[HacktionLab] On the Autistici/Inventati shutdown...

Sun Sep 13 13:53:46 UTC 2026

Hi Patrice,

That’s a good example: adding an extra list to mailman uses barely any more server resources whatsoever, unlike adding another Wordpress blog.

In short it depends on the software/service being requested.

Cheers,

Mike

Mike Harris
+44 7811 671 893
https://mbharris.co.uk :: https://xtreamlab.net

> Missatge enviat per Patrice Riemens <patrice at puscii.nl> el dia 13 set. 2026 a les 14:22:
> 
> Hi Mike, & all,
> 
> No disagreement with Mike here, of course a lot depends on capacity. I simply had the experience that puscii, which hosts 250+ lists, had no difficulty in accepting another one when I proposed - this while the host of the list in question was complaining about how much work it was to host a list. Puscii's maintainer told me that 'one list more or one list less ...'
> 
> The other issue is the KYC one (to borrow the banking term 'Know Your Customer'): A/I was always very strict about that, just as is puscii: 'we host only people we know and trust' (puscii even adds 'personally'). So there too, due diligence should be at least workable, even if not sufficient to waiwe all risks.
> 
> But yes it's delicate and complicated. So thanks Mike for the extensive explanation , and no reproach or accusation was intended on my side.
> 
> Cheers to all, p+2D!
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Mike Harris" <mike at mbharris.co.uk>
> To: hacktionlab at lists.aktivix.org
> Sent: Sunday, 13 September, 2026 13:55:52
> Subject: Re: [HacktionLab] On the Autistici/Inventati shutdown...
> 
> Hi p+2D,
> 
> Great to hear from you :)
> 
> That brings me on the subject of hosting 'refugees' from A/I. Depending on their requirements it should not meet a blanket refusal, as I understand, maybe incorrectly, Mike's post. Hosting blogs/mailing lists can be very low maintenance, and should not be a problem, for instance. I don't know about more complicated requests, but I think 'we' should try to do as much as possible. The A/I refugees won't meet very much 'good luck' outside 'alternative' circles ...
> 
> You might have misunderstood.  In general with all hosting it's a
> question of asking what the point of view of the person asking to be
> hosted is and whether that chimes with the philosophy of the provider,
> but also it is asking ourselves "do we have the capacity to host
> this?".  This capacity might be in terms of the technical requirements
> for the specific software behind the blog, or it could be in terms of
> the technical resources, or in terms of the load, if the site were very
> popular for example.
> 
> For N23 it's that we already have a sluggish and overloaded server.  We
> run WordPress, which in monolithic in architecture, requires quite a lot
> of resources to run, and, with all the plugins involved, bloatware.  (by
> the way I think a standalone well-maintained WP site with only a few
> essential plugins is a perfectly good solution, but that's not the case
> with N23).  Our server is under-resourced to deal with the current load
> as it stands without taking on more sites.
> 
> Also, obviously one might refuse to take on an already proscribed
> organisation (to use an extreme example) without understanding the full
> consequences in that for the want of a single site hosted, the whole
> kingdom might be lost.   Also that becomes a big headache for those
> involved.  As I know some of us know from first-hand experience.
> 
> To be clear: it's not that we don't care, but rather that I don't think
> we have the capacity to do so.
> 
> M
> 
>> On 13/09/2026 12:13, Patrice Riemens wrote:
>> Ciao tutte.i ;-)
>> 
>> Great that Mike mentions the A/I affair. It shows it gets the absolutely needed wider traction (it's a big item in Italy, where I live, tho not at this very moment).
>> 
>> I have also been involved, if from the side line, with it, as some of my friends are with A/I, and my own provider, puscii.nl is sortof the equivalent of A/I in the Netherlands, tho much smaller. I have written quite extensively about it on Nettime, tho mostly passing on Italian sources. You can look there if you like.
>> 
>> That brings me on the subject of hosting 'refugees' from A/I. Depending on their requirements it should not meet a blanket refusal, as I understand, maybe incorrectly, Mike's post. Hosting blogs/mailing lists can be very low maintenance, and should not be a problem, for instance. I don't know about more complicated requests, but I think 'we' should try to do as much as possible. The A/I refugees won't meet very much 'good luck' outside 'alternative' circles ...
>> 
>> Regarding A/I itself, I think the most important point is that they have taken, immo, the incredibly courageous decision to close shop rather than playing the game of fighting a cruel, unhinged, and for now, overly powerful force. It's not a David vs Goliath fight, we have to do here with a rogue Godzilla on steroids, which like the original one will be destroyed ... by its own excesses. Let us not get trampled for nothing in the process!
>> 
>> Lal Salaam, p+2D!
>> 
>> And please post to the max about the discussions this w/e!
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Mike Harris" <mike at mbharris.co.uk>
>> To: hacktionlab at lists.aktivix.org
>> Sent: Sunday, 13 September, 2026 12:31:05
>> Subject: [HacktionLab] On the Autistici/Inventati shutdown...
>> 
>> Hi all,
>> 
>> I think a topic on at least some of our minds is the recent shutdown of
>> the alternative Italian hosting collective Autistici/Inventati (A/I).
>> 
>> See:
>> 
>> https://keepitfree.ai/announcements/a/i-shuts-down-stay-human/
>> https://thenextweb.com/news/autistici-inventati-shutdown-us-terrorist-designation
>> 
>> And many more you can find on the World-Wide-Web.
>> 
>> As a member of the Network23 collective (https://network23.org), which
>> has been hosting blogs build on WordPress for social movements and other
>> organisations on the left, we have started to get requests for blogs
>> from a small sprinkling of the users of the estimated 10,000 blogs that
>> A/I hosted.
>> 
>> The problem, N23 is a small project in comparison to A/I and Riseup.
>> We're under resources in terms of tech stack, platform, and expert
>> time.  It seems that we can only honestly reply to enquiries "sorry, but
>> we haven't the resources to host you, good luck!".
>> 
>> There's a lot to talk about here I think: resources, alternatives,
>> sustainability, different platform options, where things are hosted,
>> having multiple small organisations, rather than all our eggs in one
>> basket, time, money, etc...
>> 
>> I think it'll make for some interesting discussions at some point over
>> the weekend.
>> 
>> M
>> 
> --
> Mike Harris
> +44 07811 671 893
> https://mbharris.co.uk - https://hacktionlab.org - https://xtreamlab.net
> 
> 
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