• harald_im_netz@feddit.de
    31·
    7 months ago

    Thank you for sharing this article! This prevented me from working on projects and software. Not only FOSS projects should refrain from using Discord. Community-driven projects like Skywind are barring themselves from helping hands, they desperately need, by using proprietary, privacy-threatening software as their way of communication.

    • helenslunch@feddit.nl
      2·
      7 months ago

      I wanted to use Cosmos server but they only support Reddit, Discord and GitHub. I asked them to create a community on a platform that respects it’s users. They declined, and their users ass-blasted me for “demanding” that they choose a different service. I can’t use a project that has zero support options that don’t exploit their users. Makes no sense to me.

  • Kissaki@feddit.deEnglish
    28·
    7 months ago

    I feel like cross-posts should share comment threads…

    Now comment threads are split across 6 communities.

    • noddy@beehaw.org
      8·
      7 months ago

      If it is possible to detect which posts are cross posts, it should be possible to create a client app that combines the threads. Maybe give you an option to chose which one to post your comment.

      • Kissaki@feddit.deEnglish
        4·
        7 months ago

        I don’t think it should be a client feature. It should be federated, like the posts are.

        • Dark Arc@social.packetloss.ggEnglish
          3·
          7 months ago

          I think the issue with federation of comments is moderation of comments.

          You might not like the admins of example.org:foo but you might have no issues with the admins of example.com:foo.

        • noddy@beehaw.org
          1·
          7 months ago

          I was just thinking about a possible solution based on what we have. I agree it would be better if cross post comments were federated, but I guess there’s different opinions on that (do the lemmy devs agree for example?).

  • bbbhltz@beehaw.org
    26·
    7 months ago

    The convo on HN about this article is worth a quick scroll.

    The first comment (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39570137) launches a discussion about freedom filled with anecdotes. There are even more anecdotes (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39570364). And even some praise (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39570484).

    I am not a dev. I don’t rice, I don’t game. I’m a FOSS user and have been for years. If I run into a problem, there is no way I will be creating an account on Discord to get help. It might not be worth the time and effort. A searchable forum is good enough. IRC logs are good enough. Email lists are good enough. But, also, some open source software makes onboarding seem more cumbersome than it actually is. Getting on Matrix is easy, but in he eyes of a new user it comes off as Herculean. And when a dev decides to use Discord we shake our fists instead of proposing a solution like operating the bridge for them.

    • frog 🐸@beehaw.orgEnglish
      12·
      7 months ago

      If I run into a problem, there is no way I will be creating an account on Discord to get help. It might not be worth the time and effort. A searchable forum is good enough.

      I use Discord, but I actually agree with this. It’s a really good platform for small groups of people to communicate with each other - for example, we have one for my class at university, which allows us to keep in contact about assignments, projects, deadlines, etc. What I don’t want to do is join a Discord server for every single game or piece of software I need help with. It’s just not a great platform for having hundreds or thousands of people trying to get help, often asking the same questions over and over, while the community regulars are chatting about their personal lives.

      Searchable forums, website-based FAQs and help files, or any other option that makes help accessible without having to download new software or sign up for new accounts, are the most suitable options for making help available.

      • delcake@lemmy.zip
        4·
        7 months ago

        What’s more, Discord clearly wasn’t intended to be used like this at the start. The 100-server limit on a Discord account ensures the user has to curate the servers they join, at least to some degree.

        The only way to join more servers than that is to start using the higher-tier paid Nitro plan, or get comfortable running multiple Discord accounts.

  • mozz@mbin.grits.dev
    19·
    7 months ago

    I absolutely agree with the central message. I would add a few reasons, notably lack of end-to-end encryption and partial ownership by Tencent, as strong reasons to stay away if you can avoid it.

    That said, a lot of the particular details listed here actually aren’t right to me.

    • By choosing Discord, you also lock out users with accessibility needs, for whom the proprietary Discord client is often a nightmare to use. - From the footnote: “What I can tell you is that, to my surprise, Discord’s accessibility has apparently improved in recent years, and more blind people are using it now. One of my blind friends told me that most Discord functionality is very accessible and several blind communities are using it.”
    • Users of novel or unusual operating systems or devices (i.e. innovators and early adopters) are also locked out of the client until Discord sees fit to port it to their platform. - What do you mean? The web client doesn’t work on web browsers that are running on unusual OSs?
    • Discord also declines service to users in countries under US sanctions, such as Iran. Privacy-concious users will think twice before using Discord to participate in your project, or will be denied outright if they rely on Tor or VPNs. - I’ve used Discord through Tor and as far as I can tell it works fine.

    Like I say I actually agree with the central thesis but not with more or less any of the specific reasons he cites.

  • And009@lemmynsfw.comEnglish
    7·
    7 months ago

    I think providing guidance on replacing discord, while maintaining flexibility, is just as important.

    I’m not a dev but this topic keeps popping up on Lemmy and maybe the solution is to create a megathread or some sort of wiki detailing best practices for FOSS and suggestions on what the community supports.

    Maybe less experienced people will take too long to reach this conclusion otherwise.