You can visit websites using Firefox, or you can visit websites using Chrome. Websites all speak the same language, so both Firefox & Chrome can load them.
In the case of Lemmy & PieFed, they also speak the same language, in this case that language (or protocol) is called ActivityPub.
So if you use a Lemmy app, it can talk to the different Lemmy servers, but it can also talk to different PieFed servers. Similarly if you use a PieFed app, it can talk to the different PieFed servers, but it can also talk to Lemmy servers.
Now Lemmy & PieFed are not the exact same. In the same way British English and American English are not the exact same. So your Lemmy app might not let you login to a PieFed instance directly. But they are similar, so maybe one day.
Since you are a lemm.ee user, your instance is going away, so you’ll need to pick a new instance. You can pick a Lemmy instance or a PieFed instance, but the one you pick may limit the apps your able to use. Both also have websites/web apps, so if you’re happy with the web version, you can use that too.
I’ll also add that PieFed has some features that Lemmy doesn’t have. So if you pick PieFed you may get some new features. The downside may be that you can’t use your favorite app anymore.
I suggest trying both, but it you’re not sure or ready, you can just pick another Lemmy server. You can always try PieFed at a later date.
Think of it like web browsers.
You can visit websites using Firefox, or you can visit websites using Chrome. Websites all speak the same language, so both Firefox & Chrome can load them.
In the case of Lemmy & PieFed, they also speak the same language, in this case that language (or protocol) is called ActivityPub.
So if you use a Lemmy app, it can talk to the different Lemmy servers, but it can also talk to different PieFed servers. Similarly if you use a PieFed app, it can talk to the different PieFed servers, but it can also talk to Lemmy servers.
Now Lemmy & PieFed are not the exact same. In the same way British English and American English are not the exact same. So your Lemmy app might not let you login to a PieFed instance directly. But they are similar, so maybe one day.
Since you are a lemm.ee user, your instance is going away, so you’ll need to pick a new instance. You can pick a Lemmy instance or a PieFed instance, but the one you pick may limit the apps your able to use. Both also have websites/web apps, so if you’re happy with the web version, you can use that too.
I’ll also add that PieFed has some features that Lemmy doesn’t have. So if you pick PieFed you may get some new features. The downside may be that you can’t use your favorite app anymore.
I suggest trying both, but it you’re not sure or ready, you can just pick another Lemmy server. You can always try PieFed at a later date.