Ben Pate 🤘🏻

Howdy! I'm the nerd who's building #Emissary - an ActivityPub server for building custom social applications on the Fediverse.

My first app on this platform is a music sharing server for indie bands, called #Bandwagon. And now I'm also working on #Atlas, a social mapping server for adding Federated annotations to places in the real world.

If you'd like to talk about any of my projects, feel free to DM me here, or on Signal (@benpate.5280)

⁂

Emissary: https://emissary.dev
Bandwagon.fm: https://bandwagon.fm
Atlas: https://atlasmaps.org
GitHub: https://github.com/benpate

Public Key

npub17gq5ww2fth3xnatp8sjra949u2mjqqr7n063ddvfqwnczrznhp0qyz8hhz

NIP-05 Address

benpate_at_mastodon.social@momostr.pink

Profile Code

nprofile1qqs0yq2889y4mcnf74sncfp7j6j79deqqplfhagkkkys8fupp3fmshspz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0ds4wsxgm

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub17gq5ww2fth3xnatp8sjra949u2mjqqr7n063ddvfqwnczrznhp0qyz8hhz

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Last Notes

2026-04-16 20:01:58 UTC

RE: https://mastodon.social/@HolosSocial/116416045056891863
ZOMG! #E2EE news on the Fediverse keeps getting better
The @npub1akm…wns5 team is planning to implement the same encryption standard as Mastodon, Bonfire, and Emissary.
When it lands, truly private messages should interoperate between all four platforms. This is an _absolute_win_ for open platforms and open APIs.
#note1n02…r67x

2026-04-15 12:58:18 UTC

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It’s very similar in principle, but different details mean that Holos will not be compatible with the Mastodon implementation.
Hey Holos guys/gals/peoples, we’d love to talk to you about making all these encrypted messengers work together. The spec is public and we’re meeting on video pretty regularly to work out details.
I know it sucks to refactor code, but just think of how cool it will be when all of these apps work together!
@npub12cc…udv3 @npub14kx…urew @npub1akm…wns5

2026-04-14 12:25:36 UTC

Have you seen this news?
#Mastodon just got funding to add end to end encryption into their software.
So, some time next year, you’ll be able to send truly private messages to the vast majority of the #Fediverse
Im so excited about this.
Because it’s an open spec, this opens the doors for every Fediverse app to join the party.
Yesterday, this project was a proof of concept. Today, Mastodon has turned it into a stampede.
#E2EE
https://blog.joinmastodon.org/2026/04/sovereign-tech-agency-funding/

2026-04-03 14:07:05 UTC

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Great suggestion. Thanks :)
Just bought it here on Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/tribe-on-homecoming-and-belonging-sebastian-junger/80fce150de2ddbf7
@npub1hmq…rlex

2026-04-03 13:48:49 UTC

Remember, kids:
Everything you do to make the Fediverse better is an act of resistance.
Go make things better today 🤘🏻

2026-03-25 15:56:41 UTC

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#whatWouldProperToolsAgainstHarrassmentLookLike? #IdLoveToBuildThat
@npub1742…fh8m @npub1hmq…rlex

2026-03-12 18:19:48 UTC

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yes, this exactly.
And, things ARE changing in the Fediverse. I modeled these features on Bandwagon (and left them 2/3 complete) then looked around to see if others would adopt this idea.
And now they are :)
The big apps are starting to support this. Check out @npub12ax…0twd - the high will make this whole thing much better.
So, now I just have to finish that last 1/3 of MY workflow (and fix some obvious bugs)
Thanks for being patient!

2026-03-12 16:55:09 UTC

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Hey, thanks for this. And, sorry you had to find so many bugs.
The root issue seems like it's caused by different capabilities of each Fediverse app, multiplied by Bandwagon doing a bad job of detecting them and notifying you of stuff beforehand.
And, the Embed button just needs to work. Sorry.
I'll try to get these things addressed soon. I have some other improvements on the way for the like/share buttons, but those can wait until the basics are covered.
@npub1xse…lgk3 @npub1x9x…vr27 @npub1sfm…cw5j

2026-02-25 20:35:25 UTC

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So, you're saying we should use a standardized list? I'm fine with that if we're confident that all of the (realistic) reasons are covered.
So long as "pissed off the mod this one time" isn't a standardized code :)

2026-02-25 20:25:35 UTC

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Yes. This is a fantastic list, and would be a good starting point for anyone publishing their own DNI list.
How do you feel about each publisher defining their own terms? I’m conflicted.
It might be nice to have something truly decentralized, like hashtags, where anything goes.
But there’s probably more utility in some set of standardized codes. It would allow admins to check off the topics they want to follow.
Or maybe there’s a middle ground that could achieve both goals?
@npub1y2r…kvzk @npub1764…nuj0

2026-02-25 15:03:06 UTC

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I’m gonna scope-creep this by adding: an easy API for publishing and subscribing to multiple blocklists.
Like, why are we still trading CSV files when we could just publish this info over ActivityPub?
Let’s make a tool for building/managing blocklists as an AP actor for anyone to subscribe to.
Add in a “polyfill” to subscribe and load this data straight into big apps like Mastodon, and we have instant moderation as a service.
I can start on Monday.

2026-02-24 22:50:09 UTC

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Everything on the table:
I should do this, but have been waiting because I *really* want to self-host the main #Emissary and #Bandwagon accounts on my own software.
Right now, Emissary is a great PUBLISHER and READER, but it does a poor job with DMs. So I couldn’t really use Emissary to support questions like this one.
It’s been on my roadmap for a while, and it’s why I’m excited to build #e2ee DMs, too.
But I do plan to launch these as soon as I have a good solution for DMs.

2026-02-24 00:32:04 UTC

Check this out: https://clip.place/w/ajgJ5Hi69bbbxHCK3nXNdj
I just published a video of the new "end to end encryption" protocol for ActivityPub in #Emissary. The UX is rougher than I'd like, but you can see the client app is coming along nicely.
Today, it sends and receives messages using MLS, a widely used industry standard and successor to the Signal protocol.
By June 2026, it should be ready for you.
For more details on the project and my progress, see: https://emissary.dev/e2ee
#JustBetweenUs #e2ee

2026-02-16 21:16:18 UTC

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HLS is a near-perfect protocol, and makes all kinds of streaming so much better (and almost for free, too)
How will this work with Podcasting software? I think of a podcast as a pre-downloaded media file, where the benefits of HLS are lost. or is this for playing things I haven’t downloaded yet?
@npub1hms…7fpv @npub1thg…zq23

2026-02-15 23:04:12 UTC

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Grrrr… I’m not having any problem playing an album on my iPad.
This doesn’t mean that YOU’RE not having trouble, just that it makes it harder for me to troubleshoot.
Are you using basic Safari? Or an alternate browser perhaps?

2026-02-15 21:43:01 UTC

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It works on my iPhone. And, I know we transcode all audio into an iPhone-compatible format.
What album are you trying to play?

2026-02-13 23:31:54 UTC

There's a lot of energy on the #Fediverse right now to discuss/find a #Federated alternative to #Discord using #ActivityPub.
@npub1d93…cnl2 suggested that I put this out there to anyone who's thinking about it. We could probably rebuild most of Discord's features as an #Emissary inbox without doing a lot of back end code.
I'm too swamped to start on this right now. But if you're a great HTML+CSS designer, I'm able to give some time to a team who wants to take this on.

2026-02-12 19:31:45 UTC

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You're exactly right We can certainly delete/block them, but they could run their own server. What happens when open source software we make gets used by bad guys?
There's tons of examples, and fortunately, the community works to shut them down quickly.
But there *is* a difference between open tools being misused vs. actively putting resources towards hosting of hateful content.
I need a statement from Substack on this one.

2026-02-12 19:07:21 UTC

A couple days ago, I saw a post here about a literal nazi newsletter hosted on #Substack. I won't repost it because I don't want red and black swastikas in my timeline.
I sent a note to their "terms of service" team asking for clarification, hoping they would say "oh wow, thanks.." and do something about it.
Or maybe at least, they might say "gosh, this is bad, but they're not actually doing anything illegal."
But so far, no response...
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/116/059/225/311/230/871/original/9ac75a015b59652f.jpeg

2026-02-04 22:02:41 UTC

I just signed up for the #FediForum "Un-Workshop" coming up in March. Who else is planning to sign in?
🙋‍♀️🙋‍♂️🙋‍♀️🙋‍♂️🙋‍♀️🙋‍♂️
"Growing the Open Social Web" was already on my bingo card for 2026. I have my own ideas, but I'm more excited to hear what others have to say.
https://fediforum.org/2026-03-growing-open-social-web/
If we blame misinformation on social media for the trouble in our democracies, then growing the #Fediverse (responsibly) may be our best path forward.

2026-02-02 00:00:56 UTC

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I’ll try to post some screenshots when I have them, so you can see where this is heading. I think the UX is critical for this to work right, and I think it will feel really smooth and natural when we roll this out.

2026-02-01 17:24:16 UTC

RE: https://mastodon.social/@eff/115996451312302984
Wouldn’t it be cool if you could send encrypted DM’s on the Fediverse BEFORE you could do it in Bluesky? #JustBetweenUs
#note13xw…n3fs

2025-12-29 20:36:55 UTC

It's live.
I've just released my final software update for 2025, which includes 100% fidelity account migrations between #Bandwagon servers.
This long-overdue enhancement means that everyone can take their identity to any other #Emissary server on the #Fediverse. EVERYTHING moves with you.. music uploads, album sales, everything. And, your followers are forwarded to your new address.
There's plenty more, including a 2025 recap, and some plans for 2026 here: https://bandwagon.fm/2025-december

2025-11-27 21:40:55 UTC

Oi #Fediverse..
Check out this 2min walkthrough of #Emissary's upcoming data migration tool. It's the last big feature I'm delivering in 2025.
It uses the "LOLA" data portability spec to transfer account data from one server (like Bandwagon.fm) to a new one (like bandwagon.your-band-here.biz)
No CSV files required. Just authenticate and approve, and everything just moves.
There's tons more to do, but I'm confident this will be live by Christmas. 🤘🏻
https://clip.place/w/joEazgBP38z81WsZZQNd1r

2025-11-24 23:59:44 UTC

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Account migration will be done by the end of the year. Wanna take a go at launching your own Bandwagon server?

2025-11-17 18:59:16 UTC

Do you know of a community that could use their own Federated mapping server? Please DM me.
In six weeks, I've made TONS of progress on Atlas Maps, and I'm confident with real people using it in the field.
https://atlasdemo.emissary.social
So I spent this morning reaching out to a handful of integrators and consultants, but I can't find everyone.
Please help me reach out to the activists, builders, and organizers you know who need to map local events in their communities.
Who should I contact next?

2025-10-31 15:01:15 UTC

I'm so happy with the progress on #Atlas.. ESPECIALLY considering that it's been just over 3 weeks since the initial concept.
Here's a live, working demo of where we are:
https://atlasdemo.emissary.social/
This is just a silly city guide of some spots around Boulder, Colorado. Please don't take the content seriously. But do look at what a federated map could do out in the world. It's time to start working up use cases.
And, if you're inspired to join the party, I'd love to have your help :)

2025-10-23 00:23:53 UTC

I'm excited to show off #Atlas - a social mapping server for the #Fediverse. In about two weeks, we've gone from crazy on I70 to a fledgling app that lets me annotate any location on the globe and share it over #ActivityPub
There's still a lot to do. But there's enough here for me to ask for your help. I would love to hear what you think of this short video, and to start talking to everyone out there who's interested in making maps on the Fediverse.
https://clip.place/w/4JHMF5FQoZw58UPwL6BLyv

2025-10-09 23:06:45 UTC

Pspsps #Fediverse
I'm collecting info for a Federated #Map server. Something that would let people share info and comment on what's going on at specific places out in the world.
There are lots of ways this might be useful to our community, so I've written a super-rough-draft spec on my website.
https://benpate.dev/annotated-maps
Just like #Bandwagon, this app would sit on top of #Emissary so most of this is already built. We just need to connect the dots.
#AskFedi #FediHelp
https://mastodon.social/@benpate/115335093845889524

2025-10-01 21:21:13 UTC

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This one stuck out to me:
“Pick a wedge, then keep widening the aperture only when the core is working. Music => Podcasts => Audiobooks.”
While “working” is an infinitely debatable term, I’d say the Fediverse has “microblogging” wedged pretty nicely. So how do we grow from here?
My take is: bring more content, and more ways to use this cool “universal inbox” that is #Mastodon. Let me subscribe to private feeds (Substack) or be a patron to a podcast (Patreon)
How would YOU grow our wedge?

2025-10-01 21:15:00 UTC

#Spotify has earned its ire from the #Music community - maybe mostly because of the increasing #enshitification of the platform.
But here’s a really great summary of a presentation from the CEO that demonstrates HOW to grow software from nothing.
https://www.reddit.com/r/SaaS/s/8YE2C9MY8r
This☝🏻is the playbook that the #Fediverse competes with, and a blueprint for how we can win at this game.

2025-09-27 18:46:57 UTC

https://bandwagon.fm/2025-september 👀
More updates to #Bandwagon are now live on https://bandwagon.fm, including a beautiful embeddable player, Federation improvements, and upgrades to the core application.
We're continuing to move the #Fediverse forward for #Musicians and #Artists
Let me know how it works for you, and what would be the best next thing to work on.

2025-08-18 03:12:52 UTC

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Agreed. “Do it with ActivityPub” is a nice start, but not enough. There are a few other ideas out there (like sharing and remixing playlists) but we can do better.
I’m open to any ideas you all have, no matter how crazy they are

2025-08-17 19:25:26 UTC

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Fantastic idea. Just replied on GitHub. I’ll follow up with questions over email

2025-08-16 17:34:14 UTC

I'm a software developer working on a bunch of #Fediverse things: #Emissary, #Bandwagon, and bandwagon.fm - with several more in the pipeline.
It's a pretty strange mix that doesn't really fit today's Fediverse, but it makes sense when you see the end goal.
I got an opportunity at #Fedicon to explain myself, so here it is:
https://spectra.video/w/eod3ybLu7sHzAEMihej8km
It's not the greatest talk about Fediverse tech, but it's the best I've got so far, and I hope it inspires you to make great things here with me.

2025-07-15 21:09:26 UTC

After months of work, I'm excited to share these updates to #Emissary that let you sell #Music on the #Fediverse with #Bandwagon.
* Use YOUR OWN Stripe account
* Sell music as digital downloads
* Sell exclusive memberships to band updates
* 0% fees from me
This is free for everyone now, and will become a part of Bandwagon Premier when it launches later this year. More details are in the blog post:
https://bandwagon.fm/2025-july
Let's go make some noise.

2025-06-17 05:17:43 UTC

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Thank you! All added to my list to research.
It does get complicated very quickly, esp when dealing with payments all around the world.
@npub1evt…xdke @npub1fus…tvjp

2025-06-17 01:08:47 UTC

A question for all of you on the #Fediverse (and especially #Musicians, #Writers, and #Artists) who sell your work online:
Do you know how you receive payments right now?
I want to connect the most fedi-friendly platforms into #Bandwagon, #Emissary, and beyond.. so I'd love to hear what works best for you :)

2025-06-11 18:12:41 UTC

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Yes. Yes. Yes. Thank you for boosting this, Flipboard.
And let’s not forget #WhatCorySaid about our opportunity to grow beyond corporate silos of surveillance capitalism.
We have powerful tech in our hands. It’s spread beyond the corporate data centers to be in reach of everyone.
Let’s make a better Internet: one-by-one, bring your normie friends to the Fediverse.
@npub13fk…z5hw @npub1urx…v0z4 @npub1387…vefs [@_elena](https://mastodon.social/@_elena ) @npub1zzy…9edy @npub17fe…w0a6 @npub1qm3…d0q6

2025-06-10 23:18:26 UTC

It's so awesome that Bandwagon is getting attention alongside the tech world. Here's one from https://thenewstack.io/bringing-joy-back-to-the-web-fediverse-vs-centralized-apps/
"My personal favorite at FediForum was Bandwagon, an app for musicians to share their work and get paid using Stripe or other payment providers."
😍 😍 😍 😍
This wouldn't happen without the Fediverse. The network effect is already strong, and it's growing daily.

2025-06-10 23:03:15 UTC

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Yeah, I agree, we need "content creators" here - musicians, artists, writers - first posting alongside the others, then eventually posting on the Fediverse first.
Sorry to offend the anarcho-socialists, but I think the creators will come when we give them the ability to earn money on the Fediverse. Control your output; Build a network; sell your stuff here. See the numbers make sense.
So, anyone working on way to sell stuff on the Fediverse? 😜

2025-06-10 22:11:09 UTC

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And this is where the Fediverse has a real strategic advantage:
FB is for posts..
IG is for pics..
YT is for videos..
You get the idea.. but *this one network* can do ALL of that and more.
So, let's aim to Čôēxïşť first. Bring people here with music, art, literature, videos.. everything creators post elsewhere. The Fediverse will be its own network effect.
@npub10um…lmc5 @npub1387…vefs [@_elena](https://mastodon.social/@_elena ) @npub1urx…v0z4 @npub1zzy…9edy [@snarfed.org](https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://snarfed.org/about ) [@mike](https://flipboard.com/@mike ) [@marci](https://flipboard.com/@marci ) @npub1qm3…d0q6 @npub1dad…y568 @npub1dvx…gems @npub1yaz…h0xs

2025-06-10 22:00:55 UTC

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My goal is not to *win* vs. the corporate silos (just yet). First, we have to coexist with them. Nobody just ditched MySpace for Facebook. They signed up for both, then slowly ditched MySpace for a better network.
Let's do the same thing. Give regular people enough of a reason to join another new site -- they do that all the time already.
@npub10um…lmc5 @npub1387…vefs [@_elena](https://mastodon.social/@_elena ) @npub1urx…v0z4 @npub1zzy…9edy [@snarfed.org](https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://snarfed.org/about ) [@mike](https://flipboard.com/@mike ) [@marci](https://flipboard.com/@marci ) @npub1qm3…d0q6 @npub1dad…y568 @npub1dvx…gems @npub1yaz…h0xs

2025-06-05 17:00:35 UTC

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Thank you! I can't wait to roll this out on Bandwagon.fm, and to see other developers come around to start using these building blocks.
My goal is to help bring more people here (and away from the corporate silos). I think one good way is to help bring content creators into the Fediverse.
And yes, someday there will absolutely be a Federated OnlyFans (not by me, but by someone, for sure)
I'd call it "OnlyFeds" but that would scare away the potential market in a heartbeat :)
@npub16d5…u6mu

2025-05-30 04:39:17 UTC

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👀 One more thing for us #FediDevs to keep an eye on…
@npub1vag…mjkp @npub1thg…zq23

2025-05-06 16:24:47 UTC

Awesome #Bandwagon news: I've just pushed a number of cool updates to bandwagon.fm - including newly revamped profile pages that are smarter, more streamlined, and easier to manage.
The new profiles highlight your albums, concerts, and news posts separately, showing each in its own customized layout.
If you're already a Wagoneer, then sign in to see the results of the spring cleaning. And if you're a musician and you're not on Bandwagon yet, well…. you know what to do :)

2025-03-22 19:40:32 UTC

More #Bandwagon news to share:
I'm really proud of the progress we've made this month.
Today, on Bandwagon.fm, you can now FOLLOW SEARCH RESULTS in your inbox.
What? Yes, really. Here's how it works:
1. Search for albums or tracks using tags and keywords
2. Click "Follow” then enter your fediverse handle
3. Bump over to your home server to authorize the follow
4. Receive new album releases in your Fediverse timeline.
More info on this here:
https://bandwagon.fm/2025-03-22-search-update
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/114/207/780/296/287/207/original/905e92bf14649de5.png

2025-03-12 16:05:12 UTC

Check this out..
@npub1ynz…en3h is killing it right now, and working hard to do the important (but un-shiny) work of making a site for #Musicians that anyone can host **inexpensively**
This is the endgame for the #Fediverse - thousands of indie sites, not mega instances - but it’ll take this kind of work to pull it off.
Good job, guys. I’m super jealous of you rn.
https://mirlo.space/post/222

2025-02-19 13:38:12 UTC

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Sorry it wasn't showing correctly. There's no moderation queue, so it wasn't held up there. But I think there was some problem indexing it in the search engine, which I've just updated for you.
I'll dig in to make sure this doesn't happen in the future.
And, please let me know if you need anything else. I'm really interested to see the new event system work well for everyone.
@npub1nuu…gjr3 @npub1htd…fq0v

2025-02-18 21:14:57 UTC

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Oh, this is sad news, actually. I've been modeling #Mobilizon to figure out events in #Bandwagon, and didn't realize that they're stopping work on it.
Still, the Bandwagon calendar is a different focus, because it puts several different kinds of records on the Fediverse: albums, songs, and events. I think the interconnection between these (and the other record types to come in the future) make this a different from something singularly dedicated to events.
@npub1htd…fq0v @npub14ww…ue65 [@mike](https://social.chinwag.org/@mike )

2025-01-31 01:16:24 UTC

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yes. I would love that. maybe we set up a time next week?

2025-01-30 01:09:09 UTC

Hey #Fediverse #Musicians - I'm once again trying to figure out premium pricing for #Bandwagon
I've committed to hosting profiles 100% free forever, but I still believe there should be some paid "premium" hosting as well.
What's the best way to split this? Here are a few ideas I've been kicking around. What kinds of things should be the "extras" that require a paid Premium (but still cheap) account?
You should pay for accounts to…

2025-01-25 18:49:18 UTC

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That’s fantastic! Thanks for the shout out, Andy.
And Yarred, I’ll look forward to having you in the site :) If you need help with anything, #BeLoud
@npub1dcd…jw2y @npub13za…8j89

2025-01-22 23:31:04 UTC

Hey #Musicians, if you're on #Bandwagon, the time has come.
I'm prepping the #SearchEngine and giving you a preview of how it'll work. Just jump over to bandwagon.fm and hit "Discover" to check it out.
I'm really pleased with this first step, but it will still be a just dumb, empty shell until we can get all your music is tagged, and optimize the tags/categories together.
You can read my full post at https://bandwagon.fm/2025-01-22-Search-Engine for all the details.
I can't wait to hear what you think.
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/874/610/447/966/892/original/7db43d9c4ff25340.png

2025-01-18 23:34:45 UTC

Huge thanks to @npub1xsv…q6he for creating https://respectfulplatforms.org. This is the kind of declaration everyone should get behind.
Honestly, it's still a bit of a "to do" list for #Emissary and #Bandwagon. Moderation tools, in particular, are still lacking right now. But I'm going to work hard to complete these, because I believe every person - all 8 billion of us - deserves to use an Internet that values people over profits, privacy over censorship, and humanity over technology.
https://mastodon.social/@dansup/113851929699796097

2025-01-02 18:44:59 UTC

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I put the big news first, but I'll say it again so it doesn't get buried:
When you publish #Music on Bandwagon.fm (or other #Bandwagon servers that launch later this year) you can just check a box to add it to the streaming rotation on https://TheIndieBeat.fm
Open APIs FTW
As I write this, I'm listening to a digital mix-tape of music -- some I recognize, and some I don't -- all from fellow Wagoneers.
Awesome 🤘
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/760/215/325/132/309/original/b594a2bf909880e8.png

2025-01-02 18:31:04 UTC

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* Streaming Stations: launching an ethical, opt-in API with TheIndieBeat.fm streaming radio
* Salute to Radio Free Fedi: the original Fediverse stream is going dark
* Free/Premium: my commitment to make Bandwagon.fm free forever.
* Search/Discovery: progress on a unique music-only search engine for the Fediverse
* Licensing: assign CC/Copyright licenses to your work
* Open Source update: more Bandwagon coming servers in 2025.

2025-01-02 18:26:09 UTC

Hey #Musicians, between Christmas and New Years, I've been pretty quiet about #Bandwagon.
But I have a bunch of huge news that I'm super excited to finally share with you.
Here's the full news release. I'll put highlights in a reply
https://bandwagon.fm/2025-01-01-January-Update

2024-12-30 18:54:28 UTC

So, 2025 is going to be a huge leap forward for the #Fediverse in general, and #Bandwagon specifically. I've finally made enough progress on the search engine that it's finally worthy of sharing a screenshot.
There's TONS more to do, but I'm so excited about getting this into your hands in January that I couldn't wait to share this now.
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/743/247/676/118/432/original/3bf2dac54ffd5fbc.png

2024-12-14 17:38:46 UTC

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yeah, local libraries would probably be better. Esp. with centralization concerns - too much power for a national postal service might be bad.
I *do* think governments have missed an opportunity to authenticate identity online. What if the post office (or library) had a way for me to establish my identity, like a digital ID card that I could use online when I need to prove who I am?
Right now, that role is taken up by credit card companies and email providers.

2024-12-07 20:20:53 UTC

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So for example, maybe a band could post some music for free, but pay for premium service that offers:
- Higher quality streams (320k, FLAC)
- Selling digital albums
- More/unlimited album uploads
- Other sales/marketing power tools
Do you think this would a) be ethical, and b) work? Or, is there some part of this equation that I'm missing?

2024-12-07 20:18:06 UTC

Hey all..
What's the best way to fund a service like #Bandwagon?
I strongly believe that the #Fediverse needs a sustainable funding model to be competitive with BlueSky, Xitter, and Facebook. More than just donations and mutual aid, people should be able to make careers on the Fediverse.
I'm reevaluating how I'll pay for bandwagon.fm in the long term. And I want to make something that's still "free forever"
Do you think there's a place for the #Freemium Fediverse?

2024-12-02 17:05:24 UTC

I'm working to build an ethical home for #Musicians that doesn't siphon their work into the #AI torment nexus.
Today, I've installed a new firewall on #Bandwagon called "Silicon Dome" that blocks every known AI and malicious bot.
With regular monitoring and updates, Silicon Dome will actively protect human creativity from the rampant AIs already out in the wild.
I think it's a win for humanity.

2024-11-29 04:17:55 UTC

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Wowzers, #Emissary made the list!
Best.
Thanksgiving.
Ever.

2024-11-23 21:12:33 UTC

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I’m super interested in all of these efforts to improve conversations and relies.
This looks like it’s pulled from Streams, yes? Which means it’s not related to the Forums and Threaded Discussions Working Group, is that right?
There are some cool ideas in here. Hopefully we can consolidate all of them to arrive at a single standard to implement.

2024-11-10 03:08:22 UTC

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Yeah, that’s the whole idea of the Fediverse now, right?
But there are too many gaps between servers, so it doesn’t yet perform like a single entity.
Say you find a cool website and you want to follow it. Getting back to your Mastodon instance (or wherever) is pretty messy. Double that if you’re on mobile.
There are lots of things like this we can do better if we imagine Fediverse UX as a single organism.
It’ll make the difference in the battle with FB and Xitter.

2024-11-09 16:00:32 UTC

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The deeper I dig into the #Fediverse, the more I realize that we aren't building a "federated" group of individual apps. It's a single, integrated system. Something like a digital hive-mind, and everything is connected.
Those once isolated websites and services are like individual cells in the body whole, making connections between (API's, protocols, etc) even more important than the individuals themselves.

2024-11-09 16:00:08 UTC

Piece by piece, we're connecting #Bandwagon to every corner of the open web.
Today, we're improving how links to your songs and albums display when someone shares them on Mastodon, Facebook, and others. It's a small thing, but immensely valuable to the social web.
As an example, here's an album I've been listening to on Bandwagon.fm: https://bandwagon.fm/671667a8d7963fa9c589401e

2024-10-22 16:53:59 UTC

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I’ll go out on a limb and say, from what I’ve seen, subvert.fm is a plan without a technology stack (yet?)
And bandwagon is a technology stack without a plan 🤣
It’s slightly better than that, but Bandwagon started off as a response to musicians’ requests.
Once I run out of feature and enhancement requests, I’m not sure what I’ll do next.

2024-10-22 16:39:49 UTC

Here's my announcement about Mastodon's "Secure Mode" (aka "Authorized Fetch")
Here's my announcement on Bandwagon:
https://bandwagon.fm/6717d47dbbaef81a027f918a
I don't really like particular part of the technology stack (or the reasoning behind it) but it's important to implement so that artists' work is as widely available as possible.

2024-10-18 17:54:48 UTC

Wow! I'm making #Bandwagon -- an open source, community-focused alternative to #Bandcamp that anyone can self-host.
As of this morning, there are 99 #Musicians and #Bands who have set up #Fediverse profiles on https://bandwagon.fm -- and half of those already indexable on search engines.
So I'm humbled by the number of people who are giving it a go. There's obviously lots of people out there looking for something new.
I promise to do my best to give y'all the tools you deserve.

2024-08-31 01:35:45 UTC

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Vincent, dotmakeup looks absolutely tremendous. Congratulations on a fantastic piece of work.
I‘m super interested in spanning multiple social networks, so naturally I have tons of questions for you.
Is there any chance you’re considering attending next week’s #FediForum?

2024-08-05 18:34:30 UTC

I'm so excited to welcome the first batch of beta-testing #Musicians to #Bandwagon. I've so enjoyed listening to your work and setting up real #Fediverse profiles for you.
Today, I'm sending out emails to ~ thirty more #Bands on the waitlist.
Together, we'll make Bandwagon a viable open alternative to the big corporate label sites. One that's easy to set up, that anyone can host on their own, and most importantly, helps get your band out in front of the millions of people on the Fediverse.

2024-06-25 16:31:46 UTC

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😭😭😭😭😭

2024-06-25 15:39:05 UTC

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There are tons of editors out there, and they all feel like they’re missing something.
I’ve fallen back to using a decent Markdown editor for most of my work - as the least bad solution.
If you end up making a good “writer’s editor” I would love to try it out or help test it for you. Hopefully it works in more environments than just WordPress.