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Friendica

Definición:

Friendica is a social media platform that is part of fediverse, a federated network of independent social media platforms that communicate with each other through open protocols. Friendica is distinguished by its interconnectivity with many other social networks and its focus on privacy and decentralization.

History and development

Friendica was launched in 2010, originally under the name "Friendika", with the aim of providing an alternative to centralized social media platforms. The platform has been designed since its inception to respect user privacy and allow fluid communication between different social networks.

Over the years, Friendica has gone through various stages of evolution:

2010: Launch of Friendica (then Friendika) by developer Mike Macgirvin. The platform was designed as a decentralized social network with a strong focus on user privacy.
2011: Friendika is renamed Friendica. The name change is done to avoid confusion with other brands.
2012: Interoperability with other social networks is introduced, allowing Friendica users to communicate with users from other platforms.
2015: Version 3.5 of Friendica is released, which includes several improvements in the user interface and functionality.
2019: Version 2019.12 is released which introduces new privacy features, such as the ability to hide a user's list of followers.
2023: Friendica continues to be an active and growing platform, with a dedicated community of users and developers.

These key milestones in Friendica's history underscore its ongoing commitment to user privacy and interoperability with other social media platforms. Its development has been possible thanks to the contribution of a global community of developers and users.

Operation

Friendica works through 'nodes', which are independent servers that make up the Friendica network. Each node has its own database and users, but all nodes can communicate with each other to share content and messages.

A highlight of Friendica is its ability to interoperate with a wide variety of other social media platforms. This means that Friendica users can follow and interact with users of other social networks, even those that are not part of the fediverso.

Advantages and benefits

The main advantages of Friendica include:

Privacy & Control: Friendica gives users complete control over their information and how it is shared.
Interoperability: Friendica can interact with many other social media platforms, allowing users to communicate with a wide range of people.
Decentralization: Friendica is a federated network, which means it does not depend on a single entity or server. This offers resistance to censorship and the ability to choose between different nodes with different policies.

Criticisms and challenges

Although Friendica has many advantages, it also faces some challenges. Its decentralized nature can make it difficult to moderate content and protect against spam or harassment. In addition, Friendica's user interface has been criticized for being less intuitive and attractive than that of other more conventional social networks.

Friendica also relies heavily on a community of volunteers for its development and maintenance, which can limit the rate at which new features are introduced or issues are resolved.

Friendica instances

An instance in Friendica refers to a 'node', which is a standalone server that is part of the Friendica network. Each instance has its own database and its own users, but all instances can interact with each other to share posts and messages, thus creating a decentralized network.

The choice of instance to join is a decision made by each user. Instances vary in size, rules, and policies, and some may have specific characteristics or approaches that distinguish them. Once an instance is chosen and an account is created, it is not possible to move the account to another instance without creating a new account.

Some notable instances of Friendica are:

libranet.de: This instance is quite popular in the Friendica community and has a wide range of users.
squeet.me: This instance is known for its active administrator and its commitment to user privacy and security.
pirati.ca: An instance of Friendica that focuses on freedom of expression and user privacy.
social.yl.ms: A small but stable instance of Friendica that stands out for its commitment to user privacy.

Users can search and select the instance that best suits their needs and preferences, and they can always interact with users from any other instance, regardless of which one they have joined.

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