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a bunch of forums that talk to each other.
a decentralized collection of independently operated social media platforms that can choose to share information with each other.
Whenever anything is "federated" the easiest comparison is email. Everyone can use different email servers and applications, but they can all still communicate with each other. "Email" is the shared protocol that structures how data is exchanged between servers and clients.
The fediverse instead uses a protocol named "activitypub", but works similar. Just a bunch of servers that speak the same technical language which enables them to freely exchange information. But while email only supports single messages, activitypub supports more complex structures that developers for platforms like lemmy or mastodon can use to make actual applications with an interface that gives you an easy way to display and structure that data like as a forum or blogging platform.
Email is a terrible example that people need to stop using.
ActivityPub literally uses inbox and outboxes just like email. Email is also widely adopted and understood. It’s the best analogy we have currently
Its the only widely adopted digitally federated system that exists, where users are aware of the federation aspect. What could be a better technical comparison?
I think it's a good example
Whenever anything is “federated” the easiest comparison is email.
Yes, but how many people know how email works? More to the point, how many people, who aren't looking for the answer on GitHub, know?
Literally everyone who uses email knows that not every email address ends in the same way and that people use different websites and tools to access their emails.
The average person probably only knows the functioning of the DNS and one or two email apps. And quartz, of course.
Nah this xkcd really doesnt apply here. If you can can see and have at least the intelligence of a 6 year old then you can see that something is different about email compared to whatsapp or signal. With even the most basic pattern recognition skills you will find that everyone you know uses different apps, sites and addresses. Compare this to normal messengers where literally everyone will have the exact same app, interface and way to contact people.
I must be jaded from working with the public because having the ability to see and understanding email basics in my eyes has a huge gap inbetween
Maybe. I have no 6-year-olds around to ask. I have noticed that people often have misconceptions that I can't even fathom because I have grown up in a completely different tech environment. For me, it has not worked to make assumptions.