Tag: fediverse

A Fedi-Moving Day

I used Calckey as my primary fediverse server for 6 months. There were things I enjoyed about it, and then some things not so much.

I use YUNOHost for my backend, and due to that, was not able to update from Calckey to Firefish. I started looking into what I could do, but most the advice I saw dissuaded the changing of the server software on the same URL.

Near the end, most of the profile images were not loading. I was getting constant “Retry?” prompts, and errors and reloads.

Calckey is a pretty good software suite based on Misskey which too is pretty good. So I am pretty sure this was more on my end than theirs.

Still, with the errors, constantly reloading, it was time to move on.

I am not able to get YNH to install Mastodon. So I kept looking. Pleroma was there. I set up a test server and loaded my follows and gave it a week to play around with.

I prefer the Calckey UI. However, after I found the themes and played with them some, Pleroma grew on me more.

What it did bring to the table was the ability to use apps on my phone. The Calckey PWA did not meet my needs.

Calckey is fighting until the end, however. I am writing this stuck in a “Rate Exceeded” issue where I can’t move my account yet because the server won’t let me. Which is frustrating because I am, in fact, the server admin.

My pleroma is currently themed to look like Windows 95, something I am apparently still nostolgic for. Hopefully soon moving day will be complete.

Every Fediverse Instance an Island

I’ve been playing with some of the fediverse software to see about their features and what may be something I want to use. 

For example, I am excited to try Pixelfed, which is for image sharing (think Instagram) for Apokrupha. I’ve set up and have been using Bookwyrm for my reading habits. And playing with GoToSocial, Calckey and Mastodon for microblogging. 

The thing is though, the features of these applications are only a part of the equation. 

When you set up a single user instance, it is bare. There is no one else there to interact with. You aren’t federated with anyone yet, so searches don’t really work. 

It is just an empty canvas. 

That server, that island you are on is intended to be a social network. That is the main feature of each of these apps: interaction between accounts. 

The federation of these islands is a feature, yes. But that federation is based on user interactions, and is not automatic. A fresh server is empty, unconnected. 

Does Bookwyrm have a use if no one but me ever sees what I post there? I mean… yes, it does. It’s a nice record of books I’ve read and thoughts on them as I go. 

But I know I’m missing out on the real power, which is connecting and exchanging with other readers. 

I am not familiar enough with the backend of these protocols to even start to suggest what may be a good plan. Something as innocent as a ‘broadcast’ type post that would let introductions from one server be sent to others would no doubt have unintended consequences. 

There are things one can do to start to connect. Feditips (which continues to be a great resource) had a post a few days ago which had some good ideas. Among which are, joining groups, which are basically accounts that auto reblog anything sent to them, letting you connect to topics independent of servers; and looking through registries of accounts for ones you’d like to follow. 

The hope is, of course, that once you get enough posts rolling through, you’ll be able to keep connecting to more accounts that you want to interact with. 

And yet, still, your instance is an island. It will always be an island. The “social” part of the networking will always be reliant on you, the user, leaving your island and going to find new things to connect with. It is a pro-active stance that you frankly don’t have on large networks.

So why don’t I just invite people to my island? (Insert ‘People, what a bunch of bastards’ joke here) Joking aside, that turns it from something I use to something I have to admin, to something I have to moderate. Moderation can be a lot of work in of itself. 

I used to moderate a forum (a few forums) back in the dark ages of the internet, and while I toyed with the idea of starting a horror themed fediverse server, it quickly realized how much work that would be managing people. 

So why don’t I just join a larger instance for these apps? 

I suspect this is the question I am dealing with. In the end, I think smaller / one person instances is really the future / killer feature of the fediverse. Each of us having our own slice of the world we control, and yet are connected is powerful. 

But. 

But maybe those larger instances have a place as well, especially for those starting out, those without connections to bring. 

Because, as an unfortunate side note, older posts don’t get shown to new users on different servers. So that amazing picture I posted on Pixelfed of those strawberries? No one who follows me will see them through their account. 

They have to go to my server to see that image, and then (at least as far as I know) there isn’t really an easy way to interact with it. So that post is effectively lost in time. It exists, but not socially.

Which is its raison d’etre, no?

The Fediverse Cometh

With the shenanigans going on at Twitter, I, as a lot of people, have been looking into alternatives. I had heard of Mastodon (open source Twitter!), but had not tried, or even looked much into it.

One of the many times things nearly collapsed, I caved and went and signed up. I will mention that signing up for new things is something I am becoming more reluctant to do these days, which is probably a different post.

I signed up for Mastodon to give it a try and from there found out more about the Fediverse. So, what’s that? Fedi.tips says:

The Fediverse (or “Fedi”) is a collection of thousands of independent social media servers that talk to each other seamlessly. This means that the millions of users on these servers can interact with each other as if they were on a single social network.

What does that mean? It means rather than there be one site, i.e. Twitter or Facebook, there are lots of them, and each runs the server background to have these social sites. But then the magic happens.

Fediverse sites us a protocol called ActivityPub which connects all of them together. So a post on one site can be seen and commented on by another. You can follow people on different servers, even different apps, all from your home.

And it is pretty cool. It means there isn’t a central control over the site. Sites can be set up based on subject, or locations, or any other grouping. Want a social network for your family? here ya go.

AND, you can still interact with people on different sites.

I’ve decided to jump in. It is exciting and combining both the connection of social media, but the control offered by self hosting makes it doubly appealing.

I’m still looking into how I will host my microblog (i.e. Twitter replacement), and whether it will be Mastodon, Misskey, or something else.

But I have done two things. The first is set up this very blog to be on the Fediverse. With an ActivityPub WordPress Plugin you can now follow this blog on Mastodon, Pixelfed, Writefreely, etc.

Just look for @jake

The second is to set up a BookWyrm instance on books.jacobhaddon.com. BookWyrm is like GoodReads, which I had long since abandoned. I’m going to give it a shot, and see if reading in public is something I want to do. It is a sweet setup, and has been easy to use so far.

So if books are your thing: @jake@books.jacobhaddon.com

And there will be no doubt some others. I would like a PixelFed instance, but am currently having some issues getting it set up. (And I’ve made a new page to list my accounts here.)

What is the end goal? Why do this? I think the big thing is that the current state of Twitter is showing us all that leaving these things up to just a few corporate entities is not the way to go. ActiviyPub makes social networking more like email than a closed off system.

Sound interesting at all? Check out this page on Fedi.tips, which is a list with way more information on the Fediverse and its options. Mastodon is a great starting point, but there is much more out there. You can sign up on servers that already exist, or if you are so inclined, you can set up your own.

Social, but on your terms.