Only heard of it recently is it another federated platform like Lemmy or pixelfed?
Yes basically, it’s another content aggregator and blogging platform, it shares a lot of visual and structural simularities with reddit, that connects to the fediverse like Lemmy. I prefer it for a few reasons over Lemmy but number one is I find its UI much more appealing.
Yep. The interface is pretty similar to Reddit, making a transition relatively easy and also feels familiar.
Yes. It’s also similar enough that the “magazines” of kbin are close enough to “communities” on lemmy, that they translate quite well. Lots of people on kbin subscribe to lemmy communities, and vice versa.
Both pool their content fairly well, so you can pick which you like better, and still access most of the same stuff.
Whenever I am directed to kbin I get a website with a feed and then the status has me not logged in … so it makes it appear as though I need a login to use this… the way people are talking on here though im led to believe you just subscribe and it’s almost seamless… sooo what am I missing ??? How do you subscribe to magazines etc with Lemmy ? It’s currently not very intuitive.
Kbin user here so my only answer is… switch to Kbin? From here, everything is integrated pretty seamlessly. Lemmy communities show up in the search results with Kbin magazines, and posts from across the fediverse show up in my feed interchangeably.
It can be seamless. Unfortunately neither lemmy nor kbin translate links that would take you off-instance into links that don’t. So we have to link things correctly manually.
Some links will take you outside your instance, and show you content directly on the home instance of that content, this is what’s happening when you “stop being logged in”. The fediverse rainbow icon also does this, its a button for going to the “original” of any given comment or post. But as you noticed, this means your account wont work.
Some users don’t yet know how to correctly link things so they open from the “local instance”, meaning the link directs your instance to look at the content from another instance, rather than go to that instance directly. Doing this keeps you on your instance, letting you interact with that content using your account.
The way to do this is with relative links, like this one that leads to the Reddit migration kbin page, but inside your lemmy instance. That link will work for others on other instances, too. It will open that kbin page, but never take a user “outside” their instance. Seamless.
Relative links only work if your instance already knows about what it’s linking to, tho. In those cases the search method has to be used. Also lemmy relative links do not work on kbin, and vice versa. They are also borked in Jerboa, atm.
Accessing the content of other lemmy instances using the search method, is fairly simple, you use the
!name@instan.ceformat, which you post into search on your home instance, this triggers your server actually connecting to the outside instance to go get that content since it hasn’t already.This method does not work for kbin magazines. Instead of the
!name@instan.cetext, you need to paste the full kbin magazine url into search, to get the same thing.So when a link takes you somewhere you aren’t logged in, try copying that link into search instead of opening it. Also note that this is ALSO borked in Jerboa.
i get it… the server i belong to hasn’t mapped its own path to the outside server. So if i run a search it will then have knowledge of that and map it so that future visits will seem as though it’s part of your server instance and then you can subscribe etc. ill try this when ever i find the kbin site instances that my server doesnt know about. thanks.
Yes. For the sake of efficiency, every server wont go out and get everything thats on every other server. Only what at least one user has specifically asked to see. And when you are that first user, you have to a bit more specific when you ask for it. Once that connection is established, everything gets synced over, meaning everyone subbed to the same thing, all see the same thing, regardless of where their account is.
This should give you an overview: https://kbin.social/about
It looks to be another federated instance that seems to be compatible with other Lemmy instances.
Yeah, it’s another platform, heavily inspired by wykop.pl, which combines reddit-like link aggregation and twitter-like Mikroblog
Yes
Can you elaborate?
I read that Kbin defederated with Lemmy because it couldn’t initially handle the influx of new users migrating from Reddit, but that it has federated again.
So is it a Lemmy instance, like Beehaw?
I know that Kbin doesn’t use communities (“/c/”) but uses magazines (“/m/”) so I thought it was different.
I also read that there was some new way to post to Lemmy from Mastadon, but I thought those were different, like Reddit and Twitter. But they both rely on something called “ActivityPub”?
So is Kbin similar to Lemmy (by being Reddit-like), but distinct like Mastadon (which is Twitter-like)?
I didn’t have a Twitter account, but was a heavy Reddit user. I don’t have a Mastadon account, but I’m liking Lemmy. However I have some FOMO about Kbin because I don’t understand how it all works together.
So is it a Lemmy instance, like Beehaw?
No. It’s a different technology - in the same way that Mastadon is a different technology.
However, Kbin federates with Lemmy - so users can engage in each other’s posts.
So is Kbin similar to Lemmy (by being Reddit-like), but distinct like Mastadon (which is Twitter-like)?
Kbin does both.
There are communities (they use the word ‘magazines’) which works very similarly to Reddit. And also, there is a Microblogging feature, which works very similar to Twitter.
However I have some FOMO about Kbin because I don’t understand how it all works together.
It doesn’t cost you anything to sign up for, so give it a try.
Personally, I never cared about Twitter-like microblogging - so I’m okay with keeping just a Lemmy account.
This is helpful, thanks.
It doesn’t cost you anything to sign up for, so give it a try.
The main cost is time, to understand the platform and to find community. I created a Kbin account, but I don’t see myself having the time to be divided between Kbin and Lemmy so I’m hoping not to have to maintain both.
Kbin federates with Lemmy - so users can engage in each other’s posts.
This gives me hope. So is it basically just a different UI? This is where my understanding of the fediverse breaks down.
So is it basically just a different UI? This is where my understanding of the fediverse breaks down.
Think of it like you’re on an iPhone and your friends use an Android.
You don’t need the same phone to communicate. Heck, you don’t need the same carrier or phone plan. You send a text - and they receive a text. It doesn’t matter if you’re using iChat and they’re on Google Message. It all works.Kbin and Lemmy is like your phone. The one in your hand. It’s your hub.
Kbin isn’t just a different UI. It’s a different piece of software. However, there are protocols that allow an information exchange with Lemmy. So you can view it all from one hub. Whether that hub is Lemmy or Kbin is totally your preference.
Maybe another example…
Imagine you have a PlayStation and your friend has an XBox. Imagine you can cross-platform play games online together. It all works seamlessly and it doesn’t matter if you’re playing on a PlayStation Controller or XBox Controller. There might be a few cosmetic differences, but at the end of the day - they’re the same game and you’re in the same arena.Now imagine if your PlayStation can cross-play with a Nintendo Switch, and the XBox can cross-play with a PC.
However, PC and Switch do not cross-play.
That’s kind of how the Federation works. Different ‘hubs’ can pick and chose which other ‘hubs’ they talk to. For various reasons. Maybe PC Gamers are too aggressive for Switch Gamers, because Switch Gamers are mostly families.In the same way, there are instances of Lemmy or other federation websites that you won’t access in your hub because they don’t want to share.
Now imagine if your PlayStation can cross-play with a Nintendo Switch, and the XBox can cross-play with a PC. However, PC and Switch do not cross-play. That’s kind of how the Federation works. Different ‘hubs’ can pick and chose which other ‘hubs’ they talk to.
This is one of the best explanations I’ve seen. Thank you.
Slightly off-topic, but your example actually helps lessen my concern with what I understood about “defederating.”
I almost “noped” on using Lemmy because I saw defederating as removing the choice from me as an individual. Instance admins can, at any time, remove my option to engage with users in another instance. Welcome to the echo chamber.
But your example helps me see defederation in a slightly different light. I still get why it’s called “the nuclear option,” but it’s maybe more like “We don’t talk to Nazis, even if they don’t bring up white supremacy while discussing beekeeping.”
So while I still don’t think the decision to defederate by Beehaw makes sense, I do have less concern about defederating as a concept. (Although I still want the ability to transfer my posts and comments to a different instance, should my instance admin make a decision I disagree with.)
Thanks again!
So, ‘to defederate’ means a server made an choice not to communicate with another.
For example, if an instance turns into a cesspool for hate groups - then admins of Kbin or Lemmy.World or even Mastadon can chose to block that instance and all their users. They are ‘defederated from…’ the standard instances.
If every major Federation platfrom does this to one instance, they are essentially ‘cut off’.My best understanding is that Beehaw made a temporary choice to defederate from lemmy.world because world allows open registration. Beehaw administrators want to create a uniquely ‘positive’ online experience and that’s difficult to do when you have a limited mod team and tens of thousands of users from a very open instance pop in. Beehaw’s plan (if not already) is to refederate when they get more mods.
The whole point is to have choice. Like the gaming example in my previous comment, there may be people you can’t access in the Federation because they’re not open to you. Like Nintendo Switch and XBox gamers not cross-playing.
But you’re always welcome to create a second or third account in other instances to get a bigger range of connections. The iOS app betas that exist for Lemmy allow or easy account-switching for this very reason.
It doesn’t cost you anything to sign up for, so give it a try.
Well, it does mean your Lemmy presence is split into yet-another account. I must say, it’s quite annoying to keep creating accounts while you’re “shopping around” different instances.
Kbin.social is federating with lemmy rn, that’s how I see your comment.
Kbin and Lemmy are separate pieces of software, yes, but they work in similar ways. The fediverse has a few examples of different software projects that have some overlap in their function and presentation, like Mastodon and Calckey, for instance.
Unlike Lemmy, Kbin has a native microblog feed in addition to the threaded posts like what you see on Lemmy.
Kbin magazines are equivalent to Lemmy communities in just about every way except their name.
ActivityPub is an information-sharing protocol: basically a well-defined set of rules that multiple pieces of software can adopt if they want to share information with each other programmatically.
Any platform that is built on ActivityPub can theoretically communicate with any other platform built on ActivityPub, although they don’t necessarily have to do that in all cases if they don’t want to.
As a lemmy user, you should (assuming everything is working correctly) be able to follow any magazine on Kbin exactly as if it was a community on Lemmy, so no need for FOMO. Also, there’s no reason why you can’t have one account on a Lemmy instance and another on a Kbin instance at the same time.
As a lemmy user, you should (assuming everything is working correctly) be able to follow any magazine on Kbin exactly as if it was a community on Lemmy, so no need for FOMO.
This is what I was hoping to hear. Thanks.
Gamera!! Just came by to reiterate what Chilean Cyborg said. I’m on kbin, in kbin, using kbin, seeing this thread as if it originated on kbin. It can all be confusing, particularly the link formatting. Many posts within the fediverse can be seen without ever leaving your home interface or they can be seen in original form on their home URL. Since I’m on kbin you could try clicking my profile and the mags/communities I follow and then you’ll be browsing kbin from within Lemmy. At least it should work. Fedi tech folk are working hard to make improvements. Imagine a world where Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Reddit weren’t all competitors and users could easily see and interact with any content using their own preferred home interface. That’s happening in the fediverse and getting better each day.
I have been exploring Kbin a little bit and can answer some questions.
ActivityPub is a protocol for sharing content. That content can be of multiple types like posts, threads, blogs, videos, microblogs, etc (I forgot the exact names of those types so the names might be off). On Lemmy we have communities, which are comparable to subreddits, that are hubs for ActivityPub content of the thread type. Mastodon is build for microblogs, which are similar to tweets.
Kbin is indeed similar to Lemmy, as it also runs on ActivityPub content, but apart from having communities (which they call magazines), you can also post and read microblogs there.
So if you like Lemmy but you’re also on Mastodon or are interested in that, maybe Kbin is more suitable for you.
Very helpful. Thanks!
Yes it is, more in common with Lemmy but also has some Mastodon features.
“Microblogs” are afaik Mastodon threads / toots.
yes is
lemmy but better, you can see lemmy content from kbin too! greetings from kbin!
What makes KBin better?
Don’t forget you can also see and interact with Mastodon tweets (toots?) in kbin as well.
One problem with kbin is that the whole federation of instances thing didn’t work so well there. It seems all the users and all the content is one one server: kbin.social.
This is concerning since it introduces a single point of failure.
There are other instances like kilioa.org andothers I can’t remember but kbin.social is absolutely the ‘flagship’ so to speak with over 40k users. They are trying to encourage more to go to the others.
I got on kbin.social since I didn’t know a ton about all this and figured things would go easier on the ‘main’ instance.
Ernest did get the server upgraded and federation fixed and all that. He’s got a post about it on @kbinmeta
That’s good, I’ll check out those magazines
No, federation was temporary disabled to make the server survive the huge influx of new people.
Check https://kbin.social/ and you see plenty of content from Lemmy instances.Yeah, I think at the moment they’re just desperately trying to keep up with the influx of new users but a great way to do that would be to help migrate some of them to different instances.
(then again at least half of the content on Kbin is from Lemmy - including this post, which I just found via the front page of Kbin - so they’re achieving federation that way at least)
