It would tie in better with the email analogy, and it could show that they all just provide access to the same network.
What do you think?
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It’s probably too late for that now, but I do think that’s a better name
Servers are a better word for it imo. It is what it actually is and average people already understand servers from discord
Servers are a better word for it imo.
Agreed. When I explain Lemmy to my friends I describe instances as “servers.”
usually when I tell someone what an instance is, I throw a few synonyms in there
I feel like just saying “instance/proxy” can help, providers sounds good too, also gateways, servers, relays…
I made an old discussion about this actually
Hey, someone had the same thought as me! https://programming.dev/post/3658268/3322305
would confuse me because when I hear “provider” I think ISP before anything else
I mean, sure, but the internet is a decentralised network! So is lemmy.
no, it’s a decentralised service on the decentralized internet
Internet provider.
Lemmy provider.
E-mail provider
I like it. The reasoning’s good.
I hate the term “instance”. It’s hopelessly geeky (it derives from object-oriented programming). It brings to mind nerds and gamers in basements.
It brings to mind nerds and gamers in basements.
Which is pretty much the main users of Lemmy lol
I thought it was just an instance of the lemmy software, for example?
FSP = Fediverse Service Provider
That doesn’t sound too bad ngl.
I agree, let’s make it more friendly to people wanting to start a fediverse provider as a business so a big company can’t come in and gobble up everyone
Go ahead. Try to force that upon Friendica that has called its instances “nodes” for almost 15 years now.
Or Hubzilla that not only calls them “hubs” but also resists any and all cultural or technological influences from anything that wasn’t created by Mike Macgirvin.
Also <insert Morpheus here> what if I told you that (streams) and Forte call them “communities”? You know, like Lemmy’s and PieFed’s “subreddits”?
I wouldn’t even mention anything about servers or how it works, since most anyone I would even tell about Lemmy won’t understand the technical details, nor would they care. It would only confuse them and push them away.
Just hook them up with an instance they will fit into, and have them use the site. I really think that a lot of the other tech nerds here are overthinking it and trying to get non-tech minded people to switch by giving them technical details that do more harm and cause more confusion than simply having them use the site without knowing jack shit about it other than “it’s like Reddit but not shitty.”
That’s really all you gotta tell most people; “it’s like Reddit (or Twitter if you’re trying to talk up Mastodon), but not shitty.”
I use this approach sometimes and it really works. Provided it’s the erm… simple type of crowd that doesn’t ask too many questions lol. They’ll wander around and figure it out. If they do, congratulations😂
Sure, but then questions like “why do these subreddits have an @ symbol?” happen, or the dreaded default “local” sort causes problems.
I think instance is okay as a term, but defining it as a provider could be helpful. I don’t think the fediverse is that complicated anyway, it could be summarized in a paragraph for a baby
I like server better
I just say server hosts
I’m afraid that when I say „my Lemmy provider” people will think I’m referring to my drug dealer.
Lemmy and Molly (foss) are the most addictive. 🤣🤣
“Psst… Hey, you. Wanna buy some SoMe?”
That’s fantastic.
Provideravoids the mostly baseless FOMO (fear of missing out) thatinstancecan invoke.I think
providermore clearly communicates that the majority of the desirable content is going to be available the same through anyprovider.I was thinking the same. Provider is easier to understand, and used in daily life contexts.
- I changed my Internet provider
- This electricity provider offers better service
Provider has the connotation of being a paid provider for services. While it’s a technically accurate analogy, I prefer the more abstract comparison of considering the fediverse a meeting place rather than a paid service since it’s a mostly volunteer and self hosted network compared to email.
Indeed, but unfortunately there’s no word for a volunteer provider as far as I know.
I disagree. Gmail is my email provider. I don’t pay for it. (Yeah I know they are taking ad revenue.)
Instance is unnecessary jargon.
Yes, thats what I was thinking.
I was thinking about other decentralised networks people may use, and they all seem to use the word “provider”:
- Email provider
- Internet provider
- Usenet provider
That’s what resonates for me.
We don’t have email
instances, and email providers similarly block un-desired content, but there’s not a big fuss about missing out on specific types of spam. Lol.Similarly Internet service providers actually also block big blocks of malware providing domains, and accidentally sometimes block some great piracy resources. People who care learn to use a VPN or switch providers. Everyone else doesn’t have to think about it.
I’ll argue that The Fediverse also carries extremely similar switching cost as an email or Internet provider. For an average user, “Let folks you care to inform know where you moved, and maybe copy over some favorite bookmarks.”
Sure, different providers do try to bring different lenses on the same federated content, but most people aren’t served well by thinking about it on day one.
I think shifting to the term
provideris a lot more honest to the user about what to expect.
How would the word be used in our context? The Fediverse provider?
But I think I associate the word with money related activities and I’m not a fan of that.
I associate the word with money related activities
That’s a good thing. It costs money to provide services to people. The Fediverse is no different.
I would think the jargon would be “I chose fedia.io as my Lemmy provider,” or similar for other federated platforms.
Oh god no. That’s like “I chose Burger King as my McDonald’s provider.”
Not really. In that metaphor it’s more like, “I chose the McDonald’s down at the corner to get my Big Mac instead of the one across town.”
“I can get a Whopper from McDonald’s and I don’t have to see any crap from Papa John’s because McDonalds is defederated from them.”
Provider doesn’t make any sense when the content is coming from other places.
But Burger King and McDonalds are the same type of entities.
Fedia.io and Lemmy are different. Your example would be “Lemmy as a Piefed provider”, or “Feddit.org as a feddit.uk provider”
Yeah it’s even worse than that.
fedia.io is a specific “provider” in this context. fedia.io runs on mbin. Lemmy is analogous to mbin. Many “providers” run on lemmy: lemmy.world, lemmy.dbzer0.com, lemmy.wtf, etc.
What is being provided is fediverse access. “Fediverse” is not my mostest favorite term, but it’s the one that’s most accurate.
What is being provided is fediverse access. “Fediverse” is not my mostest favorite term, but it’s the one that’s most accurate.
There’s a discussion on [email protected] about a name for Lemmy/Mbin/Piefed, as they are actually compatible. Mastodon and the others always feels a bit finicky. Feel free to contribute.
Fine, “I choose Burger King as my hamburger provider but I expect to be able to access a Big Mac from Burger King unless they are defederated.”
Ok, have it your way then
“I use Vodafone as my phone provider. Can’t call people in North Korea because they cut that connection. I might have to choose another provider that still allows me to call there”.
I mean, it’s not like that at all, but it’s ok to not care for it still. Lemmy is a federated platform, just like Pixelfed is, and Mastodon, etc. Those would be the providers in the example from before.
Edit to add: Literally every time the word “instance” comes up in the manner noted above, it’s woth regard to a Lemmy instance, or a Mastodon instance, and rarely if ever have I noticed a reference to a “fediverse instance”. I have no clue where your comparison comes from.
Lemmy is a server application. Mastodon is a server application. Pixelfed is a server application.
I don’t use Lemmy. Never have. And yet here I am.
“I recommend feddit.uk as a Lemmy provider for people living in the UK”
“Feddit.org is a good provider for German speakers”
