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2025-10-29 19:35:08

iftas@mastodon.iftas.org

@fediversereport I believe the next step has to be separating the moderation from the platform, we can build standalone moderation tooling that speaks to any and all platforms, common tools, open source, informed by current usage and existing best practice.

Funders seem to favour the production of communications software, not the boring backend administrative stuff needed to actually manage those communications.

I see some funding slowly beginning to be pointed at moderation, we need more.

2025-10-30 12:04:56

Jupiter Rowland

jupiter_rowland@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

@IFTAS @Connected Places I don't think it's that easy to develop an external moderation tool that

ties into Mastodon and the way Mastodon works
ties into Hubzilla, (streams) and Forte and their highly advanced permissions systems (everything on these three is permission-driven) and self-moderation capabilities all the same, also seeing as such a tool must be capable of moderating groups/forums

I mean, you could try. But be warned: These three work much, much more differently from Mastodon and the rest of the Fediverse than their presence in the Fediverse may indicate. You'll have to work both with permissions (use the permissions system to achieve what you need to achieve) and past permissions (if you bluntly try to latch your tool onto these three from outside, chances are that their permissions systems won't even let you in).

You'll have to deal with enclosed conversations as per FEP-171b "Conversation Containers" in which the start post always forces its permissions on all comments and replies. You'll have to deal with nomadic identity, with channels simultaneously residing on multiple independent servers. On (streams) and Forte, you'll also have to deal with DIDs according to FEP-ef61 "Portable Objects".

On Hubzilla and (streams), you'll have to deal with servers that don't even use ActivityPub as their base protocol and with both servers and channels that have ActivityPub turned off entirely. And on Hubzilla, you'll have to deal with connections that use wholly different protocols yet again, e.g. diaspora* (remember the $200,000 crowdfunding run back in 2010?).

Also, you'll have to deal with three Fediverse server applications that do not have the Mastodon client API implemented, with feature sets that are completely incompatible with the Mastodon client API and with developers who staunchly refuse to implement it because they basically despise Mastodon with a hot, flaming passion.

And no, making server apps that are nothing like Mastodon at all become more like Mastodon, just so that they can be moderated with a tool that's made for Mastodon, is not a solution because it simply won't happen.

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