Most recent activity
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Is there any particular reason why we have to use one payment method exclusively?
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LFGSS and Microcosm shutting down 16th March 2025 (the day before the Online Safety Act is enforced)
Have tried condensing it a bit and simplifying some of the language, hopefully that will help.
Dear [local MP],
I am writing to you about the Online Safety Act, due to come into force March 17th 2025.
The act was originally meant to hold large social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter liable for harmful content. Yet it was set out in such broad and vague terms that small online forums - run by sports clubs, hobby societies and other community groups - face being regulated out of existence. Please see the recent news coverage:
Hundreds of websites to shut down under UK’s ‘chilling’ internet laws
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/12/17/hundreds-of-websites-to-shut-down-under-chilling-internet/
Death Of A Forum: How The UK’s Online Safety Act Is Killing Communities
https://www.techdirt.com/2024/12/20/death-of-a-forum-how-the-uks-online-safety-act-is-killing-communities/
Hundreds of small websites may shut down due to UK's Online Safety Act
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2461213-hundreds-of-small-websites-may-shut-down-due-to-uks-online-safety-act/
Britain's online safety rules come into force, and sites are already shutting down.
https://boingboing.net/2024/12/18/britains-online-safety-rules-come-into-force-andl-ocal-sites-are-already-shutting-down.htmlThese forums are extremely important social spaces. They bring people with common interests together, serving as an important outlet for personal development and expression, and combatting loneliness and social isolation. In many cases, these communities exist solely within the realm of their online forums.
Most often the forums are run by volunteers or members of non-profit organisations. Understandably, they are not equipped for the overly onerous and complex compliance effort required to meet the proposals of the act. The personal liability risk in operating these forums poses a serious threat to their survival.
I believe regulation serves an important purpose, particularly where it pertains to the online safety of our children, and applaud its introduction. However, the proposed requirements, in their current form, will have a disproportionate impact on the above mentioned communities.
I therefore politely request that you to look into this matter and intercede with the Secretary of State to consider incorporating changes into the advice received from Ofcom, to align the requirements with the nature, size and resources of these self-organized communities (which are an expression of the centuries-old British tradition of associativism), minimising the impact of the act in their operation and ensuring their continued existence.
Kind regards
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This was what I always aimed at, but as people's payment methods expired, etc... well, I just made up the difference and didn't both to do a focused fundraise in recent years.
This part makes me consider the value of adding Patreon as an option. Because (a) they'll do the chasing bit for you if someone's card expires, and (b) it's an easy option to include for people that already subscribe to support various other ventures.
It might not be the most efficient option financially, but its popularity is a strength which could reduce the barrier to entry enough to offset that.
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LFGSS and Microcosm shutting down 16th March 2025 (the day before the Online Safety Act is enforced)
Thanks @moocher and @Sparky, have updated the post here - https://www.lfgss.com/comments/17616647/
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One other reason that I think saving LFGSS is important.
This is something that relies on itself.
There are so many examples in recent history of big tech companies growing based on the good will of their userbase, and then reneging on that implied social contract. They either pull the rug out from under you, or they start doing something that is actively against the users.
Some examples spring to mind:
- Twitter and Reddit forcing the use of their official app, resulting in the end of development of 3rd party clients, or Strava and Spotify curtailing API usage
- Youtube growing through on user-generated content and then restricting those users' ability to monetise it
- Stack Overflow selling users' content as AI training data without their consent, and banning them for protesting against it
- Social media platforms algorithmically reducing the visibility of posts that link out to other sites
I'm sure there are many other examples of enshittification. But this particular form in which you build your "product" on someone else's "platform", and then they yank it out from under you, is one that really troubles me in our potential move to Discord.
Yes, LFGSS relies on @Velocio (hugely!), and Linode, and Cloudflare, and so on. But those relationships are very different than the cases I've outline above - hopefully that is clear. In a sense, it's a platform whose only motivation is to serve itself as best it can. I think that makes LFGSS so special as a place where a genuine sense of community is fostered.
- Twitter and Reddit forcing the use of their official app, resulting in the end of development of 3rd party clients, or Strava and Spotify curtailing API usage
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Map doesn't work for me on Community Fibre either.
I'm getting a 502 error on the request to this RM service - https://www.royalmail.com/capi/rml/bf/v1/locations/branchFinder
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Does anyone know of a fireworks display happening in Waltham Forest at NYE? Hoping to avoid the more hectic Southbank / Alexandra Palace kind of setup.
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LFGSS and Microcosm shutting down 16th March 2025 (the day before the Online Safety Act is enforced)
Here is a football forum of ~40k members discussing the matter:
https://www.footballforums.net/index.php?threads/online-safety-bill-is-ff-at-risk.284012/
I had a quick check around some of the forums of the bigger teams, and couldn't find any of them talking about it -
https://www.redcafe.net/forums/ Man Utd 40k members
https://www.utdforum.com/forum/ Man Utd 10k members
https://thefightingcock.co.uk/forum/ Spurs 10k members
https://spurscommunity.co.uk/index.php?forums/ Spurs 27k members
https://www.redandwhitekop.com/forum/ Liverpool 45k members
https://www.lfcreds.com/reds/index.php Liverpool 20k members
https://www.theshedend.com/ Chelsea 17k members
https://forum.talkchelsea.net/ Chelsea 16k membersThat's 185k forum members going on their merry way...
Also, happy to chip in with dev work.