Darnell (Seize The Day)

I have not yet seen this reported elsewhere, but Meta has replaced the classic “@” sign in Instagram with the Threads Icon, at least on the app I am using.

I only see this on iPhone & iPad (the iPhone app running on iPad), but not on the website itself.

Ironically, the Threads icon was inspired by the @ sign, according to @mosseri@threads.net (on a thread he posted last year).

The Threads logo, in Instagram Sans, is inspired by the @ sign, which stands for someone's username, the individual, and voice. It was designed by @rourkery, @jezburrows, and others. It's a single unbroken line, inspired by the loop seen in the app when a thread is started. (Mosseri on Threads)

The symbol would make much more sense if it appeared upon Threads. Perhaps Meta is trying to influence individuals on Instagram to check out Threads subtly‽ Hmm...

Update: Props to @codybrom@threads.net for revealing the reason why the “@” symbol looks like the Threads icon on Instagram.

Instagram Sans is our new, global typeface. The glyph and wordmark inspired this custom style that nods to our heritage.

Instagram Sans reflects the shape of the glyph and our commitment to simplicity and craft. The in-between moments of a perfect circle and a square, which we lovingly call the “squircle,” show up throughout the typeface.

Instagram Sans is a contemporary remix of grotesque and geometric styles. The type is designed with accessibility and global scripts at the core, able to express a range of styles in any language. (Hello Instagram Sans)

So basically Instagram reimagined font for their app, which coincidentally made the “a” symbol look like the Threads icon.

My only question is, when are they going to bring this font over to Threads‽

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I am surprised Apple was able to outmaneuver not only their detractors (who desired to use a third-party payment alternative) but the courts as well, who are pressuring Apple to comply with developer requests.

“It sounds to me as if the goal was to then maintain the business model and revenue you had in the past,” [US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez] Rogers said to an Apple executive during a multi-day hearing to address Epic's complaint that the iPhone maker isn't abiding by the terms of a corrective order the judge issued in 2021.

Apple said in January that it would would let all third-party apps sold in the US include an outside link to a developer website to process payments for in-app purchases. Since then, Apple has received just 38 applications for outside links out of an estimated 65,000 app developers that offer in-app purchases, company executives testified.

The reason: Apple will charge a 27% fee to developers who want to use the link entitlement program — and when combined with payment processing fees, the total is even more than the 30% the App Store has taken for itself for years, the judge was told at the hearing in Oakland, California. (Bloomberg)

Apple will probably try this same trick with the European Union 🇪🇺 in Europe, forcing numerous nations across multiple continents to create new laws to force the Cupertino giant to comply with the intent of their legal rulings.

However, unless governments pass laws dictating exactly how much of a percentage mobile stores can charge, it is unlikely that companies like Apple will comply, as they have nothing to gain by reducing the percentage fee for large developers.

Instead of waiting for the legal system to save them, developers should continue to charge a higher price in the App Store, & provide a discounted price online. If customers discover they can save money by paying directly online, the app developers will keep 100% of the money instead of losing a third to Apple.

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Image: Ghost Icon

After announcing that they would enter the Fediverse, Ghost has provided their first update about integrating ActivityPub within their open source platform.

In the past week alone, we've had conversations with Mastodon, Flipboard, The Verge, Buttondown, WriteFreely, and several co-authors of the ActivityPub spec. There's a palpable feeling that this just might be the year of the linux desktop the open web.

What to expect from this newsletter

We're going to be sharing a mix of project updates, behind the scenes work, and engineering challenges. The truth is that anyone can make a splashy landing page that makes it seem like they know what they're doing, but we've never built a production app with ActivityPub before!

So, we're going to be sharing what we're learning and struggling with in real time, as we do the hard work of figuring out how to turn our ideas into a reality. Some good news, though, is that we already have a few things working.

This is a screenshot of real code output, rather than mockups, using ActivityPub. We're feeling a little daunted by the scope of the work ahead of us, but we're also really excited about starting down this road. (Ghost ActivityPub Blog)

It is great to see another blog platform seriously embrace the Fediverse and admit the challenges of integrating ActivityPub within their current software.

Even better is the offer of assistance from other ActivityPub players (both open source & proprietary), which shows a real community spirit to break down the barriers between platforms & truly make the internet connected again.

Currently, there are five significant blogging platforms on the Fediverse (note: significant being defined here as boasting over 100,000 total users) who have successfully activated ActivityPub:

• WriteFreely
• WordPress via ActivityPub plugin
• Micro Blog (do not let the name fool you, as lengthy posts are welcome)
• Drupal via an ActivityPub module
• Minds

If Ghost can successfully integrate ActivityPub, it will become the second largest blogging platform in the Fediverse, behind only WordPress (tens of millions of websites are powered by Ghost).

Hopefully, Ghost's pending entrance into the Fediverse will encourage other publishing platforms to either renew or initiate the process of activating ActivityPub (as the Fediverse is an easy way to make blogging social again).

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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.

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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:

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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).

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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.

Update: The European Union 🇪🇺 has a new Fediverse handle & it appears like they are here to stay! (Props to @jwildeboer@social.wildeboer.net for alerting me about this).

Our commitment to the fediverse is here to stay.

Today, we launched our new Mastodon instance. It will ensure a privacy-focused space to engage with and get the latest from our Commissioners, departments, and the official voices of the Commission.

We want to thank @Mastodon@mastodon.social for stewarding us and helping us make this possible.

Fostering European digital players is vital to our strategy for a stronger #DigitalEU.

This is a unique opportunity to grow the community even more. Let's get there! (@EUCommission@ec.social-network.europa.eu on Mastodon)

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