Bonjour, c/opensource@lemmy.ml!

Framasoft (that’s us!) is a small French non-profit (10 employees + 25 volunteers), that has been promoting Free-Libre software and its culture to a French-speaking audience for 20+ years.

What does Framasoft do?

We strongly believe that Free-Libre software is one of the essential tools for achieving a Free-Libre society. That is why we maintain and contribute to lots of projects that aim to empower people to get more freedom in their digital lives.

Among those tools are:

  • 20 FOSS based web-services that we host (mainly for our French-speaking audience) on our Degooglify Internet website, including Framadate and Framaforms… ;
  • many talks, workshops, and participations to conventions ;
  • A blog, where we share our views and where a group of volunteers translate into French news from the English-speaking FLOSS world ;
  • Many, many ressources to help people and organizations in their transition to ethical digital tools (guides, documentation, even card games!) ;

Framasoft is funded by donations (94% of our 2024 budget), mainly grassroots donations (75% of the 2024 budget). As we mainly communicate in French, the overwhelming majority of our donations comes from the French-speaking audience. You can help us through joinpeertube.org/contribute.

We develop PeerTube

In the English-speaking community, we are mostly known for developing PeerTube, a self-hosted video and live-streaming free/libre platform, which has become the main alternative to Big Tech’s video platforms.

From a student project to a software with international reach, our video platform solution is now, seven years later, used and acknowledged by many institutions!

The last major version of PeerTube, v7, has been released at the end of 2024, along with the first version of the official mobile app, available on both Android (Play Store, F-Droid) and iOS.

Now that the PeerTube platform has matured significantly over successive versions, we believe that the way to enable even more people to use PeerTube is to improve the mobile app so that it can be carried around in people’s pockets.

Ask Us Anything!

Last month, we have published the roadmap for the project. This week, we also launched our new crowdfunding campaign which focuses on our mobile app. We want to give you the opportunity through this AMA to give us feedback on the product and the project and discuss the crowdfunding campaign and our next steps!

If you have any questions, please ask them below (and upvote those you want us to answer first).

We will answer them to the best of our abilities with the /u/Framasoft account, from May. 28th 2025 5pm CET (11 am EST) until we are too tired ;).

EDIT (8:16 pm CET): This wraps it for the day, thanks for all of your questions and feedback!

  • Meldrik@lemmy.wtf
    351·
    7 days ago

    Have you considered implementing Librapay into PeerTube? Would be a nice tool for viewers to fast and easily support content creators.

    • Framasoft@lemmy.worldOP
      23·
      7 days ago

      We have a support button that can be shown on videos to provide instructions on how to support a channel (for instance with Liberapay). I don’t know what you had in mind that would the integration would be like, but please share it on https://ideas.joinpeertube.org/. Most probably it could be solved through a simple plugin.

  • Killercat103@slrpnk.netEnglish
    241·
    7 days ago

    Have you guys considered making a way for content creators to monetize their content? I am not one myself but I realize it’s often a source of income they depend on and would be willing to use money to see such content myself.

  • Meldrik@lemmy.wtf
    241·
    7 days ago

    One thing that might get more content creators on PeerTube could be “advertising” as not just a video platform, but also a backup service.

    I’m guessing most content creators have their original video and video project files backed up somewhere. Why not have the ability to use PeerTube for that?

    You can already have PeerTube store the original video file, when you upload it, something YouTube can’t do.

    • Framasoft@lemmy.worldOP
      8·
      7 days ago

      That’s an idea (and some content creators kind of already do that if YouTube unpublishes their video for some reason), but it’s not very selling as an idea. Being independent from fake companies claiming the rights to some content is a selling point, though.

    • Vegafjord eo@lemmy.ml
      31·
      7 days ago

      Id be against advertising on peertube, advertising is to mighten overproducers to overgrip peertube inhold. Inhold should rather be made on the grounds of the meaningful, and design should eyen how to forward the meaningful.

  • spacemanspiffy@lemmy.worldEnglish
    20·
    7 days ago

    I write closed source, proprietary code for a living.

    That makes me sad.

    Have your developers any advice on how to get paid to write Free Software?

    • Framasoft@lemmy.worldOP
      25·
      7 days ago

      Our developers were writing Free Software on their free time before they got hired, because Framasoft knew them through their free-time productions, but obviously not everybody can do that, and we’ve very lucky to have an economic model which allows us to pay developers properly.

      • jagged_circle@feddit.nlEnglish
        9·
        7 days ago

        I have a friend that does this.

        They’re right. First build an amazing profile contributing to Foss. Then apply for grants. If you don’t like writing grants, get a part time job doing evil closed code and another part time doing Foss.

    • Framasoft@lemmy.worldOP
      13·
      7 days ago

      Sadly no, right now we don’t really have the time to approach these types of organizations and try to make partnerships. However, there is the possibility for a hosting provider offering PeerTube as a solution to contact them and make them a complete offer.

    • Framasoft@lemmy.worldOP
      11·
      7 days ago

      We’re fine on giving people the choice to use the algorithm they want. Today our « Hot » sorting type is using a derivative of Reddit’s old algorithm, but we could add new ones. However, it takes time to focus on this topic, so it’s not a priority.

      • geneva_convenience@lemmy.ml
        19·
        7 days ago

        Getting people to stay on the site and watch videos.

        Not as a commercial goal or to sell more ads or whatever, but to try to recommend people the videos they want to see.

        Many open source platforms seem to despise recommendation algorithms because they are often used nefariously (get people emotionally invested aka angry) but they certainly have their uses if used with proper intentions.

        • aim_at_me@lemmy.nzEnglish
          4·
          6 days ago

          Yup. Just to add to your point for passers by. Existing algorithms in big tech organisations generally have 1 goal. Site retention and consequences be damned. Properly utilised, they can be used for good.

  • iddqd404@lemmy.mlEnglish
    9·
    6 days ago

    (Not a question) I have used services hosted by Framasoft many times, but I wasn’t aware that you were also the developers of PeerTube! I have almost stopped using Y*utube and I’ve been trying to use PeerTube more and more. The main hurdle is finding content, which I’m sure will get easier and easier as the platform gets adopted and known in the fediverse and beyond. Congratulations for you efforts promoting Free and Libre software, keep up the good work!

  • pedroapero@lemmy.ml
    14·
    7 days ago

    You have my unconditional respect I donated a couple of times already. I wish you the best, keep on going!

  • asudox@lemmy.asudox.dev
    171·
    7 days ago

    Thank you for your amazing works.

    Are you planning on implementing a privacy friendly recommendation algorithm? It would ideally run locally on the client’s device.

    edit: Oh and, if you haven’t seen it yet, please see the PM I sent you.

  • conditional_soup@lemm.ee
    6·
    6 days ago

    Hey, guys, I know I’m late to the party, but my city just announced that they spent half a million dollars of Microsoft office licenses last year. I think that’s nuts. I want to try to persuade them to switch non-power-users to LibreOffice suite and reduce their office licenses by over 90%. Do you have any advice, examples, or selling points that can help me persuade them to cut Microsoft office licenses instead of literal firefighters? And, seeing as this is late, I’d welcome anybody answering. Thanks!

  • Mazesecle@lemm.eeEnglish
    162·
    7 days ago

    We strongly believe that Free-Libre software is one of the essential tools for achieving a Free-Libre society.

    French-speaking audience

    Why is your user target group mainly a French-speaking audience? It seems like hosting services in English would be more in-line with having a “Free-Libre society”; instead it is “Free-Libre society but only in French-speaking regions”

    (I’m not from USA), but online I still prefer to use a language that almost everyone speaks, instead of creating content only few peopke can enjoy

    (Μπορώ να γράψω την ερώτηση και στα ελληνικά άμα θέλετε να την καταλάβετε καλύτερα)

    Nevertheless, I really am grateful for your work in Peertube and your other projects!

    • Framasoft@lemmy.worldOP
      41·
      7 days ago

      Because we’re a very small team, and we’re okay with it staying this way. Not all of us are speaking English correctly. Having a worldwide audience would mean communicating in English all the time, providing assistance in English.

      Also, we want to grow at a pace that suits us. We would much prefer if there were other organizations doing exactly the same thing as us in other countries that we could refer people to.

      • Mazesecle@lemm.eeEnglish
        1·
        5 days ago

        Ευχαριστώ για την απάντηση! Ναι φυσικά, δεν αναφέρθηκα στον ρυθμό ανάπτυξής σας, απλώς αν ο στόχος είναι η διάδοση του ελεύθερου λογισμικού, θα έχει μεγαλύτερη επιτυχία η παραγωγή περιεχομένου σε μια γλώσσα που μιλάνε περισσότεροι άνθρωποι.

        Αλλιώς καταλήγουμε με περιεχόμενο που ήδη από τη στιγμή της συγγραφής του, έχει εξ’ ορισμού ένα παραπάνω εμπόδιο στο να έχουν πρόσβαση άνθρωποι, και μάλιστα εσκεμμένα από τον συγγραφέα. Συνήθως το ελεύθερο λογισμικό προσπαθεί να έχει και διάφορα πλεονεκτήματα, όπως η εκπαίδευση του κόσμου, η βελτίωση της ιδιωτικότητας του ατόμου, κλπ κλπ.

        Γράφοντας ο καθένας στη γλώσσα του, είναι σαν να λέμε ότι μόνο οι λίγοι που μιλάνε την γλώσσα αξίζει να χρησιμοποιήσουν πχ ένα λογισμικό που έχει μεγαλύτερη ιδιωτικότητα. Αυτό προφανώς δεν συμβαίνει άμα κάνουμε τις ίδιες ενέργειες αλλά χρησιμοποιώντας μια γλώσσα που μιλάει ο μισός πλανήτης

        Οι άνθρωποι που μιλάνε αγγλικά, είναι πάρα πολύ περισσότεροι από εκείνους που μιλάνε γαλλικά, κι αν πρέπει κάθε κείμενο να το ξαναγράφουμε 200 φορές σε 200 γλώσσες, αφιερώνουμε ενέργεια που θα μπορούσε να βοηθήσει και με άλλους τρόπους το έργο

    • a Kendrick fan@lemmy.ml
      78·
      7 days ago

      online I still prefer to use a language that almost everyone speaks

      i wonder how many languages this mindset would kill off

      ehm no, fuck english

      • AbnormalHumanBeing@lemmy.abnormalbeings.space
        5·
        6 days ago

        I get it, and I have been ambivalent throughout my life about it - but I think every time I sit down and think about it, I am still more appreciative of the benefits of a global “Lingua Franca”, compared to the problems. I do appreciate that I can enter the majority of communities online, and immediately, there’s one language everyone can participate in the discussions with, without the need of machine translations and other hoops.

        But I do agree that it would be wrong to extrapolate from English being such a language that everyone speaks “well enough” (often with local quirks, like my German bleeding through when I provide run on sentences en masse), to saying content should be made exclusively/primarily in English only.

        I think Framasoft are good enough at providing their technology offerings with English documentation, which is I think the important part. They also accept English feedback, and can communicate with people in English like here. And their more local, French focus has, I think, helped them with a stable foundation at home and a supportive community.

        • Mazesecle@lemm.eeEnglish
          1·
          5 days ago

          I don’t always like it much either, but we do need a common language for exchanging information etc; there is already too much fake news, misinformation, and echo chambers without having a language barrier.

      • Mazesecle@lemm.eeEnglish
        1·
        5 days ago

        Δεν πειράζει, μπορείς να μην μιλάς αγγλικά εσύ και να έχεις πρόσβαση σε λιγότερο περιεχόμενο στο Internet 🤷

  • defolos_tech@lemmy.world
    8·
    6 days ago

    Merci pour votre travail, c’est génial ! 👏💪

    Have you ever thought about offering compute capabilities (with OpenLambda for ex) or hosting web services ? I’d personnally pay for that, and there’s a need for European cloud alternatives !

  • OsrsNeedsF2P@lemmy.ml
    13·
    7 days ago

    I have access to ~20Gb/s worth of extra bandwidth. Is there any way I can “donate” it to different Peertube instances? Right now I just use it to seed things and run XMR/I2P nodes

    • spv.sh@lemmy.spv.shEnglish
      91·
      7 days ago

      GIGABIT per SECOND?!?!!! i will blow you to mirror my videos once i set up an instance

      eye contact too

    • AbnormalHumanBeing@lemmy.abnormalbeings.space
      4·
      7 days ago

      Not Framasoft or affiliated with them, but I am running an instance myself. If you have a FQDN and can set up a PeerTube server with federation enabled utilising the bandwith behind it, there are settings to automatically mirror and seed videos from other instances. For example, my server currently has ~300GB which it utilises to automatically pull trending, new and most-watched videos from trusted instances to mirror and seed as a redundancy.

      Setting this up is relatively easy, basically just uncommenting and specifying stuff in a config text file. Besides that you could disable user registrations and anything else, maybe the web interface altogether, and just let it do the mirroring. At least AFAIK, there doesn’t seem to be a way to do this, without setting up PeerTube with Fedaration enabled first, though. But maybe they will provide additional info I haven’t learned yet!