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This is a simple application of AP but it really demonstrates the power of the technology. For example, if HN implemented ActivityPub this comment could be dir

This is a simple application of AP but it really demonstrates the power of the technology. For example, if HN implemented ActivityPub this comment could be directly replied to by users on Mastodon or PeerTube or any other AP service, directly from that interface. Like email, it just works. IMO it genuinely represents the way we should be thinking about web applications and services.

EGreg 8y ago
How would I be able to see the whole tree of replies, though? Would I need to rely on an exponentially large number of services being available at request time?
- kosinus 8y ago
  I think all that is the responsibility of the viewer. When you view a single message on Mastodon, then Mastodon is responsible for fetching the rest of the thread for your display. In practice, it looks like Mastodon also stores / caches local copies of messages and profiles, pretty much as they are received. (Including thumbnails!)
- albertgoeswoof 8y ago
  Messages are also sent between servers directly, so HN would store the full tree, if you replied to a comment your AP server would forward the message to the HN one and it would appear there.
pferde 8y ago
We could call such decentralized discussion platform "Usenet".
- spc476 8y ago
  And the hyperlocal moderation as "kill files"?
sametmax 8y ago
Yes but it unfortunatly completly ignores the topic of spam and moderation. So we will have another 10 years of experimenting at the expense of the users and the standard. And we may end up with some centralisation again like with email. Still a great tech though. I just wish the authors would think about IRL and not just assume a perfect sphere in a frictionless vaccum.
- Sir_Cmpwn 8y ago
  Not really. Moderation is a local matter, something you sort out with the moderators of the instance you're on. Instances that don't moderate well are blacklisted. It's not like there haven't been trolls before. In practice the system works fine.
  - orf 8y ago
    Sure, at Mastadons scale. But does that scale up? If HN did implement this then would they have to blacklist bad instances? What is to stop people from spinning up bad instances faster than HN could blacklist? So we'd surely end up with a whitelist which isn't very social.
    - Sir_Cmpwn 8y ago
      I think it's coming at the problem from the wrong direction to take an existing community like HN and make it federate. It's already too big. ActivityPub services work best with a lot of small actors, not a few big ones. And for the record, Mastodon's scale is pretty damn big, considerably bigger than HN. There are millions of users.
im3w1l 8y ago
> For example, if HN implemented ActivityPub this comment could be directly replied to by users on Mastodon or PeerTube or any other AP service HN has a very particular culture and that would dilute it.
- artichokeheart 8y ago
  Nelson_Haha.gif
madeofpalk 8y ago
“Like email”? Doesn’t email have a not great history of good clients?

EGreg 8y ago

How would I be able to see the whole tree of replies, though? Would I need to rely on an exponentially large number of services being available at request time?

kosinus 8y ago
I think all that is the responsibility of the viewer. When you view a single message on Mastodon, then Mastodon is responsible for fetching the rest of the thread for your display. In practice, it looks like Mastodon also stores / caches local copies of messages and profiles, pretty much as they are received. (Including thumbnails!)
albertgoeswoof 8y ago
Messages are also sent between servers directly, so HN would store the full tree, if you replied to a comment your AP server would forward the message to the HN one and it would appear there.

pferde 8y ago

We could call such decentralized discussion platform "Usenet".

spc476 8y ago
And the hyperlocal moderation as "kill files"?

sametmax 8y ago

Yes but it unfortunatly completly ignores the topic of spam and moderation. So we will have another 10 years of experimenting at the expense of the users and the standard. And we may end up with some centralisation again like with email. Still a great tech though. I just wish the authors would think about IRL and not just assume a perfect sphere in a frictionless vaccum.

Sir_Cmpwn 8y ago
Not really. Moderation is a local matter, something you sort out with the moderators of the instance you're on. Instances that don't moderate well are blacklisted. It's not like there haven't been trolls before. In practice the system works fine.
- orf 8y ago
  Sure, at Mastadons scale. But does that scale up? If HN did implement this then would they have to blacklist bad instances? What is to stop people from spinning up bad instances faster than HN could blacklist? So we'd surely end up with a whitelist which isn't very social.
  - Sir_Cmpwn 8y ago
    I think it's coming at the problem from the wrong direction to take an existing community like HN and make it federate. It's already too big. ActivityPub services work best with a lot of small actors, not a few big ones. And for the record, Mastodon's scale is pretty damn big, considerably bigger than HN. There are millions of users.

im3w1l 8y ago

> For example, if HN implemented ActivityPub this comment could be directly replied to by users on Mastodon or PeerTube or any other AP service HN has a very particular culture and that would dilute it.

artichokeheart 8y ago
Nelson_Haha.gif

madeofpalk 8y ago

“Like email”? Doesn’t email have a not great history of good clients?