Dig, Plant, Grow. Compost the #Techshit, Repeat

Let’s be honest, much of the so-called “alternative” tech scene is still stuck. We fled the #dotcons for something better, but ended up with copies of the same broken models. The Fediverse, with all its potential, is still dominated by “mainstreaming meta” chat (“Twitter refugees incoming!”) or conspiracy-laden, #fashionista rabbit holes. It’s little wonder that even the nerdy privacy crowd struggles to find meaningful content or community. And no, shouting “fuck the system!” […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/dig-plant-grow-compost-the-techshit-repeat-2/

The #Hashtags Tell a Story: Building Trust in a Messy World

We live in a time of crisis. Climate, community, communication, all are breaking down. Our tools and platforms no longer serve us. To make sense of this, we need to tell stories. And in the digital world, hashtags are one of the most powerful ways we do this. But our hashtags don’t just tag, they trace the roots of our problems, and signpost paths out. Each one is a seed. Together, they are a map.#dotcons – From #openweb to walled gardens. Once, the internet was a place of openness, […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/the-hashtags-tell-a-story-building-trust-in-a-messy-world/

Why most #geekproblem software fails: Trust vs. control

Almost all of our #geekproblem software fails because it’s built with a mindset of control.

Control over users.Control over systems.Control over outcomes.

But all good societies, and all durable communities, are based on trust. When we ignore this, we don’t just write bad code, we produce #techshit that nobody uses, that burns out developers, and that confuses users. Then we start over… and call it “innovation.” That’s #techchurn.Control-driven projects: Examples of […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/why-most-geekproblem-software-fails-trust-vs-control/

The hashtag story shows the current state of the world

The hashtag story on this site is a way of using different hashtags to paint a picture of the current state of the world and the paths that can be taken to address the issues at hand. It involves defining each hashtag and how it relates to the larger narrative. Here is an example of a hashtag story:

#fashernista is about consumer capitalism and the negative impact it has on society, treating it as a social illness.

#dotcons are feeding this social illness by promoting constant consumption […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/the-hashtag-story-shows-the-current-state-of-the-world/

Bringing #indymediaback: A Gentle Revival of Radical Media

The old flower beds of #Indymedia lie fallow, not dead. The seeds are still there, beneath layers of neglect, factionalism, and the noise of 20 years of failed “alternatives.” What we need now is not revolution or reinvention, but revival. A slow, careful re-rooting in the fertile ground of experience.

We don’t need to tear it down or rebuild from scratch. Almost all of what worked between 2000–2008 still works today, at least 90% of the original social structure is sound. Let’s […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/bringing-indymediaback-a-gentle-revival-of-radical-media/

Theory and Practice in Activism

There’s a common confusion, often pushed by well-meaning #fashernistas, about how change actually happens. They love theory. They love to talk about change. But when it comes to doing, things go sideways. Why? Because good horizontalists know: theory must emerge from practice, not the other way around.

At the root of radical practice is #DIY culture. We don’t wait for perfect theory or academic approval. We get our hands dirty. We try things, we fail, we try again. Through this, we […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/theory-and-practice-in-activism-2/

Where’s the Resistance to Algorithmic Monopolies?

The big question need to be highlighted: where will pressure for meaningful regulation of #dotcons algorithmic monopolies actually come from?

Right now, it’s hard to see. Lawmakers generally have a poor grasp of the real problems, decades behind on both the tech and its corrosive social consequences. Most legislation we get is either pre-packaged by lobbyists from the very platforms causing the harm, or superficial and narrow, focused on headline optics like “online harms” or […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/wheres-the-resistance-to-algorithmic-monopolies/

Let’s start embracing the composting of #techshit to turn the current mess into fertile ground for new #openweb growth and innovation. Communication barriers, lead to a lack of awareness https://hamishcampbell.com/communication-barriers-lead-to-a-lack-of-awareness/

Interesting to find this project https://displayeurope.eu/en/vision is an #AI driven version of the #OMN built up by the invisible #fashernista crew - in this it's based on the normal #EU corruption. Now the question is, is it any good? More #techshit or compost - or a native part of the #openweb reboot?

The Mess We Make (Again… and again)

Ten years ago, I remember being told, often condescendingly, with smug certainty, that hosting in the cloud was the future. That what I was working on, #DIY grassroots self and community hosted tech was a dinosaur, dead end, old thinking, out of touch. Despite spending years pointing out the obvious flaws, that my “native” path was irrelevant, for Luddites, they said. Legacy thinking, dead tech walking.

Well, here we are, a decade later. And guess what the cloud: It was expensive, less […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/the-mess-we-make-again-and-again/

Getting through this era of collapse with anything human left intact

The discussions on sovereignty at #NGIForum2025 make me wonder: what year are we in? It’s as if we’re rebooting grassroots conversations we’ve had for decades – but without the mess, memory, or movement that gave them meaning in the first place.

A breath of clarity came from @renchap, who said it plainly:

We need to focus our efforts on funding and supporting public value network infrastructure… THAT CANNOT BE BOUGHT.

Absolutely. If that idea resonates with you, try starting […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/getting-through-this-era-of-collapse-with-anything-human-left-intact/

NGIFORUM2025 is starting to timidly touch sense

DRAFT

It’s good to see events like #NGIFORUM2025. The #Fediverse and the wider #openweb reboot are real forces for social good, messy, hopeful, and grounded in decades of grassroots digital culture, we do need to support them. BUT we also need to speak honestly, as these spaces are not healthy by default.

Too often, they are co-opted by #NGO and institutional actors who bring with them a dangerous kind of “common sense”, what I’ve long described as the parasite class. We see this […]

https://hamishcampbell.com/ngiforum2025-is-starting-to-timidly-touch-sense/

The Fediverse is Opening, but there is a cost

https://hamishcampbell.com/the-fediverse-is-opening-but-there-is-a-cost/

Governance, the mess of AI tech-fix path

https://hamishcampbell.com/governance-the-mess-of-ai-tech-fix-path/