<- Federation Test

Announcing #GeFeSLE - Generic, Federated, Subscribable List Engine
Its a #tool - for making #lists

Yet another list making tool? Madness!

Yes, but you're always limited to platform-specific clients the service providers deign to support.
If we go back to making mobile-friendly web interfaces then we get the app for free: a browser.

And with a good #REST #API, you could make your own clients, if you really want to.

Now throw in #selfhosting and you control your own data too (kiss #trello goodbye).

To find out more, follow the list that posted this, or click on the link right below here:

Following the philosophy of "render only when necessary, serve it fast", each list in #GeFeSLE is

• a static #HTML page at {your site}/{list name}.html
• an #RSS feed (/rss-{list name}.xml) and a .json file (/{list name}.json)

Each list can be visible to all, or only visible to the creator (Private),

• other listowners you delegate to; who can do everything the creator can
• contibutors - they can add/modify/remove items but can't modify the list

The siteowner and listowners can create local-only accounts+passwords if they like, but if you create a user with a

• Microsoft/Google account
• Mastodon account**

then those users can log in with those services (via OAuth)!

#GeFeSLE doesn't even bother to store any of the data it gets from your account provider - you can't leak data you don't have. All we care about is that your account provider can verify you are who you say you are.

** this might work with other ActivityPub platforms, we haven't really tested it much yet.
Also if there's sufficient interest we can add other providers like Meta/Facebook.

Each list is treated like a "Group" actor - Fedizens follow the list and receive additions and deletions just like regular posts.

A list has to have a configured ActivityPub handle, such as (but not necessarily,) {list name}@{your instance} and the list has to be set to Public visibility.. despite sending info only to subscribed Followers.
Obviously if you change the list's ActivityPub handle while people are still following it, lots of things break, but even Mastodon hasn't figured out account migration yet...

If you switch a list from Public to any of the other visibility settings, the list actor remains visible (to subscribe to etc.) but you can't see any of its items (or posts if you will).

We haven't figured out how one might "interact" with a list from the Fediverse yet, but that's literally what we're working on right now.

Next up is to:

• implement the list's /inbox - or rather handle more things than Follow/Unfollow actions. Take in suggestions for list items tis way.
• implement commenting on list items so items can be discussed from other Fediverse platforms.
• fix item quoting - you can boost a list item, but you can't quote it.
• open beta testing
• stylesheet contest - Im no designer and my #CSS is week - so the html front end is.. functional.. but not pretty.

Also - LIST TYPES/FLAVOURS

• right now, there is no order to items as retreived for a list.
• no reason why we couldn't add a rank or order
• expose endpoints for next/prev in the "list order" (this also makes us a webring service too!)

ActivityPub Improvements:

• support pagination on AP endpoints that might return lots of things.
• respond to /nodeinfo and related endpoints for service (not actor) discovery.

That will close out v0.2.0, then its on to v0.3.0 which is #localization and #accessibility.