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[EDIT - to simplify and focus the question]

I want to reduce dependencies on cloud solutions for email, feed reading, backup, file sharing, etc. What desktop apps (or locally-hosted web apps) can best replace gmail, hotmail, carbonite/mozy, dropbox, and google reader?

I don't necessarily need to close online accounts, but just don't want all my data tied up elsewhere. Companies come and go, their owners and privacy policies change, etc.

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I hate to ask the question... but what is it you're wanting to know? What applications are you talking about replacing with non-cloud based offerings? what dependencies do you currently have on cloud-anything? Most of your "examples" are not "apps" but rather "services" provided by companies that do not require you to use their tools. – TheCompWiz Jan 25 at 18:45
@TheCompWiz - hmmm, i thought i was asking about reducing dependencies on web apps, and also thought i listed them in the question (gmail, hotmail, yahoo, google reader, online backup, file sharing, ...). I reluctantly use all of these and it makes me nervous. But people ask me this sort of thing a lot, so general strategies are welcome too. – bill weaver Jan 25 at 18:55
Dependencies are only dependencies if you depend on them.... i.e. specific apps... specific situations. A better question would be What is a good non-cloud based alternative to {insert your cloud-based application here}. There is no "one-size-fits-all" (or most) answer to your question. It's overly broad, vague, etc... – TheCompWiz Jan 25 at 19:03
@TheCompWiz - thanks. I hopefully simplified the question. – bill weaver Jan 25 at 19:07
i was nearly submitting the answer as this got closed... so in short: get yourself a static IP (or use no-ip) and decent connection speed. install ssh, rsync, apache, postfix. thats pretty much all you need. well some big harddrives for local backups and RAID would be nice, too. – Walter Maier-Murdnelch Jan 25 at 19:13
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closed as not a real question by TheCompWiz, grawity, Nifle, random♦ Jan 25 at 19:09

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