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Joined 8 months ago
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Cake day: January 23rd, 2024

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  • Discoverability is a huge barrier to entry in the Fediverse, and they’re not helping.

    It’s hard for me to judge them too harshly, though. Fediverse devs do things I disagree with all the time, and users too. Maybe, in a different world, something else could’ve taken Mastodon’s place… but its forks stick close, Pleroma has the charm of a brick, Misskey is too 日本, and Misskey forks got Messy, and—

    …Oh. That’s it, isn’t it? Mastodon is the best that ActivityPub has to offer most microblogging fans.


  • Yes, people chase content, which means chasing where many people are, but why did Bluesky become a mainstream alternative and Mastodon didn’t?

    I’m saying marketing doesn’t cut it, and it’s not just about where most users are either, otherwise everyone but Threads would be irrelevant.

    People bounce off both Threads and Mastodon, and there are platform-related reasons for that.


  • That may be true for some people, but isn’t a valid generalization. See the Brazil blocking Twitter situation.

    Millions decided to give Bluesky a chance and a graph showed daily user activity quadrupling. Now, a not-insignificant portion are saying they refuse to return to Twitter because:

    • It feels less toxic and healthier
    • They have more control over their experience
    • They’re finally having fun with social media again

    Sound familiar?

    And I’m pretty sure Misskey has more features. Hell, Mastodon as well probably. Bluesky doesn’t even support video yet.

    The first sin of the Fediverse isn’t being small, that’s the second. First is being a pain in the ass.


  • This was one of the reasons I left, and I assumed most disliked the official app, but weren’t willing to part with the content.

    Now, I think I was too close minded. Stuck in my bubble. If it’s not in a discussion about reddit sucking, chances are people don’t care that much.

    App sucks? Didn’t think about that, it’s just an app. App really sucks? Whatever, they already use 5 other apps that are worse.

    The medium shapes the experience, but isn’t an experience unto itself. Not that important to the average person.














  • You’re right, regarding Mastodon. I won’t edit my other comment, though, both to preserve the original chain of thought and because that brings up another discussion.

    To quote the EFF:

    We feel that the intended usage of the feature will not determine people’s expectation of privacy while using it.

    Offering people a feature with preexisting expectations, similar to other things that fulfill those expectations, then telling people “We know it looks like a duck but don’t expect it to quack!”

    …It begs the question: was the feature really a good idea?


  • And it’s also damming for private messaging on mastodon.

    I once read vague complaints about it being a rushed implementation. While I won’t trust those without evidence, I for sure wouldn’t trust mastodon with my PMs. At least, not until how this was allowed to happen is figured out and fixed if necessary.

    P.S. I’m still not sure I believe in PMs in the fediverse. If I need to share something and care about keeping it private, I’d rather move the conversation elsewhere.


  • Honestly, that strategy feels like the most sensible one, since the real world often does not (or can not afford to) care to wait for v1.0.0 before using software. It’s no wonder so many programming ecosystems have adopted it.

    I find it a bit of a shame it’s not part of the semver specification itself, which only states:

    1. (paraphrased) do whatever you want haha

    My point is, I don’t think that’s “your bad.” It’s just how it is, and the best there currently is. Unless you think there’s something that could’ve been done better, in which case I’m curious as to what, if you’re willing to share.