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So... partaking in the 'fediverse' - whatever that stands for - requires signing up. Now I'm wondering two things: 1) How is that different than FB or Twixxer?

So... partaking in the 'fediverse' - whatever that stands for - requires signing up. Now I'm wondering two things: 1) How is that different than FB or Twixxer? And 2) Why not use RSS, OPML and the open web that's already like... open?

Vosporos 2y ago
Wikipedia will answer these questions much better than HN
- rambambram 2y ago
  Read between the lines please, it wasn't a technical question.
ensignavenger 2y ago
I don't think you have to signup just to get an ActivityPub feed, but if you want to use a third parties services you may need an account with that third party.
- ensignavenger 2y ago
  In fact, PeerTube provides RSS and Atom feeds, no account needed.
jszymborski 2y ago
I'm still haven't gotten to Evan Prodromou's ActivityPub book, so I may be wrong on some of the details here but my understanding is: ActivityPub has an outbox and an inbox. The outbox looks a lot like RSS, and allows for publishing things. The inbox allows you to receive interaction. Likes, replies, boosts, etc...
_heimdall 2y ago
The big difference, and why I've never personally aligned well with the fediverse, is that its a push model rather than a pull model. RSS works without authentication (though you can require it) because your server doesn't have to know who is following you or how to notify them. ActivityPub is an attempt to add pub/sub to RSS, they actually started with many of the same data models from RSS and its successors if I'm not mistaken.
- rambambram 2y ago
  Push vs pull is probably what requires all the signing up and why it feels more like a walled garden instead of the open web.
  - _heimdall 2y ago
    100% that's it. With a pull model you just need to make your own content available for anyone who requests it. With a push model you have to have some record of who subscribed to it and how to get them your new content. Combine that with ActivityPub being federated rather than peer-to-peer and you end up with a lot of legal gray area to go along with the added complexity and loss of anonymity.
    - rambambram 2y ago
      Do you have a blog somewhere? To add to my RSS reader. Can't find anything in your bio here on HN.

Vosporos 2y ago

Wikipedia will answer these questions much better than HN

rambambram 2y ago
Read between the lines please, it wasn't a technical question.

ensignavenger 2y ago

I don't think you have to signup just to get an ActivityPub feed, but if you want to use a third parties services you may need an account with that third party.

ensignavenger 2y ago
In fact, PeerTube provides RSS and Atom feeds, no account needed.

jszymborski 2y ago

I'm still haven't gotten to Evan Prodromou's ActivityPub book, so I may be wrong on some of the details here but my understanding is: ActivityPub has an outbox and an inbox. The outbox looks a lot like RSS, and allows for publishing things. The inbox allows you to receive interaction. Likes, replies, boosts, etc...

_heimdall 2y ago

The big difference, and why I've never personally aligned well with the fediverse, is that its a push model rather than a pull model. RSS works without authentication (though you can require it) because your server doesn't have to know who is following you or how to notify them. ActivityPub is an attempt to add pub/sub to RSS, they actually started with many of the same data models from RSS and its successors if I'm not mistaken.

rambambram 2y ago
Push vs pull is probably what requires all the signing up and why it feels more like a walled garden instead of the open web.
- _heimdall 2y ago
  100% that's it. With a pull model you just need to make your own content available for anyone who requests it. With a push model you have to have some record of who subscribed to it and how to get them your new content. Combine that with ActivityPub being federated rather than peer-to-peer and you end up with a lot of legal gray area to go along with the added complexity and loss of anonymity.
  - rambambram 2y ago
    Do you have a blog somewhere? To add to my RSS reader. Can't find anything in your bio here on HN.