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

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 tons of of fascinating 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 in a while my laptop computer. See one thing fascinating, 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 area, I’d return by my queue and catch up, generally on an eBook reader, however currently, 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 gained’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 comfortable 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 form of utility I didn’t have to consider — till now.

I get it. Priorities change. Merchandise evolve. Corporations pivot towards issues that appear shiny or scalable. However Pocket was too deeply embedded in my each day routine to simply let it go with out discovering a worthy substitute. That’s after I began in search of alternate options. As somebody who’s slowly been shifting towards self-hosted tools to keep away from the brief lifespans of business providers, 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 developments, however one thing I may 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 referred to 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 help, search, and no algorithm attempting to guess what I ought to learn subsequent. It didn’t ask for my pursuits or recommend 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 simple. Karakeep makes use of Docker, and the directions on GitHub are simple to observe. I had it operating on a Docker container on my Synology NAS inside an hour. There’s a browser extension, too, that mimics the Pocket movement nearly precisely. See one thing, click on save. That’s it. Articles present up immediately, formatted with a clear, readable structure. Cellular 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 may be a dealbreaker for some, but it surely hasn’t been a giant difficulty for me but. Plus, it’s on the roadmap.

What shocked me was how a lot Karakeep builds on Pocket’s legacy with considerate additions. One in every of my favourite options is the elective RSS integration. It’s not meant to interchange your RSS reader, however you need to use 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. Should you hook it as much as an OpenAI API key, Karakeep can auto-tag and even generate a brief abstract of every article. I personally choose to do that manually as I benefit from the technique of tagging and curating my very own archive, but it surely’s a pleasant fallback after I’m in a rush or archiving in bulk.

Like most open-source initiatives, Karakeep isn’t good. Sometimes, it struggles with edge-case layouts or fails to take away sure components cleanly. Some dynamic net pages journey it up. However not like Pocket, when one thing breaks right here, I can poke round and truly perceive what’s occurring. I can repair it or a minimum of file a difficulty and see what’s being labored on. I’m not caught ready for a product replace or a imprecise help reply. That transparency and management make a distinction.

What I didn’t anticipate 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 fastidiously as a result of I do know the content material is staying put, not disappearing the second somebody decides it’s now not value sustaining. The entire expertise feels much less transactional and extra deliberate.

It’s additionally changed into an excellent instrument for gentle analysis. I’ll save weblog posts, technical docs, publication 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 which will have modified since I first discovered it.

Dropping Pocket felt like the top of an period. Not as a result of it was irreplaceable, however as a result of it had quietly grow to be a part of my digital habits as a holdover from an older, calmer web. One which wasn’t continuously 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 below an algorithmic feed. Pocket represented a form of intentionality that’s uncommon in at present’s consideration economic system.

However in a manner, Pocket’s demise additionally compelled me to reassess how fragile these habits will be once they depend on providers I don’t management. Karakeep continues that legacy with full possession this time. It’s not flashy, but it surely’s steady, succesful, and self-hosted. Whereas the core expertise remains to be all about tagging and saving articles, notes, or photographs, 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. Desire plain and minimal? That’s superb too. Should you’re watching your Pocket archive and questioning what’s subsequent, Karakeep is a strong possibility. It takes a little bit of effort to get going — however the payoff is value it. You don’t simply get a substitute for Pocket. You get a reminder that the instruments you depend on each day don’t need to be disposable.