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What Fediverse services do you use?
(lemm.ee)
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this post was submitted on 07 Mar 2025
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Currently I'm using wafrn and PieFed, but I've used misskey, Sharkey, goblin, akkoma (never tried pleroma), Mastodon (didn't like it), Lemmy, Kbin (didn't like it, so I haven't even tried to joing a mbin instance), bookwyrm and Friendica. And I may be forgetting something, but those are the Fediverse software I've used the most
I wanna try hubzilla or one of its forks, but I've heard they're a nightmare for mobile use.
I've learned about so many different federated services with this post, it's crazy...
What do you like about Wafrn?
Quite frankly, I feel like Misskey/Sharkey/Mastodon/Pleroma are basically the same. I mean, sure, they do have some differences, but it really doesn't matter. Maybe I'm missing something, but I'm very meh on all of those. I keep Mastodon, but that's it.
Also, thoughts on Piefed vs Lemmy? I've been getting a lot of feedback on that and I'm starting to get the impression Piefed has a lot of potential, maybe more than Lemmy. What do you think?
Wafrn: As of now it's the Tumblr-style microblog platform that it's closer in terms of content and energy to the original. Goblin has the pro that being a misskey fork has more app options, while wafrn only has only that for now it's in close beta (although I access it through the phone browser no issues), but Goblin seems more serious in its content and interactions (or at least that was my perception)
I think misskey and it's forkeys are it own thing in both terms of features and user base. Akkoma (can't speak about plain pleroma) and Mastodon are similar, but Mastodon has , how to say it, this issue where they spend years shitting on features half the Fediverse have to then add it and pretend they're doing something revolutionary. Also, I don't know why but all the Mastodon servers I've been have had limitations or outright forbid image uploading, telling you to instead open a pixelfed account; I've never seen someone like that even in the crappies key/oma instance. That not even mentioning the toxicity (much of it inherited from twitter during the migrations) that exist in Mastodon.
Piefed like that you can join or abandon communities by topic on piefed and that it ask you if you want to see content with certain topics. Lemmy has the advantage that it has more app options, but it's harder to filter content there and, at least on the server I was, half of the time the search gave no results. Tbh, I think we need a Lemmy fork because that's the only way the community it's ever getting all the user friendly changes it needs. The things that Lemmy lacks it lacks on purpose, there's an active decision to not have them. Different from kbin, I actually like Lemmy, but I agree that PieFed has a lot of potential and as of now haven't had any issues with it.
I'm really excited for the future of the Fediverse, with all these apps, but it's just too much...
I'm not advocating for anything, but some of these are definitely gonna get culled.
Having a variety of software from where to choose, even within the same type of platform is actually positive. These software, while similar — but not equal — in terms of UI are completely different in terms of userbase and culture.
Not all former twitter users gave twitter an usage that translates well into Mastodon culture. Instead they could be a better fit for misskey (although this one isn't 100% twitter-like) or pleroma. Or maybe the best for them is something smaller like GTS.
A neurodivergent person that needs to be able to quotepost because they find easy to process information that way is going to have a hard time in Mastodon where are not only now discussing adding the tool, but big part of its userbase reacts negatively to it. Again a Twitter-style fediverse microblogging platform that already has the tool, not only as a feature but ingrained in the culture might be a better fit for them.
Something similar occures with the link aggregators. Yes, they are "Reddit replacements", but they have different cultures, thus they target different kinds of former and in-the-process-of-leaving redditors.
The fediverse is to homogeneous, each particular protocol has its culture that's distinct from all others that make part of the Fediverse; each software using a given protocol has its culture that's distinct from the culture of all other software using the same protocol and each particular instance running a given software has its individual culture that distinguish itself from all other servers running the same software.
Culture and userbase behaviour are just or even more important than the list of features or the UI style when it comes to choose the best place for you on the Fediverse.
The Twitter-style fediverse microblogging platforms are all the same when you just focus on the design aspect and all you have used is Mastodon, but when you take into account culture, the way they behave and interact within themselves and with the wider fediverse...these platforms couldn't be more different from each other.
You say that some are "gonna get culled" but, with exception of projects that were dropped due to personal issues with the devs, but that all somehow live in the form of forks, the Fediverse is expanding and the diversity of platform types is getting greater each day. In fact, there are categories where more diversity of software is needed.
A marketplace of apps is actually a good thing. Not everyone wants something based on Twitter (i.e. Mastodon, and similar). Not everyone wants Reddit (Lemmy, Mbin, etc.). Not everyone wants a traditional forum (NodeBB). Not everyone wants a blog (WordPress, Hubzilla, etc.). Not everyone wants Facebook (Friendica, Hubzilla, etc.).
One of the goals is to build increased compatibility between apps so that you can choose which experience you want, yet can still talk to anyone else on the fediverse. Some big players will certainly emerge, but I think that there will always be hundreds of compatible apps.
Maybe... I do see your point.
We never know what the future holds. But one of our goals is to decentralize social media. If we wind up with only a few major players, we have failed in that goal.
Well... Is that true, I wonder. Is that what decentralization means?
Software wise, these are open-source projects with strong community contribution. Just a few major players doesn't imply just a few major servers, so no one company or project can ever truly dominate.
Additionally, just the threat of forking could be enough of a deterrent for more authoritarian services not to implement anti-user features. Say Lemmy sells out or something; Lemmy.ml might turn bad, but that means nothing to .world or .ee or any other server. They can just... Not update. Not implement the bad features. Lemmy can just be forked. That's not like Twitter or Facebook.
Right?
I'm not a tech wizz or anything, but that's my understanding of the spiel of the thing of the stuff.