I'm writing an article about W Social and I'm mentioning how it's basically a fork of Bluesky / is using its open source code.
Are there any Bluesky / ATProto experts on here willing to help me understand something, in a "explain it like I'm 5" fashion?
Update: all good thanks to @laurenshof 's expert explanation, thank you Laurens 鉂わ笍
@_elena @laurenshof are you in Brussels already? Maybe this might be interesting for you https://luma.com/9f10yt6f!?
@_elena
OK, here we go (cracks knuckles, takes a deep breath, sighs)...
"You're five. You should not be on social media."
(Other than the joke, I'm useless here. Good luck.)
@kelvin0mql 馃槀馃槀馃槀 you genuinely made me laugh out loud
I have a 5 year old and I approve of this message 馃槅
@_elena
Is it weird that I picture that scene from #GalaxyQuest any time someone says "explain it like I'm 5" or similar?
@laurenshof Hi Laurens! Can I DM you on Signal about this?
@laurenshof Hi Laurens! Can I DM you on Signal about this?
@_elena I am not an expert but if I can help let me know. I have strong suspicions about why W selected atproto instead of activitypub.
Basically there is more power in the biggest actors, a more "centralized" control, to ban/shadow-ban/censure and pull the plug.
In other words it is more impactful when bluesky sidebanned someone or some community than if mastodon.social would do it. The firehose/relay is a the biggest point of control.
@_elena So in my opinion. Why W choosed atproto instead of activitypub? It is more interesting for investors to create a platform that can be controlled, even if it is just to introduce ads or control the discourse.
@mapache yes, this was my suspicion too... I have a really technical question about AT Proto and their open source code though... if you could think of anyone who could help, I'm all ears :)
And see you at FOSDEM on Saturday?
@_elena technically is because setting-up/supporting/maintaining the firehose/relay layer is very expensive. Every single message would flow thru there.
Creating the biggest firehose in Europe is such a power. So, it is easier to be controlled, and very unlikely to be replicated by other entities.
@mapache can I quote you on this in my piece?
@_elena @mapache They also want to require identity verification for their users, so that fits https://www.t-online.de/digital/internet/id_101092238/soziales-netzwerk-aus-europa-will-elon-musk-konkurrenz-machen-w-statt-x.html
Otherwise, they could just go for EuroSky if they want an ATProto network
