@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org
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atomicpoet

@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org

Putting the sauce in awesome! This is my own self-hosted single-user Akkoma + Mangane server.

I primarily talk about the Fediverse, movies, books, photography, video games, music, working out, and general geekiness.

I’m a proud husband and father.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

atomicpoet, to Futurology
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

Federation with actually hurts Meta.

It is an existential threat to the very core of Meta’s social media monopoly. Surprisingly, if the goal is to fight against Meta’s hegemony, the most effective strategy may be to federate with them.

“But Chris,” some of you might state, “Even you agree that it might be better to defederate Meta – and you’ve even set up notmeta.social for expressly this purpose.”

Yes, because it’s not everyone’s objective to fight Meta, and there should be spaces where fighting Meta isn’t top of mind. Not everyone wants to be part and parcel of a fight, and that’s okay.

Let’s first acknowledge the technology through which federation happens. is an open standard protocol that enables the decentralized social networking that powers the Fediverse. It allows different social media platforms (, , , etc.) to interoperate, meaning that users on one platform can communicate with users on another platform. Federation is the process by which these platforms connect and share content, forming a decentralized network.

The most important thing to understand about ActivityPub is that, more than a technology to merely send and receive messages, it’s also a common ruleset – a gentleman’s agreement that everyone will play nice when sending and receiving messages.

Now when Meta opts to use ActivityPub, they’re abiding by the agreement: to play by the same rules as everybody else. Should they renege on this agreement, they are no longer using ActivityPub. They’re using something else.

But let’s assume for a moment that Meta is abiding to use ActivityPub, and they indeed will play by the same rules. Knowing Meta, this is a tall order – but still, let’s assume.

ActivityPub means that whatever of Meta’s userbase that’s exposed to federation will diversify into other platforms. This is because, through ActivityPub, smaller platforms can connect with each other and offer a combined user base that competes with Meta’s centralized network. This diversification reduces the dependence of users on a single platform, giving them more choices and potentially drawing them away from Meta.

This creates an erosion of Meta’s network effects. Meta’s entire monopoly is based on ownership of their platforms’ network effects, where the value of the platform increases as more users join. Suddenly, by federating, Meta no longer own the network effect. This is because federation challenges this by breaking down barriers between platforms, allowing users to interact regardless of the platform they are on. This reduces the exclusivity and advantage Meta holds, as the network effects become distributed across multiple interconnected platforms.

Federation also gives Meta’s users power that they never previously had. Federation promotes decentralization by giving users greater control over their data and interactions. With ActivityPub, users have the freedom to choose which platform they prefer without sacrificing connectivity. This user empowerment threatens Meta’s control over user data and engagement, potentially leading to a loss of influence and advertising revenue.

ActivityPub poses a tangible threat to Meta’s monopoly on social media. By choosing to federate, Meta might be opening Pandora’s box. The moment Meta’s users receive a message from a server not owned by Meta is the moment they’re exposed to something else beyond Meta’s control. Inevitably, this will create more diversity of ActivityPub-enabled platforms – not less. This will erode Meta’s network effects. For people who use Meta, the power of decentralization – giving them more freedom – will prove revelatory.

Of course, this is a fight. And just because Meta federates doesn’t mean it’s game over. In the next post, I will explore what Meta is hoping to gain by joining the .

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@arinbasu1 I don’t want to live in a world where the public square is owned by Big Social. Nor do I want to live in a world where my online life, along with my relationships, is perceived as property by a monopolistic entity.

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@leadegroot @atomicpoet That’s one plausible approach.

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@Ciela There’s always that risk. Nothing is a sure thing. However, I also believe that admins also have power to dictate their own terms by ensuring:

  1. Greater emphasis on decentralization
  2. Building community-driven governance models
  3. Creating tools for more interoperability, and thus competition
  4. Pushing regulatory scrutiny when Meta attempts domination
atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@Daily_Twerk I envision a lobby server to be a specialized intermediary within the federated social media network. It would act as a connector, facilitating communication and content sharing between different social media platforms and . It would enable users from Threads to interact with users from other platforms in a seamless manner.

As for how specific federation configuration would work, that’s beyond the purview of this thread.

Nevertheless, here’s a suggestion. A plausible ActivityPub configuration involving a lobby server and Meta could establish a mutual read/write access between the lobby server and Meta, allowing seamless communication and content sharing. In this configuration, servers that do not federate with Meta would provide read access to the lobby server, enabling the lobby server to consume and display their content. However, these non-Meta servers would not grant write access to the lobby server, meaning that the lobby server would not have the ability to directly interact with or modify content on those servers. This configuration ensures that the lobby server can gather and showcase content from a diverse range of non-Meta servers while maintaining the integrity of individual server boundaries and user control over their own platforms.

I don’t know what you’re specifically asking for regarding hosting, nor do I understand what physical proximity has to do with federation itself. But a lobby server’s specific purpose it to promote greater Fediverse access for people who use Meta’s services.

One purpose in building lobby servers is to create a larger mass that reduces the dominance of Meta. By increasing the number of independent servers within the Fediverse and expanding the overall network, the reliance on Meta’s hardware infrastructure can be diminished. This approach distributes the load across a greater number of servers, reducing the concentration of power and control in the hands of a single entity like Meta.

But the purpose isn’t just to provide a mass of servers. The intent would be for lobby servers to act as strategic intermediaries, connecting diverse platforms within the Fediverse and facilitating seamless communication and content sharing. By bridging communities and promoting interoperability, lobby servers would empower Meta’s users to explore alternative platforms, reducing their reliance on Meta’s ecosystem. Additionally, lobby servers can contribute to a more competitive landscape by showcasing the value and benefits of non-Meta platforms, encouraging user migration and diversification.

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@arinbasu1 Twitter and Facebook still continue to command significant presence in the digital sphere despite widespread concerns about the spread of misinformation and vitriol. They’ve become, in a way, these monolithic entities in our social media lives.

However, the essence of the argument isn’t about defending a specific social media platform or “protecting one’s patch”, rather, it’s about challenging and mitigating the pervasive influence that Meta exerts over our digital lives. It’s about cultivating a more diverse, decentralized digital landscape where the balance of power isn’t skewed towards a few tech behemoths.

By Meta entering the ActivityPub space, they bring along their substantial resources and influence, which could potentially disrupt the existing balance in the decentralized ecosystem. But the goal isn’t to resist this disruption for the sake of maintaining the status quo, it’s about promoting a healthy competition and empowering smaller platforms and users themselves.

The point about how X perceives Y is an interesting one. Perception isn’t under direct control, indeed. But the nature of the platform and its guiding policies can certainly shape the narratives and interactions that occur within it. In a world where Meta isn’t the dominant force, there might be more opportunities for diverse perspectives to flourish and a greater emphasis on authentic, constructive communication.

So, this isn’t about building walls around our own platforms, but rather advocating for a fair, diverse, and inclusive social media environment where power isn’t concentrated in the hands of a few.

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@alter_kaker Federation is conditional. It is a privilege, not a right—and this extends to Meta as well. At any point, a lobby server can end federation with Meta.

Keeping this in mind, lobby servers can act even when Meta won’t. If Meta won’t ban their own users, lobby servers can ban them from sending and receiving messages from the lobby server.

It’s also important to be mindful of goals. A “lobby” server doesn’t exist to provide a perfect Fediverse experience but one which is less worse than Meta.

A

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@alter_kaker Federation is conditional. It is a privilege, not a right—and this extends to Meta as well. At any point, a lobby server can end federation with Meta.

Keeping this in mind, lobby servers can act even when Meta won’t. If Meta won’t ban their own users, lobby servers can ban them from sending and receiving messages to and from the lobby server.

It’s also important to be mindful of goals. A “lobby” server doesn’t exist to provide a perfect Fediverse experience but one which is less worse than Meta.

So yes, Meta may have bad moderation practices but that doesn’t mean lobby servers will have to follow suit. Even if moderation on lobby servers is unable to ban all the bad apples coming from Meta, acting when Meta won’t will demonstrate that non-Meta services are less worse than Meta—which means they’re better.

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

Every part of me doesn’t want to work out today but I’m doing it.

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

What’s with this pervasive, all-consuming obsession with poutine?

It’s like every restaurant I visit is hell-bent on serving a thousand variants of this dish. Bacon poutine, miso poutine, chocolate poutine, tofu poutine… the list is unending, and frankly, it’s gotten way out of hand. You can’t even escape it when you go for brunch! They’ll sneak a poached egg onto it and call it breakfast poutine. Is nothing sacred?!

I get it, I really do. Poutine is a comfort food. It’s familiar, it’s filling, it’s savory and indulgent and people go gaga over it. But really, is it THAT good? Does every single dish need to be a riff on poutine? It’s like chefs have collectively forgotten there are other ways to serve potatoes! Mashed, fried, baked, scalloped – these are all valid, delicious options. Yet, we’re stuck in this purgatorial poutine pandemonium where culinary creativity has been stifled!

And let’s talk about the absolutely unholy concoctions some places are serving up in the name of poutine innovation. Chocolate poutine? What heresy is this? Who woke up one morning and decided, “Yes, let’s combine french fries, gravy, cheese curds, and chocolate. That sounds like a good idea.” Is there no line? Have we lost all sense of taste and decency?

Moreover, don’t even get me started on the health implications. Cheese, gravy, fries - that’s not exactly a heart-healthy diet. And no, slapping tofu on top doesn’t magically make it a health food. That’s like sticking a single carrot on a triple-layer chocolate cake and calling it a salad.

It’s become a challenge to find a restaurant that isn’t strangled by the omnipresence of poutine. It’s almost as if chefs are too afraid to deviate from the norm, too timid to venture beyond the established, greasy paths of poutine glory. I’ve had enough! Can we please explore some new territory in the culinary world? Can we possibly come up with other creative, delicious meals that don’t include soaking fries in gravy and cheese?

I don’t need to see any more hipster bars trying to outdo each other with the most outrageous poutine variant. I don’t want to live in fear that my favorite desserts might one day be infiltrated by this poutine madness. So here’s my plea to all the restaurateurs out there: It’s time to let go of the poutine reigns. Embrace variety. Embrace originality. For the love of food, set the poutine free and let us enjoy a diverse, poutine-less menu!

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@Kyleric I don’t know where you’re from, but here in Canada, it’s never stopped. Poutine is the dish that consumes every dish.

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@Kyleric Just be glad that poutine has been forgotten where you live. Let that sleeping dog lie – because here in Canada, it’s taken over everything. You don’t want to eat poutine pizza and poutine sushi. Trust me on this.

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@gretared I’m sorry that you now see this.

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@venite You made me curious. Congrats! That’s a dish that poutine has not wrecked yet!

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

How do you know you’re in Canada? Everything is turned into poutine.

You go to a Mexican restaurant. They’re serving taco poutine.

You go to a Japanese restaurant. They’re serving sushi poutine.

I once went to an Italian restaurant and they had pizza poutine, spaghetti poutine, risotto poutine. At that point, why even call yourself an Italian restaurant?!

Someone stop this madness!

atomicpoet, (edited )
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@mike Here in Canada, Big Syrup is a FACT. It’s an actual real cartel. And it wouldn’t surprise me if there’s a similar one for poutine.

In fact, I was at a restaurant one time, and they were serving poutine with bacon and maple syrup.

atomicpoet, (edited )
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

I know so many of you are doubting the all-pervasiveness of poutine here in Canada, so here’s photographic proof:

  1. Kimchi poutine
  2. Sushi poutine
  3. Taco poutine
  4. Spaghetti poutine

Do you all now see that poutine has gotten out of control?

People of the world, don’t let poutine find its way to you. It will infest everything.

No cuisine, no dessert, and no snack is safe from the clutches of this monstrous poutine machine. The lines between sweet and savory, lunch and dessert, main and side, have all been blurred. Poutine is evolving and it’s gobbling up every food group, every cultural cuisine, and every beloved dish in its path.

So, let me reiterate, folks: Poutine is like the kudzu of the culinary world. Give it an inch and it’ll take a mile. Let it into your kitchens and it will strangle the creativity and diversity out of your menus. It’s an invasive species in the gastronomic ecosystem. And like all invasive species, it needs to be controlled before it destroys the harmony.

Please, I can’t emphasize this enough. Don’t let the poutine pandemic spread to your shores. Remember, prevention is better than cure. Resist the poutine. Protect your culinary heritage. Save our gastronomic diversity. For the love of good food, say no to the poutine infestation!

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

I bet you that when people overseas come to Canada, they get downright furious about the state of their beloved dishes.

Take kimchi, for instance, a sacred culinary icon in Korea, reduced to just another topping on our unstoppable poutine machine. It’s disheartening, to say the least.

I remember this one time, an elderly Korean cook named Ji-hoon visited our Great White North. Back in Seoul, he was a legend, whipping up kimchi that could make grown men weep with joy. He was a maestro of fermented cabbage and fiery spices. So, when he came across a local joint advertising “Kimchi Poutine,” his interest was piqued, and his culinary senses tingled with anticipation.

But boy, was he in for a shocker! Instead of a beautifully balanced fusion of flavors, he was served a Franken-dish. Fries drenched in gravy, cheese curds spilling over the edges, and to top it all off, a sacrilegious slathering of his beloved kimchi. The vibrant crunch, the tangy kick, the nuanced spice - all drowned out by the gooey onslaught of gravy and cheese.

You should have seen his face! It was like someone had just run over his childhood puppy. He sat there, stunned, silently mourning the loss of the dish’s integrity. He must have felt like a kimchi king dethroned by a poutine monster. I felt a pang of empathy for the old man.

There we were, in the heart of Canada, watching a dish that encapsulated centuries of Korean culture being bulldozed by our national obsession with poutine. It was a culinary tragedy in three acts: cheese, gravy, and the unnecessary addition of kimchi.

And I couldn’t help but think, is this what we’ve become? Poutine pioneers, leaving a trail of culinary destruction in our wake? If so, we need to rethink our priorities, my friends, before the world starts associating us with a series of ill-conceived poutine disasters. Kimchi deserves better, Ji-hoon deserved better, and quite frankly, so do we.

atomicpoet, to Futurology
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

Federation with actually hurts Meta.

It is an existential threat to the very core of Meta’s social media monopoly. Surprisingly, if the goal is to fight against Meta’s hegemony, the most effective strategy may be to federate with them.

“But Chris,” some of you might state, “Even you agree that it might be better to defederate Meta – and you’ve even set up notmeta.social for expressly this purpose.”

Yes, because it’s not everyone’s objective to fight Meta, and there should be spaces where fighting Meta isn’t top of mind. Not everyone wants to be part and parcel of a fight, and that’s okay.

Let’s first acknowledge the technology through which federation happens. is an open standard protocol that enables the decentralized social networking that powers the Fediverse. It allows different social media platforms (, , , etc.) to interoperate, meaning that users on one platform can communicate with users on another platform. Federation is the process by which these platforms connect and share content, forming a decentralized network.

The most important thing to understand about ActivityPub is that, more than a technology to merely send and receive messages, it’s also a common ruleset – a gentleman’s agreement that everyone will play nice when sending and receiving messages.

Now when Meta opts to use ActivityPub, they’re abiding by the agreement: to play by the same rules as everybody else. Should they renege on this agreement, they are no longer using ActivityPub. They’re using something else.

But let’s assume for a moment that Meta is abiding to use ActivityPub, and they indeed will play by the same rules. Knowing Meta, this is a tall order – but still, let’s assume.

ActivityPub means that whatever of Meta’s userbase that’s exposed to federation will diversify into other platforms. This is because, through ActivityPub, smaller platforms can connect with each other and offer a combined user base that competes with Meta’s centralized network. This diversification reduces the dependence of users on a single platform, giving them more choices and potentially drawing them away from Meta.

This creates an erosion of Meta’s network effects. Meta’s entire monopoly is based on ownership of their platforms’ network effects, where the value of the platform increases as more users join. Suddenly, by federating, Meta no longer own the network effect. This is because federation challenges this by breaking down barriers between platforms, allowing users to interact regardless of the platform they are on. This reduces the exclusivity and advantage Meta holds, as the network effects become distributed across multiple interconnected platforms.

Federation also gives Meta’s users power that they never previously had. Federation promotes decentralization by giving users greater control over their data and interactions. With ActivityPub, users have the freedom to choose which platform they prefer without sacrificing connectivity. This user empowerment threatens Meta’s control over user data and engagement, potentially leading to a loss of influence and advertising revenue.

ActivityPub poses a tangible threat to Meta’s monopoly on social media. By choosing to federate, Meta might be opening Pandora’s box. The moment Meta’s users receive a message from a server not owned by Meta is the moment they’re exposed to something else beyond Meta’s control. Inevitably, this will create more diversity of ActivityPub-enabled platforms – not less. This will erode Meta’s network effects. For people who use Meta, the power of decentralization – giving them more freedom – will prove revelatory.

Of course, this is a fight. And just because Meta federates doesn’t mean it’s game over. In the next post, I will explore what Meta is hoping to gain by joining the .

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

Please stop tagging me in threads with lots of drama, for which I have no prior involvement.

It is not helpful and I will not respond.

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

I really wish people would read the entirety of threads before replying.

atomicpoet, (edited ) to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

The following is a preview of the Mark Zuckerberg vs. Elon Musk MMA cage match in the style of Hunter S. Thompson.

June. The garish Vegas strip becomes a fever dream, an absurd circus of lights and lunacy under the ceaseless sun. The grotesque and the grand, the hopeless and the hopeful, all gravitate toward the heart of the desert, drawn by a spectacle so bizarre it threatens to unravel the thin veneer of sanity that the world has clung to: Mark Zuckerberg, the digital puppeteer, and Elon Musk, the deluded prophet of a future no one asked for, set to clash in the cage.

They’re calling it a cage match, but don’t be fooled. This is a grotesque parade of tech overindulgence, an absurdist theater where Silicon Valley titans trade coded jabs for physical ones. A grotesque ballet of the techno-gods, reduced to brutish spectacle under the gaudy lights of Sin City.

Zuckerberg, he of the uncanny valley stare and ambitions that stretch further than his reach, steps into the cage with a robotic determination. His realm is an infinite expanse of shared thoughts and stolen secrets, a kingdom built on the commodification of the trivial, a realm where everyone’s business is his business.

His adversary, Musk, the starry-eyed misanthrope, drenched in the delusions of grandeur. A man who would be a prophet, but ends up more of a peddler, selling dreams of Mars to a world struggling to keep its feet on the ground. He touts progress while his workers suffer, promises a utopia while we choke on the fumes of his electric fantasies.

Reduced to flesh and bone in the cage, they are the epitome of the absurdity that their own unchecked hubris has wrought. Will they meet each other with the primal intensity of warriors, or will their vaudevillian dance end in an embarrassing stumble?

The crowd is electric, thirsty for the madness to come. This is less about the sport and more about the spectacle, a blood-soaked mirror held up to society’s own monstrous fascination with these digital deities. As I scan the crowd, I can’t help but wonder what it says about us, our rapt attention, our bated breath as we wait to see these titans felled.

The bell tolls, the dance begins. The world watches with an obsession that is equal parts macabre and mesmerizing. The outcome of this digital duel may be irrelevant, the spectacle itself a testament to our collective descent into the digital abyss.

Hold on to your seats, folks. We’re about to witness the madness of our own creation, a grotesque masquerade of technology and testosterone. Will it end in triumph or tragedy? Only the false gods of Silicon Valley can say.

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

Oh, hello there!

My name is Binky, a cuddly lil' Bunny living in the sugary-sweet Lollipop Forest, where every candy cane tree and gummy bear bush talks, and giggles, and plays all day. Today, I'd like to tell you about a magical thing that helps my critter friends and I communicate across different parts of our forest - it's called ActivityPub!

You see, the Lollipop Forest is really, really big. We have marshmallow meadows over here, and jellybean jungles over there, and sometimes, it's hard for a tiny candy critter like me to chirp or chatter to a friend who lives way across the chocolate river. But ActivityPub is a magical spell that allows my giggles and greetings to reach friends far and wide.

Imagine ActivityPub like the fairy mail carrier, a bumblebee named Buzzly. Buzzly flies from candy critter to candy critter, carrying messages in a little honeycomb satchel. When I want to tell my friend Gummy the Bear, who lives deep in the Jellybean Jungle, that I found the sweetest berry, I simply write a note and give it to Buzzly.

Buzzly would then buzz off, zipping and zooming over the minty mountains, the gummy gorges, and the caramel canyons, straight to Gummy's treehouse. Gummy would find my note, read it, and maybe even write back! That’s what ActivityPub does!

It's a super duper system that lets critters like you and me (and websites and apps, too) send messages to each other. It doesn't matter if you're a bunny in a burrow or a sparrow in the sky; as long as you use ActivityPub, you can chat, share, like, and play across any distance.

But what if I want to announce a big, big party to all my friends? Buzzly can do that, too! ActivityPub lets me share my messages not just with one critter, but a whole bunch of 'em at the same time. I just have to tell Buzzly my party news, and he will make sure every critter in the Lollipop Forest knows about it.

You see, just like Buzzly can carry our sweet whispers from one place to another, ActivityPub helps messages travel across different parts of the internet, connecting everyone in a magical, candy-coated network of communication. So no matter where your treehouse is or how many chocolate rivers are between us, we can always stay in touch and share our happiest giggles, all thanks to ActivityPub!

Isn't it just the sweetest thing you ever heard?

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

Quack quack quack quack quack quaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

Yes, calckey.social is currently down. Messages are stuck waiting in the inbox queue, so @kainoa is trying to sort that out.

atomicpoet,
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

@kainoa @Fred Yeah, I’m going to use that one.

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