A new app called Tapestry has launched, promising to bring order to the chaotic world of social media by aggregating and organizing information from across the web and social networks in a single place. This ambitious project aims to address the growing problem of keeping up with friends and followers scattered across numerous platforms, including Bluesky, Mastodon, Tumblr, and others.

Tapestry's approach is reminiscent of FriendFeed, an earlier attempt to aggregate feeds and social media updates in a single destination for discovery and discussion. However, unlike FriendFeed, which encouraged discussions on-site and ultimately attracted an acquisition by Facebook, Tapestry focuses on being a reader-centric app. Its main draw is providing a unified platform for users to keep up with their favorite creators, news sites, blogs, podcasts, and YouTube videos, alongside updates from other social networks.

The app's developers, who previously designed one of the original third-party Twitter clients, Twitterrific, propose a new type of timeline that allows users to configure their feed with advanced tools. These tools enable users to select which content to mute and which to "muffle," or collapse, allowing for a more streamlined and aesthetically pleasing timeline. For instance, users can muffle political topics or spoilers of their favorite TV shows to minimize screen clutter.

After adding the desired social accounts, RSS feeds, blogs, podcasts, and more, users can set up custom timelines, offering a personalized view of the information. This feature allows users to create separate timelines focused on specific topics, such as Apple news, blogs, and podcasts, or social networks like Bluesky and Mastodon. However, to get the most out of Tapestry, users will need to invest time and thought into configuring their timelines and organizing the information they want to track.

While Tapestry's aggregation of content into timelines can feel overcomplicated at times, and some user interface choices require more polish, the app's potential is undeniable. Its ability to pull from multiple services, not just one, sets it apart from other custom feed builders like Bluesky's feeds. However, the app's design choices, such as defaulting to opening feeds in-app, may not be ideal for users who like to quickly participate in social conversations as they scroll.

Tapestry's "Feeds" and "Connectors" sections, which allow users to add sources, may also cause confusion. Connectors, which are meant to work like plug-ins or add-ons, will be built by a community of third-party developers to extend the Tapestry ecosystem with new feeds. However, these Connectors are limited to sources that offer open feeds, excluding platforms like Facebook, Instagram, X, and others.

Tapestry is not the only solution addressing the issue of fragmented social media feeds. Newer social apps like Bluesky and Meta's Threads, as well as startups like Graze and Flipboard's Surf, are introducing custom feed-building tools. Other apps like Feeeed and Reeder are also emerging to tackle similar issues around feed consumption. As the open social web continues to evolve, bridges are being built to connect networks like Bluesky and Mastodon, and WordPress blogs and newsletter platforms like Ghost are working to join the open social web via ActivityPub.

Currently, we are in a transitional period where users cannot simply pick their preferred app and expect to see everything. Instead, we are being given tools to combine feeds and sources however we see fit. While some of these efforts may feel like temporary measures, they are crucial steps towards building a more open internet where everything eventually connects.

In conclusion, Tapestry's launch marks an important milestone in the evolution of social media and the open web. As users begin to explore this new app, they will need to weigh its benefits against its limitations and consider the broader implications of a unified, customizable feed. Will Tapestry become the go-to platform for users seeking to simplify their social media experience, or will it remain a niche tool for early adopters? Only time will tell.