The perils of federated protocols
▻https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/687294/3fe484e7cd23f719
The lure of “federation” for internet services is potent, since it allows disparate providers to interoperate and users to choose the provider that (most) meets their needs—or to become their own provider. Many of the longtime services, such as email, web serving, DNS, and others, are federated, but many of the newest services decidedly are not. That tension is playing out right now for the Signal open-source encrypted messaging and voice application from Open Whisper Systems (OWS) and others who would like to be able to federate with it.
