@feditips@mstdn.social
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

feditips

@[email protected]

Posting hints and tips about Mastodon and the Fediverse 🌍

There are lots of answers to common questions about Mastodon and the Fediverse on my website at https://fedi.tips. If you can't find your answer, @ or DM me and I will try to help! There's no such thing as a silly question!

I am a volunteer, you can buy me a coffee at https://ko-fi.com/fedithing or become a patron at https://liberapay.com/FediThing

Maintained by https://social.chinwag.org/@FediThing, banner artwork is by https://mastodon.art/@posiputt

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar
  1. Meta/Facebook has a horrific track record on human rights:

  1. Meta/Facebook is trying to join the Fediverse. We need to defederate them.

  2. If you're a server admin, please defederate Meta's domain "threads.net" (here's how on Mastodon https://fedi.tips/how-to-defederate-fediblock-a-server-on-mastodon/)

  3. If you don't run your own server, please ask your server admin to defederate "threads.net". Your admin is listed on your server website's About page.

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@gadgetfrog

Wanting a standard to become common doesn't mean you should federate with a server that has a terrible human rights record.

Does this sound like someone who should be in charge of content moderation policy?

https://www.theverge.com/2018/7/18/17587080/mark-zuckerberg-holocaust-denial-kara-swisher-interview

"Facebook will continue to offer a platform to Holocaust deniers, Infowars, and other publishers of hoaxes on the assumption that they are sincere in their beliefs, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said."

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

In case you missed it, the Fediverse has an alternative to Amazon's Goodreads called BookWyrm, which is a social reading platform.

Existing Goodreads users can import their data into BookWyrm.

BookWyrm's entry on fedi.tips is now updated with common questions answered:

➡️ https://fedi.tips/bookwyrm-a-social-network-for-people-who-enjoy-reading/

Also see BookWyrm's official website at:

➡️ https://joinbookwyrm.com

...and follow their official account at:

➡️ @bookwyrm

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

Do you need help with using Mastodon and the Fediverse? Especially if you're a beginner or unsure about techy things?

You can ask by messaging me or replying to this thread, and I'll try to help or find someone else who can help. Don't worry if a question seems silly or basic!

You can also look things up on the guide at https://fedi.tips, which has an "essentials" section at the top and a complete list of answered questions below that.

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

If someone recommends an account to follow and it looks blank to you, it probably isn't actually blank! It probably just looks that way when you view it from your server.

If you follow the account, future posts will start showing up on your server.

It is confusing, but there are really good reasons why it happens. You can read more about it (including how to check what a profile really looks like, and how to prevent your own profile looking blank) here:

➡️ https://fedi.tips/why-does-someones-account-page-look-completely-blank-is-it-really-blank/

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

📣 Techy fans!

The alpha version of @gotosocial now has support for allowlists.

Allowlists automatically prevent federation with all other servers, except those that the admin has added to their allowlist. (Traditional blocklists work the other way round, allowing all federation unless a server is blocked.)

Allowlists bring more safety but also reduce reach, and that's why it's up to each admin to decide whether to use them.

More about at:

➡️ https://docs.gotosocial.org/en/latest/

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

p.s. For non-techy people wondering what GoToSocial is, it's another kind of Fediverse server.

It's compatible with Mastodon, so GoToSocial and Mastodon users can follow each other, but GoToSocial is made by totally different developers and uses totally different software.

The emphasis on GoToSocial is being "lightweight", so servers use fewer resources. They're also trying to emphasise user safety,

GoToSocial is still in development, but should be going to beta testing next year. 🤞

18+ TechConnectify, to random
@TechConnectify@mas.to avatar

So. Three folks I follow are echoing pretty much the same sentiment I've been trying to express and are spending less time here.

I'll preface with a reminder that you may very well feel my opinions are bunk. I am a successful YouTuber, after all, with all the privileges that entails.

But here's the brass tacks: it's harder for me to be here comfortably than it was on the birdsite. And to be honest, I think Mastodon's always gonna be this way.

18+ feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@TechConnectify

"And who's accountable for taming that? Nobody! Because it's between instances."

That's not quite true.

Your instance admin is responsible for blocking abusers from any instance, and the abuser's admin is responsible for punishing their behaviour.

If an instance allows abusers to flourish, it tends to get defederated (or it should do).

Whether it works perfectly or not is another issue, but there is definitely a line of responsibility there.

18+ feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@interpipes @TechConnectify

"block/report functions do not scale to the noise created by having thousands of followers boosting you into the feeds of people who didn't want to see it that are apparently incapable of ignoring it - even if they WERE conduct breaches"

That doesn't match my experience at all.

I have had abuse occasionally, but my experience is that it was handled well by admins and did not carry on.

1/2

18+ feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@interpipes @TechConnectify

"merely being.. "boringly unpleasant" and adding 0 value (e.g. "youtubers out of our fedi, boo") is not going to be a conduct breach on the majority of instances, and"

If it was personal abuse then that would usually breach most instance rules.

But it's difficult to know whether something breaks rules if you can't see it.

2/2

18+ feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@interpipes @TechConnectify

" relentless, unimaginative, self-centred, no value gripes about the existence of an account or the things it does that are NOT personal abuse..."

Again, it's sort of difficult to comment on this without seeing an example, even a hypothetical one.

However, with closed source filters you will never know what they are improperly hiding from you. There might be good stuff there which Twitter etc is preventing you seeing.

18+ feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@interpipes @TechConnectify

What specifically would you like to see happen if someone posts that kind of statement?

(Genuine question, I'm trying to understand the problem.)

18+ feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@TechConnectify @interpipes

"I would, in fact, like it to be shadowbanned - they can think their post is there, but nobody will see it"

So, to be absolutely clear, you are asking for a complete ban on people saying they dislike YouTubers? No one else should be able to see such posts?

(Genuine question, I want to be clear I've understood.)

18+ feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@TechConnectify @interpipes

Anyone can make a report, it doesn't have to be the OP. I've often reported posts I've seen in other people's threads.

The reporting is so that the admins know to do something.

The ratio of human moderators to users is much higher on here than on Twitter etc, so the moderation happens through human processes like reports.

The reason Twitter etc use algo is because they don't have enough humans to do anything else.

1/2

18+ feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@TechConnectify @interpipes

This is why I was trying to ask if I can help, because quite often the processes here exist but they work differently.

When I've had problems with abuse I've reported it, and the reports have been acted upon.

If someone was telling me in a nasty way to leave the Fediverse, I'd report that as personal abuse, and the process would go from there.

2/2

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

If you're posting a link on Mastodon, you'll probably want to add https:// to the beginning so it is clickable.

For example fedi.tips isn't clickable but https://fedi.tips is clickable.

The reason https:// is required is in case people want to include dots in words or phrases without accidentally creating links.

p.s. Techy people might like to know that many non-web link types also work on here: https://, http://, gemini://, dat://, dweb://, gopher://, ipfs:// ssb://

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@atocci

Vanilla Mastodon doesn't let you create embedded links, but it will display them correctly if other types of server allow them.

The link you included has federated fine 👍

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

If you want your account and posts to be discovered more easily:

  1. Opt into full text search (here's how: https://fedi.tips/how-do-i-opt-into-or-out-of-full-text-search-on-mastodon/)
  2. Use hashtags in posts
  3. Fill in your profile, include relevant words in the text. Profile text is searchable now.
  4. If you have a website include it in profile with https:// at the start of address
  5. Verify website link so people know it's yours (here's how: https://fedi.tips/how-do-i-verify-my-account/)
  6. Write introductory post & pin it (here's how: https://fedi.tips/how-do-i-pin-my-posts-on-my-mastodon-profile/)
feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

Groups are a really useful feature which let you follow discussions on particular topics. You follow a group's account to see discussions, and mention it to post to the group. More info:

➡️ https://fedi.tips/how-to-use-groups-on-the-fediverse/

If you're annoyed by high traffic groups, you can now combine them with the Lists feature to have groups in their own separate mini-timelines (and not your main timeline):

➡️ https://fedi.tips/how-to-use-the-lists-feature-on-mastodon/

Groups federate to all their followers, giving them a much wider reach than hashtags.

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

If you're uploading to , it's important to include tags, because these will make it a lot easier for people to notice your video.

PeerTube tags automatically appear as hashtags on Mastodon, so people searching or following those hashtags will see your video 👍

If you use more than one word in a tag, it will automatically be converted into a single phrase.

(PT tags have always worked as hashtags on Mastodon, but starting in Masto 4.2.0 the tags are actually visible below the video.)

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@Oliviastarstuff

Here you are, it's great!

https://makertube.net/w/vjpXZBrAW2b7WaujoXf5ZZ

You can follow the video account at @michellemay

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

p.s. If you want to see this actual video it's at https://makertube.net/w/vjpXZBrAW2b7WaujoXf5ZZ

And you can follow the creator's video account at @michellemay

Their main account is at @thegiddystitcher

All highly recommended! 👍

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

The latest version of Mastodon (4.2.0) brings full text search, so you can search by words instead of hashtags.

However, for privacy reasons this only includes posts by people who have actively opted into full text search.

If your server is updated to 4.2.0 and you want to opt into full text search:

  1. Log into your server's website
  2. Click your profile icon
  3. Click "Edit Profile"
  4. Click tab "Privacy & Reach"
  5. Tick box "Include Public Posts In Search results"
  6. Click "Save Changes"
yourautisticlife, to random
@yourautisticlife@mast.yourautisticlife.com avatar

@feditips

Suppose someone blocks me. The feeling is mutual, so I want to block them too.

Am I able to block them after they've blocked me?

This is what I call mutual blocking.

Is mutual blocking in the fediverse possible at all?

Is mutual blocking possible on Mastodon?

I don't see these two questions as equal. It could be possible to mutually block at the level of ActivityPub, but also for Mastodon to not have an interface that allows us doing it.

I know on some platform this is not possible. Once you block someone, you vanish out of existence, and they cannot also block you.

However, I'm thinking that it is possible to mutually block one another in the fediverse and Mastodon.

I've searched the web and I haven't found a discussion of this.

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@yourautisticlife

As far as I know, there's no direct way to do this in vanilla Mastodon as the menu which includes the block option becomes inaccessible when they block you.

It might be possible on ActivityPub, but not on vanilla Mastodon.

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

The Fediverse has an event organisation platform called @mobilizon, find out more at:

➡️ https://joinmobilizon.org

servers let you create event pages where people can sign up, even without an account.

Mobilizon accounts can be followed from Mastodon etc, and followers will see your latest events appear in their home feed.

It's made by non-profit @Framasoft, who also make @peertube and provide all kinds of nice free open source online services.

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

If you have a WordPress-powered blog, you can turn it into a Fediverse server and people will be able to follow the blog from Mastodon etc.

More info on how to do this here:

➡️ https://fedi.tips/wordpress-turning-your-blog-into-a-fediverse-server/

This works through the AcitvityPub for WordPress plug-in, which has just been updated to version 1.0.0:

➡️ https://wordpress.org/plugins/activitypub/

The plug-in is by @pfefferle in association with , one of the major players behind WordPress itself.

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

If you have joined the Fediverse's social reading platform @bookwyrm, you might like to know you can import your existing data from , , , or :

➡️ https://fedi.tips/importing-your-data-into-bookwyrm-from-goodreads-librarything-storygraph-openlibrary-or-calibre/

If you're looking for a server to sign up on, there's a good one at:

➡️ https://bookrastinating.com

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

There's a social reading platform called @bookwyrm which is an alternative to Amazon's Goodreads. BookWyrm is part of the Fediverse, and BookWyrm accounts can be followed from Mastodon etc. You can find out more at:

➡️ https://joinbookwyrm.com

They are currently trying to get BookWyrm translated into more languages, so that more readers can use it. If you speak a language other than English, you can help translate at:

➡️ https://translate.joinbookwyrm.com

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

The developers of Mastodon would like some help with translating it into other languages. If you speak a language other than English, you can help translate Mastodon's interface at:

➡️ https://crowdin.com/project/mastodon

If you're interested in following the techy details of Mastodon development and updates, the official Mastodon Engineering account is at:

➡️ @MastodonEngineering

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

In case you missed it, there are now several #RetroComputing Mastodon apps available:

:apple_inc: Apple II
https://www.colino.net/wordpress/en/binary-release-of-mastodon-for-the-apple-c/

:apple_inc: Apple Macintosh OS (pre-OSX)
https://github.com/smallsco/macstodon

:amiga: Commodore Amiga
https://github.com/BlitterStudio/amidon

⌨️ IBM MVS
https://github.com/mainframed/BREXXTODON

:win3_msdos: MS-DOS
https://github.com/SuperIlu/DOStodon

:windows: Windows 95
https://github.com/meyskens/mastodon-for-workgroups

#FediTips #Mastodon #ComputingHistory #MSDOS #AppleII #Mac #MacOS #Amiga #Commodore #CommodoreAmiga #Windows95 #Win95 #MVS

feditips, to RSS
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

Today, a very niche tip for RSS fans :rss:

As well as Mastodon's built-in hashtag following system, you can also follow hashtags through RSS instead:

  1. Search for a hashtag on a Mastodon server's website
  2. Add .rss to the end of the URL
  3. Use this URL as the feed address for that tag

For example to subscribe to on mstdn.social you would use this address in your feed reader:

https://mstdn.social/tags/dogs.rss

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@resol @samsantaella @Inoreader

RSS is an open standard so it's unlikely to ever go away. For example @thunderbird still supports RSS as one of its forms of communication.

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

If you're looking to share music, podcasts or other audio on the Fediverse, you might want to sign up on a FunkWhale server.

Funkwhale is a free open source audio platform featuring channels that can be followed from Mastodon etc. You can sign up on servers or start your own.

More info from the official website at:

➡️ https://funkwhale.audio

Follow the Funkwhale account for latest news on the project at

➡️ @funkwhale

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

As YouTube seems to be going increasingly ad-heavy, have had many requests to do posts about how to get into .

PeerTube is an ad-free video platform on the Fediverse. You can follow and interact with PeerTube accounts from Mastodon etc. When a PeerTube account posts a video, it will appear in your Mastodon timeline just like any post, and you can like, share, reply etc.

I just did a long thread of good PeerTube accounts to follow over on @FediFollows (https://social.growyourown.services/@FediFollows/110917302291902468).

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

Just a reminder, please do add alt text descriptions to your images, videos and audio clips. It will make them accessible to people with visual or hearing impairment.

You'll also get a lot more boosts if you add descriptions, because a lot of people only share posts that have descriptions.

If you forget, don't worry, you can edit your post afterwards to add it 👍

It can take a while to get into the habit, so there's a bot to help you remember at @PleaseCaption

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

Are you interested in musicians, bands and spoken word on here?

There's an online community radio station called Radio Free Fedi which is entirely music & speech by people from the Fediverse:

➡️ https://radiofreefedi.net

You can also follow their account for the latest updates at:

➡️ @radiofreefedi

There are three RFF streams:

  • Main, which plays everything

  • Comfy, which plays more relaxing stuff

  • Specialty, which plays themed blocks of music & speech

#CommunityRadio #Radio #Fediverse

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

Pixelfed is a photo sharing network on the Fediverse, intended as an alternative to Instagram. You can follow Pixelfed accounts from Mastodon and vice versa. There's more info about it at:

➡️ https://pixelfed.org

There are servers you can sign up on at:

➡️ https://pixelfed.org/servers

...and apps you can use at:

➡️ https://pixelfed.org/mobile-apps

To see the latest news about Pixelfed, follow its official account at:

➡️ @pixelfed

negative12dollarbill, to random
@negative12dollarbill@techhub.social avatar

I have a pretty big Mastodon question/problem.

I'm trying to link someone who doesn't have an account to this thread:

https://techhub.social/@[email protected]/110753630156713990

which contains an image for each country in the world.

I can see it at that URL.

But when I go to that thread in Incognito/a browser where I'm not logged in, I get redirected to this URL:

https://universeodon.com/@LadyDragonfly/110753630154110925

which cuts off after Brunei.

What's happening, how can I stop it, and how can I share that full thread with someone not on Mastodon?

This is kind of a blow to my evangelism.

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@negative12dollarbill

The actual thread is at the second address in your post, the first address is a redirect.

If you click on the Brunei post to enlarge it, it shows you the rest of the thread.

I don't know why Mastodon is behaving like that instead of showing the whole thread from the main link, presumably some kind of freak bug?

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@negative12dollarbill

I don't think it's intentional, it's an odd way of doing it if it is.

The logged in or logged out isn't the issue, it's about which server you're viewing. The first link is a view from your server, the second link is a view from the server that the thread starter is on.

Different servers have different views of the Fediverse for very good reasons. If you're interested, there are details here:

https://fedi.tips/which-posts-and-accounts-can-i-see-from-my-server/

and

https://fedi.tips/why-arent-all-mastodon-and-fediverse-posts-and-accounts-automatically-visible-from-all-servers/

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@peertube is the Fediverse's video sharing network. You can follow and interact with PeerTube accounts from Mastodon.

For example, you can follow @theatticdwellers and when they publish a new video it will appear in your Mastodon feed. If you like one of their posts, that will show as a thumbs up on PeerTube, and if you reply to a post it will show as a comment under the video on PeerTube.

More info about all of this (and also how to publish your own videos) at:

➡️ https://fedi.tips/peertube-video-hosting-on-the-fediverse/

Gargron, to random
@Gargron@mastodon.social avatar

Photographers and artists rejoice—just like in the official iOS and Android apps, pictures are no longer cropped to 16:9 on the web version of Mastodon. Link previews have also gotten a face lift, and will now show both the article date and author when available.

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@Gargron

What happens if it's a really tall image, will it take up a huge amount of the timeline or is there a limit?

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

The Fediverse has its own Twitch-style livestreaming platform called OwnCast:

➡️ @owncast

You can find out more from its official website at https://owncast.online

Because it's part of the Fediverse, you can follow OwnCast accounts from Mastodon etc, and when they go live you will see a post in your timeline to let you know.

For example, the RetroStrangeTV livestream can be viewed at:

➡️ https://live.retrostrange.com

...and it can be followed at:

➡️ @rstv

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

If you're into books and reading, you might want to sign up for an account on BookWyrm, the Fediverse's alternative to Amazon's Goodreads:

➡️ https://joinbookwyrm.com

Just like Mastodon, BookWyrm is on many different servers that talk to each other. Find a server to join at:

➡️ https://joinbookwyrm.com/instances

Because it's part of the Fediverse, accounts on BookWyrm can be followed from Mastodon etc.

You can follow the BookWyrm developers at @bookwyrm

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

There are lots of interesting group accounts you can follow on here, they work like this:

  1. Follow a group's account to see discussion of its topic
  2. @ the account if you want to post to the group
  3. The account boosts anything @-ed to it, be careful when you @ them so that you don't spam the group (spammers tend to be reported and blocked)

More info, incl. how to create groups, at:

➡️ https://fedi.tips/how-to-use-groups-on-the-fediverse/

I've listed some active and friendly groups at:

➡️ https://fedi.directory/tag/fediverse-groups/

1/2

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

Groups federate much more effectively than hashtags, so they are a useful alternative to hashtag following. Group posts reach all the group's followers no matter which server they are on. This makes them very useful on very new servers that haven't built up many connections yet.

I haven't listed any example groups by @-ing as I don't want to spam any group's members. However, if you want to post to a group all you need to do is @ it.

2/2

feditips, to random
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

The Fediverse is a network of thousands of independent social media servers of many different kinds.

The most popular kind is Mastodon, but it wasn't the first and isn't the only one. Some of the accounts you interact with are on other server types, e.g. @Iancylkowski is on Pixelfed and @theatticdwellers is on PeerTube. There are many Fediverse server types:

➡️ https://fedi.tips/what-other-kinds-of-servers-are-on-the-fediverse/

Whichever type you're signed up on, they connect together to form a social network called the Fediverse.

feditips, to TodayILearned
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

update:

  • The https://kbin.social server is now federating with the Fediverse. You can follow/interact with kbin.social magazines & users from other Kbin servers, Mastodon & rest of the Fediverse. For example the TIL magazine is at @TodayILearned, the lead dev of Kbin is at @ernest

  • There's a new Kbin server at https://readit.buzz which is run by the same people as the Universodon.com Mastodon server. It's open for signups, just click "log in" and then "register".

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@vintprox

Hmm... hey @ernest can you help with this?

feditips,
@feditips@mstdn.social avatar

@ernest @vintprox

Thank you for the info, that makes sense! 🙏

Good luck with the development on the update 👍

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