1y ago

Why Mozilla is betting on a decentralized social networking future

techcrunch.com Why Mozilla is betting on a decentralized social networking future | TechCrunch

Consumers are hungry for a new way of social networking, where trust and safety are paramount and power isn't centralized with a Big Tech CEO in charge...

The mission-driven tech company behind the Firefox browser, Pocket reader and other apps is now investing its energy into the so-called “fediverse” — a collection of decentralized social networking applications, like Mastodon, that communicate with one another over the ActivityPub protocol.

Technology @beehaw.org

Why Mozilla is betting on a decentralized social networking future

techcrunch.com /2023/11/03/why-mozilla-is-betting-on-a-decentralized-social-networking-future/

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Selfhosted @lemmy.world

Mozilla Senior Director of Content explained why Mozilla has taken an interest in the fediverse and Mastodon

techcrunch.com /2023/11/03/why-mozilla-is-betting-on-a-decentralized-social-networking-future/

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Technology @lemmy.world

Why Mozilla is betting on a decentralized social networking future

techcrunch.com /2023/11/03/why-mozilla-is-betting-on-a-decentralized-social-networking-future/

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52 comments

It's mostly Mastodon. The text doesn't even mention Lemmy or Kbin.
I'm glad that Mozilla is doing this. It benefits both sides (Mozilla and the Fediverse), in a transparent way. Hopefully we get some Fediverse companion for Firefox, Thunderbird and Seamonkey.
- I have never understood why so many people find the structure of Twitter/Mastodon more appealing than that of Reddit/Lemmy.
  I like it when I read other people's thoughts on a matter, then react to them by adding relevant thoughts of my own and hoping people will react to mine too. Like on a traditional discussion forum (or for even older people, newsgroup or mailing list). That is what Reddit/Lemmy does reasonably well, although not quite as well as those traditional discussion forums.
  On Twitter/Mastodon I have to have original thoughts of my own to be able to post anything at all, and even if I do have some, no one will read them if they aren't already following me.
  
  I agree with your preference for forum/community style.
  But I think the purpose of microblogging is to follow a personality, rather than a topic or community. And users that share there do so to cultivate a following, which would be harder on Reddit/Lemmy (only ones that I can think of who do that successfully are onlyfans users).
  
  Yes, I guess so. I have no interest in becoming any kind of celebrity. That sounds stressful and can make you a target for harassment.
  I prefer it when I can post my thoughts anonymously without anyone knowing or caring who I am. If a thought is good, it doesn't matter whose thought it is.
  
  Agreed. Micro-blogging, is more top down info downstreaming. While the forum/community focuses on information exchange on a more even keel level.
  
  Yeah, Mastodon is much larger than Lemmy yet it feels like shouting into the void. I like it as a means to keep up on news by following journalists who've fled twitter but I've yet to get any real interaction on my posts. Meanwhile on Lemmy I'm never running out of things to read and people to discuss posts with.
  
  Depends on the instance id say. I run one and its not a void but the big ones are for sure.
  
  Microblogs like Mastodon are excellent for following specific people, and for getting an overview of the current zeitgeist. Forums like Lemmy are excellent for following specific topics. Both are useful in different ways.
  
  Why would I follow a specific person for non-video content? That strikes me as way too parasocial to me. All that person is going to tell me is their personal opinion, and I barely trust the news articles that appear here, much less some famous person's random opinion.
  
  it's very useful to follow subject matter experts, when you've identified them
  
  when you've identified them
  Yeah, that's part of why I don't find a lot of value in twitter-style platforms.
  
  I don't get it, either. I use a plugin to expand horizontal space on Lemmy, because I already hate how much real estate it wastes. Mastodon is much much worse, with this aesthetic that forces you to use a mobile "long-ways" view of the content.
  I'm convinced that Mastodon is more popular only because Elon has pissed off Twitter users more than Spez has pissed off Reddit users.
  
  Do you like small talk? I feel like that's been a delimiting factors for me and my friends.
- They have to start somewhere. Mastodon is the highest profile app in the fediverse and it's best to capitalize on Twitter imploding while the dregs are hot.
  Don't worry, Reddit will do something stupid to get in the headlines eventually.
  
  I'm just hoping that Peertube is in a spot to capitalize when Youtube crashes and burns in a couple of years
  
  It's not. I wish it was, but it's not.
  
  I meant more as "will be" when the time comes
  
  I'm not hopeful. Video hosting is a different ball game, and free video platforms only exist due to the deep pockets and "users now, profit later" strategy of big tech.
  The only way I see it working is where creators pay for the hosting costs of their own content and monetize on their own terms.
  
  Mastodon does exist though, i have a feeling other parts of the fediverse need more help

52 comments