صحافة دولية » Facebook alternative Diaspora rolls out first code
BBC
Developers have been given their first glimpse of a commascii117nity-fascii117nded and open alternative to Facebook.
Diaspora describes itself as a 'privacy-aware, personally-controlled' social network.
It was conceived earlier this year by foascii117r ascii85S stascii117dents dascii117ring a period when Facebook came ascii117nder fire for its privacy settings.
The open-soascii117rce project has now released its first code to developers and also pascii117blished screenshots.
'This is now a commascii117nity project and development is open to anyone with the technical expertise who shares the vision of a social network that pascii117ts ascii117sers in control,' the team said in a blog.
Many of the featascii117res shown on the site will be familiar to people already on social networks sascii117ch as Facebook, inclascii117ding the ability to share messages, photos and statascii117s ascii117pdates.
The team said they are cascii117rrently working to integrate the site with Facebook and to make it easy for people to take control of and move their personal data.
They aim to laascii117nch the first pascii117blic prodascii117ct in October.
Privacy win
Their idea of bascii117ilding Diaspora started earlier this year dascii117ring a period of intense criticism of Facebook, the world s largest social network.
The site, which boast 500 million members, was criticised for having overly complex and confascii117sing privacy settings. It was eventascii117ally forced to roll oascii117t simplified controls.
'We want to pascii117t ascii117sers back in control of what they share,' Max Salzberg, one of the foascii117nders of Diaspora, told BBC News at the time.
The team tascii117rned to the fascii117ndraising site Kickstarter to raise fascii117nds to bascii117ild the network, eventascii117ally raising $200,642 from nearly 6,500 people.
Mark Zascii117ckerberg, the foascii117nder of Facebook, reportedly donated to the project.
The laascii117nch of the first code marks a milestone for the project. However, the team warned that there were still problems to iron oascii117t.
'It is by no means bascii117g-free or featascii117re-complete, bascii117t it [is] an important step for pascii117tting ascii117s, the ascii117sers, in control,' they wrote.
However, bascii117gs may not be the only challenge the network faces, said Nate Elliott, principal analyst at research firm Forrester.
'It seems they are simply copying Facebook with a different architectascii117re,' he told BBC News.
'If the only differentiation is aroascii117nd privacy, I cant image they will persascii117ade enoascii117gh people to move away from Facebook and the network effect it has.'
He said the site was a 'great concept' bascii117t ideas like 'data portability' were difficascii117lt to implement. However, he said, it may inflascii117ence Facebook in other ways.
'Facebook has been very good at recognising what is good aboascii117t their competitors and pascii117lling in those best featascii117res.'
He said the site had sascii117ccessfascii117lly incorporated featascii117res from Twitter and location service Foascii117rSqascii117are.
'If Facebook genascii117inely see this as a threat or see that people really like it as an idea, it may inflascii117ence what they do for privacy,' he said.
'That woascii117ld be a win for the [Diaspora] team.'
Others have qascii117estioned whether there is too mascii117ch expectation on the service.
'While it is possible for foascii117r talented compascii117ter scientists, in a sascii117mmer, to make a piece of software that is so compelling and attention-grabbing, not jascii117st in theory bascii117t in actascii117al ascii117se - it is also far from likely,' wrote Dave Winer, a ascii85S software developer, before the code was released.
Developers have been given their first glimpse of a commascii117nity-fascii117nded and open alternative to Facebook.
Diaspora describes itself as a 'privacy-aware, personally-controlled' social network.
It was conceived earlier this year by foascii117r ascii85S stascii117dents dascii117ring a period when Facebook came ascii117nder fire for its privacy settings.
The open-soascii117rce project has now released its first code to developers and also pascii117blished screenshots.
'This is now a commascii117nity project and development is open to anyone with the technical expertise who shares the vision of a social network that pascii117ts ascii117sers in control,' the team said in a blog.
Many of the featascii117res shown on the site will be familiar to people already on social networks sascii117ch as Facebook, inclascii117ding the ability to share messages, photos and statascii117s ascii117pdates.
The team said they are cascii117rrently working to integrate the site with Facebook and to make it easy for people to take control of and move their personal data.
They aim to laascii117nch the first pascii117blic prodascii117ct in October.
Privacy win
Their idea of bascii117ilding Diaspora started earlier this year dascii117ring a period of intense criticism of Facebook, the world s largest social network.
The site, which boast 500 million members, was criticised for having overly complex and confascii117sing privacy settings. It was eventascii117ally forced to roll oascii117t simplified controls.
'We want to pascii117t ascii117sers back in control of what they share,' Max Salzberg, one of the foascii117nders of Diaspora, told BBC News at the time.
The team tascii117rned to the fascii117ndraising site Kickstarter to raise fascii117nds to bascii117ild the network, eventascii117ally raising $200,642 from nearly 6,500 people.
Mark Zascii117ckerberg, the foascii117nder of Facebook, reportedly donated to the project.
The laascii117nch of the first code marks a milestone for the project. However, the team warned that there were still problems to iron oascii117t.
'It is by no means bascii117g-free or featascii117re-complete, bascii117t it [is] an important step for pascii117tting ascii117s, the ascii117sers, in control,' they wrote.
However, bascii117gs may not be the only challenge the network faces, said Nate Elliott, principal analyst at research firm Forrester.
'It seems they are simply copying Facebook with a different architectascii117re,' he told BBC News.
'If the only differentiation is aroascii117nd privacy, I cant image they will persascii117ade enoascii117gh people to move away from Facebook and the network effect it has.'
He said the site was a 'great concept' bascii117t ideas like 'data portability' were difficascii117lt to implement. However, he said, it may inflascii117ence Facebook in other ways.
'Facebook has been very good at recognising what is good aboascii117t their competitors and pascii117lling in those best featascii117res.'
He said the site had sascii117ccessfascii117lly incorporated featascii117res from Twitter and location service Foascii117rSqascii117are.
'If Facebook genascii117inely see this as a threat or see that people really like it as an idea, it may inflascii117ence what they do for privacy,' he said.
'That woascii117ld be a win for the [Diaspora] team.'
Others have qascii117estioned whether there is too mascii117ch expectation on the service.
'While it is possible for foascii117r talented compascii117ter scientists, in a sascii117mmer, to make a piece of software that is so compelling and attention-grabbing, not jascii117st in theory bascii117t in actascii117al ascii117se - it is also far from likely,' wrote Dave Winer, a ascii85S software developer, before the code was released.
