Seems weird that Mastodon is using funds for quote-posting - which about half of my timeline seem vehemently against - instead of something like integrating a Facebook-groups like system, which... no one really seems to be against and many people seem to desperately want?
One more thing, not only am I releasing Pixelfed Groups but also an api spec and open source groups mobile app that will be compatible with any server that implements the simple api spec!
The api spec is different from the fediverse spec, and we aim to be compatible with other implementations!
A dedicated Groups app with multiple account support, push notifications and share extensions will go a long way to help standardize the experience.
Pixelfed Groups has a feature called SlowJoin mode that allows you to define fine-grained permission limits for several actions.
In addition, all group activities from users, mods and admins are logged in an easy to browse Interaction Log. Should you need to apply limits to a specific member, you can limit most actions on the member tab!
We pioneered the concept of cross group moderation in 2021, and are in the final stages of implementation.
If you haven't heard, sadly, #ChirpSocial, one of the popular #ActivityPub “groups” platform, is shutting down “probably” on February 29th.
In an email they sent to admins, the owner and developer can no longer support https://chirp.social financially as they failed to find a new job after they were laid off by #Google last year.
This reminds us the importance of having a built-in groups feature, and one where the groups feature actually federates.
Back in 2008, when the #Fediverse was born, we did have a built-in federated groups in #Laconica / #StatusNet (today known as #GNUsocial). We used bang (!) instead of at (@). A built-in groups feature is more stable as established instances can host them.
Today, we have #Friendica and #Hubzilla (as well as #Streams-based instances) to fill in that, as groups is a built-in feature in those software products. It's just a matter of finding an instance that's open to hosting groups for any topic for the ActivityPub protocol.
That said, any Friendica, Hubzilla, Streams-based instances you suggest for groups?