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a practical guide to decentralization (for my friends) - tim's tinkerings
Decentralization: Worth The Wait — Open Tech Strategies | Blog
Ethan Zuckerman has a piece in Wired that says building decentralization tools is a sucker's bet. He and his coauthors, Chelsea Barabas and Neha Narula, mention the FreedomBox, which I helped lead, as an example of how difficult this stuff is. They point to a list of things that make decentralized efforts prone to failure and conclude:
Practical Decentralization
The point of decentralization is to guarantee the rights of individuals and communities on the Internet. Pulling that off is a balancing act between practicality and ideology.

Practical Decentralization
The point of decentralization is to guarantee the rights of individuals and communities on the Internet. Pulling that off is a balancing act between practicality and ideology.


Decentralization enables permissionless innovation
I’ve just started reading Inventing the Internet by Janet Abbate. The opening chapters are great, narrating Paul Baran’s efforts at RAND to design a nationwide communication network. Baran had one design goal for this network—survivability. Specifically, survivability in the face of nuclear catastrophe.

Decentralized Moderation | The Paper Pilot
The Paper Pilot's digital garden of thoughts on philosophy, politics, and sociology
Decentralized Education | The Paper Pilot
The Paper Pilot's digital garden of thoughts on philosophy, politics, and sociology
Paradigm shifts for the decentralized Web
The answer to these questions varies with different degrees of decentralization:
Re: Re: Bluesky and Decentralization -- Dustycloud Brainstorms
A few weeks ago I wrote How decentralized is Bluesky really?, a blogpost which received far more attention than I expected on the fediverse and Bluesky both. Thankfully, the blogpost was received well generally, including by Bluesky's team. Bryan Newbold, core Bluesky engineer, wrote a thoughtful response article: Reply on Bluesky and Decentralization, which I consider worth reading.
Re: Re: Bluesky and Decentralization -- Dustycloud Brainstorms
A few weeks ago I wrote How decentralized is Bluesky really?, a blogpost which received far more attention than I expected on the fediverse and Bluesky both. Thankfully, the blogpost was received well generally, including by Bluesky's team. Bryan Newbold, core Bluesky engineer, wrote a thoughtful response article: Reply on Bluesky and Decentralization, which I consider worth reading.
Decentralized Identity | The Paper Pilot
The Paper Pilot's digital garden of thoughts on philosophy, politics, and sociology
The politics of decentralization and the libertarian allure of Mastodon – Structural Integrity
I am currently reading the fabulous “Hayek’s Bastards” by Quinn Slobodian. It made me think about decentralisation in Mastodon (yes, the federated social network). And it made me think about the lack of a coherent progressive vision for the digital age. I will explain what that book has to do with both. But let’s go back to the political meaning of “decentralisation” in digital discourse first.

Protocol: How Control Exists after Decentralization by …
How Control Exists after Decentralization by Galloway, …

Decentralization is Not Enough
Is decentralization a solution for all or a safe haven for nerds? It’s not enough to save ourselves, says Nolan Lawson.

The first post for WTF is here: "Decentralization: Huh?" In this article I discuss what 'decentralization' means as a concept as well as how it can be used to protect us from corporate overreach wtf.samclemente.me/decentralization-huh-t22nqge
Decentralization: Huh? - What The Function!?
wtf.samclemente.me