Forums, IRC, and the chans (4, 8, etc.) are likely the closest we've seen to loyal, internet polities. Some have even been quite large at times (4chan)--but they remain fundamentally fringe. That may have something to do with the fact that these platforms enable anonymous connections among users who don't know each other in real life, …
Forums, IRC, and the chans (4, 8, etc.) are likely the closest we've seen to loyal, internet polities. Some have even been quite large at times (4chan)--but they remain fundamentally fringe. That may have something to do with the fact that these platforms enable anonymous connections among users who don't know each other in real life, whereas the social media giants are focused on existing, real-world connections (Facebook) or celebrities that users assume / wish they knew (Twitter)--in essence, 'normie' interests/interactions.
The anonymity (less usable marketing data) and fringe nature (undesirable marketing cohorts) of the forum/IRC/*chan category have made them a challenge to monetize regardless.
You gotta love the chans. No content recommendation algorithm save for thread bumping which is non-personalized. Thus, no highly personalized positive feedback loop of self flanderizing content curation.
Major *chans are still quite 'mainframy', but honestly the thought of a highly secure fully decentralized imageboard makes me salivate. It would potentially be extremely disruptive, even if the adaption rate is not particularly high.
It would be, but the decentralization dream is still just that - a dream. Things like IPv4/6 and DNS are so integral to how the entire internet works that I'm not sure its even feasible at all in the current system. We are just lucky that the Long March through the institutions hasn't made its way through the international governing bodies of the internet (or has it?).
Other big problem that comes to mind is identity verification without a centralized authority (something better than PGP that the average normie is actually going to be able to lose).
Forums, IRC, and the chans (4, 8, etc.) are likely the closest we've seen to loyal, internet polities. Some have even been quite large at times (4chan)--but they remain fundamentally fringe. That may have something to do with the fact that these platforms enable anonymous connections among users who don't know each other in real life, whereas the social media giants are focused on existing, real-world connections (Facebook) or celebrities that users assume / wish they knew (Twitter)--in essence, 'normie' interests/interactions.
The anonymity (less usable marketing data) and fringe nature (undesirable marketing cohorts) of the forum/IRC/*chan category have made them a challenge to monetize regardless.
You gotta love the chans. No content recommendation algorithm save for thread bumping which is non-personalized. Thus, no highly personalized positive feedback loop of self flanderizing content curation.
Major *chans are still quite 'mainframy', but honestly the thought of a highly secure fully decentralized imageboard makes me salivate. It would potentially be extremely disruptive, even if the adaption rate is not particularly high.
It would be, but the decentralization dream is still just that - a dream. Things like IPv4/6 and DNS are so integral to how the entire internet works that I'm not sure its even feasible at all in the current system. We are just lucky that the Long March through the institutions hasn't made its way through the international governing bodies of the internet (or has it?).
Other big problem that comes to mind is identity verification without a centralized authority (something better than PGP that the average normie is actually going to be able to lose).
i've heard of a software project you may be interested in...