That can work then. I might try it.

Yah. This doesn’t work if you are scrolling through several dozen apps in the app drawer. They all look too much alike.

But your saying Peertube should have all the forum functionality of Lemmy, and the endless short video scroll of Loops.

rgluilis suggested a generic server idea, where the media and experience differentiating is done at the client app level. That could work well. But that’s an entirely different concept and structure.

And that’s great! Everyone gets what they want. But suggesting Lemmy, Pixelfed, and Peertube, etc. should all try to do it the way Friendica does, is a bad idea.

So like a single ActivityPub instance that hosts all the data, but users can have a Pixelfed app, Lemmy app, etc. all connect to that one server and use it to give the experience they specifically provide.

That’s a cool idea. I can see how that would work.

Why would you follow the same accounts on multiple platforms?
Or do you mean one person who has accounts on multiple platforms?

I think you might be conflating two things. Right now the Fediverse largely looks like you just described. It’s in it’s infancy, trying to copy what it sees around it. Eventually it’ll become a rebellious teen and forge it’s on seperate identity. That’s inevitable. I wouldn’t worry about it.

It’s a very different thing though, saying all the apps need to integrate all the features and experience of every other app, so they’re all largely the same and there’s never a need to use more than one. That sounds like a terrible idea.

Is it?
Because that seems really dumb.

Why would any specific niche service want to duplicate the features and functions of every single other niche service? The whole point is to have different experiences and uses, that might be able to (however works for them) interoperate as they see fit.

It’s a terrible idea that they should all try to eventually do all the same everything.

When I read the headline without context, I thought casting directors were just casting actors unseen over the phone.
But this is worse.

The current Lemmy version is very customizable. I think it has seven basic types of views, which are further customizable how you like. You can kinda make it look like whatever you want.

I’ve tried those. They aren’t as good as YouTube Premium.

But in exchange for loosing those music features, I gained ad free YouTube Premium.
So yah, I keep the subscription.

That’s how much I pay for YouTube Premium.

I also buy CDs, or Bandcamp downloads directly for those I really like, and want to donate to.
I “curate” whole discographies of stuff that I want to “archive”.
But when someone recommends music I haven’t heard of, I load up their most popular stuff on YouTube Music and listen to a bunch there, ad free. Then decide if or how I obtain more.

I still have the original Google Play Music All Access intro deal of $7.99/month from 2013.
They contractually can’t raise the price on me ever. 12 years so far.

It’s not supposed to answer the question. It’s pointing out that the mental model and assumptions behind the question are flawed, and thus the question itself is flawed.

Use it for what? Genuinely asking.

It sends files and stuff between devices right?
But it’s limited to what’s nearby?
I’m not sure how it’s better than messaging platforms, they do that pretty well. And from any distance.

I’ve literally never used, or thought of using a feature like this.
I got my family and friends useing Signal. Use that for photos all the time, in person or not. Files, maybe a couple times in 5 years.

It only encrypts the data within the HTTPS packet. But where that packet is going is still transparent.

It also doesn’t do anything for non web traffic. Email through SMTP or IMAP, FTP, lots of things don’t use HTTP at all.

with a single account (isn’t that the point of the fediverse?).

Absolutely not. I’m not sure why people see Lemmy, Mastodon, Pixelfed, Peertube, Loops, etc as all the same thing that should all be one app.

They might communicate with the same protocol, but they have vastly different uses, interfaces, styles, and experience. It’s like saying you want one vehicle that drives like a motorcycle, haules the kids around, gets great mileage, and can tow 20,000lbs.

All your tools fit in the same toolbox, but you use each one separately for the use it’s best suited. Then you put it down and pick up another. Sure you can make a multi-tool but it won’t do any job as well as a proper dedicated tool. It’ll just kinda work if you have no better option.

But VPNs aren’t supposed to make you anonymous.
They secure your data while in transit to/from the exit node. Maybe that’s your job so you can access their LAN. Or it’s a public VPN that secures your dada from the local WiFi or ISP you’re directly connected to. That’s all it’s built for.