atomicpoet,

Today is the day I talk about what #Calckey is and what it does. 🧵

In this thread, I will explore what I believe to be the most important features of Calckey.

SPOILER ALERT: While Calckey focuses on microblogging, that's where its similarities with #Mastodon (and #Twitter) end.

@fediversenews

gatewayy,
@gatewayy@mastodon.gatewayy.net avatar

@atomicpoet
I have made a test account on #Calckey and it is pretty fun and interesting. I do with @ivory would let me use it along with my #Mastodon instance without crashing. Maybe someday soon!

@fediversenews

atomicpoet, (edited )

Let's first take a look at what #Calckey looks like in desktop mode.

As you can see, it's got a very media-rich presentation of a feed.

But there's also more!

On the right pane are some widgets. You can customize which widgets you see there. I opted to see trending hashtags and recent notifications.

On the left pane is the navbar. I'll get into that in a bit.

At the top are different feeds including home, local, social, recommended, global, lists, and antennaes.

BenjaminNelan,
@BenjaminNelan@mastodon.social avatar

@atomicpoet The "how much of the day you've wasted on here" counter is a bold move that I wasn't expecting. Additionally the year percentage must be wrong since there's no way it's.. oh geezus it's May already.

atomicpoet,

Here's a look at #Calckey in mobile mode.

The top displays different feeds.

The bottom has a navbar with a hamburger menu, home, notifications, chat, and widgets.

This can be installed as a progressive web app to your phone by "adding to Home screeen" when you visit a Calckey site.

gocu54,

@atomicpoet I prefer cheeseburger menus over hamburger menus.

BenjaminNelan,
@BenjaminNelan@mastodon.social avatar

@gocu54 @atomicpoet same. without a visible slice of cheese on that icon, i'm afraid i can't support this platform.

atomicpoet,

So far, so good. You see #Calckey's timeline for microblogging.

Let's now look at notifications.

Notifications can be displayed for

  • All
  • Unread
  • Mentions
  • Direct mentions

You can also filter your notifications by:

  • New followers
  • Boosts
  • Quotes
  • Reactions
  • And many more!

Here's a screenshot what the notification nav bar looks like in mobile mode.

atomicpoet,

The next prominent feature of #Calckey is chat.

Now I can't show you this exactly because that's private 😉

However, what's important to know is that this is distinct from Mastodon DMs, it's isolated from the main feed, and there's no mistaking chats for status updates.

This looks like a chat app.

BenjaminNelan,
@BenjaminNelan@mastodon.social avatar

@atomicpoet (Looks pretty good)

atomicpoet,

Yet another killer aspect of #Calckey is the Explore section. This is for content discovery -- finding people ("Users") to follow and posts that are gaining traction ("Featured").

Let's focused on the Users aspect of Explore. It helps you find users according to:

  • Pinned (a.k.a., recommended)
  • Popular
  • Recently Active
  • Newly Joined Users

There's all sorts of people to follow through the Explore section of Calckey

kunev,

@atomicpoet I’ve wanted to try it for a while, but installation seems really hard. The install scriptsa aren’t as easy to ise the readmes might have you believe. Are there any detailed resources on how to get an instance up and running as well as some ballpark numbers on what resources you would need depending on user count?

kainoa,

@kunev @atomicpoet I'm sorry you were having trouble with the install script! We also offer a YunoHost package and Docker images, and hosting on bare metal is also fairly easy to do. https://codeberg.org/calckey/calckey/#getting-started

kunev,

@kainoa @atomicpoet I had missed the docker install guide. That seems fairly detailed, I’ll definitely give it go these days. Thanks! 🙂

atomicpoet,

The "Featured" portion of Explore shows the most popular posts divided into two options:

  • Local: what's popular on your local #Calckey server
  • Remote: what's popular across the Fediverse

This is excellent for finding stuff that already has lots of conversation so you can join in.

atomicpoet,

In this post, you may have noticed lots of emoji reactions. Interestingly, some of these emojis are animated too.

To many people, this is the most compelling reason to use Calckey as this is a feature that's unsupported by Mastodon or Twitter.

atomicpoet, (edited )

Like Twitter and Mastodon, #Calckey supports bookmarks. These are a private means to save posts to review at a later date.

Bookmarks are easily accessible through the navbar.

atomicpoet, (edited )

If you like Facebook Groups, #Calckey has something similar. They are called "Channels".

Currently, they are localized to each Calckey server, but there are plans to federate them across the Fediverse.

Posts to channels (but not channels themselves) can be broadcast across the Fediverse.

This is one big difference between Calckey and Mastodon.

Here's a "Music Recommendations" channel on https://calckey.social.

queenslight,

@atomicpoet They’re also on #Misskey too.

Hmmm, so that’s why they are called channels. Interesting!

jupiter_rowland,

@Trenton Matthews @Chris Trottier It can be a bit confusing, for it basically refers to the same as (discussion) groups or forums on other projects.

And "channel" has a wholly different meaning on Hubzilla and (streams).

atomicpoet,

Let's now talk about search on #Calckey.

To be bluntly honest, Fediverse search needs a lot of work. I don't think one server software nails it yet.

However, unlike Mastodon, Calckey allows you to search across the Fediverse without need of hashtags (or for you to have interacted with the post previously).

This makes search a lot more extensible than on Mastodon.

Click this link to see it in action:

https://calckey.social/search?q=notifications

Also see screenshot.

leewalton,

@atomicpoet How's it do that? ElasticSearch on the full content? Or some other technique?

atomicpoet,

This is another massive difference between #Calckey and Mastodon.

Calckey has a Drive!

That's right, a cloud storage feature! You can store whatever you want there: photos, music, documents, Zip files, etc.

Who needs Dropbox or Onedrive when you have Calckey?

As you can see in this screenshot, I'm storing diverse media.

atomicpoet,

Pages! That's another big difference between #Calckey and Mastodon.

That's right, anyone can make a webpage using Calckey. This page does formats text, embeds images, and allows you to express yourself as you choose.

Here's an example of a Calckey page made by @youronlyone:

https://calckey.social/@youronlyone/pages/calckey-faq

Also see screenshot.

SusanneAmman,

@atomicpoet @youronlyone Looks more and more tempting.

atomicpoet,

Galleries is another key #Calckey feature.

Calckey allows you to add, curate, and write a description of user-made collection of images.

Here's an example of one person's gallery:

https://calckey.social/gallery/9e32jx7lu9

See screenshot of this gallery.

Mlep,

@atomicpoet Thanks for posting all this -- super helpful to get to see what all other fediverse apps can do.

atomicpoet,

There's lots of other features that #Calckey has:

  • Antennas
  • Clips
  • Comment trees
  • Misskey Flavoured Markdown (MFM)
  • Local-only posting
  • Deck layout

Really, there's too much to list -- and if I tried, I'd be here all day.

But really, the only way to understand #Calckey is to give it a shot.

If Calckey intrigues you, go ahead and try it yourself.

coastgnu,
@coastgnu@norden.social avatar

@atomicpoet

Please, please, show examples how to use #antennas !

IMO this is the least documented feature of calckey.

#calckey

aj,

@atomicpoet In theory, if I prefer it, could I swap out my personal mastodon instance for calckey on the same domain? Given the glue of federation is APub would the only issue be losing my history or would followers have issues at the change of underlying platform? 🤔

kainoa,

@aj @atomicpoet just because they use the same protocol doesn't mean they're the same software. There's currently no way to convert a mastodon database to a calckey one given they have entirely different structures, but what you can do is set up calckey on a new subdomain, and migrate your account from mastodon to calckey and import your post history.

nyquildotorg,

@atomicpoet I would love to hear what Antennas and Clips are. I made a calckey.social account a week or so ago and was surprised to see stuff that didn't tell you what it does. Felt a bit like logging into the AWS dashboard and seeing stuff like "Route 53" instead of "DNS."

atomicpoet,

@nyquildotorg No question, there's a lot of documentation that still needs to happen with Calckey.

shoq,
@shoq@mastodon.social avatar

@atomicpoet @nyquildotorg Any experienced writers who would like to volunteer for the Calckey documentation team, that project is about to get better organized. We could use you. Please DM Chris or me.

crossgolf_rebel,

@shoq @atomicpoet @nyquildotorg

You forgot one important feature, which is that you can also use Calckey in columns similar to Tweetdeck. All columns are freely configurable and so you have a very good overview of important content.

RufusJCooter,
@RufusJCooter@mstdn.social avatar

@shoq @atomicpoet @nyquildotorg Indeed - I've been playing around on it a bunch more lately, and liking it a lot - the biggest complaint that I have now is that everything I've figured out how to do there has been trial/error

I'd offer to help w/ documentation, but for the facts that I 1) don't know what I'm doing, and 2) don't know how to write good

jupiter_rowland,

@Chris Trottier @Jer Warren #CalcKey is getting more and more similar to #Hubzilla, down to the documentation that leaves a lot to be desired. Seriously, Hubzilla has stuff mentioned in the user manual that has been removed years ago.

Only that Hubzilla has even more features, a much worse GUI (improvement is being worked on) and no working mobile app whatsoever because Nomad has been dead for so long that it doesn't even work with today's Hubzilla anymore.

atomicpoet,

@jupiter_rowland @nyquildotorg You're right about that. When I've come to #Calckey, I realize that there's so much that need explaining.

#Misskey Hub has some documentation, and that helps. But now that #Calckey has diverged, it needs to do the same.

https://misskey-hub.net/en/

LWFlouisa,

@atomicpoet You have my attention with webpage and cloud storage.

It's always been weird to me not having a cloud storage option, although NextCloud is decent.

I've recently had issues with websites that are fans of the twitter ceo guy, kicking me as I endorse the fediverse.

Though it hasn't happened on NextCloud.

LWFlouisa,

@atomicpoet For now is that the main instance?

atomicpoet,

@LWFlouisa It's the flagship instance. There's a server list here:

https://calckey.org/join/

themadcodger,

@LWFlouisa @atomicpoet
That's the biggest one at the moment, like mastodon.social. There are other smaller ones though https://calckey.org/join/

LWFlouisa,

@themadcodger @atomicpoet Just found one for robots, it was difficult to decide between the robots competition and the cloud server place.

I do chatbots, but I'm knowhere near ready to do robots yet.

philsherry,

@atomicpoet What has the access needs user research and accessibility testing been like for all of this?

realn2s,

@atomicpoet
Greate thread, you got me hooked.
Any recommendations on choosing an instance?

AlderForrest,

@atomicpoet

Interesting! This feature will be going to be in my repertoire in some project of mine.

@youronlyone

nunesdennis,

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  • petrescatraian,

    @nunesdennis @atomicpoet Guess Mastodon needs an update for this. Just like a previous beta update brought the ability to see custom formatting. Friendica is already looking into this feature but they couldn't implement it properly so far.

    bruno,

    @atomicpoet This looks simply amazing! Is it live, can anyone use this platform/web app?

    atomicpoet,

    @bruno Yes, you can sign up for Calckey at https://calckey.social

    kinday,

    @atomicpoet I love year/month/day progress widget in *key apps. Is does not seem useful at first in context of social networks but in fact it’s a great mindfulness tool and a wonderful aid for people with time blindness.

    benoegen,

    @atomicpoet @fediversenews I am trying #calckey at the moment and it seems you cannot follow #hashtags, like on #mastodon, is that correct?

    caos,

    @benoegen In #Calckey (and also in #Misskey & #Foundkey)) there is the feature of "Antennas". This allows you to define (and combine) keywords to follow - more than just following hashtags. @atomicpoet

    mo,
    @mo@mastodon.ml avatar

    @atomicpoet everyone talking about cool features, but doesn't mention all misskey-based software curse:

    Horribly slow, over-bloated front-end

    It even has fucking scripting language. Implemented in fucking JavaScript.

    It takes THREE spinners to show a post. And even more layout shifts. Maybe for someone who are used to twitter this is usual, but this is not okay

    aRubes,
    @aRubes@sloth.run avatar

    @atomicpoet @fediversenews excellent. May I just add a few things that were important for me ?
    • Already has a nice tree view
    • Mute has another great variant: Mute only the boosts !
    • Instance cloud & in-post display of the software on the other end
    ~ Does not render bidi text correctly, yet 😔

    crossgolf_rebel,

    @caos da scheint sich noch jemand reinzuhängen 👍

    @atomicpoet @fediversenews

    eraitch,

    @atomicpoet @fediversenews Thanks for this. Played with calckey the other day and enjoyed it but was a bit overwhelmed. This has given me a bit more info to digest

    paulschoe,
    @paulschoe@mastodon.world avatar

    Your long thread about #Calckey is very worthwhile. Interesting to see the myriad of functions in Calckey.

    Nvrthlss, I expect that Mastodon also comes with essential functions such as quotes, thread layout, chat.

    However, I'll stay on Mastodon mainly because of people who are NOT yet on Fediverse.

    When in my contact details they see @mastodon.world, they have an idea where they can find me. When they would see @calckey, I expect they have no clue what that means.

    @atomicpoet @fediversenews

    luckysitsinback,

    @atomicpoet
    got in bc of your notice earlier.
    it's a blast, so far. thanks !

    LabSpokane,
    @LabSpokane@mas.to avatar

    deleted_by_author

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  • atomicpoet,

    @LabSpokane Mastodon seems like it's for very serious discussion, and Calckey seems more fun.

    arinbasu,

    @atomicpoet @LabSpokane
    I think this is where Calckey is winning because it has that "easy", "fun" appearance while allowing an incredible possibilities of what can be posted from complex codes to dynamic visualisations ...

    HannibalElector,

    @atomicpoet @LabSpokane agreed! It's more casual and it isn't as tech dominated.

    caos,

    @atomicpoet @LabSpokane there is no compelling reason, but you can use more features with Calckey, for example.
    Everyone can find the Fediverse software that best suits their needs and tastes. To try it out first or for different application focuses, it can make sense to have several accounts with different software.

    LabSpokane,
    @LabSpokane@mas.to avatar

    deleted_by_author

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  • atomicpoet,

    @LabSpokane You might want to look at the rest of the thread to see what #Calckey does. I talk about the many features that make it distinct from Mastodon.

    LabSpokane,
    @LabSpokane@mas.to avatar

    deleted_by_author

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  • MetalSamurai,
    @MetalSamurai@mas.to avatar

    @LabSpokane @atomicpoet This sounds very “Any colour you like, as long as it’s black”. With cars there’s a wide choice of different manufacturers, with different designs of vehicles that all share the same road. Some suit particular use cases, and others are better for different people. They all share the same roads.
    The exact same thing with different ActivityPub servers and clients. You can pick the combination that works best for you, but we all share the same network.

    jupiter_rowland,

    @Kevin Davidson @LabSpokane @Chris Trottier It's the very same thing as people demanding the #Linux ecosystem be reduced to ONE distribution with no variants, ONE graphics toolkit, ONE display manager with ONE desktop environment. Because Linux is "too complicated" otherwise. Because it makes people choose where Windows and Mac users don't even have a choice.

    But this would leave many dissatisfied because that unified Linux will not cater to their individual tastes. If it sucks, Linux sucks altogether.

    Of course, in the #Fediverse case, the one unified project which the Fediverse must be reduced to is always #Mastodon. Preferably always with the same set of features. No other projects, not even forks.

    First of all, this would mean that the Fediverse would lose a great deal of its features. Mastodon can't do podcasts; #Funkwhale and #Castopod can. Mastodon can't do blogs; #WriteFreely and #Plume can. Mastodon can't do YouTube; #PeerTube can. Not to mention the many things that #Hubzilla can do that Mastodon can't.

    Now, someone could suggest to cram all features of all these projects into Mastodon. But not only is this very likely impossible without re-designing great deals of Mastodon which, for example, doesn't offer the multiple-channels-per-account model and doesn't even differentiate between posts and comments. It would also irritate those who stick with Mastodon because it's the most simple of all Fediverse projects.

    And indeed, there are many who wish for Mastodon to be frozen on the feature level of late 2022 when they joined. They're even opposed to the introduction of text formatting or quotes to Mastodon, features which would thereby vanish from the Fediverse altogether if the Fediverse was reduced to late-2022 Mastodon.

    Besides, you won't be able to get everyone to cooperate on Mastodon, much less on Mastodon staying at the level of late 2022. Literally every project leader who isn't Eugen Rochko will demand more features than Mastodon had half a year ago, actually, even more features than Mastodon has right now.

    So you've got two possibilies.

    One, Mastodon ends up an even heavier feature monster than Hubzilla because everyone can add to it what they deem necessary or useful.

    Two, Eugen Rochko becomes the supreme ruler over the Fediverse, and only he decides which features the Fediverse is allowed to have. And he bases his decision on the wishes of those who want Mastodon to stay simple. Everyone else is reduced to a code monkey with no free will, including Mike Macgirvin, inventor of the #DFRN protocol, #Friendica (both 6 years before Mastodon), the #Zot protocol, #NomadicIdentity (both 5 years before Mastodon), Red Matrix/Hubzilla (4 years before Mastodon), Osada, Zap, Roadhouse, #Streams etc.

    MetalSamurai,
    @MetalSamurai@mas.to avatar

    @LabSpokane This is the problem. Nobody can agree on what “good” means. Capping posts at 500 characters? No! Long posts. Styled text or plain text? Is four images in a post enough? Four options in a poll? Should the web interface indicate which platform other people are using, or hide that information from you? There’s no right answer, just preferences.

    ai6yr,
    @ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

    @LabSpokane @atomicpoet Isn't Calckey ActivityPub too? Doesn't really matter as long as it supports ActivityPub.

    HannibalElector,

    @ai6yr @LabSpokane @atomicpoet it is
    I interact with my Mastodon follows too

    LabSpokane,
    @LabSpokane@mas.to avatar

    deleted_by_author

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  • atomicpoet,

    @LabSpokane @ai6yr Actually, #Calckey is a fork of #Misskey, which predates Mastodon by two years.

    The *key apps, as they are known, are the 2nd largest platform on the Fediverse.

    And no, there isn't "one good thing" on the Fediverse -- there are many. That's the point of the Fediverse. Mastodon is but one portion of this.

    If Mastodon works for you, great. But some people would prefer a different UI, or to have different features, or to interact with a different culture.

    ai6yr,
    @ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

    @LabSpokane @atomicpoet Well, it's kind of like an email program. Find one you like... That's the beauty of a (truly) protocol driven service. I never went running to the "latest and greatest" email client, and you don't have to feel like you have to, either... it's just a different interface to the same world.

    indieterminacy,

    @LabSpokane @ai6yr @atomicpoet You should see the shit they invented in the Industrial Revolution - we only really think of the successes, not the litany of obscure failures.

    Relax, the world doesnt need every perfect solution to arrive the next day.
    Lets be a little creative and then see what happens :)

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