LinkedIn, Nobody Likes You

[read this post on my blog]

Everybody hates LinkedIn. Me too. There are many reasons for that, most of which I do not need to tell you about. I want to focus here one reason in particular, illustrated by the image below:

The 10 rows with blue and white buttons are crops of individual screen shots, each made after refreshing my browser. You see they are different each time? Not only the text, but also the color and the placement of the button you need to click to log in is different on each new visit.

You probably never see this, because you never refresh your browser (because you don’t have a decent password manager). I do and see this every time I log in, and I think it is evil. It is evil because of two effects of this unpredictability that are intended by LinkedIn:

1. It makes the login experience as annoying possible.
2. It obstructs automatic login methods.

If you’d ask Microsoft (the owner of LinkedIn) why they aim for these effects, they will probably lie to you that it is to prohibit bot-accounts or express some other security-schwalbe. Both effects have a clear objective:

1. The actual reason they make login in as annoying as possible, is to make you “choose” to always stay logged in. These built-in annoyances are why people find that caring for their privacy “is such a hassle”. The hassle is by design!
2. The actual reason LinkedIn obstructs automatic login, is that you can only use their official LinkedIn app on your phone.

I don’t want to dive too deep into why LinkedIn wants you to stay logged in and why they love you to install their app, but the summary is: only your data has value to them. Thus, #LinkedIn is #harvesting your #data as much as they can, offering you nothing but a shitty, laggy interface where you connect to your professional relations. If you don’t buy into this “contract”, LinkedIn does not shy away from intentionally annoying you.

At the same time, you’re locked in: you can’t leave LinkedIn without losing your valuable connections (your “social graph”). This locking in is the standard practice in #BigTech social media, and an essential ingredient of their sick business model.

But there is good news: There is a free and open social internet that is growing organically, where social platforms all speak the same language: the #Fediverse. Speaking the same language facilitates #interoperability: people can move freely from one platform to another without loosing their social graph. Since the platforms in the Fediverse are no fenced gardens, developers have no incentive to annoy and addict their users. Instead, in the FediVerse, those platforms thrive that people enjoy using!

The FediVerse is still relatively young and in full development. No actual replacement for LinkedIn is yet created, but really, is LinkedIn what yo want? If you’re interested and want to be among the pioneers, join now, sign up, join now for free, create an account by clicking on one of the buttons above.

#BigTech #data #fediverse #harvesting #interoperability #LinkedIn

LinkedIn, Nobody Likes You

[read this post on my blog]

Everybody hates LinkedIn. Me too. There are many reasons for that, most of which I do not need to tell you about. I want to focus here one reason in particular, illustrated by the image below:

The 10 rows with blue and white buttons are crops of individual screen shots, each made after refreshing my browser. You see they are different each time? Not only the text, but also the color and the placement of the button you need to click to log in is different on each new visit.

You probably never see this, because you never refresh your browser (because you don’t have a decent password manager). I do and see this every time I log in, and I think it is evil. It is evil because of two effects of this unpredictability that are intended by LinkedIn:

1. It makes the login experience as annoying possible.
2. It obstructs automatic login methods.

If you’d ask Microsoft (the owner of LinkedIn) why they aim for these effects, they will probably lie to you that it is to prohibit bot-accounts or express some other security-schwalbe. Both effects have a clear objective:

1. The actual reason they make login in as annoying as possible, is to make you “choose” to always stay logged in. These built-in annoyances are why people find that caring for their privacy “is such a hassle”. The hassle is by design!
2. The actual reason LinkedIn obstructs automatic login, is that you can only use their official LinkedIn app on your phone.

I don’t want to dive too deep into why LinkedIn wants you to stay logged in and why they love you to install their app, but the summary is: only your data has value to them. Thus, #LinkedIn is #harvesting your #data as much as they can, offering you nothing but a shitty, laggy interface where you connect to your professional relations. If you don’t buy into this “contract”, LinkedIn does not shy away from intentionally annoying you.

At the same time, you’re locked in: you can’t leave LinkedIn without losing your valuable connections (your “social graph”). This locking in is the standard practice in #BigTech social media, and an essential ingredient of their sick business model.

But there is good news: There is a free and open social internet that is growing organically, where social platforms all speak the same language: the #Fediverse. Speaking the same language facilitates #interoperability: people can move freely from one platform to another without loosing their social graph. Since the platforms in the Fediverse are no fenced gardens, developers have no incentive to annoy and addict their users. Instead, in the FediVerse, those platforms thrive that people enjoy using!

The FediVerse is still relatively young and in full development. No actual replacement for LinkedIn is yet created, but really, is LinkedIn what yo want? If you’re interested and want to be among the pioneers, join now, sign up, join now for free, create an account by clicking on one of the buttons above.

#BigTech #data #fediverse #harvesting #interoperability #LinkedIn

✈️ The @NGICommons team is heading to Brussels (20–21 Nov) for the #DigitalCommonsPolicySummit2025!

Panels include MEPs, EC officials, open-source leaders, and Commons communities. All focused on building a resilient, interoperable, public-interest digital ecosystem

Stay tuned for more updates!
https://commons.ngi.eu/2025/11/20/ngi-commons-consortium-heads-to-brussels-for-high-level-digital-policy-summit/

#DigitalCommons #NGI #EU #OpenSource #Interoperability #DigitalSovereignty #Brussels

@martelinnovate @cnrs @linuxfoundation @openfuture @OpenForumEurope

@Tutanota

#Interoperability? Then look at #RFC6120!

#Jabber #XMPP

#XMPP at #FOSDEM

The XMPP Community is very excited to announce the #Realtime Lounge at the coming FOSDEM 2026! Once again, many members will happily #welcome you!

https://xmpp.org/2025/11/xmpp-at-fosdem-2026/

#jabber #chat #interoperability #rtc #standards #federation #decentralisation #Brussels #Belgium

#XMPP at #FOSDEM

The XMPP Community is very excited to announce the #Realtime Lounge at the coming FOSDEM 2026! Once again, many members will happily #welcome you!

https://xmpp.org/2025/11/xmpp-at-fosdem-2026/

#jabber #chat #interoperability #rtc #standards #federation #decentralisation #Brussels #Belgium

The Connectivity Standards Alliance Announces Zigbee 4.0 and Suzi

https://csa-iot.org/newsroom/the-connectivity-standards-alliance-announces-zigbee-4-0-and-suzi-empowering-the-next-generation-of-secure-interoperable-iot-devices/

#HackerNews #Connectivity #Standards #Alliance #Zigbee #IoT #Interoperability #Technology #News

Dream team at @article19 #DMA Symposium! We are discussing how #Google's recent policies restricting #interoperability impacted #aosp

https://www.article19.org/digital-markets-act-enforcement/

Dream team at @article19 #DMA Symposium! We are discussing how #Google's recent policies restricting #interoperability impacted #aosp

https://www.article19.org/digital-markets-act-enforcement/

✈️ The @NGICommons team is heading to Brussels (20–21 Nov) for the #DigitalCommonsPolicySummit2025!

Panels include MEPs, EC officials, open-source leaders, and Commons communities. All focused on building a resilient, interoperable, public-interest digital ecosystem

Stay tuned for more updates!
https://commons.ngi.eu/2025/11/20/ngi-commons-consortium-heads-to-brussels-for-high-level-digital-policy-summit/

#DigitalCommons #NGI #EU #OpenSource #Interoperability #DigitalSovereignty #Brussels

@martelinnovate @cnrs @linuxfoundation @openfuture @OpenForumEurope

de Streel is also back now, pointing out that we had #openSource for DECADES and it wasn't saving us and this is now we now need #digitalGovernance #digitalRegulation. YES!! Contra the nonsense earlier in the day, this legislation is entirely ex post!

#digitalSovereignty

Sardet back too: we all talk about #interoperability but no users are changing and everyone just procures from hyperscalers. ABSOLUTELY! https://joanna-bryson.blogspot.com/2021/05/neither-interoperability-nor-data.html no one believed me, I guess I should send that to him 😄 #DMA

We're back to hear more bashing on the regulation that's helping us not demolish our own security like the US is and UK has. This time from Ralf Wintergerst, President, Bitkom in the context of

The EUDI Wallet: A Key Enabler in Building a Digital Europe Rooted in Sovereignty, Trust and #Interoperability

(everyone is talking about interoperability today but no one can pronounce it 😁 I shouldn't joke my German and French are also terrible.) #digitalsovereignty #digitalGovernance #AIEthics

The Fediverse Loves Democracy

[read this post on my blog]

I write about the Fediverse quite often here. The main reason I find the Fediverse movement so important is because I care about #democracy. In this post I explain why the *Fediverse loves democracy*.

(This post is a bit long. If you want a snappier version, just be patient: My main goal with this blog is to develop these arguments, so I may post a snappier version in the future :))

The Fediverse

There are many good introductions to the #Fediverse around, but here a quick recap touching upon the main features in the light of democracy:

A Movement for digital freedom

Some may describe the Fediverse rather narrowly, as a network of social media platforms that all speak the same language (most notably the activityPub protocol). Great examples of such platforms are the remotely Twitter-like #Mastodon, the video sharing platform #peerTube and the inspiring #Bonfire project. More than as a network, I like to view the Fediverse as a movement. A movement of people developing, using, celebrating social web software that is free and open for everyone, and owned by no one.

Anything connected to everything

The core idea is that, as long as software developers agree on the language (protocol) that their social platforms speak, you can have an evolving network where new softwares platforms come and go, and anyone has the agency to define theirselves what their digital social world looks like.

For example, a politician with snappy opinions may look for a twitter-like platform. An acid techno producer may choose something like the good old myspace. A faculty of film history may like to post their archives on a Youtube-like platform.

Key feature for democracy: Interoperability

The previous paragraph may seem like old news to you. Now, realize, that in the Fediverse, all such platforms also exist, but then interconnected: The politician may connect to the acid techno producer’s music channel; the acid techno producer may follow the film history movie archive. Note how different this is from the “fenced gardens” of classic big tech platforms that can’t interoperate.

Why Interoperability is good for Democracy

Freedom of movement smothers the fire of hate and misinformation

Classic big tech social media are monopolists, each being one huge platform: You connect to old friends on facebook, you humbly brag on LinkedIn, you dance on TikTok. If you don’t like the direction a platform is evolving – maybe you hate how facebook feeds you with AI-generated advertising – your only choice is to leave and lose all your connections.

In the Fediverse, in contrast, there are always alternative digital “villages” to move to. These villages can be built by anyone with the technical skills to set up a server. There are enough villages (and some small cities) that anyone can find a place where they feel at home. If you move to such a village, you just inform your connections that you moved, so you don’t loose your friendships!

Now, imagine what this freedom of digital movement would do to the common business models of facebook, tiktok, LinkedIn and Twitter, which is: Force-feeding you hateful content, only to get your attention. Making you addicted to collect your data 24-7. Taking big money from governments and companies for showing you their lies . Just imagine you can simply move away from such a place.

Obviously, when people can freely move, this business model is at risk. It is no coincidence that Musk hates the fediverse platform Mastodon.

Knowing your enemies facilitates understanding

Since Musk bought Twitter, it has become obvious that platforms may, and do become political. The much less popular twitter alternative #Bluesky is often called something like “liberal X competitor“. This should not be news to anyone. Facebook used to be rather clearly “woke”, 8chan has always been extremist right-wing. I believe it is only healthy when in the digital world, like in the offline world, there are communities of different political color.

Note however, that in the real world, it is common sense that when communities get segregated, problems occur. We are aware that only when we meet each other, we can build understanding and respect. This awareness still has to grow concerning our digital world.

In the big tech dominated digital world, Facebook accounts don’t interact with Twitter accounts, and Reddit users miss most of the fuzz on 8Chan; they are separated communities. Given that we spend ever more time online, it is only logical that in our communities seem to get ever more segregated and polarized.

In a federated social media space, in contrast, diverse communities stay connected. You may set up your own right-wing anti-woke Mastodon instance, but – if you do don’t screw up too badly and get blocked by other instances – you can still connect to people from different bubbles on other instances.

The Fediverse Loves Democracy

The Fediverse promises a digital society with freedom of movement and unlimited connectivity. These features quench the flames of hate and misinformation, and increases the mutual understanding and respect that are essential for a free and democratic society.

#bluesky #bonfire #democracy #fediverse #interoperability #mastodon #peertube

The Fediverse Loves Democracy

[read this post on my blog]

I write about the Fediverse quite often here. The main reason I find the Fediverse movement so important is because I care about #democracy. In this post I explain why the *Fediverse loves democracy*.

(This post is a bit long. If you want a snappier version, just be patient: My main goal with this blog is to develop these arguments, so I may post a snappier version in the future :))

The Fediverse

There are many good introductions to the #Fediverse around, but here a quick recap touching upon the main features in the light of democracy:

A Movement for digital freedom

Some may describe the Fediverse rather narrowly, as a network of social media platforms that all speak the same language (most notably the activityPub protocol). Great examples of such platforms are the remotely Twitter-like #Mastodon, the video sharing platform #peerTube and the inspiring #Bonfire project. More than as a network, I like to view the Fediverse as a movement. A movement of people developing, using, celebrating social web software that is free and open for everyone, and owned by no one.

Anything connected to everything

The core idea is that, as long as software developers agree on the language (protocol) that their social platforms speak, you can have an evolving network where new softwares platforms come and go, and anyone has the agency to define theirselves what their digital social world looks like.

For example, a politician with snappy opinions may look for a twitter-like platform. An acid techno producer may choose something like the good old myspace. A faculty of film history may like to post their archives on a Youtube-like platform.

Key feature for democracy: Interoperability

The previous paragraph may seem like old news to you. Now, realize, that in the Fediverse, all such platforms also exist, but then interconnected: The politician may connect to the acid techno producer’s music channel; the acid techno producer may follow the film history movie archive. Note how different this is from the “fenced gardens” of classic big tech platforms that can’t interoperate.

Why Interoperability is good for Democracy

Freedom of movement smothers the fire of hate and misinformation

Classic big tech social media are monopolists, each being one huge platform: You connect to old friends on facebook, you humbly brag on LinkedIn, you dance on TikTok. If you don’t like the direction a platform is evolving – maybe you hate how facebook feeds you with AI-generated advertising – your only choice is to leave and lose all your connections.

In the Fediverse, in contrast, there are always alternative digital “villages” to move to. These villages can be built by anyone with the technical skills to set up a server. There are enough villages (and some small cities) that anyone can find a place where they feel at home. If you move to such a village, you just inform your connections that you moved, so you don’t loose your friendships!

Now, imagine what this freedom of digital movement would do to the common business models of facebook, tiktok, LinkedIn and Twitter, which is: Force-feeding you hateful content, only to get your attention. Making you addicted to collect your data 24-7. Taking big money from governments and companies for showing you their lies . Just imagine you can simply move away from such a place.

Obviously, when people can freely move, this business model is at risk. It is no coincidence that Musk hates the fediverse platform Mastodon.

Knowing your enemies facilitates understanding

Since Musk bought Twitter, it has become obvious that platforms may, and do become political. The much less popular twitter alternative #Bluesky is often called something like “liberal X competitor“. This should not be news to anyone. Facebook used to be rather clearly “woke”, 8chan has always been extremist right-wing. I believe it is only healthy when in the digital world, like in the offline world, there are communities of different political color.

Note however, that in the real world, it is common sense that when communities get segregated, problems occur. We are aware that only when we meet each other, we can build understanding and respect. This awareness still has to grow concerning our digital world.

In the big tech dominated digital world, Facebook accounts don’t interact with Twitter accounts, and Reddit users miss most of the fuzz on 8Chan; they are separated communities. Given that we spend ever more time online, it is only logical that in our communities seem to get ever more segregated and polarized.

In a federated social media space, in contrast, diverse communities stay connected. You may set up your own right-wing anti-woke Mastodon instance, but – if you do don’t screw up too badly and get blocked by other instances – you can still connect to people from different bubbles on other instances.

The Fediverse Loves Democracy

The Fediverse promises a digital society with freedom of movement and unlimited connectivity. These features quench the flames of hate and misinformation, and increases the mutual understanding and respect that are essential for a free and democratic society.

#bluesky #bonfire #democracy #fediverse #interoperability #mastodon #peertube

OpenDocument Format (ODF) turns 20 with the release of ODF 1.4 🎉
The update improves accessibility, cross-suite compatibility, and layout control — reinforcing open standards as an alternative to Microsoft’s closed formats. 🧩

A quiet win for user freedom and interoperability 🌍

@libreoffice

🔗 https://itsfoss.com/news/odf-1-4-release/

#TechNews #OpenSource #Privacy #Interoperability #Accessibility #OpenStandards #ODF #LibreOffice #Microsoft #Software #Innovation #Tech #DigitalFreedom #Standardization #Office

OpenDocument Format (ODF) turns 20 with the release of ODF 1.4 🎉
The update improves accessibility, cross-suite compatibility, and layout control — reinforcing open standards as an alternative to Microsoft’s closed formats. 🧩

A quiet win for user freedom and interoperability 🌍

@libreoffice

🔗 https://itsfoss.com/news/odf-1-4-release/

#TechNews #OpenSource #Privacy #Interoperability #Accessibility #OpenStandards #ODF #LibreOffice #Microsoft #Software #Innovation #Tech #DigitalFreedom #Standardization #Office

Just opened an issue for a major new task for #Fedify: building an #interoperability smoke test suite.

To ensure Fedify-built servers federate correctly with the wider #fediverse, we're planning to run automated E2E tests in #CI against live instances of Mastodon, Misskey, and more. This is crucial for a framework's reliability.

You can see the full plan and discussion here:

https://github.com/fedify-dev/fedify/issues/481

#ActivityPub #fedidev