Open source alternatives to Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp raise funds on Kickstarter | TechCrunch
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I don't like centralized services. I also never pretended the opposite.
This is for me and my usage. The caveat is that not everyone is in the tech. We can look at the disastrous communication of Mastodon. They focussed and lots of people promoting it focussed too on the “decentralized argument”. This backfired. It was not clear for the public. A good strategy would have been to market Mastodon as an alternative with an easy process to create an account on the general website. Tech people would have chosen another server and do their stuffs. People would learn progressively the decentralization part and move from server to server. This takes time. We have to put great strategies in places and be patient to bring the public to the fedi.
I don't know if you know about it, but there's this new community [email protected]
They got some nice discussion about how to on-board more people on here. -
I think you may have misunderstood what I wrote.
Snapchat makes money through showing you ads. RCS is something very different. It is not social media. RCS has no ads in the same way that SMS has no ads.
Telecom providers have to spend money to support RCS. Telecom providers don't want to spend money on RCS if it's not going to earn them money. They believe RCS is not going to earn them money because the customers aren't interested. The customers aren't interested because they can already chat with each other through social media and chat apps.
So google is just loosing money with their Jibe servers?
There is no ads there.
I guess they can make money with RCS business accounts if they wanted.But let's get back to the fediverse question, google manages RCS by providing jibe servers for mobile operators right? Because they were lazy to .manage it (and they're not that techy when it comes to servers probably, they're good with antenna and similar mostly)
Can't anyone offer a jibe server for any mobile operator?
Google is not a global mobile provider at all.
What secret law is behind RCS? -
So google is just loosing money with their Jibe servers?
There is no ads there.
I guess they can make money with RCS business accounts if they wanted.But let's get back to the fediverse question, google manages RCS by providing jibe servers for mobile operators right? Because they were lazy to .manage it (and they're not that techy when it comes to servers probably, they're good with antenna and similar mostly)
Can't anyone offer a jibe server for any mobile operator?
Google is not a global mobile provider at all.
What secret law is behind RCS?Google is not making a profit from RCS, but they don't have to be loosing money either. I don't know the price Google is charging telecom providers. It's either very cheap or for free. That's why many telecom providers choose Google's solution. I believe that Google is treating it as an investment. I assume that Google plan to charge more in the future or that they want data from the users. Maybe both.
Telecom providers know how to do all of this themselves, but it's going to cost more money than using Google's solution. Someone else can absolutely start providing RCS to telecom providers but they will have a hard time trying to sell it to telecom providers if they're not cheaper than Google.
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What about Simplex over Matrix?
Simplex is more like Briar or Cwtch
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The developer behind Pixelfed, Loops, and Sup, open source alternatives to Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp, respectively, is now raising funds on Kickstarter to fuel the apps’ further development.
The trio is part of the growing open social web, also known as the fediverse, powered by the same ActivityPub protocol used by X alternative Mastodon. The latter saw increased signups and use after the company formerly known as Twitter sold to Elon Musk in October 2022 and during the X exodus that followed the U.S. presidential election.
In the months and years following that sale, open source and decentralized apps like Mastodon and Bluesky (which uses the newer AT Protocol), have continued to grow their user bases, as people sought alternatives to centralized social media apps controlled by billionaires like Musk and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg.
Edit: Link to the kickstarter
What is Sup ?
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What is Sup ?
Not too much. Sup with you?
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Not too much. Sup with you?
Nice one
Anyways, what is this "Sup" that people keep talking about ?
Is it another federated platform ? -
Nice one
Anyways, what is this "Sup" that people keep talking about ?
Is it another federated platform ?Thanks for being a good sport. In these trying times we have to cherish every genuine updog moment we find ourselves in.
It's federated encrypted messaging
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Google is not making a profit from RCS, but they don't have to be loosing money either. I don't know the price Google is charging telecom providers. It's either very cheap or for free. That's why many telecom providers choose Google's solution. I believe that Google is treating it as an investment. I assume that Google plan to charge more in the future or that they want data from the users. Maybe both.
Telecom providers know how to do all of this themselves, but it's going to cost more money than using Google's solution. Someone else can absolutely start providing RCS to telecom providers but they will have a hard time trying to sell it to telecom providers if they're not cheaper than Google.
Is the RCS technology fully open source? If yes it could be nice to try to find a fediverse - friendly mobile operator willing to create a bridge...
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Is the RCS technology fully open source? If yes it could be nice to try to find a fediverse - friendly mobile operator willing to create a bridge...
It's not open source
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Was started by the Friendica developer but it is more of a federated CMS where Friendica is more of a social network, although they share similar DNA and can do some similar things. They are now being developed by different teams so will tend to diverge more over time.
Good to know! Still new to the fediverse so I'm trying to get a good lay of the land in terms of what different platforms offer
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Care to elaborate? Genuinely i interested as to why that is
Signal is just like WhatsApp. Same features. So yeah, that’s incorrect.
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Nope. Google deps
Can you explain a little more what you mean?
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Can you explain a little more what you mean?
The app requires code from Google that is not open source and has a history of being malware that invades your privacy and steals your data.
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The app requires code from Google that is not open source and has a history of being malware that invades your privacy and steals your data.
I'm not aware of any code from Google it requires. What history of stealing data does signal have?
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I'm not aware of any code from Google it requires. What history of stealing data does signal have?
It requires google code yes
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It requires google code yes
Can you link me what you're talking about? I'm searching for it and having trouble finding the thing you're describing. The only info I find is about their spam detection (which I already knew about but doesn't sound like it's the thing you're talking about.)
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Can you link me what you're talking about? I'm searching for it and having trouble finding the thing you're describing. The only info I find is about their spam detection (which I already knew about but doesn't sound like it's the thing you're talking about.)
Search in their github issues for "fdroid". Make sure to include closed tickets.
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The developer behind Pixelfed, Loops, and Sup, open source alternatives to Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp, respectively, is now raising funds on Kickstarter to fuel the apps’ further development.
The trio is part of the growing open social web, also known as the fediverse, powered by the same ActivityPub protocol used by X alternative Mastodon. The latter saw increased signups and use after the company formerly known as Twitter sold to Elon Musk in October 2022 and during the X exodus that followed the U.S. presidential election.
In the months and years following that sale, open source and decentralized apps like Mastodon and Bluesky (which uses the newer AT Protocol), have continued to grow their user bases, as people sought alternatives to centralized social media apps controlled by billionaires like Musk and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg.
Edit: Link to the kickstarter
That’s interesting! While open-source alternatives are gaining traction, many users still look for enhanced Instagram experiences. This Instagram mod offers ad-free browsing, media downloads, and improved privacy settings, making it a great option for those wanting more control. It’s always exciting to see how different platforms evolve!
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