Memory

Memory FAQ

Memory: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

About ActivityPods

Q: What is ActivityPods, and how does it differ from ActivityPub?
A: ActivityPods is a framework designed to enhance the decentralisation and user sovereignty of digital interactions on the web. It integrates the principles of ActivityPub, the protocol behind decentralised social networks like Mastodon, and combines it with Solid, a standard developed by Sir Tim Berners-Lee and the W3C for personal data storage and secure access in personal data stores (Pods). While ActivityPub facilitates decentralised social networking by allowing different platforms to communicate, ActivityPods takes this a step further bringing powerful capabilities to the realm of communication and social interaction. ActivityPods also aims to ultimately be protocol agile supporting ActivityPub, ATProto, Nostr and Solid protocols. From your own space online, you can decide who to connect to, who to share with, and which parts of the Web point back to the things you own. Instead of having your data stored in someone else's database, it's all there in your Pod.. This means users have complete control over their data.

Q: What different experiences can be had via the adoption of ActivityPods?
A: Adopting ActivityPods offers a range of enhanced experiences for users, developers, and platform administrators: – For Users: Enjoy a more personalised and secure online experience with full control over your data. Access to large connecting networks that continue to grow. – For Developers: Leverage a robust set of tools for creating applications that are inherently more flexible, interoperable, and user-centric. Eliminate the guesswork when it comes to digital sovereignty, decentralised communication protocols, and user autonomy. Developers would also have a large network of users to try their products and services. – For Pod Providers: Benefit from a platform architecture that reduces server load and storage requirements. As user data is stored in personal Pods there is significantly more autonomy. This leads to a collaborative focus on enhancing user experience and engagement.

General Questions

Q: What is Memory?
A: Memory is an Open Social Web platform that prioritises user autonomy, consent, and experiences. It integrates seamlessly with the current Fediverse ecosystem, offering enhanced customisation and personalisation through features like a recommendation engine, encrypted messaging, custom feeds, groups, and encrypted video & voice calling. User's personal preferences operate under the control of the user, it is housed in a self-contained semantic index attached to the user's POD as well as processed locally on-device via client. Memory is available natively on Android and iOS, serving both as a client compatible with Mastodon API-powered platforms Bluesky API-powered apps and as a standalone platform built on the ActivityPods framework. With Memory, you are given control of your social experience online. See what you want to see, sort it any way you want to, talk to the people you want to.

Q: Is Memory like Threads? It is a part of Mastodon? A: There are similarities in that they're all microblogging formats and share a common protocol which allows them to all communicate, thus meaning you can follow and connect with users that have accounts on Mastodon and Threads. How Memory differs is that users own and control their data and identity.

Q: How does Memory respect user autonomy and consent?
A: Memory is designed with user autonomy at its core. User data is housed inside of their own POD. Every piece of Memory, every part of the user experience is designed around what your preferences are. We give you the power to decide what data Memory has access to, and whether to process it to make recommendations. All personal data is processed locally on the user's device whenever possible and or contained within the users POD, ensuring privacy and consent are respected. POD owners while not able to control entirely where they're data ends up in a decentralised federated environment they can control their connections and impact whom can interact with their data.

For Users

Q: Can I use Memory with my existing Open Social Web (Fediverse) account?
A: Yes, Memory app can be used as a standard Bluesky and Mastodon client. Any platform that supports Mastodon's API will allow you to log in and supplement your experience with Memory's extra features.

Q: What are some of the standout features of Memory?
A: Memory offers several unique features, including: Self-conatined Semantic Index: This mean's data is organised based on contextual meaning as opposed to strict keyword matching, user personal preferences are under their control and can be released to apps for enhanced personalisation at user discretion. – Algorithmic Choice: Sort your timeline however you like, with a variety of options and adjustable recommendation engine settings. – Encrypted Direct Messaging: Communicate securely with messaging protected by the Signal protocol. – Custom Feeds: Personalise your feed and interact with content that matters to you. Custom feeds are shareable and able to be subscribed to. – Circles: Create, join, and interact with communities that share your passions, your causes, and your interests. – Encrypted Video & Voice Calling: Chat securely in real-time with family, friends, and colleagues with messaging secured by the same technology that Signal uses.

For Developers and Admins

Q: How can developers contribute to or build upon Memory?
A: Developers can leverage the ActivityPods framework upon which Memory is built to create custom applications or features. The open nature of Memory and its foundation on ActivityPods offer a flexible environment for innovation, respecting user data sovereignty and interoperability standards.

Q: What benefits does Memory offer to platform administrators?
A: Memory provides admins with a robust, user-centric platform that emphasises privacy and customisation. Its mobile-first approach, coupled with advanced features like encrypted communication and on-device data processing, We believe that these provisions significantly reduce the load and overhead for admins, while also reducing friction and headaches for users. Being built upon ActivityPods, users have more autonomy thus can partake in ownership over their experiences. It offering dual stack support for ATProto and ActivityPub makes services more enticing to users as they will be joining a service that combines networks.

Conclusion

Memory represents a significant step forward in the evolution of social web platforms, offering a blend of privacy, customisation, connection to the ATMosphere and Fediverse and user-centric features. Our platform balances privacy with flexibility, all while providing a design that's easy to use. Whether you're a user looking to make a move to a more personal and secure social network, a developer looking to build a next-generation experience, or an admin seeking to provide a robust platform for your community, Memory offers something unique for everyone.

Reimagining Our Digital Spaces: ActivityPods

In a world increasingly dominated by digital interactions, our personal data—the very essence of who we are online—often finds itself scattered across the vast expanse of the internet, housed within silos over which we have little control. It's a narrative all too familiar, yet one that we've passively come to accept. But what if we could rewrite this narrative? What if we could reclaim our digital sovereignty, ensuring that our online presence is as unique and personal as our physical one? This is the vision behind ActivityPods—a vision that seeks not just to innovate but to transform.

At its core, ActivityPods is about empowerment. It's a framework designed to bridge two groundbreaking technologies: ActivityPub, the protocol powering decentralised social networks, and Solid, Sir Tim Berners-Lee's initiative for personal online data storage. Together, they form the backbone of ActivityPods, but it's the synergy between them that truly defines its essence.

What is ActivityPods?

Imagine a space online that's entirely yours—a digital pod, if you will, where all your data resides. This pod isn't just a static repository of information; it's a dynamic, interconnected part of the web. From social interactions to personal data management, everything flows through this pod, with you at the helm, controlling who has access and how your data is used. This is the promise of ActivityPods.

Why ActivityPods?

In today's digital landscape, our data is often not our own. It's harvested, analysed, and monetised, with little transparency or consent. ActivityPods seeks to change this, placing the power back into the hands of the individual. It's about creating a more equitable, decentralised web, where privacy is respected, and collaboration is encouraged.

What Does it Do?

ActivityPods allows you to create and interact within a decentralised social network, with a twist—your data is stored in your personal pod. This means that instead of your information being held on servers owned by social media companies, it resides in a place over which you have full control. You decide what to share, with whom, and how your data is utilised.

The Benefits

• Privacy and Control: Your data belongs to you. You control the access, ensuring privacy and security.
• Interoperability: Seamlessly interact across different platforms and services without losing control of your data.
• Decentralisation: Break free from the confines of centralised platforms that dictate how your data is used.

How is it Different?

While ActivityPub facilitates decentralised social interactions, and Solid offers a protocol for personal data storage, ActivityPods marries the two, harmonising social networking with data sovereignty. It's a unique blend that leverages the strengths of both technologies, offering a more integrated, user-centric online experience.

The Possibilities

The implications of ActivityPods are as vast as they are exciting. From social networking to e-commerce, education to healthcare, the potential applications are boundless. Imagine a social media platform where you're not the product, an online marketplace that respects your privacy, or a collaborative platform where knowledge and data flow freely, yet securely. Beyond these, envision new platforms that could emerge—decentralised learning environments that empower students to control their educational data, community-driven news platforms where content and data privacy are in the hands of the users, or innovative content creation spaces that prioritise creator ownership and audience engagement in entirely new ways. These are not just possibilities; they are the future that ActivityPods envisions.

In Conclusion

As we stand on the brink of this digital renaissance, ActivityPods offers a glimpse into a future where the web is more than just a collection of services and platforms. It's a cohesive, user-driven ecosystem that respects individuality and fosters genuine connections. In crafting this vision, we're not just designing technology; we're sculpting the very fabric of our digital society—a society where each of us holds the key to our digital destiny.

In embracing ActivityPods, we're not just adopting a new technology; we're championing a movement towards a more open, equitable, and decentralised web. It's a journey we embark on together, one step at a time, towards a future where our digital spaces are as personal, secure, and meaningful as our physical ones. Welcome to the dawn of ActivityPods.