What would it take for a new social network to take users off facebook in 2017?
Someone with the talent and drive to create a billion dollar closed social network that eclipses Facebook.
Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
11–20 of 444 posts
Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#12Should we add github to that list?
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Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#13Would any solution be tangible for the type of user who is attracted to Favebook? That is, would there be any solution which a non-technical user would flock to? Would it meet their needs and abilities in a meaningful way?
Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#14I am a member of the W3C Social Web Working Group (https://www.w3.org/wiki/Socialwg), and have been organizing IndieWebCamp (https://indieweb.org/) conferences in this space for the last 7 years. We've been making a lot of progress:
* https://www.w3.org/TR/webmention/ - cross-site commenting
* https://www.w3.org/TR/micropub/ - API for apps to create posts on various servers
* https://www.w3.org/TR/websub/ - realtime subscriptions to feeds
* More: https://indieweb.org/specs
We focus on making sure there are a plurality of implementations and approaches rather than trying to build a single software solution to solve everything.
Try commenting on my copy of this post on my website by sending me a webmention! https://aaronparecki.com/2017/06/08/9/indieweb
Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#15I believe it's more effective to focus on a "small business" approach to decentralizing the web, where we focus on smaller companies providing services, rather than a "tin foil" approach where we encrypt and decentralize everything into tiny islands. I work for a video player company and while we aren't a platform like Youtube, we indirectly compete with them for ad dollars (along with Facebook). Something like 90% of ad dollars go towards them already. Most publishers do not like them. I think it's a lot easier to decentralize the internet by having the websites that 99% of users visit powered by smaller internet businesses rather than AmaGooFaceSoft.
Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#16I believe it's more effective to focus on a "small business" approach to decentralizing the web, where we focus on smaller companies providing services, rather than a "tin foil" approach where we encrypt and decentralize everything into tiny islands. I work for a video player company and while we aren't a platform like Youtube, we indirectly compete with them for ad dollars (along with Facebook). Something like 90% o…
Convenience has usually won over these goals. That's why Google/Facebook/Microsoft/etc have no problem attracting users.
Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#17Be interested in what HN thinks of Maidsafe, Storj etc. Basically decentralised versions of the internet or the cloud based around blockchain technology.
Storj for example is an order of magnitude cheaper than AWS, uses peoples spare hard drive space, encrypts everything and back it up using peer to peer tech.
I am currently pretty comfortable as an Android dev, but I am wondering if I should start learning everything I can about blockchain tech in order to help on projects such as these?
Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#18I am a member of the W3C Social Web Working Group ( https://www.w3.org/wiki/Socialwg ), and have been organizing IndieWebCamp ( https://indieweb.org/ ) conferences in this space for the last 7 years. We've been making a lot of progress: * https://www.w3.org/TR/webmention/ - cross-site commenting * https://www.w3.org/TR/micropub/ - API for apps to create posts on various servers * https://www.w3.org/TR/websub/ - realt…
This looks like an interesting list. I'm giving myself homework: Read the above. Now, Attempting a Webmention right now.
Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#19What would it take for a new social network to take users off facebook in 2017?
Someone with the talent and drive to create a billion dollar closed social network that eclipses Facebook.
What about a for-profit open-source social network then? Reading through comments on threads here it seems the events pages make it difficult for people to switch somewhere else without having a large part of their social life cut off.
Re: Ask HN: What are we doing about Facebook, Google, and the closed internet?
#20I think the solution is pretty simple. Keep building things. Make person websites and build communities. Don't host everything on major hosting providers like Google or Amazon. Don't rely on Facebook or Google for login or integrations. They only have so much power because we let them. It's more often than not the easier solution. Use tools like GPG, IRC, Email and encourage your friends and family to do the same.
The internet hasn't changed, we have, and the only way to take the internet back is if we change ourselves back.