Honeycommb is the platform for independent social networks. Many of the terms and concepts within Honeycommb align with this position: Independent (yours) & "social network".
Being "independent" often means that the scale of most Honeycommb networks is in the hundreds to thousands of people; smaller, niche, tight-knit communities. Because of this, you will see Honeycommb referred to as a community platform.
Key Terms
Network: An instance of Honeycommb and its setup, at its unique domain.
Community: The members inside a network.
Member: A profile in a network, created either through registration, single sign on, automation, or manually by an admin.
Member Application: The web software members use to access a network.
Mobile Applications: Dedicated, branded Android & iOS applications that a network's members download, install on their mobile devices to access the network.
Control Center: The Web application that network owners and admins use to customize and manage a network.
Private Network: A network that is set to "Private," requiring people who register to be approved by an admin or automation to access the network.
Public or "Open" Network: A network that allows people who register to freely enter and engage inside the network without admin approval.
Subscription-based Network: A network that has Honeycommb's native subscription system turned on, requiring members to pay for subscription products to access certain affordances of the network.
Key Concepts
Home Feed: A dynamic content (posts) feed based on community settings, and member preferences - posts from members and groups a member follows.
Profile: A unique @handle that represents a person or concept in a network. Profiles act as content channels (posts), engagement mechanisms (likes, comments, replies, RSVPs, etc.), and most often and most importantly - people.
Post: A unique piece of content, distributed to the author's profile, the network's "Discover" (browse) area, and the Home Feed of the profile author's followers. Posts can have media (images, a video, or livestream), comments, replies, and likes.
Group: A dedicated space in a network created by an admin to further organize people, content, and communication around a specific topic or interest. Groups are defined by their "Type": Open, Gated, Closed, Private, and Premium (subscription-based networks). Type defines group access.
Follow: Like common open social networks, like Instagram, a "Follow" indicates interest in a profile or group and results in content from a profile or group populating a member's Home Feed.
Like: A quick action a member can take on a post, comment, or reply, to show support, appreciation, or an indication of it being seen. When a member likes something, the post author is notified, and the like is visible to other members.
Subscription: Created by an admin, something a member pays for to access "premium" aspects of a network.