Recent searches
Search options
Administered by:
Oh my goodness... a LOT of new people... 
Welcome! 
If you need help with using Mastodon and the Fediverse, have a look at:
It's written for a non-technical audience, and hopefully answers most beginners' questions.
If you're looking for accounts to follow, there are lots of ways to do it summarised here:
If you have any problems, ask me and I'll try to help!
...also:
-You only need to sign up on one server. The servers communicate to form a single network. People from different servers can follow and interact with each other.
-Don't sign up on mastodon.social, it's way too overloaded. You will have a nicer experience on a different server. You can find well-run reliable servers at https://joinmastodon.org/servers and https://fedi.garden
-You can always move and keep your followers/follows if you ever change your mind about being on a particular server
...and, if you're totally lost, or you have friends who are totally lost, this is a really short video that explains Mastodon in really simple terms. It's a good starting point:
@feditips Moving from one instance to another one is a flawless process [particularly when following your tips, many thanks for the guide], BUT there's no way that I know of to export/import hashtags when migrating & that's a real drawback. It's such a PITA to find a way to manually transfer your hashtags.
Yeah, that ought to be very fixable too as tag lists don't take up much room. Hopefully it will be in a future update.
@feditips appreciate this guidance, I’ve found a smaller server to migrate to as soon as they approve my profile
@feditips I think people need a lot more help evaluating servers. When I joined, I ended up on one which imploded, then just went for mastodon.social as stable and seemingly well regarded.
If you just choose one of the general servers from those two sites, you should be okay. All of the servers on those two sites have promised to uphold specific standards (listed at https://joinmastodon.org/covenant).
On https://fedi.garden there's also the founding date listed, which gives you an idea of how long they've been going. If a server has been going for years, that's a good sign too.
And you can always move your account to another server if you don't like the one you chose.
@feditips I don’t get… it. So, you sign up to a server but all the servers talk to each other so what’s the benefit/difference of picking any one server over another? Like, why is @mastodon.social bad?
The reason this place works and is safer than Twitter is because people are spread out on many servers. If people all crowd onto one server, it can be dangerous for the network as a whole.
It also makes mastodon.social harder to moderate if everyone is on there. Moderation tends to work better on smaller servers.
Also, servers are all independently owned and set their own rules, and some have nice extra features (like higher character limits etc),
p.s. If you want a more detailed answer there are several reasons why this place is on many servers:
https://fedi.tips/why-is-the-fediverse-on-so-many-separate-servers/
@feditips ok I get and like the decentralised stuff. I just can’t get my head around the user experience of it all. So there are different rules etc for different servers but they all talk to each other and you see the same content? How can there be different rules per server but it’s all showing up in the same place? If it all works seemlessly then how do you know what is from your server? Do you go to a specific part of the app to see stuff from your server a bit like a subreddit?
If you have a telephone, there might be different terms of service for different phone providers, but they all make calls to each other. It's a bit like that.
You don't need to know what is from which server most of the time, but if you want to check just look at the account address of the person posting. You can see it underneath their name on posts and on their profile:
1/2
There are themed sections on here, but most of the time they are cross-server so things like hashtags (which you can follow) or discussion group accounts (which you can also follow).
Each server does have a "Local" timeline, which on large servers is just a random firehose but on smaller servers is a fun little community feed.
Also, there are non-Mastodon servers on the Fediverse which you can follow such as the Reddit-style Kbin (example server: https://kbin.social).
2/2
@feditips ok. I think I roughly understand it better. Thank you for all the explanations. It, just on first impressions, seems overly complex for something that doesn’t really seem to make a tangible difference from any one users experience to another.
Yeah, it is a bit different to what people are used to. But it does make more sense once you've been here a while :)
For example, if you experience a problem with how one server is run and you're able to move to another without losing your friends, it is really REALLY nice to be on here. On centralised networks like Twitter or Facebook it's "my way or the highway" if they run it badly because they have no choice of servers there.
@ricbixter @feditips Your local and federated feeds will be messy with a lot of unrelated topics that you may not have interest in.
@feditips Brilliant, thank you 
@feditips Thank you this is an excellent video. I create instructional videos and know that "bite-size" is essential to get the topic across.
@feditips I’ve tried to reply four times now and it keeps freezing
I think you've signed up on mastodon.social which is extremely overcrowded.
I would strongly recommend signing up on a different server, you will have a nicer experience. You can find reliable servers to sign up on at https://joinmastodon.org/servers and https://fedi.garden
@feditips I'm giving up on mobile, gonna try on the old computer machine and see if it's any easier or less confusing. This may just not be a technology for regular people to try and figure out 
Using it on the computer is my favourite way of using it, definitely recommend trying it that way if you haven't already.
I only mentioned the server thing as overcrowded servers can keep freezing. Less crowded servers can be more reliable.
You can pick any server from the ones on those links, they will still let you follow people on other servers because they're connected together. It's like choosing a phone provider.
@feditips As an advanced tip, there are some benefits having accounts on multiple servers. I have an account on mstdn.games that follows #gaming interests and an account on aipub.social that follows #aiart. The nice thing about these dedicated communities is that the local and federated feeds are related to the interest as well.
@feditips what if I already signed up on mastodon.social? Should I / How to change? Will I lose my handle?
If you've only just started and you've got no followers or posts, the easiest option is just to sign up for a new account on another server from those lists of reliable ones.
Handles work a bit differently on here. They are structured like email addresses, with a user name and a server name, rather than just the user name.
You can use the same handle on another server, unless someone on that server has used it already.
@feditips Great tip - but instead of repeatedly posting it as a tip, which people see AFTER they have fretted over choosing a server and been puzzled by how this works, make it part of an easy ‘walk-though’ BEFORE they choose, during the sign-up process. Mastodon has squandered so many potential users through a stubbornness not to address these issues
I am just an unofficial volunteer, I don't work at Mastodon. I have no control over the official Mastodon apps or official website :/
On my own websites https://fedi.tips and https://fedi.garden I do mention that people can move servers later if they need to :)
@feditips in that case my apologies and you’re doing great work. Shame you’re unable to pass this on. It’s frustrating hearing people say they tried Mastodon only to go back to Twitter.
@feditips Hi, it seems there is no icon to the hashtag I would like to follow, or any hashtag, android version. Why is that and how can I fix it?
The official Android app doesn't have hashtag following yet.
I would strongly recommend using a third party app anyway, as they have more features and receive more development.
For Android I would recommend Tusky or Fedilab, for example. These include hashtag following.
I would recommend using a third party app instead of the official Mastodon app.
For most of its life Mastodon hasn't had an official app at all. It was entirely through the website and third party apps.
You can sign in on a third party app using the same account details that you used on the official app.
@feditips is it possible to migrate from one server to another?
Yes, it is!
It's slightly complicated, but it lets you keep your follows, followers, mutes, blocks and bookmarks.
If you've just got started I would recommend just going straight to a new account without transferring.
But if you already have followers you want to keep, then the transfer process is here:
https://fedi.tips/transferring-your-mastodon-account-to-another-server/
@feditips If you're on mastodon.social, we understand. Just keep an eye out for people you like with accounts from other servers, then check out their servers.
@feditips How do I move from Mastodon social to Mastodonuk.app
Hi!
The procedure for moving your account is this:
https://fedi.tips/transferring-your-mastodon-account-to-another-server/
@feditips@mstdn.social
This is a point that needs to be stressed for potential new users!!!
It really does not matter which server you sign up to!.
You still have the full Fediverse experience. Over time, as you become truly experienced in the 'Verse, you may notice that your server differs from others in the services it provides. It's kind of like cell phone providers. 'Cept price is never a consideration.
@feditips if I signed up on social can I switch to a server?
Yes, you can!
No matter where you signed up, you can always move your account to another server.
However, if you've only just got started and don't really have any followers yet, it's easier to just sign up on another server without bothering to do the transfer process.
All the servers listed on https://joinmastodon.org/servers and https://fedi.garden have promised to fulfil certain standards of reliability and moderation (https://joinmastodon.org/covenant).
@feditips But you can’t see who they follow which is an important way to learn about other great people! That needs to be fixed to be useful.
If you look at a profile's "original page", you can see its follows and followers. More info at https://fedi.tips/what-are-original-pages-in-mastodon/
I agree it's not the most convenient way of doing things, this issue has been discussed a lot on the Mastodon github, hopefully it gets resolved. (For anyone interested in the techy stuff, see the issue at https://github.com/mastodon/mastodon/issues/20533)
So glad you are here to guide all the newbies coming in these days!
I can just point them to you, and I know they will get honest guidance and plenty of it!
Your companion website is a GREAT source of information too!
Thank you! 
Aww, thank you so much! 
Really glad to help! It is very rewarding if the site and account are useful 