This isn't a BSDCan report, but a general reflection that emerged after participating in the event itself. There's the event, but there's me inside it.

The first question I received, when I went to greet the BSD community present in the days before the conference (there for the FreeBSD dev summit and tutorials) was asked by someone I deeply respect and admire, extremely active and positive for the entire BSD world. "Where have you been for the last 20 years?"

Off the cuff, I replied that I'd been busy doing things, but the truth (which I clarified the next day) is that I didn't feel ready to be an "active" member of the community itself. And the reasons are many, too many and too personal to be expressed here, but at the core there's a specific reason: I didn't feel up to it. Perhaps a form of impostor syndrome - without wanting to put a name to it, basically I felt like a tiny gnat among a group of giants.

I'm not an operating systems developer or an expert dev, I don't work at a company with thousands of servers, I'm not an ISP and I don't work for one. What could I have said or done, me, among them? And for so many years, I witnessed wars of every kind - online and not only - between people (even experts) who, just to excel, feel entitled to mistreat or offend others.

I didn't feel up to it. I didn't feel worthy of participating in conferences or events with people of this level. Except then, every time, I would look with sadness and healthy envy at all the reports, videos, and images of those who had participated instead.

I missed wonderful conferences, fantastic locations, but especially the opportunity to interact, years ago already, with amazing people - some of whom, unfortunately, are no longer with us.

When last September I participated in EuroBSDCon in Dublin, I understood that I had gotten everything wrong and that I hadn't fully grasped how wonderful the BSD community was, made up of real and respectful people, people who, like me, want to share their ideas, experiences, projects, and intentions with openness and respect.

And from here, an even stronger feeling took root inside me. Namely, that it's important to live life and leave nothing untried. If we want to do something, as long as it doesn't harm others, let's do it. Time flows and what's past doesn't come back.

In my case, it's not too late. BSD Conferences will continue to happen, year after year, and I'm already excited and preparing for the next EuroBSDCon - after all, it's only three months away. Because the people who organize them, the people who participate, and the entire BSD community in general have much in common with my way of seeing technology, software, and life.

I had the honor (and terror) of speaking right after Margo Seltzer, but everyone put me at ease. English isn't my native language and I was still a bit dazed from jet lag, but seeing BSD world friends sitting and ready to listen to what I had to say gave me the push to speak, to talk, to tell and tell about myself. And the feedback was really positive - many came to talk to me and share their experiences, ideas, and thoughts. In a healthy and positive way. Making me feel extremely comfortable.

Some speakers cited my talk, sharing the passion and enthusiasm. Unexpected, extremely appreciated.

I'm not a particularly extroverted person. I like to talk and communicate, but deep down, I'm shy. And I saw many shy people, both in Dublin and Ottawa, participate in the event without having any problems. Because the BSD community doesn't force anyone to be talkative but cares that everyone can be comfortable. Just as I should have done 20 years ago, going to attend conferences, in the serenity of being able to be myself.

I lost something wonderful for 20 years, but it's not too late.

Live life. Don't postpone, don't feel uncomfortable, don't worry about being judged by others. Overcome fears, overcome hesitations. Because one day you'll be disappointed about what you wanted to do and didn't do, but you'll never be disappointed for having at least tried.

For me, BSDCan was this: going to Canada for the first time, the journey, the preparation, the anxiety before my presentation and the relaxation, peace, and joy in the subsequent phases, talking with fantastic people and always feeling at ease.

Unless there are particular problems, I won't miss it. Because life must be lived and we must do what makes us feel good, finding ourselves among friends talking about the things that unite us. Without limits, without geography, without narrow ideologies.

Let's focus on what we like, on what we have in common.

Live life. Every single day.

The Fediverse has reached 14 million users. A number certainly far from the billions of users of other "traditional" social networks, but undoubtedly a success. Observing the dynamics of various social networks, I've come to understand that we need a healthy return to more pure, more authentic social networks.

Those who experienced the early days of the social phenomenon will undoubtedly remember how, in the beginning, the spirit was of contact and sharing. Social media was the tool to keep in touch with distant or long-lost friends and relatives (Facebook), or to freely discuss common interests with strangers (Twitter, etc.). The goal was socialization, human contact through the digital medium. An extension of the phone, of the message. The atmosphere was generally positive and relaxed. Perhaps a bit clumsy - we weren't used to such widespread sharing of our opinions - but more genuine.

At a certain point, someone realized that social media could lead to significant advertising revenue. They began studying behaviors and realized that angry people are more likely to return to social networks and interact. Hate breeds hate. Hate breeds addiction. Hate on social media generates addiction to social media.

Algorithms were initially calibrated to push people to discover content related to their passions, generating a positive interest in the medium. Gradually, they began to study how to retain people on the platform. More and more often and everywhere, especially on mobile devices. Mobile apps are designed to collect as much information about us as possible. Thus, hate generates addiction, addiction generates ubiquitous use, ubiquitous use generates endless data collection for platform owners.

Our hate is monetized, also because angry people are more divided and weaker. Divide et impera, a method as old as the world itself.

Unfortunately, no social network is immune to hate because hate is part of everyday life. However, we can choose to have a purer social experience, where content is selected based on our interests and choices, not based on others' economic and political interests.

The Fediverse, although imperfect and perhaps initially more complex for those accustomed to the "guided" experience of traditional social networks, provides tools for something purer, more tangible. It is more linked to the human desire to interact with our peers than to hate and negativity and provides tools to defend against bothersome people.

Congratulations on the milestone, Fediverse!

In the early days of social media, interactions primarily took place between people who knew each other in real life. We acted with kindness and sought to maintain a relationship similar to the one we had in person, knowing that there was a real individual on the other side, belonging to the real world.

As social media evolved, people began to connect with strangers, united only by their use of the same platform or common interests. This phenomenon already existed in pre-social systems like FidoNet and Usenet, but it was mainly limited to industry experts.

Today, for many, social media contacts have become numbers printed on a screen, mere symbols of our social success, our media popularity, and the interest our ideas or actions generate. In this process, we often forget that behind each number (excluding bots) there is a person with their challenges, qualities, and flaws - a person just like us.

We must commit to not reducing others to mere numbers on a screen and remember that each of us carries a set of problems, concerns, joys, and pains.

Social media are tools for communication between people; we need to remember to treat each other as such.