SocialHub and W3C Social Web Incubator Community Group

Community
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Hello,

Thanks to recent posts by @andreas_kuckartz, and as a moderator, I feel like this is a good time to inquire as to the relationship between this SocialHub and the W3C Social Web Incubator Community Group (CG).

I understand the CG was responsible for putting together ActivityPub and that SocialHub was instantiated out of that effort as well and today the CG website links to SocialHub as its forum.

Since 2017 it seems the CG had a long lull in activity but from the new mailing list it seems that activity may be picking up again.

So my question is, what is the relationship today between SocialHub and W3C Social Web Incubator Community Group? Does the W3C pay for hosting and for activitypub.rocks domain? Is there overlap between administration of SocialHub and leadership in W3C SWICG?

If we can answer these questions I think it’ll help reduce confusion, make it easier for cooperation between SocialHub and the mailing list, and ensure that SocialHub can look forward to long and healthy future.

-David

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While I can not speak for the W3C, the answer certainly is no.

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AFAIK the domain activitypub.rocks is paid for by @cwebber. The activitypub.eu domain that this Discourse instance uses for email is paid for by petites singularités, the non-profit I work for, as well as the VM it runs on and the time spent working on it. The backup space is paid for by @rhiaro.

I think we should have some kind of collective to take care of these charges instead of putting the burden on individuals.

No, but there is close contact between the three entities mentioned above, although informal.

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Thanks to @weex for also initiating this discussion on the W3C SWICG mailing list.

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Do those mailing lists have an RSS feed or some other equivalent? I’d love to participate in the discussions, but I’d prefer my email not be spammed with all those topics I’m not interested in.

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Hi @mk3, yes, the w3c swicg mailing list has an Atom feed at: public-swicg@w3.org Mail Archives

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Awesome! Thank you @codenamedmitri . Is there a way to filter the feed items to just the topic I’m interested in? Or do I have to get Open RSS to create that for me? :smiley:

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Hmm I think that depends on your individual RSS client, yeah. (Let me know if you find one that does that, btw!)

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RSS client can filter feed items but not sure how that would work for what I’m asking.

The RSS feed is a firehose of all topics and replies. So its the same spam issue as email, just moved to an RSS feed.

I still want to see new topics. Just not the replies to ones I’m not interested in.

I’ll skip for now. But would really encourage the w3c to select a communications platform that gives contributors more options to engage.

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Yeah, agreed, the RSS UX is not that great. The best I’ve been able to do is use the Mute Thread function on my email readers.

And yeah, agreed, we should explore more options for the SWICG, feed wise.

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Your inquiry is valid, and clarifying the relationship between SocialHub and the W3C Social Web Incubator Community Group (SWICG) is important for fostering collaboration and transparency. Here’s an overview of how they relate today:

SocialHub & W3C SWICG Relationship

  • Origins: The W3C SWICG was responsible for the development of ActivityPub, and SocialHub was created as a community forum to continue discussions around its implementation and broader decentralized social web topics.
  • Current Status: The SWICG had a long period of inactivity but seems to be reviving. SocialHub continues to serve as a space for developers, maintainers, and interested parties to discuss ActivityPub and related standards.
  • Hosting & Funding: The W3C does not directly fund SocialHub’s hosting or the activitypub.rocks domain. These are maintained separately by the community.
  • Overlap in Administration: While some individuals may be active in both SocialHub and the SWICG, there is no formal administrative overlap. Leadership in SWICG is distinct from moderation/administration of SocialHub.
  • Cooperation & Future: Given the revival of SWICG discussions, it would be beneficial to explore better alignment and collaboration between SocialHub and the CG mailing list. This could involve cross-posting important discussions, coordinating on ActivityPub development, and ensuring that the long-term sustainability of SocialHub is secured.

Would you like me to help draft a proposal for better coordination between the two groups?

4o

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It would be useful to:

  • mirror the Social CG mailing-list here
  • use the Discourse-Github integration to be able to discuss Social CG issues on Github here as well.