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DeleteFacebook: Perspective from Mastodon

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Re: DeleteFacebook: Perspective from Mastodon

#51

Post by Sir_Cmpwn »

godelski wrote: post #30

So I question the sustainability of these platforms? How are they supported when they have sufficient mass? If they aren't gathering data on users and selling ads then how are they generating revenue?

Decentralized platforms aren't a business. The decentralized model scales remarkably well for a very small cost because there are hundreds (or thousands!) of instances that run at a small scale and communicate with the broader network. Many volunteers run small instances that cost only a few dollars a month to maintain and are often supported by donations from the users of that instance. You can even run your own instance if you want. Even if one instance fails the network as a whole doesn't even feel it. The financial model is totally different and very sustainable, much more so than the proprietary model even.

Re: DeleteFacebook: Perspective from Mastodon

#53

Post by Paul-ish »

bitumen wrote: post #15
cornholio wrote: post #12

> Mastodon [...] No real name policies Lacking a very rarefied community capable of self-moderation, like this site has or some specialized reddits and forums, the no-real-name becomes a major drawback. A minority of douche-bags will generate a majority of noise and will come to shape that world in their image. This is quite visible when browsing Mastodon instances, many of which look like a crossbreed of 4chan with…

The real name policy doesn’t seem to stop duplicate accounts, bots, and spammers on FaceBook or Twitter, it just ensures they have vaguely human names.

We don't know what the services would look like without a real name policy.

Re: DeleteFacebook: Perspective from Mastodon

#54

Post by naravara »

jdlyga wrote: post #42

Facebook is just the tip of the iceberg. If a fully featured app or service is free, then you are the product. Collecting and selling user information is pervasive.

>If a fully featured app or service is free, then you are the product.

Depends on the business model. Wikipedia, for example, is a non-profit.

You can also theoretically have a public benefit corporation that is structured to protect data privacy, but I don't know of any.

Re: DeleteFacebook: Perspective from Mastodon

#56

Post by bittercynic »

Mononokay wrote: post #48
burner8309 wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is democracy working as intended. We have just realized that democracy and widespread, instant communication are incompatible.

> We have just realized that democracy and widespread, instant communication are incompatible. I'd say that's absolutely not true - it's a demonstration that the republic system is broken. He lost the popular vote, yet still won. That's anti-democratic, whilst being pro-republic. True democracy would still work fine if done pragmatically - have people, when registering to vote, be given a PGP key. Have them send in a…

Not sure if you forgot the '/s' tag. Please consider how widely PGP is used, and how capable someone in the bottom decile of technical savvy would be of doing that.

I think it is important that our elections use systems that are readily comprehensible to laypeople.

Re: DeleteFacebook: Perspective from Mastodon

#57

Post by kerng »

nopreserveroot wrote: post #27
oldsklgdfth wrote: post #10

I'm reposting this comment because I would like to open the discussion up beyond facebook and social media and into the reality that technology has provided marketing with some pretty ridiculous tools. : I feel like you used to be able to avoid getting swindled by ignoring the swindler, ex. close the door to the saleman, or ignore the gypsy pear salesmen at the market. Today, marketing is engineered at such a level t…

I do not understand how anyone in 2018 finds the internet remotely usable without some form of ad blocker. This is how you ignore the modern salesman.

Given the sophistication that we just now start to fully realize, adblockers probably dont help that much - i mean they get the obvious stuff out of the way, which is great. But there other forms of tracking (like super cookies), and others we might not even be aware of. The entire combination of what information some companies gather and exchange behind the scene is not that well understood at scale.

Re: DeleteFacebook: Perspective from Mastodon

#58

Post by zerostar07 »

w0utert wrote: post #22
jeffreyrogers wrote: post #8

I think the idea that Facebook is putting democracy in peril is a bit farfetched.

>> I think the idea that Facebook is putting democracy in peril is a bit farfetched. Why? History has proven at least a few times that he who controls information can control people, and it never ends well. Even if Facebook is not deliberately trying to implant any ideas or spread misinformation and fake news, its platform can be (and has been, demonstrably) used for this purpose.

history also shows that people shoot the messengers.

Re: DeleteFacebook: Perspective from Mastodon

#59

Post by ld00d »

Mastodon is cool technology. The problem is Facebook fills a hole that Mastodon does not. Facebook connects people in real life. Folks from varying distances are able to keep up with their friends and family. There's a built-in desire to monitor their conversations. They're rewarded with "reactions". Facebook provides value for a very large group of people.

A relatively small group of people saw a problem with Facebook. Of course they have to have some underlying goal to make money. So they set out to create a federated system anyone can host that doesn't depend on some central company that's just out to make a buck. It's a noble goal, but it solves a problem that most users of Facebook simply don't care about. It doesn't do the thing that Facebook does, so it's a non-starter.

I'd also add that Mastodon is more of a Twitter replacement than a Facebook replacement. Facebook is better at isolating your feed into your group of "friends". Mastodon is more of a river of information from folks you follow (many of whom you will never meet in real life.)

If you want to replace Facebook, first figure out what people value about Facebook and expand on that. You'll need to be better than they are (at least until people determine they're that awful.) Then look at how you can federate it or achieving whatever other goal you have.

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