Distributed social network

Social Networkdistributed

Talesmith is a social network you control. Privacy by default. Data is yours, stored and managed by you. Control your connections and who you interact with.

Join a hub Get your node.
  • Self-hosted
  • Private by default
  • Federated
  • No tracking

Pick your people

Join a hub. Find your people.

Your data, your community, your call. Pick a hub and connect with people who share what you're into.

How it works

Four steps to your own node.

  1. Step 1

    Download Node Software

  2. Step 2

    Install on your server

  3. Step 3

    Connect to Social Nodes

  4. Step 4

    Post & Interact

Self-hosted · Open software

Download your node

Download
Version

Requires your own hosting

Coming soon

Hosted signup

Skip the server setup—we will host a node for you when signup opens.

Hosted by Talesmith

Compare

What you get with Talesmith.

Not every network is built the same way. Here is how Talesmith Social compares with the big platforms and with other federated networks—on ownership, privacy, connections, content and portability.

Feature comparison between Talesmith Social, big social platforms and other federated platforms
Feature Recommended Talesmith Social Big Social Platforms Other Federated
Ownership & hosting
Where your data lives Who physically holds your posts and media Yes Your own server No Their data centres Partial Instances owned by others
Export everything, anytime Full archive, not a locked-down download Yes Everything Partial Limited Yes Mostly
Bring your own domain Your identity stays yours if you move Yes Fully supported No Handle only Partial Sometimes
Open-source software Read it, audit it, change it Yes Fully open No Closed Yes Usually
Privacy & control
Ad tracking Profiles built from your behaviour No None at all Yes Core business Partial Varies by node
Private by default You opt in to being seen, not out Yes Default No Public first Partial Varies
Algorithmic feed They choose what you see, not you No Your Choice Yes Ranked No Chronological
Connections & community
Connect across independent nodes Reach people on other servers, not just yours Yes Any node No Walled garden Yes Federated
Node-level allow & block Decide which whole communities you connect to Yes Full control No Not possible Partial Admin only
You set the moderation rules Your node, your standards Yes Yours No Theirs Partial Per instance
Portable identity Move nodes without losing your people Yes Follows you No Locked in Partial Improving
Content & publishing
Blog-style long posts Write properly, not in fragments Yes Full articles Partial Truncated Partial Varies
No character limits Say the whole thing Yes Unlimited No Capped Yes Usually
Media you host yourself Images and video stay on your storage Yes Your storage No Re-uploaded Partial Node storage
Your posts stay yours No licence grabbed over your work Yes Always Partial Broad licence Partial Varies
Fully supported Partial or varies Not offered Scroll table →

Comparisons reflect the typical behaviour of major commercial platforms.

Join the waiting list

Be among the first

Talesmith is almost ready. Add your name and we will let you know the moment we launch. No spam, no data selling. Just a heads-up.

Why Talesmith?

There are many social networks, but Talesmith is different.

Features

There is so much to say about Talesmith, so let's break it down into sections.

Values

  • Private by default
  • Self Ownership

Privacy is not an afterthought, it is baked into the architecture. It starts with the open software. You download and install it where you wish. You select your hosting location. Your data is stored locally on your system.

Your node has settings to control who you connect to. You can choose to connect to other nodes, or to only connect to nodes you know and trust.

You can post and have it seen as a blog, or ensure it's private and only visible to you and your connections.

Since your data is stored locally on your system, you are in full control of it. You can export it, import it, or delete it at any time.

Ownership means you can change your domain, be anonymous—your data, always yours. This includes your posts and media.

Old school social, Modern Update

The web was designed to have servers distributed around the world and for individuals and organisations alike to have control over their own data. Talesmith is a modern update on this idea. It is a social network that is self-hosted, and a node under your control can connect with others who have equal decisions on their node. You are in full control of your data, your connections, and your content.

The web has URLs and we can discover them, share them and bookmark them. The URL is a vital part of connecting a document in Switzerland to an individual in the Bahamas.

The web is founded on democratic and equal access, deliberately using basic technologies to enable anyone with a small bit of learning to get their voice out there.

Oligopolies breaking the web

Perhaps it is inevitable that business greed leads to monopolies and control. We have allowed it to happen by falling for the tricks of the industry.

They deliberately make things complex, to make you dependent on them. They make you pay to access your own data. Hard drives are cheap, backups are easy, but we pay for backup services, storing our data in the cloud at their discretion.

Technologies have steep learning curves and they lock you into their platforms.

Talesmith is a counter measure.

  • Self-hosted
  • Self-ownership
  • Decentralized
  • Private by default
  • Web-oriented
  • Upholding Freedoms
  • Democratising the web
  • Democratising social networks

This software is in development and not yet for public use. Use at your own risk. All Rights Reserved.