wtf were they thinking when they named it that? if any non joke product with "butt" in the name ever succeeds, I will eat my hat.
Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
191–200 of 356 posts
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#192I think it's fascinating to see distributed social networks from a tech perspective. From what I've seen so far they exacerbate the problems that Facebook has been seeing so much backlash against. 1. The whole Cambridge Analytica issue was caused by APIs that are too open. For distributed systems there are more ways to exploit the APIs and gather data on users. 2. There is a clear issue with Facebook's accountability…
You're absolutely right. Distributed social networks are terrible, so we should stay on Facebook forever.
And if that is not what you are implying, perhaps you could explain what it is you do think we should be doing instead.
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#193I think it's fascinating to see distributed social networks from a tech perspective. From what I've seen so far they exacerbate the problems that Facebook has been seeing so much backlash against. 1. The whole Cambridge Analytica issue was caused by APIs that are too open. For distributed systems there are more ways to exploit the APIs and gather data on users. 2. There is a clear issue with Facebook's accountability…
> The whole Cambridge Analytica issue was caused by APIs that are too open. For distributed systems there are more ways to exploit the APIs and gather data on users. Huh? Scuttlebutt is fully encrypted.. doesn't that make the API vastly more locked down than Facebook/etc? > There is a clear issue with Facebook's accountability in these areas. Distributed systems are typically open source, they run on multiple servers…
> Scuttlebutt is fully encrypted.. doesn't that make the API vastly more locked down than Facebook/etc?
Encryption has nothing to do with it. The whole issue with CA was that they (just as many apps before them) were using Facebook social graph data that was available for them to access via the API. Encryption on any layer has nothing to do with it - if you have access to the API, you get the data. In distributed system, if you are a node in the system, you have to have access to social graph data - otherwise the whole concept of social network does not work. You can't "see what your friends are doing" if there's no information about who your "friends" are. And if the nodes on the network have information about who your friends are - or can get that information - then they have the same access as CA (and many other apps before them) had. Facebook can at least (if they wanted to) cut off the external API and not tell the social graph structure to anybody outside Facebook. I don't see how this is possible in a distributed network.
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#194Earlier quoted context omitted.
Can you show us any links or documentation that Scuttlebutt is actually funded? Or as you put it, "a ton of funding". I believe the actual number is 0. Would be pleased to hear otherwise.
They recently received 200k from the Dfinity project
Did they though? All I've been able to find related to this is a markdown document not updated in two months.
The company mentioned to give the money, "Dfinity", has no mention of Scuttlebutt on their Twitter, Medium, or company website. I can only seem to find things related to the Dfinity token presale and airdrop, which I assume is an ICO.
Scuttlebutt would greatly benefit from having a real source of funding. If anyone can provide proof Scuttlebutt is now funded please post it here.
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#195The way I've described scuttlebutt to folks is that it's "what if Facebook felt like Usenet in the 90s".
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#196I think it's fascinating to see distributed social networks from a tech perspective. From what I've seen so far they exacerbate the problems that Facebook has been seeing so much backlash against. 1. The whole Cambridge Analytica issue was caused by APIs that are too open. For distributed systems there are more ways to exploit the APIs and gather data on users. 2. There is a clear issue with Facebook's accountability…
I think your post hints at a general schizophrenia in the latest, culture-war-fueled push against Facebook. On the one hand, the public debate is still significantly dominated by the old guard of anti-Facebook activists, whose objectives can be summarised as "Facebook's power over its users must be reduced". On the other, the renewed interest in doing /something/ about Facebook in the wake of Cambridge Analytica and fake news (and, before that, cyberbullying, stalking, harassment...) essentially amounts to "Facebook's power over its users must be exercised to quell evil". More often than not, the two are actually diametrically opposed (as when quelling evil turns out to require an increase in power). A hypothetical actually usable decentralised social network would advance the former cause, and, as you pointed out, set back the latter.
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#197It isn't an alternative to Facebook unless my grandma can use it, and she couldn't set this up for herself. The idea that centralized storage is the problem masks the actual concern. There is nothing inherently wrong with centrally stored data. There is a problem is when it is locked down by a 3rd party, and/or you don't control how it is used.
Why do we even want to be in a creepy digital relationship with our grandma? I used to think like you, then one day I realized that the real life is outside, I began calling my aunties, visiting them, and also created a Whatsapp group so the big family can have fun & share updates.
I live at the base of a mountain, and hike every day after work. I spent all last summer exploring every park in my state, and was on the news as an expert guide for some of the outdoor activities in my area. So you are presuming a lot by your response. My grandma, on the other hand, is in her 90s and not very mobile, and can keep up with family via their digital presences. Like you said... "the big family can have fun & share updates".
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#198Earlier quoted context omitted.
For a properly designed distributed social network, there's no reason your data should be visible to anyone other than those you have approved.
What if people get tricked into approving malicious accounts? Who is gonna police that? How are you gonna prevent anarchy?
People can get tricked into opening their door for robbers. This isn't a silver bullet - it would just avoid a central database with everyone's info that could easily be shared or scraped.
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#199Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's worse than facebook because there's no one to have responsibility to be accountable. This ties in with your question about GDPR. While I'm not a lawyer, as far as I know it doesn't matter if you're a person or a company, if you're collecting data, it's something you can be liable for. So in a distributed system, all parties who maintain the data sources would be liable. I actually wonder how this works logistica…
It is no worse than email is now. In fact, it's better because only allowed clients can read messages authorized for them.
True for 1to1 messages, everything else is stored in plaintext and public.
Re: Scuttlebutt, a Decentralized Alternative to Facebook
#200I think it's fascinating to see distributed social networks from a tech perspective. From what I've seen so far they exacerbate the problems that Facebook has been seeing so much backlash against. 1. The whole Cambridge Analytica issue was caused by APIs that are too open. For distributed systems there are more ways to exploit the APIs and gather data on users. 2. There is a clear issue with Facebook's accountability…
Personally, I hope (and I think I'm not alone here) that on a network like scuttlebutt, there will be much less "noise" than on facebook. My timeline on facebook (whenever I check it, like weekly) is a mishmash of... * ads (if using a browser that doesn't get rid of them) * "you missed someone's birthday who you didn't even remember you were "friends" with * look at this really popular post in your social vicinity, E…
> cat/dog/food pictures
I know you must be high school or college aged, because you didn't mention baby photos. Watch out. That's going to take over your feed in a couple years.