data stays local for the most part. Every file you send to the cloud becomes property of the cloud. Yeah, you get access, but so does the hosting provider, their 3rd party resources, and typical government compliances. Hard drives are cheap and fast enough.
not quite answering this right, but I very much enjoy learning and evolving. But technology changes and sometimes implementing new software like caddy/traefik on existing setups is a PITA! I suppose if I went back in time, I would tell myself to do it the hard way and save a headache later. I wouldn't have listened to me though.
Portainer is so nice, but has quirks. It's no replacement for the command line, but wow, does it save time. The console is nerdy, but when time is on the line, find a good GUI.
For item #1, self hosted solutions like home assistant also allow using “smart” devices without the cloud in some instances. You are not at the mercy of a vendor going out of business or dropping support and your devices becoming bricks.
Not all devices are compatible, but from what I’ve learned, I would never buy another device with so called “smart” features if it is not compatible with home assistant.