Posts by emc2@indieweb.social
(DIR) Post #AWx78FjM5xvn7DreM4 by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-21T00:29:01Z
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Something else to note: the profitability of surveilling users, collecting their data, and selling it is steadily declining. The whole adtech world is constantly climbing uphill against a landslide.The takeaway from all this is that for-profit social platforms will eventually create a crisis for themselves. They degrade, trying to squeeze more and more profit out of an increasingly arid source, until they eventually do something stupid and blow their foot off. [13/n]
(DIR) Post #AWx78GWHA53xYwkibg by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-21T00:33:17Z
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What happened with Twitter is that #Mastodon happened to be poised, almost by accident, to scoop up enough users to rocket past the critical mass point, and became self-sustaining.What's happening with #reddit is similar, but it's also enabling something analogous to a strike by the mods.This is essentially Naomi Klein's notion of Shock Doctrine, except being employed *against* capital, not by it. [14/n]
(DIR) Post #AWx78HC6eYWVegK7o8 by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-21T00:37:44Z
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One of the biggest strengths of the #OSS movement is that it does not hesitate to use the tools of its opponents against them. Pretty much the entire left is uniformly and vehemently opposed to that idea. OSS by contrast does so enthusiastically. I suspect it's part and parcel with the hacker mindset: pulling off political-economic zero-days is right in line with how we think. [15/n]
(DIR) Post #AWx78I05eiVQ9hi2iW by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-21T00:42:18Z
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So now #TwitterMigration fed us enough users to get #Mastodon to critical mass, and then #redditMigration proved it can be replicated. We have a model that seems to work.Enter Facebook. They're already in a death-spiral, and I suspect somebody over there figured out essentially what I've said here. So they want to try to jump in and get out in front of it. It's worth gaming out what they're up to. [16/n]
(DIR) Post #AWx78ItOL6k2vDaCum by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-21T00:48:08Z
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Two tactics that have actually succeeded in being an impediment to OSS have been carpetbagging (showing up and using organizational weight, presumed prestige, etc to shove out a project's leadership and take over), and de-inventing (my term: what Google did to XMPP, RSS, and is currently trying to do to email). Google has tended to employ both of these in its quest for hegemony.If Facebook knows what they're doing, this is what they are planning to do. [17/n]
(DIR) Post #AWx78JZDpaCb0x9c7E by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-21T00:54:28Z
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If Facebook thinks merely being part of the Fediverse is going to somehow magically going to save them from a reddit-style catastrophe, they're sorely mistaken. That will only make it easier for people to leave when that time comes (and it will).So by this analysis, #ActivityPub and other protocols, standards, etc are what need to be protected. More broadly, OSS would do well to develop better defenses against de-invention anyway. [18/n]
(DIR) Post #AWx78KNun6kfYAs688 by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-21T01:02:26Z
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As for the question of whether to federate with Facebook, I go back to differentiation and cross-pollination. Diversity is our strength. I have complete faith in the ability of OSS/FediVerse to outmaneuver a gigantic, ailing behemoth.Somebody will figure out the right move at every point, and the rest will follow. The protocols will grow and adapt, and it will be on Facebook to keep up. [19/n]
(DIR) Post #AWx78MCe1yvPBnc7qC by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-21T01:08:44Z
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So in closing, this is a very exciting time. #OSS has created a lot of change for the better, and back in November I felt like we were starting to remember that.I think this model, worked out and refined over the years is really quite powerful, and recent events have showed that. It's consistently overcome obstacles that were said to be impossible.So I'll close with the exhortation to dare to dream big about what else we might be able to accomplish.
(DIR) Post #AX3NsqdXyVRP799C6q by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T14:28:40Z
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I and others have talked a lot about the #Facebook / #Meta #FediVerse issue over the past few days, analyzing their strategy, and possible responses, and why pre-emptive blocking isn't an effective measure.This leaves the question of "what *should* we do?" So....ITT: actually effective measures for building the resilience of the FediVerse and #ActivityPub, informed by the experience of the #OSS movement.(This is going to be a long one)
(DIR) Post #AX3NssBcDKHpv65uqm by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T14:40:05Z
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Front-note: I think there's something very close to the difference of views here, so I'll try to articulate what motivates my "side".Corporations and capital aren't all-powerful dark gods, vampires, demons, or the One Ring. They're systems that can be analyzed, outsmarted, and outmaneuvered.We have many more options than separatism, and slowing an inexorable advance. We can fundamentally alter the rulebook, and in fact, we have in very significant ways.So with that, let's get started...
(DIR) Post #AX3NssytG7haNv9Gee by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T14:48:25Z
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Part 1: Protecting the protocols (#ActivityPub):For the less technical, the protocols are essentially the "laws of physics" for this space. The key goal is to keep them under the control of #OSS and the #FediVerse.As currently designed, they prevent the doomsday speculations I've seen floating around (algorithmic curation, surveillance, etc).There are two aspects of this: governance, and adoption.
(DIR) Post #AX3Nsu9CvFY60Cz1NI by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T14:53:16Z
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On the governance angle, one of the most effective moves we could make is already underway (hat tip to @tchambers): the @activitypubtestsuite: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1l46VNMY_ULZmf0lGPKJ86a_umHqGv--WA0fynVjQaRQ/editEstablishing robust test-suites to define common protocols is a time-tested method within the #OSS world for preventing things like #EEE. This is used, among other things, for the Java language and JVM specs, the major implementations of which are controlled by corporations. It is a part of keeping them open.
(DIR) Post #AX3Nsv77KVTH010rku by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T14:58:00Z
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An extension of this is to establish a robust governance structure for extending and revising the protocols. These have been successfully employed by the #OSS movement on important parts of the commons, and frequently resist attempts at hegemonization.This is *extremely* important where corporate entities are undertaking development of OSS and open standards. Discussion of legal templates are beginning: https://indieweb.social/@franktaber@mas.to/110602490063783403
(DIR) Post #AX3Nsw2trfgxtE30oy by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T15:04:01Z
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As to the question of what sort of governance structures work best, a common model has emerged in #OSS that most closely resembles labor unions:A tiered structure, but with accountability flowing *downward* towards the community. Developers/committers/members are appointed based on a clearly-defined process based on experience and domain knowledge, who in turn elect a core team tasked with strategy, but who make non-binding *recommendations*, not decrees.
(DIR) Post #AX3Nsx3e6Nsn1pP7ce by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T15:09:38Z
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Adoption is key in preventing an #XMPP-style de-invention scenario.Google was able to remove XMPP from the commons by absorbing most of the user base into their own platform, while most external servers fragmented, producing a hub-and-spoke situation. They then just turned off their XMPP integration.This is also why the "block anyone who doesn't block #Facebook / #Meta" proposal actually *accelerates* this process.So we need to ensure that #ActivityPub remains robust and interconnected.
(DIR) Post #AX3W2HO8gM0sK1wsG8 by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T15:15:43Z
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@smallpatatas Read my whole post.
(DIR) Post #AX3W2IZsGCzi0iRlBo by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T15:25:57Z
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@smallpatatas So then you admit to being the kind of bad-faith actor who clips things out-of-context and discards arguments inconvenient to you.
(DIR) Post #AX3W2JqZXbwfwnGbr6 by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T15:28:24Z
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@smallpatatas I have, and I have discussed them in detail in other threads. My focus here is on effective actions.
(DIR) Post #AX3W2LASd9Rs2la0Ui by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T15:37:28Z
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@smallpatatas You can address my arguments on the threads where I and others make them.
(DIR) Post #AX3W2MZJQEvCO8DMrw by emc2@indieweb.social
2023-06-25T16:40:01Z
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@smallpatatas These comments demonstrate a basic lack of understanding of how this works.Facebook gains no surveillance abilities by federating that they don't possess today.Facebook can't force my instance to use their algorithms to serve content, and the long-term moderation infrastructure that is being discussed here will make that both open and customizable.