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Wed, 18 Dec 2024 17:37:39 +0100

mike@flipboard.social

Hello fediverse!

This morning we’re opening a beta for Surf, a new kind of browser for a new kind of web — the open social web.

Built from the ground up on ActivityPub, AT Proto and RSS, you can create and surf amazing custom feeds that organize people, videos, articles, images and podcasts around the things you care about.

Surf is a liberating new approach to how we use social media and I can’t wait to hear what you think of it. Learn more and sign up for the beta at https://surf.social

show all 35 comments

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 17:41:00 +0100

MntyFrsh

mntyfrsh@mastodon.social

@mike Looking forward to trying this out! Is this strictly an app, or will it also be available on the web?

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 17:44:01 +0100

Elena Rossini ⁂

_elena@mastodon.social

@mike Mike! I got into the beta exactly 5 minutes ago and I LOOOOVE what I’m seeing. Congratulations for the phenomenal work on it, it’s so sleek ✨

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 17:46:55 +0100

Maddad ☑️

maddad@mastodon.world

@mike

What have they done in the way of privacy, ie, data gathering and web tracking?

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 17:54:44 +0100

The Nexus of Privacy

thenexusofprivacy@infosec.exchange

@mike 👀 intriguing!

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 18:03:45 +0100

Oblomov

oblomov@sociale.network

@mike problem with the name is: it's already in use for the suckless browser.

https://surf.suckless.org/

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 18:36:30 +0100

@mike This is absolutely awesome!

I would absolutely love to do some beta testing of this, as that is what I did for 9+ years while working for Nova Launcher.

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 19:00:25 +0100

JW Prince of CPH, Radicalized

jwcph@helvede.net

@mntyfrsh @mike +1 one to this question - please, let's also end the app tyranny.

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 19:09:30 +0100

Michael Foster

michael@newsmast.social

@mike Fantastic!

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 19:16:32 +0100

william.maggos

wjmaggos@liberal.city

@mike

we need reader, video and podcast apps that integrate our decentralized social graph. show us what's most popular and let us quickly boost the item once we've read, watched or listened to it. this sounds great.

then someday, pay creators directly (open protocol/API for fiat transfer?) for time spent.

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 19:33:02 +0100

Mike McCue

mike@flipboard.social

@jwcph @mntyfrsh Yes there will be web and desktop versions with layouts optimized for larger displays.

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 19:43:05 +0100

Andy Piper

andypiper@macaw.social

@mike nice work, exciting stuff! Looking forward to taking this for a run!

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 19:52:13 +0100

Jupiter Rowland

jupiter_rowland@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

@Mike McCue What are the chances that the ActivityPub side will get full (or any) support for Pleroma and its forks, Misskey and its forks, Friendica and other things that use the Mastodon client API?

Or even server applications that can speak ActivityPub, but that don't have the Mastodon client API implemented?

I sincerely hope that Surf isn't built against only Mastodon so hard that it's impossible to add more than just incidental and unsupported compatibility with anything that isn't Mastodon.

#Long #LongPost #CWLong #CWLongPost #FediMeta #FediverseMeta #CWFediMeta #CWFediverseMeta #Fediverse #ActivityPub #NotOnlyMastodon #FediverseIsNotMastodon #MastodonIsNotTheFediverse

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 19:58:01 +0100

Mike McCue

mike@flipboard.social

@jupiter_rowland Our goal is to seamlessly support any ActivityPub feed. For example Pixelfed and Friendica work great and Lemmy is pretty good too. We’ll gradually work through the variations and collaborate with folks to get thins working as seamlessly as possible.

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 20:00:43 +0100

Jupiter Rowland

jupiter_rowland@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

@Mike McCue If Lemmy works, I'm actually impressed.

#FediMeta #FediverseMeta #CWFediMeta #CWFediverseMeta #Lemmy

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 20:06:05 +0100

AAKL

AAKL@infosec.exchange

@mike Sounds interesting. Privacy? Tracking? Algorithms? AI and third-party scraping?

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 20:42:50 +0100

Sara

sarae@ecoevo.social

@mike yeah, that sure is a very liberating legal name policy

thanks but no thanks

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 21:56:44 +0100 zuletzt bearbeitet: Wed, 18 Dec 2024 21:57:19 +0100

tom jennings

tomjennings@tldr.nettime.org

@mike

Ok, but that website is just awful. Come on, ten words per page, various 'clever' poking and scrolling required, one text flew by in all the swiping, and you can't go back.

Come on this kind of stuff has no place outside of a design class.

I want a succinct summary, and maybe deeper context. Where can I find that?

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 22:16:55 +0100

crazyeddie

crazyeddie@mastodon.social

@mike There a git repo?

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 22:26:24 +0100

Seth

selgart@vmst.io

@mike My only question is will it remember where I am in the timeline or will it always infuriatingly scroll to the top? All the apps I’ve seen so far (except Ivory) do this and it’s maddening!

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 22:57:35 +0100

Fred Brooker

fredbrooker@witter.cz

@mike I hate using scroll for animations, it's sick 🤮

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 23:18:28 +0100

Maria Varmazis :verified_neko:

varmazis@mstdn.social

@mike signed up for the beta! Can’t wait to try it

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 23:29:40 +0100

FloridaMan

FloridaMan@twit.social

@mike @Flipboard Let me know when you have an MacOS version

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 23:36:07 +0100

drathir

drathir@mastodon.social

@mike https://surf.suckless.org/

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 23:57:36 +0100

Stefan Ritter :verified:

gideonstar@mastodon.gideonstar.de

@mike There is already a browser with the name surf ^^

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 00:09:10 +0100

ThomasD

Thomas_D@sueden.social

@mike
The website doesn't really tell us what this is, specifically.
Also there is no privacy policy.

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 00:21:26 +0100

Mike McCue

mike@flipboard.social

@selgart The beta currently does not do this but it is definitely in the plan. Do you like the Ivory handles this? What’s your ideal approach?

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 00:35:58 +0100

Lawrence Alberti 🚴

lorenzo@sfba.social

@mike BE more creative dude! What you do with the scroll wheel on your mouse has nothing to do with the sport of Queens and Kings. Please do better.

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 00:53:16 +0100

Georgiana Brummell

dandylover1@friendica.world

@Mike McCue Is this strictly for phones, or does it work on computers as well? Does it have accessibility features for screen reader users? It sounds very exciting!

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 02:22:22 +0100

This Old Hiker

Patrickoldhiker@ohai.social

@mike @jwcph @mntyfrsh Thank you, glad you're building surf.social for larger displays on the web. My close vision doesn't let me view complex or tiled content on a phone for any length of time.

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 02:47:29 +0100

Nadiyar 🇺🇦🇵🇸

nadiyar@c.im

@mike proprietary?

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 03:35:54 +0100

Jeff Sikes

box464@mastodon.social

@mike Lots of good tidings regarding fediverse projects lately.

Congratulations and look forward to checking it out!

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 04:15:25 +0100

Seth

selgart@vmst.io

@mike Ivory’s method is ideal. Open the app, you’re still at the same post you saw the last time. If you happen to want to go to the top it’s only one tap at the top of the screen to get there. But even better, if going to the top was an accidental touch you can just tap the top again and it takes you back to where you were. It’s totally on the side of the user. Bluesky’s behavior, not to pick on them in particular as almost all apps do this to be fair, always taking you to “now” is really pretty user-hostile in an otherwise pretty good app.

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 04:18:43 +0100

MntyFrsh

mntyfrsh@mastodon.social

@mike Great to hear! Thank you!

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 05:35:31 +0100

Mike McCue

mike@flipboard.social

@selgart thanks for sharing this. I like this approach and will make sure we factor in.

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 05:53:46 +0100

Mike McCue

mike@flipboard.social

@dandylover1 tablet and desktop support will be coming. Most importantly we'll have specialized layouts for larger screens. The photos and videos will look amazing.