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* docs: tighten README, CONTRIBUTING, and CLA prose * docs: add platform comparison and README FAQ * chore: add issue and pull request templates * chore: add repository social preview image
83 lines
4.6 KiB
Markdown
83 lines
4.6 KiB
Markdown
# Backspace compared to other chat platforms
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This page is an honest look at how Backspace fits next to the tools people usually
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weigh against it: Discord, Revolt, Spacebar, Matrix/Element, and Mumble. It
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includes the places where those tools are the better choice. Feature sets change,
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so verify current details on each project before you decide, and open an issue if
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anything here is out of date.
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Short version: Backspace is for people who want a Discord-style experience they
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fully self-host, with serious voice and screen-share controls, and the option to
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federate independently owned servers. If you need the largest ecosystem, a mature
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open federation standard, or native mobile apps today, one of the others may suit
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you better.
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## Feature matrix
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| | Backspace | Discord | Revolt | Spacebar | Matrix / Element | Mumble |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Self-hostable | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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| Open source | Yes (AGPL-3.0) | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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| Discord-style UX | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (Discord client) | Different model | No |
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| Text chat, roles, reactions | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Limited |
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| Voice channels | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial | Yes | Yes (focus) |
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| Video and screen share | Yes, up to 4K/120fps within admin bounds | Yes | Limited | Partial | Yes | No |
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| Per-stream media controls (codec, bitrate, resolution) | Yes | No | No | No | Partial | Some audio |
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| Federation between servers | Yes, between Backspace instances | No | No | No | Yes, open standard | No |
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| Native mobile apps | Installable PWA | Yes | Yes | Desktop client only | Yes | Yes |
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| Runs on a Raspberry Pi | Yes (prebuilt arm64 image) | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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"Partial" and "Limited" mean the capability exists but is less complete or less
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polished than the leaders in that row at the time of writing. Check the current
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state of each project.
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## Backspace vs Discord
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Discord is the reference experience and has the ecosystem, the bots, and the user
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base. It is also proprietary, you cannot host it, and you do not own the data or
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the moderation policy. Backspace exists for the people who want the Discord shape
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without giving up ownership. You trade the ecosystem and the network effect for
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control of the server, the data, and the rules. If you want the biggest community
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and the deepest bot ecosystem, use Discord. If you want to own your instance, use
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Backspace.
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## Backspace vs Revolt
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Revolt is the closest peer: an open-source, self-hostable, Discord-style chat with
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an active community and a Rust backend. The main differences are the media stack
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and federation. Backspace is built around a full voice and video control surface
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(per-stream codec, bitrate, and resolution, RNNoise, a live connection inspector,
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screen share up to 4K/120fps within admin limits) and supports peering independent
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instances. If high-quality voice and screen sharing or cross-instance federation
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are central to you, Backspace is aimed squarely at that. If you want a larger
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existing community and a longer track record, look at Revolt.
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## Backspace vs Spacebar
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Spacebar reimplements the Discord backend so the actual Discord client can talk to
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a server you host. That is a clever path to instant client familiarity, and it is
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the right pick if using the real Discord app against your own backend is the goal.
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The trade-off is that it inherits Discord's client and its constraints, and its
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voice stack is still maturing. Backspace ships its own client and its own voice
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and video stack, and it is federation-first rather than Discord-protocol-first.
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## Backspace vs Matrix and Element
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Matrix is the mature, standardized answer to open federation, and Element is its
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best-known client. If interoperable, standards-based federation across many
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different server and client implementations is your priority, Matrix is the
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stronger choice and Backspace does not try to replace it. Backspace federation is
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newer, simpler, and currently peers Backspace instances with each other rather
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than speaking an open cross-ecosystem protocol. Where Backspace differs is the
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experience: a tightly integrated Discord-style client with a purpose-built media
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control surface, rather than a protocol with many clients of varying polish.
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## Backspace vs Mumble
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Mumble is outstanding at exactly one thing: low-latency voice for groups, self
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hosted, lightweight. It has no rich text platform, no video, and no federation.
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If all you need is the best self-hosted push-to-talk voice, Mumble is a great,
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proven choice. Backspace is a full communication platform (text, voice, video,
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files, social, federation) rather than a dedicated voice server, so pick it when
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you want more than voice.
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