🏕
️ my adventures in self-hosting: day 365 (milestone edition) 🎂
Good morning Fedi friends!
Feeling a little emotional today as I reflect back on one year of #selfhosting.
This toot from December 17 2024 shows off my excitement over signing up for my first VPS and installing #YunoHost: https://mastodon.social/@_elena/113667636910565210
If you check out the full thread you can see some of the challenges I faced in the early days. It's only been a year but it feels like a lifetime ago. When I read back, I think: who was this person? _ (task) is so easy! Like, why be scared of tweaking DNS records? 😅
I will write about the highs and lows in a proper blog post. Spoiler alert: there were mostly HIGHS ☺
️
For now, I want to express my gratitude to:
✨
@shollyethan@fosstodon.org who encouraged me by saying (I'm paraphrasing) "go for it, you learn by doing things"
✨ @ilja@ilja.space who recommended I check out YunoHost (I had never heard of it before)
✨ 
@yunohost@toot.aquilenet.fr for empowering me to self-host so many great FOSS tools... and upgrading and maintaining them in a super easy way
✨ @stereo@freiburg.social for helping me test my first self-hosted app (this #GoToSocial account)
And thank you to all the sysadmins and programmers who have helped me troubleshoot problems this year. I found that tech support on the Fediverse takes less than a minute 🥰
I'm really #GratefulForYou 💖
#MySoCalledSudoLife
Dear Fedi friends,
I'm really proud to share with you a video I made: "Introducing the Fediverse: a New Era of Social Media" https://news.elenarossini.com/fediverse-video/
In this 4-minute video I explain what the #fediverse is to people not familiar with it, mentioning some of its great features and benefits (interoperability, no ads, no surveillance...) and I set it in contrast to the world of Big Tech social platforms. I argue that, with the rise of Big Tech oligarchs and the current political climate, there has never been a better time to join the fediverse.
I hope you will enjoy this video and that you will find it useful (maybe as a tool to introduce your friends, family, colleagues, school administrators, local government officials to it).
The fediverse has truly changed my life, making me a better, more empowered digital citizen. I am endlessly grateful for it, so this is my contribution to the cause ❤
️
I am also incredibly thankful for the work of @samaaberg@mastodon.social and @patel.riyen@pixelfed.social who helped me bring my vision to life with their amazing cinematography skills and their assistance throughout the process, providing brilliant feedback to the script / edits from the POV of fedi newbies.
And I was also moved by the generous help of people of the Fediverse who volunteered to translate the script into many foreign languages: @jan@social.dytrych.cloud @fritjof@social.riversouldiers.dk @erikkemp@tukkers.online @sknob@mamot.fr @severin@photos.grossermensch.eu @clabru@livellosegreto.it @tarcisiosurdi@bolha.one @hongminhee@hollo.social @danielcasanueva@mstdn.social @ainali@social.coop @nacly@floss.social
Lastly, I'm thankful for the opportunity I had to premiere the video last week at #FediForum - thank you @j12t@j12t.social and @anca@mastodon.xyz
The video is up on my self-hosted PeerTube instance (thank you @yunohost@toot.aquilenet.fr) and for now it is unlisted as I have no idea how my VPS will hold up. I also included an alternate location in the blog post.
I hope you'll enjoy it! It's been a real labor of love (a month of full time work on it)... I see it as my love letter to the fediverse 💌
Edit/update: THANK YOU for all the people who volunteered to have their avatar show up in the last shot. There were 750+ submissions and only 135 spots - sorry I couldn't include everyone 🥲
#TheFutureIsFederated
Hello #Fediverse and Happy New Year!
I'd like to mark the start of 2025 with the first message from my self-hosted instance. You may already know me as @_elena@mastodon.social. Well, now I also run my own #ActivityPub microblogging server, thanks to the magic of #YunoHost and #GoToSocial (and #Phanpy, which I'm using to compose this).
I registered this domain – aseachange.com – a looooong time ago but never did anything with it. It was the very first domain name I ever bought, even before securing elenarossini.com (!!!). It was so long ago, but I remember I was inspired by Beck's album Sea Change. seachange[dot]com was taken, so I grabbed Aseachange.
I absolutely love its meaning of profound transformation and I think it's PERFECT for my self-hosted #Fediverse instance and what it represents: independence, empowerment and digital sovereignty.
Ever since setting it up, I've been feeling joyful and hopeful. Everytime I look at myself in the mirror, I think: I'm in control of my own social media platform. And it feels SOOO GOOD.
What do I have in store for 2025? I plan to use this account to post messages about #selfhosting, learning #Linux, privacy and digital sovereignty.
I will also keep posting from my Mastodon account because you don't give a Lamborghini to someone who just passed their driver's license. I barely know what I'm doing here, so I feel a lot safer (for now) keeping my mastodon.social account as well... In case anything goes wrong here. Better safe than sorry!
So, this is my #Introduction and if you've read as far as here I just want to thank the Fediverse for being so amazing and allowing me to connect with people on my own terms. And thank you Fedi people for being so generous and supportive with your superb advice and kind words.
This is a really magical, special place.
Happy New Year, everyone!
Good morning Fedi friends!
I hope you're having a nice weekend.
I'd like to clear the air re: #WSocial and my opposition to it.
I got a lot of messages on my Mastodon account (several over private DM) trying to dissuade me from speaking up about it and urging me to work on improving the fediverse instead.
I hear you.
But I disagree.
I experienced the same thing last year, when I mentioned I had incendiary evidence about the lack of content moderation on Substack. I had many examples of posts and replies inciting racism, homophobia, fatphobia and xenophobia and spreading dangerous health misinformation. I had taken screenshots and reported them. When I checked back months later, none of my reports had been acted upon. I am talking about seriously heinous messages that are still on there. When I mentioned this on the fediverse, I got many responses urging me "not to waste my time" and "to stay positive" and to "focus instead on helping the fediverse." I did that. Meanwhile Substack is still incredibly popular and most people - even those using it - have no idea of the heinous speech that is allowed on it... and sometimes even monetized. I honestly regret not speaking up. It may not have made a difference, I know (I'm not a megalomaniac) but it makes my skin crawl to think some of the heinous comments are still on there and a young person could come across them and think they are ok. I should have spoken up.
Now, W Social where do I start? Sure, my criticism of it is from a completely different angle. All I want to do is write ONE blog post about its problematic aspects and then I will move on. What is so objectionable about it?
Years ago I wrote a blog post citing all the problems about Dove and its Real Beauty Campaign. It may not have been much, but it was over 10 years ago and the post is still getting hits today. You can see it for yourselves if you look up "The Problem with Dove" and "The Illusionists."
I'm very very lucky to have a little bit of influence on here - I'm immensely grateful for it - and even if I'm preaching to the choir as they say, maybe my advocacy can make a little bit of difference.
My hunch is: staying silent and wishing W Social away is not the way to go. They had a very rushed, botched announcement with no existing product or users. Major security flaws in their setup (I have plenty of evidence). I'd like to write something that you could reference and share... since so far no journalists did any research and simply rehashed the press release of W Social. That's irresponsible reporting – P.R. masked as journalism and it needs to be rectified. That's all I want to do: a blog post about "The Problems with W Social" that hopefully with a sprinkle of SEO magic people can easily find. What's so bad about it? 4 hours of my time and then I'll move on.
Your loyal fedi advocate,
Ele
If I were a digital rights activist, I would see this time as a golden opportunity.
#Grok, the #AI "assistant" powered by Musk's xAI, has become an engine of non-consensual image and video generation at a mass scale - including pornographic and pedopornographic content. Creating and distributing this imagery has never been quicker or easier. All one has to do is reply to an image posted by someone on X with a mention of Grok and a prompt. This feature was restrained recently but people who pay an $8 subscription to X can still do it. As Sam Cole writes on @404mediaco@mastodon.social : "Masterful Gambit: Musk Attempts to Monetize Grok's Wave of Sexual Abuse Imagery" https://www.404media.co/x-premium-grok-paywall-images-ai-generator/
How many politicians pushing for #ChatControl are still using X? How many official government accounts? You know, the same people who screamed WE NEED TO PROTECT THE CHILDREN and pushed for the scanning of all digital communications and files (including E2EE encrypted ones) of European citizens? An "Orwellian nightmare" as @Em0nM4stodon@infosec.exchange wrote on Privacy Guides: https://www.privacyguides.org/articles/2025/09/08/chat-control-must-be-stopped/#act-now
In the Privacy Guides article by Em, the French, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and Irish governments (amongst many others) were in full support of Chat Control. As far as I can tell, prominent politicians, Prime Ministers and official government accounts from these countries are still posting on X.
Is there anything we can do to point out the hypocrisy? Or have the abuse machine that is Grok sanctioned and fined? And - this is key - use this horrible incident to push politicians to FINALLY quit X? It's about time.
#StopChatControl #LeaveX #QuitX #SaveSocial
When ChatGPT was released 3 years ago I never anticipated how it could become a source of tensions with people in my life.
So to add to its many damages, it's a source of:
- environmental catastrophe
- economic bubble
- monumental job losses with bosses leaning into AI and laying off workers
- loss of critical thinking
- destruction of higher ED methods
- further isolation with people using AI characters as "romantic partners"
- dangerous medical advice (especially with reliance on it for mental health support)
(I'm probably forgetting other important things)
AND:
source of tensions inside homes and with friends when you have a person critical of AI (🙋♀️
) attempting to reason with a person whose default setting is: "I'll ask ChatGPT". Pointing out flagrant mistakes by AI seems to make their heads explode and get angry at the messenger. Ouf.
Sorry for the downer but I'm sure this is a pretty common problem...
Anyway, this morning I was given hope by a toot from @jwildeboer@social.wildeboer.net and I should just keep focusing on that. And make sure my own child doesn't buy into the BS of AI... https://mastodon.social/@jwildeboer@social.wildeboer.net/115799050671506747
🏕️ my adventures in self-hosting: day 365 (milestone edition) 🎂
Good morning Fedi friends!
Feeling a little emotional today as I reflect back on one year of #selfhosting.
This toot from December 17 2024 shows off my excitement over signing up for my first VPS and installing #YunoHost: https://mastodon.social/@_elena/113667636910565210
If you check out the full thread you can see some of the challenges I faced in the early days. It's only been a year but it feels like a lifetime ago. When I read back, I think: who was this person? _ (task) is so easy! Like, why be scared of tweaking DNS records? 😅
I will write about the highs and lows in a proper blog post. Spoiler alert: there were mostly HIGHS ☺️
For now, I want to express my gratitude to:
✨ @shollyethan@fosstodon.org who encouraged me by saying (I'm paraphrasing) "go for it, you learn by doing things"
✨ @ilja@ilja.space who recommended I check out YunoHost (I had never heard of it before)
✨ @yunohost@toot.aquilenet.fr for empowering me to self-host so many great FOSS tools... and upgrading and maintaining them in a super easy way
✨ @stereo@freiburg.social for helping me test my first self-hosted app (this #GoToSocial account)
And thank you to all the sysadmins and programmers who have helped me troubleshoot problems this year. I found that tech support on the Fediverse takes less than a minute 🥰
I'm really #GratefulForYou 💖
#MySoCalledSudoLife
Hello Fedi friends,
Please stage an intervention. This is a special “my adventures in self-hosting - 🤡
edition” toot.
So I need to learn #Docker in order to move my #Ghost blog there - possibly - as it’s the only way to let it federate (per the official Ghost.org documentation).
If you’ve followed me here for a while, you might have caught a running joke “please don’t tempt me to get a THIRD #VPS”.
This is my mayday, begging you: “please talk me out of getting a third VPS.”
I was happily doing online research wondering if I could install Docker on my #RaspberryPi5. Sure, it’s possible. Good to know.
Then things escalated when I started wondering: “hmmm how much would it cost to get a new VPS for Docker testing purposes?”
I checked out the website of my current VPS provider and noticed that you could get a basic VPS and pick an application that would come pre-installed. Docker is in the list of applications with a thumbs up next to it. Oh and I have a $20 credit after a commission. Awww the temptation!
I’m currently with my extended family in the middle of nowhere, with no WiFi in the house, one bar of 5G in most places (at best) and a laptop that refuses to connect to my phone’s hotspot. I’m typing this on my iPad (which is cooperating, vis-à-vis tethering). It’s my 12th day in this location, with 4 days to go before I return to civilization. I’m easily tempted because I’m going a little batty.
Please please please tell me that it’s better to learn Docker on my Pi 5. It’ll be waiting for me at home in a few days 😅
#MySoCalledSudoLife
Dear Fedi friends,
I'm really proud to share with you a video I made: "Introducing the Fediverse: a New Era of Social Media" https://news.elenarossini.com/fediverse-video/
In this 4-minute video I explain what the #fediverse is to people not familiar with it, mentioning some of its great features and benefits (interoperability, no ads, no surveillance...) and I set it in contrast to the world of Big Tech social platforms. I argue that, with the rise of Big Tech oligarchs and the current political climate, there has never been a better time to join the fediverse.
I hope you will enjoy this video and that you will find it useful (maybe as a tool to introduce your friends, family, colleagues, school administrators, local government officials to it).
The fediverse has truly changed my life, making me a better, more empowered digital citizen. I am endlessly grateful for it, so this is my contribution to the cause ❤️
I am also incredibly thankful for the work of @samaaberg@mastodon.social and @patel.riyen@pixelfed.social who helped me bring my vision to life with their amazing cinematography skills and their assistance throughout the process, providing brilliant feedback to the script / edits from the POV of fedi newbies.
And I was also moved by the generous help of people of the Fediverse who volunteered to translate the script into many foreign languages: @jan@social.dytrych.cloud @fritjof@social.riversouldiers.dk @erikkemp@tukkers.online @sknob@mamot.fr @severin@photos.grossermensch.eu @clabru@livellosegreto.it @tarcisiosurdi@bolha.one @hongminhee@hollo.social @danielcasanueva@mstdn.social @ainali@social.coop @nacly@floss.social
Lastly, I'm thankful for the opportunity I had to premiere the video last week at #FediForum - thank you @j12t@j12t.social and @anca@mastodon.xyz
The video is up on my self-hosted PeerTube instance (thank you @yunohost@toot.aquilenet.fr) and for now it is unlisted as I have no idea how my VPS will hold up. I also included an alternate location in the blog post.
I hope you'll enjoy it! It's been a real labor of love (a month of full time work on it)... I see it as my love letter to the fediverse 💌
Edit/update: THANK YOU for all the people who volunteered to have their avatar show up in the last shot. There were 750+ submissions and only 135 spots - sorry I couldn't include everyone 🥲
#TheFutureIsFederated
Hello #Fediverse and Happy New Year!
I'd like to mark the start of 2025 with the first message from my self-hosted instance. You may already know me as @_elena@mastodon.social. Well, now I also run my own #ActivityPub microblogging server, thanks to the magic of #YunoHost and #GoToSocial (and #Phanpy, which I'm using to compose this).
I registered this domain – aseachange.com – a looooong time ago but never did anything with it. It was the very first domain name I ever bought, even before securing elenarossini.com (!!!). It was so long ago, but I remember I was inspired by Beck's album Sea Change. seachange[dot]com was taken, so I grabbed Aseachange.
I absolutely love its meaning of profound transformation and I think it's PERFECT for my self-hosted #Fediverse instance and what it represents: independence, empowerment and digital sovereignty.
Ever since setting it up, I've been feeling joyful and hopeful. Everytime I look at myself in the mirror, I think: I'm in control of my own social media platform. And it feels SOOO GOOD.
What do I have in store for 2025? I plan to use this account to post messages about #selfhosting, learning #Linux, privacy and digital sovereignty.
I will also keep posting from my Mastodon account because you don't give a Lamborghini to someone who just passed their driver's license. I barely know what I'm doing here, so I feel a lot safer (for now) keeping my mastodon.social account as well... In case anything goes wrong here. Better safe than sorry!
So, this is my #Introduction and if you've read as far as here I just want to thank the Fediverse for being so amazing and allowing me to connect with people on my own terms. And thank you Fedi people for being so generous and supportive with your superb advice and kind words.
This is a really magical, special place.
Happy New Year, everyone!
Elena Rossini on GoToSocial ⁂