Diaspora Alpha Lets You Join Diaspora. Is It Facebook / Google+ Alternative?

As of now, I'm one of the first ones to be invited in the second round to join #-Link-Snipped-#- the social network that promised a rock-solid alternative to those unhappy with Facebook. The main aim of the Diaspora project is to give the users ownership of their own data and control over their online assets - profiles, photos, videos, liked content and so on. While the basic concept of Diaspora is that of a social network where you can share all your stuff with people you want; Diaspora aims to decentralize the network and let you host your data on your own servers (and calls them 'pods'). The founders of the project had raised $200,000 and put Ruby On Rails to some serious use. The first version of their social network was released last year around September, but users quickly discovered a number of security holes. The site was redesigned for Alpha launch and it seems that invites are being sent out.  I just received mine and decided to give Diaspora a look.


Diaspora Is Open. Are You Joining It?

I'm not a fan of Social Networks and rarely login to Facebook or Google+. The problem that concerns majority of the geeks out there is Facebook's centralized network that gives ownership of your data to the company. Once you accept the invite, you're taken to a sign-up page where you can create your Diaspora id and login. Once you're logged in, you're asked to enter your name and create/follow few hashtags. You may chose to skip the step and directly head over to your Diaspora stream. From my limited knowledge about social networks; I can tell you that the interface and concepts look very similar to Facebook & Google+. For example, the middle column displays the updates from your friends and people in your 'aspects' - which is your 'Google+ Circle'. You can get notifications for @mentions, and post your status updates.

There's an easy Facebook integration mechanism that lets you connect to and import all your important data to Diaspora. The site makes it easy for everyone to download their data, profile (as XML) and close your account (unlike Facebook). The developers have released Cubbi - Fotografías libres y sin censura app to showcase the power of the platform for building apps.

The base has been built and the development team has a long way to go. Is Diaspora an alternative to Facebook or Google+? At this point; no. But it does provide an alternative for those who really want to own their data an alternative to socialize on the Internet without losing the grip & letting someone else control their privacy. The Diaspora provides easy integration and seamless transfer between other social networks which makes it easier for users to adopt it.

If you've received your invites, we'd like to know your views about Diaspora. Do you think you'll use Diaspora as your primary login for your social networking needs?