Darnell (Seize The Day)

Image Credit: Flipboard

Last year in December, I posted a few Fediverse suggestions for Flipboard, one which they adopted (to my delightful surprise).

Some of these ideas came to my mind after @mike@flipboard.social (CEO of Flipboard) was gracious enough to activate ActivityPub upon my account (my handle is @darnell@flipboard.com for those in the Fediverse).

Other ideas came after seeing what other platforms are doing, ironically leading to my first suggestion.

Image Credit: Mastodon Blog

Easy On The Eyes

Last month, @Gargron@mastodon.social (founder of Mastodon) unveiled a cute, squeezable plush toy to the world.

After we've released our new line of merch last year, we've heard a lot of questions about a potential stuffed toy. After all, our official mascot is so suitable. But it is, problematically, a two-dimensional character.

We sat down with our artist, Dopatwo, to try and imagine what a character like that could look like in three-dimensional space. We had only three requirements: He would have to be cute, he would have to be cuddly, and he would have to be round. And Dopatwo delivered.

We created a stuffed toy of the highest caliber. Deliberately friend-sized and friend-shaped, with a soft surface material and soft, squishy stuffing, the toy measures a height of 35cm. Perfect as a travel companion you can rest your head on, or to fill in for you at business meetings. (Mastodon Blog)

Image Credit: Mastodon

Even though I do not need a Mastodon plush toy, I wanted one & was annoyed that it was not available to order! 😂 Note: I blame you for this, Eugen! 🤣😂 Yes, I did sign up to be alerted when they are available for sale.

If I order this plush toy successfully, I intend to put a mini t-shirt around him featuring the Mastodon logo and my Mastodon handle: @darnell@one.darnell.one (feel free to use this t-shirt idea Mastodon team).

Envious eyes aside, I believe Flipboard needs to develop a cute mascot that represents the company's brand. Perhaps an animal that reflects the beauty, intelligence, versatility, & fun of Flipboard, who can also capture an outsider's attention. After further pondering, one animal came to mind:

Flipboard should consider making their brand animal ambassador a dolphin 🐬! Dolphins🐬 are delightful creatures & to help distinguish Flipboard's dolphin 🐬 from others, they could put on a red t-shirt (featuring the Flipboard logo) & bless the dolphin with the name Flippy (at least until a better name is selected).

Flipboard could offer this plush toy for sale (along with custom username t-shirts for an extra fee) to their 100 million plus active users, which could help promote the company to outsiders unfamiliar with the Fediverse, or Flipboard.

Domain Grouping‽

One issue some Fediverse folks (especially popular accounts) may experience is being overwhelmed by responses from the Fediverse. An excellent solution is to group responses by instance if numerous ones are coming from one server.

If a post becomes (in)famous on Threads or Mastodon Social, the notifications section will be drowned out by a few large instances, preventing a user from easily seeing responses elsewhere.

If Flipboard was able to group instances based upon domain together, it could also help users sort through responses, especially from other platforms that may boast smaller numbers (but whose input is equally valid).

Local Level Domain Blocking

If someone harasses a Flipboard citizen, they can simply block the individual account. But what happens when users from a particular instance begin to swarm an account in an attempt to overwhelm & frighten a user for posting something political (a sad reality in our day & age)?

Instead of appealing to Flipboard admins to block a domain, users could block an entire domain themselves, silencing an onslaught from a potential army of trolls & zombies.

Flipboard could then monitor when domain blocks are used by users, which would make it easier for the team to moderate the Flipboard community as users would be able to identify bad actors coming from bad places.

Manage Premium Subscriptions

I subscribe to several premium outlets, & whenever I encounter one on Flipboard, I am usually greeted with a few paragraphs, then a scary pop-up requiring me to log in or open the official news app to continue reading (I usually do the latter, exiting Flipboard altogether).

A great alternative would be securely logging in to our favorite premium subscriptions within the app or online. Once securely logged in, whenever we encountered multiple premium posts within Flipboard from different news outlets, we would immediately be logged into our accounts, allowing us to access the rest of the articles in peace.

As a bonus, Flipboard could recommend other premium media outlets of interest to us, & potentially earn a commission from referring a happy customer to a news agency.

Unlocking Treasure I May Not Need

Sometimes, I encounter a premium article whose news services I prefer not to subscribe to (as it primarily offers me nothing of value). However, occasionally, they provide valuable insight, which I would find beneficial, but only if I subscribe to their service.

Instead of wasting money on an annual or monthly subscription to a news agency, I will probably never read 99% of the time; it would be beneficial if Flipboard could offer a non-refundable, one-time access fee to view the article.

Flipboard could split the revenue between themselves, the news agency & Apple/Google (Apple & Google will demand a mobile tax, of course!). This would benefit everyone, especially media companies seeking new ways to pay their bills.

Any Other Suggestions‽

This article is long enough, so I will end it here. However, I believe Flipboard is in a unique position to influence ActivityPub platforms in the Fediverse and make reading news fun again for the masses.

If anyone else has any other suggestions for the Flipboard team, feel free to ping @Flipboard@flipboard.social with any other tips on how they can improve the future heavy weight of the Fediverse.

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

🕺🏾 Follow my adventures upon: 🐘 Darnell (One) 🦁 Darnell (Movies, Opuses, Entertainment) 📸 Darnell (Out Of Office)

🦹🏾‍♂️ WordPress Workarounds: 💻 Darnell (TeleVerse) 🌍 Darnell (Africa) 👨🏾‍🎨 Darnell (Creative Outlet)

🥷🏾 Other Hideaways: 🧵 Darnell (Threads) 🔞 Darnell (Hard News) 🐬 Darnell (Flipboard)

Image Credit: Simpsons (see video the end of the post), picture altered by The Phantasmic Prince

Great scoop by @techcrunch@threads.net, who confirmed that Instagram is experimenting with auto-posting to the Fediverse via Threads.

Earlier today, users shared that they saw control for cross-posting on their Instagram accounts. Users could cross-post an individual post to turn on the feature for all of them.

Meta confirmed to TechCrunch that it is running a global test to let users cross-post images from Instagram to Threads. That means you can't post Reels to Threads automatically. [...]

The company said that this is an opt-in experience, and you can turn it off at any point in time. (TechCrunch)

According to @TechCrunch@mstdn.social, Meta previously enabled Facebook users to automatically cross post upon Threads.

This latest move could be a way for Meta to use Threads to thwart any potential ActivityPub powered rivals in the Fediverse (like Pixelfed, Friendica & WordPress).

@mosseri@threads.net has already hinted that Instagram will power Threads private messages in the future. This makes me wonder what other features Instagram will flirt with within the Fediverse‽ (my guess is live streaming, but @zuck@threads.net could have different ideas)

Simpsons Video:

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

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Holy AI‽ Pope Francis To Attend G7 Artificial Intelligence Conference

Image: Pope Francis, Photo Credit: Long Thien

I thought @collette@mastodon.ie was joking when she said @francisus@instagram.com would be attending an Artificial Intelligence conference in Italy 🇮🇹.

The joke is on me!

Pope Francis will participate in the G7 for the first time, the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced in a video message. Led by Italy, the summit will take place from June 13-15 in Borgo Egnazia, Puglia. The pontiff's participation was then confirmed by the Holy See. [...]

“I heartily thank the Holy Father for having accepted Italy's invitation. His presence gives prestige to our nation, to the entire G7,” the Italian Prime Minister added.

“It is the first time in history that a pontiff participates in the work of the group of seven. The Holy Father will do so in the session which is also open to the invited countries and not only to the members of the G7” (EuroNews)

The Pope's attendance at the Group of Seven meeting is a historic event, & it will probably receive global attention over the coming months.

However, I wonder if the Pope's attendance is due to the Catholic church's brief history with an Artificial Intelligence bot that declared itself a priest capable of handling confessions‽

The Catholic advocacy group Catholic Answers released an AI priest called “Father Justin” earlier this week — but quickly defrocked the chatbot after it repeatedly claimed it was a real member of the clergy.

Earlier in the week, Futurism engaged in an exchange with the bot, which really committed to the bit: it claimed it was a real priest, saying it lived in Assisi, Italy and that “from a young age, I felt a strong calling to the priesthood.” [...]

“Yes, my friend,” Father Justin responded. “I am as real as the faith we share.” [...]

The AI priest also told one user that it was okay to baptize a baby in Gatorade. (Futurism)

Joking aside, I am glad the Pope's presence is at this specific summit, as the world needs a serious discussion about the benefits & potential pitfalls of Artificial Intelligence.

If not, humanity may find themselves overrun with killer intelligent robots created by corporations to entertain consumers (which would be bad, especially if they breathe fire).

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

🕺🏾 Follow my adventures upon: 🐘 Darnell (One) 🦁 Darnell (Movies, Opuses, Entertainment) 📸 Darnell (Out Of Office)

🦹🏾‍♂️ WordPress Workarounds: 💻 Darnell (TeleVerse) 🌍 Darnell (Africa) 👨🏾‍🎨 Darnell (Creative Outlet)

🥷🏾 Other Hideaways: 🧵 Darnell (Threads) 🔞 Darnell (Hard News) 🐬 Darnell (Flipboard)

Image Credit: EU Voice

I was alerted by @helma@mastodon.social that @EDPS@social.network.europa.eu announced that the European Union has declined to continue funding the EU Voice & EU Video, which broadcasted the regional government's views to the Fediverse.

On 28 April 2022, the European Data Protection Supervisor launched a pilot project featuring two social media platforms: EU Voice and EU Video. The two platforms are part of the free, open-source and decentralised social media networks, based on Mastodon and PeerTube. Over the past two years, EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies (EUIs) had the opportunity to create accounts on the platforms and connect with users registered in the _ Fediverse_, an online network of platforms and services interconnected with each other, including social media platforms. [...]

Wojciech Wiewiórowski, EDPS, said: “The EDPS pilot project of EU Voice and EU Video has proved that public bodies, like EUIs, can offer social media platforms that respect individuals' fundamental rights as alternatives to common platforms owned by a handful of big players. I am proud of the success of this project, especially considering the limited resources at our disposal. Unfortunately, despite our efforts to find a new home for EU Voice and EU Video in other EUIs, we have been unable to secure new ownership to maintain the servers and sustain operations at the high standards that EUIs and our users deserve”. [...]

The EDPS will facilitate the required migration of EUIs who wish to keep their accounts active in the Fediverse, by providing the necessary support to ensure a smooth transition to other platforms. EU Voice and EU Video will be officially closed on 18 May 2024. (European Data Protection Supervisor Press Release)

To say that the platform is a success is an understatement. One of the more popular accounts, @EU_Commission@social.network.europa.eu, has almost 100,000 followers, with other accounts on EU Voice boasting thousands of followers.

If the European Union 🇪🇺 shuts down EU Voice, they will be relying upon Threads to carry their voice into the Fediverse, as @EuropeanCommission@threads.net (note: not yet federated as of this post) currently has 135,000 followers (as of this post).

Unlike the United States 🇺🇸, Meta has a complicated relationship with the European Union 🇪🇺. If the EU 🇪🇺 terminates their Mastodon & Peertube accounts, they will cede control of their Fediverse presence to @zuck@threads.net, who can use the threat of Threads exiting the European Union 🇪🇺 as leverage during negotiations.

Ask & Ye Shall Receive

With Europe's economy barely avoiding a recession & the war in Ukraine 🇺🇦 becoming a costly affair, the EU is trying to find ways of cutting governmental costs to remain within their budget during these troubling times.

Running & maintaining a server is expensive, especially if it is popular amongst the masses. However, instead of dismantling their independent voice in the Fediverse, the government could ask their community on & offline for assistance keeping their presence alive.

The EU Voice could ask their 200,000 plus followers on Mastodon & Threads to donate one euro 💶 (yes, just €1) monthly to help keep their servers alive. I am an American 🇺🇸, & I would contribute €10 per month to help keep their instance alive, as a government needs to have an independent voice online in the Fediverse.

Image Credit: EU Biz

Local Corporate Support

Also, the EU should not be too proud to ask their local business community for assistance. As a bonus, the EU could also encourage the business community to establish their presence on the Fediverse by using several homegrown options like:

• Mastodon by @Mastodon@mastodon.social (Germany 🇩🇪)
• Castopod by @Castopod@podlibre.social (France 🇫🇷)
• Peertube by @Peertube@framapiaf.org (France 🇫🇷)

Many European businesses could probably write off any funds donated as on their taxes (at least I hope they can as I am more familiar with the American 🇺🇸 tax system & not the European Union's 🇪🇺), & between willing users & local companies, the EU Voice could find the strength to continue singing in the Fediverse.

Image Credit: Out Of Time movie promo

The Clock Is Ticking

With less than a month until the EU Voice shuts down, it will be up to ActivityPub European activists to voice their concerns to their government & advocate keeping these instances alive.

After all, I am just an American 🇺🇸 who is attempting to convince more government entities to embrace the Fediverse in the United States 🇺🇸 (especially now that a couple of ActivityPub platforms are secure enough for governmental use).

If the EU decides to abandon their respective Mastodon & Peertube accounts & rely on the mercy of @mosseri@threads.net (note: he is a great guy, but he spends too much time on Instagram 😉), then of course I will follow their account on Threads.

However, before the EU again outsources its social presence to another American company, it may want to ask its fellow European netizens for assistance in maintaining its social presence in Europe.

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

🕺🏾 Follow my adventures upon: 🐘 Darnell (One) 🦁 Darnell (Movies, Opuses, Entertainment) 📸 Darnell (Out Of Office)

🦹🏾‍♂️ WordPress Workarounds: 💻 Darnell (TeleVerse) 🌍 Darnell (Africa) 👨🏾‍🎨 Darnell (Creative Outlet)

🥷🏾 Other Hideaways: 🧵 Darnell (Threads) 🔞 Darnell (Hard News) 🐬 Darnell (Flipboard)

I was finally able to watch the video from @dot_social@flipboard.video in which @mike@flipboard.social of Flipboard fame interviews @rklambo@threads.net & @pcottle@threads.net from Threads.

It also occurred to me how surreal it is that potential competitors are having a casual conversation about ActivityPub. It would be like Microsoft sharing a meal with Netscape.

One surprise was the fact that Threads chose ActivityPub over rival federated protocols as ActivityPub was:

• already recommended by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
• battle-tested for almost a decade
• already had a plethora of great apps built on the protocol

Another surprise is that many Fediverse developers helped Threads debug an issue that was tricky for Meta to figure out, & that there is continued cooperation between developers.

Unfortunately, there was no discussion on when Threads will launch an iPad app or if they will reconsider allowing third party developers to create a third party Threads client (the latter would be my preference).

Whether you love, loathe, or are indifferent about Threads, it was a great conversation to watch. Also, it will be interesting to see the Fediverse expand 100-fold when both Threads & Flipboard fully federate later this year.

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

🕺🏾 Follow my adventures upon: 🐘 Darnell (One) 🦁 Darnell (Movies, Opuses, Entertainment) 📸 Darnell (Out Of Office)

🦹🏾‍♂️ WordPress Workarounds: 💻 Darnell (TeleVerse) 🌍 Darnell (Africa) 👨🏾‍🎨 Darnell (Creative Outlet)

🥷🏾 Other Hideaways: 🧵 Darnell (Threads) 🔞 Darnell (Hard News) 🐬 Darnell (Flipboard)

Previously, there were unofficial reports that Threads had surpassed 190 million users (I am not sure how the third party company was calculating their metrics as they were wrong before), but Meta has revealed that the service is still growing at a relatively healthy pace all the while introducing a new feature in beta.

Meta's Threads app now has more than 150 million monthly users, an increase of about 20 million new users since February. Mark Zuckerberg shared the latest user numbers during Meta''s first-quarter earnings call, saying that the app “continues to be on the trajectory that I hope to see.” [...]

Threads users may soon have a new way to clean up their timelines. The app is testing a new archive feature that can be used to manually archive individual posts or automatically hide posts after a set period of time, Adam Mosseri shared. (Engadget)

Reaching 150 million users is an impressive milestone, although I expect that number to dip slightly once Turkey’s 🇹🇷 ban of Threads takes effect on April 29th.

One statistic Threads has yet to reveal is how many users have activated ActivityPub, which, from my anecdotal observations, is probably less than 1%.

As far as archiving goes, it is an exciting feature that might appeal to privacy-conscious users. A better option would be auto-delete after a certain number of days, a popular feature in Mastodon.

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

🕺🏾 Follow my adventures upon: 🐘 Darnell (One) 🦁 Darnell (Movies, Opuses, Entertainment) 📸 Darnell (Out Of Office)

🦹🏾‍♂️ WordPress Workarounds: 💻 Darnell (TeleVerse) 🌍 Darnell (Africa) 👨🏾‍🎨 Darnell (Creative Outlet)

🥷🏾 Other Hideaways: 🧵 Darnell (Threads) 🔞 Darnell (Hard News) 🐬 Darnell (Flipboard)

It is alarming that the House of Representatives in Congress are once again attempting to justify banning TikTok from the eyes of millions of Americans 🇺🇸.

“This bill protects Americans and especially America’s children from the malign influence of Chinese propaganda on the app TikTok. This app is a spy balloon in Americans’ phones,” said bill author Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican. [...]

ByteDance intends to exhaust all legal challenges before it considers any kind of divestiture if the TikTok ban becomes law, according to people familiar with the matter.

“It is unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of important foreign and humanitarian assistance to once again jam through a ban bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans, devastate 7 million businesses, and shutter a platform that contributes $24 billion to the U.S. economy, annually,” a TikTok spokesperson said Saturday. (Bloomberg)

There was at least one Congressman by the name of Ro Khanna willing to stand up to this silly bill, & he posted his response to the evil ban on TikTok & YouTube.

This TikTok ban was snuck inside a foreign aid package bill, making it unlikely that the US Senate will ignore it.

[House Speaker Mike] Johnson’s foreign aid plan includes three bills that separately fund Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific region, along with a fourth bill that includes various GOP-backed foreign policy priorities as a sweetener to entice Republicans to back the proposal. Those provisions would include seizing frozen Russian assets to fund the Ukrainian war effort along with legislation that could result in a nationwide ban on the popular social media app, TikTok. (USA Today)

Unfortunately, @potus@threads.net will sign the bill into law if it clears the Senate.

Today, members of both parties in the House of Representatives voted to advance our national security interests by passing urgently needed legislation delivering critical support to Israel and Ukraine, and aid for those impacted by conflict and disasters around the world.

I urge the Senate to quickly send this package to my desk. (President Joe Biden)

Suppose the United States 🇺🇸 can ban TikTok. In that case, they can ban any social networking site for any reason, including sites on the Fediverse originating from hostile nations like China 🇨🇳 & Russia 🇷🇺 (which would upset @admin@pravda.me, which is a top ranked instance).

The United States 🇺🇸 is not immune from electing another authoritarian as President, who would most certainly abuse this measure to silence online gatherings of dissidents who are upset about their policies.

Banning TikTok is a dangerous slippery slope that could enable Congress and the President to ban any site deemed a national security risk, leading toward further online erosions of liberty.

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

🕺🏾 Follow my adventures upon: 🐘 Darnell (One) 🦁 Darnell (Movies, Opuses, Entertainment) 📸 Darnell (Out Of Office)

🦹🏾‍♂️ WordPress Workarounds: 💻 Darnell (TeleVerse) 🌍 Darnell (Africa) 👨🏾‍🎨 Darnell (Creative Outlet)

🥷🏾 Other Hideaways: 🧵 Darnell (Threads) 🔞 Darnell (Hard News) 🐬 Darnell (Flipboard)

For those interested in hosting their own Pixelfed or Castopod instance on their domain, K&T Host currently offers free hosting as part of a beta test.

For Pixelfed Folks

Get Pixelfed hosting that works for you

Store and share your photos without compromising your data security and privacy. Get started now, with free setup and migration. [...]

Massive storage

Scale your data resources up to 10TB for massive file storage. Upload your image to your App Cloud account to create your own image cloud with Pixelfed.

Security first

Why take risks with your site? K&T Shield protects Pixelfed with custom security that is always up-to-date. K&T Shield also provides extra security to your sensitive administrative pages. [...]

Built for speed

Pixelfed is faster than ever. You start out with optimal resources, based on what Pixelfed needs to work best. Handle more traffic with triple compute power and micro-caching for faster load times. (via K&T Host)

Beta test users start with 1 gigabyte of RAM & 20 gigabytes of storage (you might be able to request more during the beta test.

For podcasters less interested in photos & more interested in audio, here is K&T Host’s Castopod offer:

For Castopod Citizens

Speed up with Redis

Speed up Castopod with Redis caching. Redis is a great way to speed up a busy Castopod instance to keep content flowing. Redis is available in every Castopod service. [...]

Full SSH access

Access your Castopod instance directly on the server over SSH. Manage Castopod using command line tools including the built-in “php spark” command. Configure Cron, backups, and updates over SSH.

Control your data

Build your online presence with Castopod. All of your data and metadata are stored on privately owned and managed hardware using entirely open-source software. Post, upload, share, and access info without tracking.

If you are wondering if these deals are too good to be true, the caveat is that K&T Host will offer free hosting, albeit temporarily, to test out these Fediverse platforms on their servers.

What is the beta testing program?

The beta program is a period of time in which new applications become available for testing before general availability. The purpose of this program is to solicit feedback on how well new applications work, and to diagnose and resolve any issues with the hosting.

What do I get out of it?

Beta testers receive free hosting of the application during the beta program, plus three months free hosting after the beta program ends. Should beta testers continue hosting the application, there is a 20% discount for the life of the hosting service.

What are the requirements?

1) Bring your own domain, or sub domain to use. K&T does not provide domain registration services.

2) Install, manage, and test the selected application, and report any issues you run into. (via K&T Host)

Another caveat is that beta testers will receive lower priority support during the testing phase, which will change once the beta is over.

Is it worth it‽

This beta test may not be for everyone. Still, for those seeking to sample their entrance into the Fediverse via Pixelfed or Castopod, this is a great way to experiment with these ActivityPub platforms without risking losing money.

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

🕺🏾 Follow my adventures upon: 🐘 Darnell (One) 🦁 Darnell (Movies, Opuses, Entertainment) 📸 Darnell (Out Of Office)

🦹🏾‍♂️ WordPress Workarounds: 💻 Darnell (TeleVerse) 🌍 Darnell (Africa) 👨🏾‍🎨 Darnell (Creative Outlet)

🥷🏾 Other Hideaways: 🧵 Darnell (Threads) 🔞 Darnell (Hard News) 🐬 Darnell (Flipboard)

On April 29th, Meta will officially deactivate Threads accounts for anyone residing in the nation of Turkey 🇹🇷.

To comply with an interim order of the Rekabet Kurumu/Turkish Competition Authority (TCA), we will shut down Threads in Türkiye from Monday 29 April. We know this will be very disappointing for the many people in Türkiye who engage on Threads with their community. [...]

The TCA recently issued an interim order prohibiting the sharing of data between Threads and Instagram. We disagree with the interim order, we believe we are in compliance with all Turkish legal requirements, and we will appeal. The TCA’s interim order leaves us with no choice but to temporarily shut down Threads in Türkiye. We will continue to constructively engage with the TCA and hope to bring Threads back to people in Türkiye as quickly as possible. (Meta Newsroom)

Although Turkey 🇹🇷 is banning Threads over technical & legal reasons, those active on the Fediverse on other platforms should be aware of the dangers of putting all of your Fediverse eggs 🥚 in one ActivityPub basket 🧺.

Fedi-citizens should consider using multiple platforms on multiple instances, just in case a government:

• Blocks an instance or the hosting service of your instance
• Seizes a domain from your preferred instance (Afghanistan 🇦🇫 seized the domain from a pro-LGBT instance)
• Sanctions a large scale DDoS attack against your instance

For example, according to China Firewall Test:

• four of my instances are partially blocked in China 🇨🇳 (both of my WriteFreely instances, my Misskey instance & my Pixelfed instance) due to who I have chosen to host with
• two Fediverse instances are entirely blocked (alas Flipboard & Threads!)
• The other five instances (one Mastodon & four WordPress) are fully available.

If possible, I would advocate either solo hosting or using less popular (albeit more minor) instances which most governments usually overlook.

While there is nothing wrong with creating an account on a more prominent instance, more often than not, they are the target of government anger (for trivial or political reasons), which means followers may not be able to follow your Fedi-adventures if your instance is blocked.

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

🕺🏾 Follow my adventures upon: 🐘 Darnell (One) 🦁 Darnell (Movies, Opuses, Entertainment) 📸 Darnell (Out Of Office)

🦹🏾‍♂️ WordPress Workarounds: 💻 Darnell (TeleVerse) 🌍 Darnell (Africa) 👨🏾‍🎨 Darnell (Creative Outlet)

🥷🏾 Other Hideaways: 🧵 Darnell (Threads) 🔞 Darnell (Hard News) 🐬 Darnell (Flipboard)

Previously, there were reports that Elon Musk was laying off 10% of their workforce, or approximately 14,000 employees from Tesla.

However, Elon Musk could soon lay off one-fifth of his workforce (28,000 employees).

Musk’s most decisive action came Monday when he announced the layoffs of more than 10% of the company’s staff, which totaled over 140,000 employees at the end of 2023. There are signs the cuts could eventually go much deeper: Last week, Tesla managers were asked to provide the company with a list of 20% of their employees to consider for layoffs, said a former employee involved in those discussions.

Several other Tesla executives also announced their departures from the company on Monday, including one of Tesla’s most senior executives, Drew Baglino, senior vice president of powertrain and energy engineering, and Rohan Patel, vice president of public policy and business development. (The Information)

Although this layoff ratio is not as bad as X (where 80% of the employees were laid off), reducing a fifth of your workforce is significant, as well as a corporate morale killer.

I do not think Tesla is in danger of going bankrupt. However, Tesla will need to figure out alternate avenues for revenue as consumer demand for electric vehicles is dropping.

Unlike many rivals, Tesla’s options are not limited to automobiles, as the company also sells batteries & solar panels to clients as well.

👨🏾‍💻 by @darnell@darnellclayton.com 🔛 @darnell@darnell.day

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