Pocket is shutting down, so I switched to a self-hosted different

I’ve used Pocket each single day for over a decade. From quick-hit reads to long-term storage of, properly, my very own articles, interviews, and a whole lot of attention-grabbing longreads I didn’t have time for within the second — all the pieces went into Pocket. Over time, it turned my cross-platform inbox for the online. I’d save articles on my cellphone whereas commuting, then dive into them afterward my laptop computer. See one thing attention-grabbing, hit save, transfer on. I even constructed up a tagging system, utilizing it to gather analysis, writing concepts, weekend reads, and different bits I needed to return again to.

Later, after I had the time and psychological house, I’d return via my queue and catch up, generally on an eBook reader, however these days, extra usually on a pill or a foldable cellphone. It turned such an integral a part of how I consumed the online that Pocket was at all times one of many first Chrome extensions I’d set up on a brand new laptop computer or browser.

So when Mozilla introduced it was killing off Pocket, the sensation wasn’t annoyance, it was despair. I received’t fake I didn’t see it coming. Mozilla had been quiet about Pocket for some time, and its shift towards AI-curated content material felt like a mushy pivot away from the unique concept of saving and studying later. Nonetheless, I clung to Pocket out of behavior, out of comfort, and since it simply labored. Pocket was the sort of utility I didn’t have to consider — till now.

I get it. Priorities change. Merchandise evolve. Firms pivot towards issues that appear shiny or scalable. However Pocket was too deeply embedded in my every day routine to simply let it go with out discovering a worthy alternative. That’s after I began on the lookout for options. As somebody who’s slowly been transferring towards self-hosted instruments to keep away from the quick lifespans of business companies, my first intuition was to search for an open-source possibility. Not one other startup with a subscription mannequin and a roadmap formed by market tendencies, however one thing I might truly personal. One thing that wouldn’t out of the blue disappear. And that’s how I discovered Karakeep.

I first got here throughout Karakeep again when it was nonetheless known as Hoarder. It was clunky and unstable, so I shelved it. However when Mozilla introduced Pocket’s shutdown, I revisited it — and located a dramatically improved, thoughtfully constructed Pocket clone, minus the fluff and with some sensible additions.

The core concept is straightforward. Save hyperlinks, archive full pages, and skim them later. Karakeep shops a clear reader view in addition to a screenshot for context. There’s tagging assist, search, and no algorithm attempting to guess what I ought to learn subsequent. It didn’t ask for my pursuits or counsel issues “primarily based in your exercise.” It simply saves what I inform it to, then will get out of the way in which.

Putting in it was easy. Karakeep makes use of Docker, and the directions on GitHub are simple to observe. I had it working on a Docker container on my Synology NAS inside an hour. There’s a browser extension, too, that mimics the Pocket circulate virtually precisely. See one thing, click on save. That’s it. Articles present up immediately, formatted with a clear, readable format. Cell apps can be found too, and whereas they’re not as refined as Pocket’s have been, they work properly sufficient. Offline studying remains to be lacking, which is perhaps a dealbreaker for some, however it hasn’t been an enormous problem for me but. Plus, it’s on the roadmap.

What stunned me was how a lot Karakeep builds on Pocket’s legacy with considerate additions. Certainly one of my favourite options is the optionally available RSS integration. It’s not meant to interchange your RSS reader, however you should utilize it to auto-save posts from particular feeds. It really works nice for area of interest blogs or Substack feeds that may in any other case get misplaced in your inbox. Stick with low-volume feeds, although, or your archive will get uncontrolled quick.

One other neat addition is AI-powered tagging and summarization. If you happen to hook it as much as an OpenAI API key, Karakeep can auto-tag and even generate a brief abstract of every article. I personally favor to do that manually as I benefit from the technique of tagging and curating my very own archive, however it’s a pleasant fallback after I’m in a rush or archiving in bulk.

Like most open-source initiatives, Karakeep isn’t excellent. Sometimes, it struggles with edge-case layouts or fails to take away sure parts cleanly. Some dynamic net pages journey it up. However in contrast to Pocket, when one thing breaks right here, I can poke round and really perceive what’s happening. I can repair it or no less than file a difficulty and see what’s being labored on. I’m not caught ready for a product replace or a obscure assist reply. That transparency and management make a distinction.

What I didn’t count on was how this shift to Karakeep would change the way in which I learn. For the primary time shortly, I’m curating my queue once more, not simply dumping hyperlinks right into a black gap. I’m tagging extra deliberately. I’m studying extra slowly. I’m archiving extra rigorously as a result of I do know the content material is staying put, not disappearing the second somebody decides it’s not price sustaining. The entire expertise feels much less transactional and extra deliberate.

It’s additionally was an awesome software for gentle analysis. I’ll save weblog posts, technical docs, e-newsletter threads, something I do know I’ll want later. And since Karakeep shops a full snapshot, I don’t fear about useless hyperlinks. That’s been surprisingly useful throughout lengthy writing initiatives, the place I’ll want to tug up a quote or reference one thing that will have modified since I first discovered it.

Shedding Pocket felt like the top of an period. Not as a result of it was irreplaceable, however as a result of it had quietly turn into a part of my digital habits as a holdover from an older, calmer web. One which wasn’t always attempting to foretell or monetize my consideration. One the place bookmarking one thing meant I’d come again to it, not that it might disappear beneath an algorithmic feed. Pocket represented a sort of intentionality that’s uncommon in at present’s consideration economic system.

However in a manner, Pocket’s demise additionally pressured me to reassess how fragile these habits might be after they depend on companies I don’t management. Karakeep continues that legacy with full possession this time. It’s not flashy, however it’s steady, succesful, and self-hosted. Whereas the core expertise remains to be all about tagging and saving articles, notes, or pictures, I like that the builders go away the door open so that you can prolong it. Need AI options? It’s as much as you. Want plain and minimal? That’s high quality too. If you happen to’re gazing your Pocket archive and questioning what’s subsequent, Karakeep is a stable possibility. It takes a little bit of effort to get going — however the payoff is price it. You don’t simply get a alternative for Pocket. You get a reminder that the instruments you depend on daily don’t need to be disposable.