About the project
FanonRadio and FanonWiki is hosted on the same small server; a raspberry pi 5 named Chikorita, located at my home studio.
Partly why you might see that name in our email address!
You can read the zine I made on how I built this server here. It is also a printable PDF, feel free to redistribute!
If there's a device, there's a way
What is a server
A "server" is a heavily misunderstood term, in the sense that most people don’t know what it entails and are often too afraid to ask. By doing a simple online image search, we end up with countless blue-tinted pictures of sterile rooms, filled with rows of gigantic machines that one would never dare, or even have access to, come close to — gatekept from whoever doesn’t have the keys to the room. This conjured image signifies certain connotations of who has access to technological infrastructures, therefore who holds the power to information. In reality, a server is but a computer, oftentimes with connection to the internet, meant to route processes and services. It can take the form of a laptop, a raspberry pi, a phone1, a microcontroller-turnt-charm hanging from a keychain2 and be hosted in any place; a bedroom, a library, a shoebox — far removed from the widespread myth of the blue, sterile room.
Why a Pi?
A raspberry pi is but a very small computer. I decided to build FanonRadio on one, since it was a time-sensitive project and needed to find a reliable device early on.
You don't need to buy new equipment to start a self-hosted project. Any old, unused yet still functional computer will do.
Embracing Friction
Self-hosting is not a seamless, errorless experience. While writing this text, the server kicked me out twice, as it's currently approx. 30°C inside the room and it overheated.
The Public IP3 is not static. It changes every day, which means I had to come up with ways to keep the DNS4 updated semi-automatically.
It works, but is not always faultless.
It has been a long while since a phone call would disrupt the internet connection.
Not only are those "inconveniences" expected, but also, and most importantly, they are welcome. They pose as a perfect reminder that servers have materiality. Even though wifi is seemingly immaterial, the internet is built on wires and computers.
License
All parts of the FanonRadio project are licensed under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license. Therefore, all broadcasted content is automatically licensed under the same conditions, unless stated otherwise.