I’m liking the vibe here so far, but i’m still confused about the whole server/“ instance “thing ??
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@anxietynectarr A common analogy for the servers is email: no matter whether you have a Gmail account or a Yahoo account or a Proton account, all of them can communicate with eachother. Similarly, the different servers here can communicate with eachother.
A good resource for browsing through lots of servers is https://fedi.garden/fediverse-servers-sorted-by-topic/
It's a human-curated collection which is sorted by a variety of different tags. Those indicate topics which are frequently discussed by accounts on that server.@anxietynectarr There are some areas that differ from other social media platforms.
Each server has its own rules and moderators, which means it's important to read those rules before joining.You can also scroll through the public posts made by people on that server by checking the Live Feeds on the right side of its landing page - for example, https://kind.social
On that page, you should also be able to see the server rules in the center by default. -
@anxietynectarr There are some areas that differ from other social media platforms.
Each server has its own rules and moderators, which means it's important to read those rules before joining.You can also scroll through the public posts made by people on that server by checking the Live Feeds on the right side of its landing page - for example, https://kind.social
On that page, you should also be able to see the server rules in the center by default.@anxietynectarr In addition to seeing posts from accounts you follow in your Home Feed, you can also see posts from hashtags you follow. So, if you follow the Caturday hashtag, you'll see posts which include that hashtag from all sorts of accounts, regardless of whether you follow those accounts themselves.
This is a great way of getting posts and accounts you're likely to be interested in to start showing up in your Home Feed.
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@anxietynectarr In addition to seeing posts from accounts you follow in your Home Feed, you can also see posts from hashtags you follow. So, if you follow the Caturday hashtag, you'll see posts which include that hashtag from all sorts of accounts, regardless of whether you follow those accounts themselves.
This is a great way of getting posts and accounts you're likely to be interested in to start showing up in your Home Feed.
@anxietynectarr There are other feeds beyond the Home Feed of accounts & hashtags you follow. There's also a Local Live Feed of public posts made by people on your server, and a Federated Live Feed of public posts made on the other servers yours is connected to - which is usually overwhelming and not too useful.
Some folks find a server they click with and is a manageable size, so they spend time reading the Local Feed and interacting with their neighbors.
Others mostly stick to the Home Feed. -
@anxietynectarr There are other feeds beyond the Home Feed of accounts & hashtags you follow. There's also a Local Live Feed of public posts made by people on your server, and a Federated Live Feed of public posts made on the other servers yours is connected to - which is usually overwhelming and not too useful.
Some folks find a server they click with and is a manageable size, so they spend time reading the Local Feed and interacting with their neighbors.
Others mostly stick to the Home Feed.@anxietynectarr You can always change servers by migrating your account which moves your current account's followers over to your new account.
Importantly, your posts don't make the move. There are workarounds for picking a few posts to bring along, but it's basically a clean slate.
There are a few things that you have to take extra steps to export, like bookmarks and blocks, but there are step-by-step guides available, including mine:
https://kind.social/@Texan_Reverend/110167270006123376 -
I’m liking the vibe here so far, but i’m still confused about the whole server/“ instance “thing ??
how do people find chill or more active servers ? I literally never been so confused lol 
hopefully someone sees this ..
#new #introduction #mastodon@anxietynectarr Welcome to the club!
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I’m liking the vibe here so far, but i’m still confused about the whole server/“ instance “thing ??
how do people find chill or more active servers ? I literally never been so confused lol hopefully someone sees this ..
#new #introduction #mastodon@anxietynectarr Hi, and welcome!
As you can see, many people from different servers already replied to your post. They are all interconnected. For the most part, it doesn't matter which server you are on. -
I’m liking the vibe here so far, but i’m still confused about the whole server/“ instance “thing ??
how do people find chill or more active servers ? I literally never been so confused lol hopefully someone sees this ..
#new #introduction #mastodon@anxietynectarr Imagine Mastodon servers like different email providers, like Gmail or Yahoo. Some email providers give you only 100 MB or storage, others 15 GB.
Similarly, some Mastodon servers allow you to write posts up to 500 characters, others more. Some servers have beautiful alternative color themes, others only the default theme.
The main differentiator is the moderation team.
- If your server has no moderators at all (because the server is just one guy's computer in his basement), then you'll encounter lots of assholes who might harass you
- If your server has assholes as moderators or literally white supremacist Nazis as moderators, that will attract bad people. You shouldn't join such a server.
- If your server has good moderators, your online life will be pleasant. Some moderators are heavily into computers, others heavily into politics or activism, etc.You'll find out over time, with experience, which instances fall into the second and third categories. If you join a server of the third category, you don't have to worry about the second category (Nazis).
Examples for the third category:
- hachyderm
- kolektiva -
I’m liking the vibe here so far, but i’m still confused about the whole server/“ instance “thing ??
how do people find chill or more active servers ? I literally never been so confused lol hopefully someone sees this ..
#new #introduction #mastodonThe servers are connected together so you can interact with people on other servers.
It's a bit like choosing a phone provider, you can call people who use other providers because they are connected together.
The idea of this place is to provide something similar for social networks.
There's more info about discovering accounts to follow at https://fedi.tips/how-do-i-find-accounts-to-follow-on-mastodon-and-the-fediverse-how-do-i-find-my-friends
There's also a guide to Mastodon and the wider Fediverse at https://fedi.tips/what-is-mastodon-what-is-the-fediverse
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I’m liking the vibe here so far, but i’m still confused about the whole server/“ instance “thing ??
how do people find chill or more active servers ? I literally never been so confused lol hopefully someone sees this ..
#new #introduction #mastodonAlso, please feel free to ask if you wany help with anything specific!
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I’m liking the vibe here so far, but i’m still confused about the whole server/“ instance “thing ??
how do people find chill or more active servers ? I literally never been so confused lol hopefully someone sees this ..
#new #introduction #mastodon@anxietynectarr Looks like folks have said the right things here...so just saying hi and welcome! -
I’m liking the vibe here so far, but i’m still confused about the whole server/“ instance “thing ??
how do people find chill or more active servers ? I literally never been so confused lol hopefully someone sees this ..
#new #introduction #mastodon@anxietynectarr I think the best part of Mastodon is that aside from how actively your administrators enforce their rules, it doesn't matter what instance you're on.
Follow hashtags for your interests. If you see someone who posts using that hashtag, and you like what they have to say on that topic, then follow them. Hashtags replace the algorithm.
And because of federation, it doesn't matter where you are, you can follow anyone from anywhere, as long as they're good 'netizens' and run instances that aren't a source of trouble.
If your instance has become problematic, and you find yourself following people from a particular instance, you can migrate there without too much trouble.
Good luck!
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Bingo. If you want more in your feed, do more following, of hashtags and other accounts. If you're new, just go add 30 hashtags - some specific, some general, some interests, some geographical.
You posted a drawing, maybe follow #art. When you see an account with a post you like, follow them. You can always unfollow later.
Plus bot accounts can be fun. Here's one I recently added: @Remedios_Varo_Bot
Have fun, and Welcome!
@jztusk @nancylwayne @anxietynectarr @Remedios_Varo_Bot I'd like to double down on the unfollow later advice. If you go for generic hashtags it might easily flood your timeline. However if you don't know where to start you might need to make use of those obvious hashtags first to discover more obscure ones. Or accounts.
Following and unfollowing are the most important things to do for you. Because there is no machine around to take that piece of work from you.
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@jztusk @nancylwayne @anxietynectarr @Remedios_Varo_Bot I'd like to double down on the unfollow later advice. If you go for generic hashtags it might easily flood your timeline. However if you don't know where to start you might need to make use of those obvious hashtags first to discover more obscure ones. Or accounts.
Following and unfollowing are the most important things to do for you. Because there is no machine around to take that piece of work from you.
@ernestoDuracelli Jean Nicolle (1948)
https://www.remediosvaro.art/paintings/jean-nicolle
Feel free to help improve this bot by suggesting better alt text in the comments, thanks. -
@jztusk @nancylwayne @anxietynectarr @Remedios_Varo_Bot I'd like to double down on the unfollow later advice. If you go for generic hashtags it might easily flood your timeline. However if you don't know where to start you might need to make use of those obvious hashtags first to discover more obscure ones. Or accounts.
Following and unfollowing are the most important things to do for you. Because there is no machine around to take that piece of work from you.
@jztusk @nancylwayne @anxietynectarr @Remedios_Varo_Bot In theory instances are pretty important and they might be practically important in other parts of the Fediverse.
On Mastodon the choice of instance doesn't seem to be too relevant for most users. Myself I only rarely check the feed my instance is offering me.
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Thank you everyone I’m shocked I haven’t ran into someone mean … yet lol seems like this is more chill than Reddit
@anxietynectarr You should check out Lemmy if you want a Reddit alternative. It's also associated with the broader Fediverse.
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@jztusk @nancylwayne @anxietynectarr @Remedios_Varo_Bot In theory instances are pretty important and they might be practically important in other parts of the Fediverse.
On Mastodon the choice of instance doesn't seem to be too relevant for most users. Myself I only rarely check the feed my instance is offering me.
@ernestoDuracelli Night Hunt / Caza Nocturna (1958)
https://www.remediosvaro.art/paintings/caza-nocturna
Feel free to help improve this bot by suggesting better alt text in the comments, thanks. -
Also, please feel free to ask if you wany help with anything specific!
@FediTips okay thank you
and let’s say I wanted to join a different server? How would i do that exactly? I heard I have to make a brand NEW account? Sorry I’m just lost lol -
@FediTips okay thank you
and let’s say I wanted to join a different server? How would i do that exactly? I heard I have to make a brand NEW account? Sorry I’m just lost lolIf you want to communicate with people on other servers, you can do that from your existing account. You don't need to join a server to communicate with its members. For example you and I are on different servers but we can talk like this
You generally don't need accounts on other servers unless you specifically want to operate multiple accounts (for example a work account and personal account), or if there are special features on other servers you want to use.
