Post #2315614

2026-04-19 06:55 UTC

@benpate@mastodon.social @bengo@mastodon.social @strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz just mentions Conway's Law, and how it shapes and affects all that we do. The driving force is #Emergence, which over time also shaped modern global #society as it stands today. Question for grassroots environments that are able to healthily evolve and naturally grow into long-term sustainable ecosystems - in case of the #fediverse able to support diverse and vibrant online culture, where people cocreate and participate in a value-based collaborative economy - is how #ActivityPub based enabling #technology can be designed to foster the right social dynamics that influence this emergence. Or else we get US road network, emerged by the lobbying powers of Big Oil. Corporate capture in case of #fedi. Or traffic chaos and road jams, stifling #innovation. My #SX blog addresses how @EUCommission@ec.social-network.europa.eu #funding (via the great @nlnet@social.nlnet.nl ) encourages - in traffic terms - creation of infra building blocks. But not road vision, policies, enforcement. Lacks socio-cultural care.

Replies (1)

@smallcircles@social.coop 2026-04-19 07:17

@benpate@mastodon.social @bengo@mastodon.social @strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz @EUCommission@ec.social-network.europa.eu @nlnet@social.nlnet.nl When it comes to Conway's Law then, what do we have today in terms of alternative #SocialNetworking environment, here on #ActivityPub fediverse? If I squint my eyes so the details become vague, I see more or less a copy/paste of existing #SocialMedia that we are all familiar with, and as #BigTech forces it through our throat. BUT! Decentralized.. a great achievement. We can now build our own roads, instead of being forced to take the highway. The observation that we "copy/pasted" may or may not be an indicator of the risk that Conway's Law does its work. I leave that as part of my call-for-reflection. Same holds for the risk of corporate capture, who can quickly pave over with asphalt any 'desire path' that became popular, and perhaps make it a toll road. More interesting it gets when it comes to #ethics: dealing with tech externalities. See: https://social.coop/@smallcircles/116316524763055082 And #sustainability: Go from #FOSS to Sustainable open social systems.

Open ##2315615