Diaspora* a peer-to-peer secure social network focused on privacy

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

I sent them some money. They don't need it, but this way I'll get a CD automatically when it's released, and also I kind of want them to get ten times what they need just to give Facebook a kick in the teeth.

[Rococo Modem Basilisk]

Why abandon facebook? If this is preferable, you'll end up using it more anyway <_<

[Juana]

Because I'm tired of all the group invitations for shit I'm not interested in, constantly having to block applications (and then another fucking version of the damn thing pops up - there must be ten "zoo" themed games by now), and all the other crap.

[Eater of Clowns]

Facebook is now an elaborate marketing tool under the guise of social media.  The fact that you can talk to friends is a secondary feature to your profile now being linked to actual fan pages.  Rather than expensive and difficult market research, there's a convenient place where every person's precise tastes are available to be tailored to.

So yes, I hope this succeeds.  And I will be joining.

[Jasper]

Holy shit this could get me HECKA LAID!

[Juana]

There are a lot of people who seem to be on facebook solely for the sake of joining "facebook is killing our privacy!!!1" facebook groups.

Yeah, and all the people threatening to leave if Facebook follows through on their nonexistent plan to charge users $14.95 / month.

It has to be better than Facebook too, some people might sign up for it just for privacy, but social networking is only useful if the people you want to network with use it too.  It needs a killer feature to draw people who don't care about privacy away from Facebook.

that was the first thing i thought of, but if this works, like they say, as a shell around other SN sites like FB and Tw, then people could use it as an amalgamating resource, even if nobody they knows use it.
then as people come on, it would have added functionality native to it that would be cake...

If they implement the Facebook API, that will make it trivial for app writers to port their apps to the new platform.  Also, they could use the Facebook API themselves and allow their users to transparently connect to Facebook's hub so they can remain connected to their friends over there.

That would be very feasible technology-wise, but I have no idea if it would be feasible legality-wise.

http://www.joindiaspora.com//2010/04/21/a-little-more-about-the-project.html

Now that you have your information in your seed, it will connect to every service you used to have for you. For example, your seed will keep pulling tweets and you will still be able to see your Facebook newsfeed. In fact, Diaspora will make those services better! Upload an image to Flickr and your seed can automatically generate a tweet from the caption and link. Social networking will just get better when you have control over your data.

A seed will not just be all your existing networks put together, though. Decentralizing lets us reconstruct our "social graphs" so that they belong to us. Our real social lives do not have central managers, and our virtual lives do not need them. Friend another seed and the two of you can synchronize over a direct and secure connection instead of through a superfluous hub. Encryption (privacy nerds: we're using GPG) will ensure that no matter what kind of content is being transferred, you can share privately. Eventually, today's hubs could be almost entirely replaced by a decentralized network of truly personal websites.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

I won't abandon Facebook until most of its users do... I use it for advertising. 

[Elder Iptuous]

but, like pointed out in the quote from the 'about' page in hovercat's post above, using Diaspora doesn't mean abandoning Facebook...
you can use FB from within it.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Yeah but I WANT to. If a suitably more advantageous alternative exists.

[LMNO]

Friendster -> MySpace -> Facebook -> ???


There's always the next thing.  It doesn't even have to be better (hosting music on MySpace is a fuckton easier than on Facebook), it just has to be cooler.

Kids want a network their parents won't be on.  Give that to them, and they'll jump ship.

[bugmenоt]

It may be hard for diaspora to come to a market where most people already use facebook and they keep using it because most people use it... But i'll sign up on principle.

Also: LOL, Zuckerberg vs. Salzberg

[Richter]

I won't abandon Facebook until most of its users do... I use it for advertising. 

I'm only using facebook for events and quick updates ATM, since a good portion of my SCA / Gaming buddies are on.  I'm wiping my PI and interests as possible, and keeping any witty content elsewhere


I'll check out Diaspora later tonight.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

People will abandon that shit in a hot second if something cooler/convenient/more fun-looking comes along.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

It may be hard for diaspora to come to a market where most people already use facebook and they keep using it because most people use it... But i'll sign up on principle.

Also: LOL, Zuckerberg vs. Salzberg

OH I KNOW

IT'S FUNNY 'CAUSE THEY'RE BOTH JEWS, RIGHT?

[Richter]

People will abandon that shit in a hot second if something cooler/convenient/more fun-looking comes along.

You said it.  The way employers watch it now, I need to scour name tags off every pic and video if any change of venue is planned.