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mastodon - Link to source
Open Letter to Mark Zuckerberg
Dear Mark, I hope this finds you well. I noticed something interesting today - it seems Instagram is blocking links to my little open-source project. You know, the one that lets people share photos without harvesting their personal data or forcing algorithmic feeds on them. I have to admit, I'm flattered. Who would've thought a small team of volunteers could build something that would catch your attention? We're just trying to give people a choice in how they share their memories online. No VCs, no surveillance capitalism, just code and community. Remember when Facebook started? It was about connecting people, not maximizing engagement metrics. Our project might be tiny compared to Instagram, but we're staying true to that original spirit of social media - giving people control over their online presence without turning them into products. You could've ignored us. Instead, by blocking our links, you've given us the best endorsement we could ask for. You've confirmed what we've been saying all along - that big tech is more interested in protecting their walled gardens than fostering genuine innovation. Every time you block a link to our platform, you remind people why we built it in the first place. Your action tells them there are alternatives worth exploring, ones that respect their privacy and agency. So thank you, Mark. You've turned our little project into a symbol of resistance against digital monopolies.
in reply to pixelfed

gergo
mastodon - Link to source
gergo
• •
maybe he can carve out some time from his busy trump inauguration party organising schedule to read it 🤪
in reply to pixelfed

Hirad
glitchsoc - Link to source
Hirad
• •
Honestly, this is the worst open letter I've ever read. It lacks maturity and professionalism. It's full of snarky comments and a tone that doesn't encourage an adult conversation.
He had the chance to show Meta is the one acting like a child, but instead he made himself sound like one. And that's sad.

preposterous rhys reshared this.

in reply to Hirad

Max Riethmuller
friendica (DFRN) - Link to source
Max Riethmuller
•
Who gives a flying f what Meta think? 🙂 Do you think a polite letter was going to elicit some kind of kindly helpful response from Musk Mini-Me (sorry that was childish, I mean Mr Zuckerberg)?
in reply to Hirad

Sally Strange
glitchsoc - Link to source
Sally Strange
• •
@hirad and it's hypocritical. If you're going to be snarkily insulting, you can't also brownnose your target. (Talking about the lie that Zuckerberg started fb to "connect people".)
@Hirad
in reply to Hirad

tootbrute
gotosocial - Link to source
tootbrute
• •

oh noes....he doesn't give one jort my man. we ain't not VCs to get on our knees for.

fediverse free!

in reply to Hirad

Jens Becker
mastodon - Link to source
Jens Becker
• •
@hirad I was thinking the same. Completely unnecessary in this form. Sadly way too much self-righteousness here...
@pixelfed
@pixelfed @Hirad
This entry was edited (2 months ago)
in reply to Jens Becker

Barry Schwartz 🫖
mastodon - Link to source
Barry Schwartz 🫖
• •

@masteralf @hirad One key point to keep in mind is that Meta software is really, really bad. Links are blocked basically at random, because they use the misnamed "AI" and this is really naive pattern matchers and random number generators. People go around attributing purpose to the actions of Meta's algorithms when really they ought to know better.

Anyway, Mark Zuckerberg is a big dope who could not possibly understand an open letter and so it looks silly even to address one.

@Hirad @Jens Becker
in reply to Barry Schwartz 🫖

Barry Schwartz 🫖
mastodon - Link to source
Barry Schwartz 🫖
• •

@masteralf @hirad Aside: I sense in here the myth of "enshittification", which is the notion that Zuckerberg provided something idealistic and then "enshittified" it. This myth depends on the assumption that Zuckerberg always intended to give away something out of the pureness of his heart, rather than to make money.

He simply did what you are supposed to do as a profit-making business: get people deeply interested, and THEN charge them a profitable amount for it.

@Hirad @Jens Becker
in reply to Barry Schwartz 🫖

Gilbert Pilz
mastodon - Link to source
Gilbert Pilz
• •
@chemoelectric @masteralf @hirad You misunderstand the concept of "enshittification". It doesn't presuppose an initial idealism. Obviously the intent has always been to make money but, initially, you did that by making something that people *liked*, that was fun to use, etc.
@Barry Schwartz 🫖 @Hirad @Jens Becker
in reply to Gilbert Pilz

Barry Schwartz 🫖
mastodon - Link to source
Barry Schwartz 🫖
• •

@gpilz @masteralf @hirad AND THAT YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO PAY EXTRA FOR to keep that enjoyment. And that didn't wall itself off so it could make money off of people. Etc.

It's like if someone handed out a gadget on the street and gave free access, then made it so you had to trek to a store, pay money, and subscribe to the service. A lot of people would stop enjoying it. So what? THE COMPANY IS NOT A CHARITY.

@Hirad @Gilbert Pilz @Jens Becker
in reply to Barry Schwartz 🫖

Gilbert Pilz
mastodon - Link to source
Gilbert Pilz
• •
@chemoelectric @masteralf @hirad Enshittification is, among other things, about an inherent bait and switch. You grow your user base by offering one thing then, once that base large enough to make switching expensive, you change your offering to be something much shittier. It has nothing to do with charity, its about honest business practices.
@Barry Schwartz 🫖 @Hirad @Jens Becker
in reply to pixelfed

endeavorance
mastodon - Link to source
endeavorance
• •

it may help to shorten the letter

Dear Zuck,

Get bent, loser

Signed,
All of us

in reply to pixelfed

Paul Shryock
mastodon - Link to source
Paul Shryock
• •

"Remember when Facebook started? It was about rating women."

Fixed it for you.

reshared this

in reply to pixelfed

gameRevolt
mastodon - Link to source
gameRevolt
• •
this is great but Zuck’s early “dumb fucks” comment highlighted his real attitude
in reply to pixelfed

Mudlark
mastodon - Link to source
Mudlark
• •

this reads like somebody with maturity issues wrote it. Also at least export the thing into a pdf first, the squiggly lines and text cursor are still visible :floofLol:

More importantly, Zuckerberg didn’t build Facebook because he believed in anything, at least not anything good - initially the project was to rate college girls on their appearances

in reply to pixelfed

Howard Cheng
mastodon - Link to source
Howard Cheng
• •
When those that perceive you as a competitor start blocking you, you know you're doing something right.

tootbrute reshared this.

in reply to pixelfed

cesspool of empathy
mastodon - Link to source
cesspool of empathy
• •
lovely, just … don’t forget that Zuck’s original idea was to dehumanize and objectify women. He’s never had a noble vision. And I hope PixelFed’s doors aren’t open to that.
in reply to pixelfed

Abazigal
mastodon - Link to source
Abazigal
• •

This must be read in the same tone Kain used when addressing the elder god at the end of “Defiance”.

“Your words are heartening. For you would not fear us unless we could truly do you harm. False god. This is the end. The final turn of your wheel.”

in reply to pixelfed

Sally Strange
glitchsoc - Link to source
Sally Strange
• •
"it was about connecting people" Uh huh, specifically sexist, usually male people, so that they could more easily objectify women. Kissass
in reply to Sally Strange

Amici Is Me 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇳🇴
mastodon - Link to source
Amici Is Me 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇳🇴
• •

@SallyStrange
True about the origin of the app, but I really don't think it's meant as an actual compliment.

"connecting people" is what Meta employees tell themselves. Daniel is speaking to the ego of the Meta bosses, the story they tell about themselves, to their lower ranks, and to the rest of the world.

The fact that Meta blocks opportunities to connect therefore goes in the face of the story they tell themselves and to others.

@Sally Strange
in reply to Amici Is Me 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇳🇴

Sally Strange
glitchsoc - Link to source
Sally Strange
• •
@amici Not telling the truth means the letter writer didn't know the truth, or thought that the difference between "connecting people" vs "objectifying women" isn't worth mentioning. Both possibilities mean the letter writer is sexist.
@Amici Is Me 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇳🇴

Sally Strange reshared this.

in reply to Sally Strange

Amici Is Me 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇳🇴
mastodon - Link to source
Amici Is Me 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇳🇴
• •
@SallyStrange
I'd call that a very strong character accusation. It's a valid complaint that he missed the actual origins, but I would not venture so far in characterizing a person, if it's based off a single mocking letter.
@Sally Strange
in reply to Amici Is Me 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇳🇴

Sally Strange
glitchsoc - Link to source
Sally Strange
• •
@amici nah man, you can't look at structural bigotry through the lens of personal character. If the letter writer is unaware of FB's sexist origins, that means they're not tuned into even the most basic of feminist information sources, which means they're marinating in the same background misogyny that we all are. It's easily remedied and it doesn't mean they, personally, hate women--but it's still sexism.
@Amici Is Me 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇳🇴
in reply to pixelfed

Sofasophia
sharkey - Link to source
Sofasophia
• •
in reply to pixelfed

Mieszko Ślusarczyk
mastodon - Link to source
Mieszko Ślusarczyk
• •
It was never about connecting people, it was always about „engagement”.
in reply to pixelfed

Asta McCarthy
mastodon - Link to source
Asta McCarthy
• •
#MakeSocialsSocialAgain
makesocialssocialagain.nl/

Make Socials Social Again

Op 16 januari roepen we publieke organisaties op om samen de eerste stap te zetten door alternatieven te gaan gebruiken voor Big Tech sociale media platformen.
makesocialssocialagain.nl
#makesocialssocialagain
in reply to pixelfed

TeflonTrout he/him
mastodon - Link to source
TeflonTrout he/him
• •

No surveillance capitalism*

*but it still owns everything that gets posted there in every way, shape, and form to use however Dan sees fit, forever.

Please work on that terms of service

in reply to pixelfed

cannasprite
mastodon - Link to source
cannasprite
• •
a lot of us are wanting true authenticity & transparency! Thank you @dansup & fediverse!
@Daniel Supernault
in reply to pixelfed

prnm_
mastodon - Link to source
prnm_
• •
Mark be like: What do you mean? want to compete with me?
in reply to pixelfed

John Mierau
mastodon - Link to source
John Mierau
• •

@paul_e_cooley unfortunately, intentionally or accidentally. Dan is following Elon's 'move fast and break things' mentality.

He's doing great things for fediverse visibility... but being a one man show leads to getting your ego involved or missing things (like Loops' egregious rights over-reach in its TOS).

Dan's done a lot of good... I just hope he can avoid an Icarus-style crash and burn that could undo a lot of that good.
..

@Paul E Cooley
in reply to pixelfed

Totally with Ю ⁂
mastodon - Link to source
Totally with Ю ⁂
• •
I believe texts get better when we step aside for a few cycles and not let ourselves be driven by the highness of attention. Zuckerberg has never been what you describe. There is no grassroots moral origin we could jumpstart in the back of his memory. It is historically evident that Facebook, later meta has frequently chosen the unethical paths when they had choice to. There is no ancient ideal to appeal to. No renaissance can happen.
This entry was edited (2 months ago)
in reply to pixelfed

Amy Rodman
mastodon - Link to source
Amy Rodman
• •
great letter! Rooting for you all the way!! A couple of years after I started NadaMoo, I got a cold call from the retired director of sales for Ben and Jerry’s. “Your product has ‘legs’” he said, “and I want to help.” No threats from lawyers followed. Because Ben and Jerry got it right: equity, sustainability and community can be the pillars of successful businesses. They were not in my niche market, but they still cared about the people in my niche market.
in reply to pixelfed

Cairo Braga [toot]
glitchsoc - Link to source
Cairo Braga [toot]
• •

this "open letter" is embarassing... to Pixelfed.

"connecting people"? Facebook was created to predate on women and use their data without their consent!!! it was NEVER about connecting people, it was always about misogyny, ego and money.

in reply to pixelfed

Kate Nyhan
mastodon - Link to source
Kate Nyhan
• •
"without harvesting their personal data"?
Maybe someone should tell the lawyers who drafted the Loops TOS that :)
bajsicki.com/blog/loops-video-…

loops.video - phil@bajsicki:~$

Been a while. I’ve mostly been posting on the Fedi, but I feel like this is a rather important topic that requires attention. Recently @dansup has been posting a bunch about loops.video, a federated alternative to Instagram/ TikTok.
bajsicki.com
in reply to pixelfed

TronNerd82
mastodon - Link to source
TronNerd82
• •
Damn Daniel, you didn't have to obliterate Mark like that.
Just kidding, he deserves every bit of criticism imaginable.
in reply to pixelfed

pettter
mastodon - Link to source
pettter
• •
I mean, when Facebook started, it was about ranking the looks of women on campus. It was never about 'connecting people'.
in reply to pixelfed

seism0saurus
mastodon - Link to source
seism0saurus
• •
Well, Facebook started as a sexist platform for rating female college students without consent.
There is nothing you can expect from such an "inventor".
in reply to pixelfed

RhesusPieces
mastodon - Link to source
RhesusPieces
• •
I may not be an economist, but generally when they gush about innovations that selflessly want to connect people, they’re generally talking about marketing more than edenic community…no offense to the love-machine of laissez-faire of course
in reply to pixelfed

katzenberger 🇺🇦
mastodon - Link to source
katzenberger 🇺🇦
• •
in reply to pixelfed

Badger AF (he/him) DEMOCRACY
mastodon - Link to source
Badger AF (he/him) DEMOCRACY
• •
Except Zuck took someone else's project and figured out how to monetize it. Zuck never had good intentions or tried to make the world a better place.
in reply to pixelfed

Zip
mastodon - Link to source
Zip
• •

this letter was small and unhelpful.

I would love to find a platform without a "front-man" with an inflated sense of self.

in reply to pixelfed

Max Legroom ☕️
mastodon - Link to source
Max Legroom ☕️
• •
Wait the first letters of each sentence don’t spell out “Fuck you Zuck”. I’m confused!
in reply to pixelfed

catflyhigh
mastodon - Link to source
catflyhigh
• •
When facebook started afaik it was not about connecting people, it was about rating women. (so I highly doubt Zuck ever wanted to "make the internet better" and I wouldn't open a door to this guy under any circumstances.)
That aside the open letter of course is nice.
in reply to pixelfed

WesDym
mastodon - Link to source
WesDym
• •
Awesome, but the one catch here is that he probably didn't develop (with other people, not alone) Facebook for idealistic reasons. It's more likely that he wanted to get laid, and help other horny college dudes get laid. The original Facebook has been credibly accused of being a stalking app, and I find that very easy to believe. Nothing he's done has indicated to me that he actually gives a shit about users, and nothing he says has any meaning for me without evidence to back it up.
in reply to pixelfed

Marcus
mastodon - Link to source
Marcus
• •
I noticed something similar a year or so ago. Any time I would share photos of my kids with family members or whatever, I would create a public share link to the album on my Nextcloud server, with an expiration date, and then share that link on Facebook. All of a sudden one day I started noticing that the posts would get deleted a few minutes after I posted them, then they started blocking me from posting the links outright.
in reply to pixelfed

Giant Pink Robots!
mastodon - Link to source
Giant Pink Robots!
• •
To be honest I would be really surprised if this was on purpose and not a malfunction of their spam filters. Pixelfed isn't in the same ballpark as Instagram, struggling to think how having a company policy to filter out its links would be worth the bad publicity - for basically no reason.
This entry was edited (2 months ago)
in reply to pixelfed

LillyLyle/Count Melancholia
mastodon - Link to source
LillyLyle/Count Melancholia
• •
When Facebook started it was not about "connecting people", it was about rating girls' fuckability on campus.
Zuck has always been a misogynistic arsehole.
in reply to pixelfed

Geodad478
mastodon - Link to source
Geodad478
• •
Got my Pixelfed account up and running today. It reminds me of the early days of IG, before Meta bought them.
in reply to pixelfed

Kevin Russell
mastodon - Link to source
Kevin Russell
• •

Honoured to participate in the community building human tools for humans. Great letter.

Keep building, we're going all the way.

#humans #freedom #fedi # Mastodon #pixelfed #humanTools #HumanCommunity #humanTools

#fedi #freedom #pixelfed #humans #humantools #humancommunity
in reply to pixelfed

Maggie Maybe
glitchsoc - Link to source
Maggie Maybe
• •

I don’t know, I have never found it beneficial at all to write paragraphs to a man explaining how he hurt me.

You could probably edit half of this out and instead laugh at him for being so jealous of your little independent website that he’s terrified to let people see it.

in reply to pixelfed

effariwhy
mastodon - Link to source
effariwhy
• •
they can't stop me from finding other ways to show the people I care about how to break free from meta
in reply to pixelfed

Brendan Thompson
mastodon - Link to source
Brendan Thompson
• •
this is extremely well written! It will undoubtedly fall on deaf ears! Which is sad.
in reply to pixelfed

Lindsey
mastodon - Link to source
Lindsey
• •
reports of zuckerberg preventing links to pixelfed is how I found the Fediverse. Chef’s kiss
in reply to pixelfed

naught101
mastodon - Link to source
naught101
• •
maybe this is not productive, but it's pretty funny. Nice work.
in reply to pixelfed

Chris
mastodon - Link to source
Chris
• •
Admirable that you even spend energy on that person. 🙏🏼
in reply to pixelfed

JorgeLuiz
mastodon - Link to source
JorgeLuiz
• •
When money and power get in the head of the people they becomes another persons, puppets of administration dramas.
How unhappy happens when you must down the knees to your enemy ?
Play your game!
Do your best !
The Big Brother watches everything.He do not known do other thing.
Do not be romantic !
Be smart !
in reply to pixelfed

JW Prince of CPH, Radicalized
mastodon - Link to source
JW Prince of CPH, Radicalized
• •
Mark won't remember shit; he never built anything & was never interested in making the web better. Good letter though.
in reply to pixelfed

Stefan Fendt🌻🟩
mastodon - Link to source
Stefan Fendt🌻🟩
• •

"It was about connecting people, not maximizing engagement metrics."

No. It was exactly NOT about connecting people. It never was. It was about making money. Ever since.

Am I really one of the last people left on planet earth remembering Mark Z. having written "I don't know why. They 'trust me'. Dumb fucks." about facebook users? I cannot believe this...

in reply to pixelfed

Víctor A. Rodríguez
mastodon - Link to source
Víctor A. Rodríguez
• •

Please send to your Spanish-speaking friends this Spanish translation made with open source tools

rebel.ar/@internauta_de_antes/…

Internauta de Antes (@internauta_de_antes@rebel.ar)

Carta abierta a Mark Zuckerberg https://www.bit-man.guru/posts/carta-abierta-a-mark-zuckerberg/
rebel.ar
in reply to pixelfed

Alvyn
mastodon - Link to source
Alvyn
• •
finally did it. After ditching #twitter last year, both #facebook and #instagram accounts are deleted. Moved fully to #mastodon and thinking about #pixelfed
#mastodon #facebook #pixelfed #twitter #instagram
in reply to pixelfed

Tim Ford
mastodon - Link to source
Tim Ford
• •
Never been more excited to join Pixelfed. Thank you for the work you're doing.
in reply to pixelfed

Moniquedx 🐼
mastodon - Link to source
Moniquedx 🐼
• •
Traduction française du toot de Daniel Supernault, créateur de Mastodon @pixelfed
Cher Mark, J'espère que tu te portes bien. J'ai remarqué quelque chose d'intéressant aujourd'hui - il semble qu'Instagram bloque les liens vers mon petit projet open-source. Vous savez, celui qui permet aux gens de partager des photos sans récolter leurs données personnelles ou leur imposer des flux algorithmiques. Je dois admettre que je suis flatté. Qui aurait cru qu'une petite équipe de bénévoles pourrait créer quelque chose qui attirerait votre attention ? Nous essayons simplement de donner aux gens le choix de la manière dont ils partagent leurs souvenirs en ligne. Pas de capital-risque, pas de capitalisme de surveillance, juste du code et une communauté. Vous vous souvenez des débuts de Facebook ? Il s'agissait de connecter les gens, pas de maximiser les indicateurs d'engagement. Notre projet est peut-être minuscule comparé à Instagram, mais nous restons fidèles à l'esprit originel des médias sociaux : donner aux gens le contrôle de leur présence en ligne sans les transformer en produits. Vous auriez pu nous ignorer. Au lieu de cela, en bloquant nos liens, vous nous avez donné le meilleur soutien que nous pouvions demander. Vous avez confirmé ce que nous disons depuis le début, à savoir que les grandes entreprises technologiques sont plus intéressées par la protection de leurs jardins clos que par la promotion d'une véritable innovation. Chaque fois que vous bloquez un lien vers notre plateforme, vous rappelez aux gens pourquoi nous l'avons créée.
@pixelfed
Unknown parent

Mark Corbett Wilson
mastodon - Link to source
Mark Corbett Wilson
• •
@wonka @ctrl
Wise words from Cory Doctorow;
"From now on, I will put more weight on how easy it is to leave a service than on what I get from staying. A bad service that you can easily switch away from is incentivized to improve, and if the incentive fails, you can leave."
@Wilfried Klaebe @Cuteroll, shark aficionado
in reply to pixelfed

LN
mastodon - Link to source
LN
• •
You are giving him too much credit. It was never about connecting people, it was about exploiting them. From the very beginning.
in reply to pixelfed

fuzzle @ cccfr
mastodon - Link to source
fuzzle @ cccfr
• •
except i have in my memory/halbwissen he build it also to bully, and stalk in the first place. But other than that - nice writeup.
in reply to pixelfed

__JP
mastodon - Link to source
__JP
• •
“without forcing algorithmic feeds on them” will certainly stop being true if you introduce ads to the platform. let’s hope that doesn’t happen
⇧