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2026-08-23 05:20:36

Mika

mvg@ieji.de

I am looking for a fedi-software in order to set up a a fairly small community of bikers (with special motorcycles - like Russian boxers 😁 ) Selfhosted or by a dedicated hoster (like Markus e.g.). A "Forum" like in the good old days. I think I will give it a name with "BBS" in it. 🤓

Any proposals?

The link aggregators are no option. #NodeBB is over the top. Also I do not like the unorganized look. #Mastodon or alike would kind of work but is a bit off.

My first impulse: #Friendica. I know it quite well, it can handle #groups, it has no silly char-limit, and it is feasable for people with little or no IT-background (I think).

But some time has passed since i used it. I do not know if it is still up-to-date and kicking. 🤷‍♂️

Can it handle #forums and #sub-forums too?

Is there an #app something I miss?

One of the *key-variants perhaps?

#fediverse #forum #software #motorbike #sharkey

@z428 👋

2026-08-23 07:24:03

Sexybiggetje🐖

martijn@ieji.de

@mvg @z428 sounds like you want bonfire.

https://bonfirenetworks.org/

2026-08-23 22:10:52

Jupiter Rowland

jupiter_rowland@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

@Mika When I read the Bonfire suggestion, I was about to suggest Hubzilla, the most powerful Fediverse server application.

In case you don't know it: It basically evolved in 2015 from a fork of a Friendica fork, and it was created by Friendica's inventor. It probably has one of the best user documentations in the Fediverse, but it also has quite a steep learning curve, and newly created channels require quite a bit of configuration before you can really use them.

The same guy still maintains two more recent members of the same software family, (streams) from 2021 and Forte from 2024. They aren't quite as blistering with features as Hubzilla (they lack all the CMS stuff: articles, cards, wikis, webpages), and they don't offer nearly as many connection options as Friendica and Hubzilla.

Although they're still somehow complex, and although they don't have much of a user documentation, I dare say they're easier to get into because they don't require quite as much undocumented initial configuration after creating a channel.

All three offer groups (Hubzilla calls them "forums"), but no subforums. Whereas Friendica groups can only be co-administered by someone on the same server, groups/forums on Hubzilla, (streams) and Forte can be co-administered by anyone on Friendica, Hubzilla, (streams) or Forte.

However, there aren't any phone apps for them. They can be installed as progressive Web apps, though, and their Web UIs transform into mobile mode quite well AFAIK.

#Long #LongPost #CWLong #CWLongPost #FediMeta #FediverseMeta #CWFediMeta #CWFediverseMeta #Hubzilla #Streams #(streams) #Forte

2026-08-24 23:21:18

veroandi_br

veroandi@connexia.hibiol.eu

@Mika @Kristian

I'm a big fan of Friendica - it's my favourite platform! I use it for me. I think it's great for small communities, it has many features other platforms does not have. But I'm not sure if it fits the "forum" style. It's not easy to find posts on the groups like in a forum platform, for example.

The only app designed specifically for Friendica is RaccoonForFriendica. I use it sometimes, but as with all apps for the Fediverse, it lacks features and style. I prefer the web version. Some apps for Mastodon accept Friendica, but they do not show all Friendica's features.

One thing that might stop you from using Friendica for your motorcycle group is that it does not accept videos. You have to upload them elsewhere and share the link.

There is DumHub but it's not connected to the Fediverse. You can create a free demo account on their website to test it, it's also open source and you can selfhost.

About forum: Maybe Discourse or phpBB.