HollieMar 20, 2024
Found my way into a great #FediForum discussion on implementing the ability to create private groups, and it startled me how emphatically a few folks were puzzled why this would be desired. One person repeatedly characterized private groups as "hiding from the public square". It feels like issues of harassment (sexism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, etc.) are talked about with such urgency (at least in my circles?) - I can't be the only hearing that? The public square isn't safe for everyone.
Show threadSeedLight

@hollie

It doesn't even have to be about safety; you can just want a closed group period - a way for you & your friends/classmates/colleagues to be together without strangers peeking in and eavesdropping on your conversation.

If you are a study group (for example), you want it to be just you and your study mates; no one else is welcome and it wouldn't be appropriate.

I would love to have something like this in the Fediverse instead of trying to use cumbersome and/or expensive commercial options.

Mar 20, 2024 at 9:43pmWeb
Show threadBill StatlerMar 20, 2024
@@SeedLight @@hollie
"...you can just want a closed group period... I would love to have something like this in the Fediverse instead of trying to use cumbersome and/or expensive commercial options."

We do have it in the Fediverse. Two options that I'm aware of: Hubzilla, and its recent descendant in the Streams repository (which I'm using).

As @@jeff noted above, this stuff existed before Mastodon, but for whatever reason, Mastodon has become so popular that many people aren't aware of other options.
Show threadRyan MannMar 21, 2024
@SeedLight @weirdwriter @hollie I agree. It's like having a get together with your friends. If some stranger told me that me and my friends need to allow them to be at our get togethers, we would probably think they were weird . Private groups are the same concept.
Show threadalastair87 (old account)Mar 22, 2024
@SeedLight @hollie I can see it working a bit like Facebook groups but much smaller. The tricky part would probably be doing it cross-instance. Even on Facebook in the beginning when it was for academic institutions only, you could only join groups with others from the same one.
Show threadSeedLightMar 22, 2024

@alastair @hollie

Ah, perhaps - I don't know *anything* about that side of things. But if true, wouldn't it be magnificent if that could be overcome? 😃