from a given government, agency contact points, etc.

For a reporter or activist it might have a doc on how to ensure they have a social safety net for informing others of their movements, basic tools for performing field work if local computers might be being monitored, and of course how to connect to the internet in areas where traffic monitoring is routine.

I can have that information persistent on the drive only useful for reference, while the rest of the OS can be used as intended without being easily fingerprinted as intended, but only if that drive is the ONLY thing that's acting as any form of operation on a computer. If it's on a VM, installed onto an onboard drive, it looses some of it's ability to act as a real tool.

Stop recording everything in your life.

I operate as pretty much a one man show most times.

Even as I try to get people interested in international efforts, domestic politics, or just volunteerism, it's often like beating a dead horse so to speak. Most are just uninterested, don't commit, or outright leave my hanging.

Every once in a while though someone does, even simply sharing their perspective or thoughts on how to approach a given plan, proposal, policy. Small conversations can really help when I often have to try to juggle five hats, all while only having my own background to use.

I'd guess your degree was in ancient history right?

I'm proud of you for promoting a genuine historical viewpoint of the human experience, and promoting that as a way to look toward the potential future. It's a very legitimate and important perspective to have in life, and you better us all by trying to keep it up.

I've been transitioning further towards the self hosting side of things again.

Makes life easier as a near invisibly small org, given the scope of my needs doesn't generally require tons of enterprise subs or seats for the bigger stuff to get the job done.

If you use it as non-persistence thumb drive, it's pretty good. There are still ways you can start to fingerprint it's use but in general as long as you do everything right it's solid.

Water.

Tea.

Walking more.

Uh oh.

I used to run in consulting circles, long enough time around execs and you start to see just how well the good ol boy clubs, and know-a-guy chains can make business deals between firms. Once you get the ball rolling on a project as a large enough entity, it doesn't take much to consult the digital equivalent of their rolodex to find vendor upon vendor for this part, this data broker, etc.

Cheaper in bulk too.

Interested in learning more about U.S. domestic policy? https://www.federalregister.gov/ Stay informed, stay aware. If you know the laws and policy they're putting forward, you can do something about it.

Want to learn a bit more about international policy and events? https://news.un.org/en/