TLDR: Customized a browser as dedicated Fediverse front-end, use existing web clients for per-service UI, manage account/password with password manager, and merge the notifications from multiple services into one inbox? Is this possible/good?

Hello all,

It's me, an eager fediverse adopter who wants all their friends to get onboard and craves an all-in-one solution for federated content, but who knows no code and barely enough IT to get by reading git documentation.

I'll start by saying that one thing is clear, diversity and experimentation is the essence and benefit of the Fediverse concept. To me, new and exciting ways to use ActivityPub (and other distributed social/comms protocols) get me thrilled and ready for more. The challenge I, and I'm sure many adopters face is the challenge as old as the internet: platform fatigue.

While I want to use all the amazing services the Fediverse offers, managing clients and accounts for each one, and specifically the notification streams coming from all of them, often feels burdensome, decreasing my engagement.

So here's a simple thought experiment I've been playing with: what is the simplest, lowest friction method of accessing and managing multiple notification/content streams without needing to consolidate or centralize client/server development across multiple projects? And further more, how can this set of notifications (and subsequent content interaction) be consolidated yet separated from the other non-fediverse notifications/content across multiple devices?

My naive user mind has pointed me in the direction of dedicated browser instances with customized UI. When I have a webapp I need rapid access to and notifications from I install a dedicated browser instance (or "app" in Edge speak, I know, booo). This works well for me, and in some cases uses less memory than a dedicated application for some reason (looking at you Discord).

So what if a customized browser could be built off of an existing project (probably going to have to be Firefox based, though all eyes on Ladybird), that has a built in password/account manager, and pulls the notification streams from all of the services those accounts interact with into a merged list. Then add filter options for that list including service, account, media type, etc.

All interactions with notifications pulls up a tab of a webclient the user designates for that service, ideally reusing the same single tab unless the user specifically selects open new tab. Each designated service appears on the toolbar as a bookmark, showing notification number beside it. Total notifications and the shortcut to the unified notifications service/Inbox lives on the left or right side of the toolbar and is emphasized.

And that's it, everything Fediverse under one hood, separate from the main browser, not scattered across multiple installed applications, and with each client self-updating.

The challenge? Of course it is merging all the notification streams. Based on what I know of ActivityPub this seems achievable, but the details are beyond me. I am reminded of RSS emerging as the means of addressing a very similar challenge with the emergence of blogs, perhaps an ActivityPub to RSS gateway/bridge could even be the solution to merge the notification streams and then off the shelf RSS reader extensions could serve for the master notification inbox.

I am also reminded of my beloved Trillian which merged IM services under a single application hood, but faced an ever stacking development load as each service changed. Glad to see they still exist, but it seems like the browser route could avoid that centralized dev burden.

Thoughts from more experienced minds than I? Does this make any sense?

Ready for a smoother ride on the Fediverse? ActivityPub for WordPress 7.3.0 is here to make your experience friendlier and more flexible than ever. Whether you’re keeping out unwanted guests, bringing stray conversations home, or just tidying up your digital footprint, this release puts powerful new tools right at your fingertips. Let’s take a look at what’s new!

Personalized & Site-Wide Moderation

With this release, Moderation tools are easier to discover and manage, thanks to a revamped two-tiered system that empowers both site admins and individual users with greater control over their Fediverse experience.

Now, site administrators can set up site-wide blocks—covering domains, keywords, and even specific actors—right from the Settings screen or the new Blocked Actors table. These tools work together to keep out unwanted content and spammy actors for everyone on your site.

But we didn’t stop there! Every user can fine-tune their own experience. Head to your Profile to add personal domain and keyword blocks, or visit the new Blocked Actors submenu under Users to manage who can interact with you. Blocking someone is easier than ever—just paste their profile ID or webfinger, or use the handy new “Block” link right from your Followers list.

• Followers List With Block Option
• Block Account Confirmation
• Followers After Blocking

Whenever new ActivityPub content comes in, the plugin checks it against both global and personal blocks. Domains are matched not just to the sender, but also to the activity and object IDs. Keywords are scanned throughout the content, summaries, and even actor names. Site-wide rules always run first, followed by your personal settings—so you’re protected at every level. (For the blog actor, only site-wide blocks apply.)

For backwards compatibility, the classic comment disallow list is still supported, ensuring your existing moderation rules continue to work seamlessly.

Saying Goodbye, the Right Way

Sometimes, a clean break is necessary. Whether you’re retiring a blog, removing a user, or handling old content, this release makes sure your presence in the Fediverse can be removed gracefully and consistently.

We’ve added a self-destruct feature for sites that want to step away entirely. With a single CLI command (wp activitypub self_destruct), WordPress will send out Delete activities to all followers. Built-in progress tracking and admin notifications let you know when the process has finished, so you can be sure your Fediverse footprint is fully cleared.

User deletion is now handled with the same care. When a user is removed from WordPress, a corresponding Delete activity is sent to their followers, ensuring that connections across the network are properly closed.

Bring the Conversation to You

Sometimes a reply you care about doesn’t make it all the way to your Inbox. Maybe it was posted on a remote server with finicky delivery, or slipped past the usual flow of ActivityPub. With this release, you don’t have to miss out.

Now you can search for any remote URL directly. If the comment is already in your database, you’ll be taken straight to the matching comment thread on your blog post. If not, the plugin will fetch and import the remote reply to that post, so you can fold scattered conversations back into your site seamlessly.

This means you’re no longer limited to what arrives automatically. If you’ve got a link to a discussion happening elsewhere in the Fediverse, you can pull it right into your own comment threads and keep the context intact.

A Persistent Inbox for Better Debugging

Fediverse interactions can get complex, and sometimes you need deeper insight into what’s really happening under the hood. That’s where the new persistent inbox comes in.

When enabled in Advanced Settings, the plugin now logs all incoming Create or Update activities. Instead of vanishing once processed, these entries are collected in a dedicated Inbox Collection—giving you a complete trail to reference when debugging.

Full Changelog

Added

• Add actor blocking functionality with list table interface for managing blocked users and site-wide blocks.
• Add code coverage reporting to GitHub Actions PHPUnit workflow with dedicated coverage job using Xdebug.
• Add comprehensive blocking and moderation system for ActivityPub with user-specific and site-wide controls for actors, domains, and keywords.
• Add comprehensive unit tests for Followers and Following table classes with proper ActivityPub icon object handling.
• Added link and explanation for the existing Starter Kit importer on the help tab of the Following pages.
• Adds a self-destruct feature to remove a blog from the Fediverse by sending Delete activities to followers.
• Adds a User Interface to select accounts during Starter Kit import.
• Adds support for importing Starter Kits from a link (URL).
• Adds support for searching (remote) URLs similar to Mastodon, redirecting to existing replies or importing them if missing.
• Adds support for sending Delete activities when a user is removed.
• Adds support for Starter Kit collections in the ActivityPub API.
• A global Inbox handler and persistence layer to log incoming Create and Update requests for debugging and verifying Activity handling.
• Follower lists now include the option to block individual accounts.
• Improved handling of deleted content with a new unified system for better tracking and compatibility.
• Moderation now checks blocked keywords across all language variants of the content, summary and name fields.
• When activated or deactivated network-wide, the plugin now refreshes rewrite rules across all sites.

Changed

• Add default avatars for actors without icons in admin tables.
• Added support for list of Actor IDs in Starter Kits.
• Improve Following class documentation and optimize count methods for better performance.
• Refactor actor blocking with unified API for better maintainability.

Fixed

• Blocks relying on user selectors no longer error due to a race condition when fetching users.
• Fix duplicate HTML IDs and missing form labels in modal blocks.
• Fix malformed ActivityPub handles for users with email-based logins (e.g., from Site Kit Google authentication).
• Fix PHP 8.4 deprecation warnings by preventing null values from being passed to WordPress core functions.
• Improves handling of author URLs by converting them to a proper format.
• Improves REST responses by skipping invalid actors in Followers and Following controllers.
• More reliable Actor checks during the follow process.
• Prevents Application users from being followed.
• Proper implementation of FEP 844e.
• Switches ActivityPub summaries to plain text for better compatibility.

Downloads

• WordPress.org: activitypub.7.3.0.zip
• GitHub: tag/7.3.0

Thank you!

Big thanks to everyone who contributed code, shared feedback, tested, or encouraged us along the way! Together, we’re making the fediverse more connected—one release at a time. ❤️

We’ve just rolled out version 7.3.0—try it out and let us know what you think!