https://trustroots.org is an open source hosting exchange website (like couchsurfing) born in the hitchwiki.org community, and is an awesome one. The android app was in the play store only, but today platschi put the android app in a #fdroid repo:
https://platschi.net/f-droid-repository-for-trustroots.html
nice job!
ActivityPub for couch/accommodation sharing when?
@mayel
I don't know, what advantages would you see in that? Like, different policies by instance, or..?
That's one of many. Decentralised moderation. Different levels of privacy (including cross-instance private communities, leveraging AP's group actor). Decentralised innovation in terms of UX and new functionality. Etc.
@mayel
I am not sure that those ups would actually balance the downs like how it's easier to manage moderation, implement new functions and develop the software in a centralized service. Trustroots doesn't have all that critical mass right now and everybody feels to me quite attached to the project, wanting to share the space together that is.
It could be interesting though, I'm not a programmer
It "doesn't have critical mass" is actually the main reason I think that any platform that benefits from network effects should be federated. So we can leave all the centralisers and capitalists to compete against each other, while the rest of us can switch to decentralised cooperation once and for all!
@erosdiscordia
What, why would you think that? What I meant is that, it not having that many users, I see no real urge to decentralize the software.
@mayel
@arteteco
Hey, I'm sorry, I wasn't attacking the project you originally shared (which sounds cool). I was more generally criticizing the pressures that get put on app makers, that market dominance or buyout are the golden directions to aim.
Of course an app needs a certain critical mass of users before it can really federate. But what do you think would be a good size? And how to resist pressures to default to being a silo? Just some thoughts.
@mayel
maybe slightly long reply
No worries. It is a rather good question, right now I'd say that a critical mass is when the platform does what it should well. If it's a wiki, means that the quality and quantity of the pages increase, with a hospitality exchange maybe that you usually find a host without too much of an effort?
It doesn't usually happen atm (also because of the choice of making it invite only, which on the other hand has kept the quality high).
Maybe a federated approach could increase that mass? I'd be curious to see it, even though I wouldn't put it in my top 5 application I'd like to see federated =D
I'd be afraid of moderation, quite. When you sleep in someone else's place you want the platform to be quite controlled, especially for young women who oftentimes have bad experiences on couchsurfing. With the fediverse moderation is difficult and has its challenges (I'm a mod, I've faced a few).
What I mean is that being centralized is actually makes it more challenging to have enough users. Better being part of a network like the fediverse.
@erosdiscordia