Read my open letter to artists, signed by the creative fediverse community.
You might’ve heard from your friends, people on social media, or news headlines about Mastodon, or the fediverse, which Mastodon is part of. After spending almost two years actively using it, I’d like to share a few tips on how to get started and get the most out of it.
Even if you’ve already tried it out before, there have been so many big improvements over the past few months that it’s always worth another look.
Choosing a server
Having to pick a server, sometimes referred to as instance, or community, for your account, is where many people get stuck. My advice is: don’t overthink it. It’s pretty common for people to switch servers and you can easily migrate to another server and keep all your followers. (Not so much your posting history though, so keep that in mind.)
How did you pick your first fediverse server that you joined?
Based on…
Are you still on the same server you signed up for when you joined the fediverse?
Consider joining a server where your friends already are, or pick one of these beginner-friendly servers with good moderation, just to feel things out, before you make a more permanent decision:
- mastodon.social and mastodon.online are two servers run be the same people who created Mastodon, and that’s where most folks head to
- hachyderm.io is a community primarily comprised of tech industry professionals, but aims to be a safe space for everyone, with a strong focus on moderation
- indieweb.social is focused on the evolution of the open, indie web, and humane and calm technology
- universeodon.com is a space for all humans who have a little curiosity
- gardenstate.social for all the New Jerseyans out there
- and if you’re up to spending $20/year for a fediverse account that comes with your own website, email service, and other neat service, check out omg.lol and their “lighthearted social hangout” at social.lol
And here are some directories that will help you narrow things down by various criteria that are important to you.
- fediverse.to
- instances.social
- fedi.garden
- joinmastodon.org/servers
- and @AltTextHealthCheck can help you pick a server based on the usage of image descriptions, which are important for accessibility
I also wrote a bit about some of the more creative fediverse communities. You can even create your own server for a few dollars a month.
Who to follow
The latest version of Mastodon does a better job onboarding people and suggesting popular accounts to follow. Because of a lack of algorithms, hashtags are very important, so go ahead and follow a few that interest you, and you should quickly find interesting people as well.
There are also some great third-party tools and directories:
Also note that you can organize accounts you follow into lists, but these are private and only visible to you.
Federation
I won’t get into the technical details about how the fediverse actually works (you can find some links for that on jointhefediverse.net), the important part for you to know is that you have your server, perhaps mastodon.social, where you sign up and where you log in to post, and other people may have their accounts hosted on the same server, or another one, and may not even be using Mastodon at all.
Occasionally you might end up viewing a post on someone else’s server, so if you’re not able to interact with it, copy the link, go back to your home server, and paste it into the search bar. The post will come up right away.
Web interface and mobile apps
There’s a lot of great apps for Mastodon (here’s one curated list) and much like with picking a server, you can just go with the official ones to start, and then try out some of the others later.
The default web interface will look familiar to anyone who used Twitter and other social media sites. For power users, there is also a built-in multi-column interface and third party web clients, like Phanpy.
A few quick tips as you start posting:
- set the visibility of your post, and the language (this helps with translation)
- adding image descriptions to the images and photos you post is highly encouraged (follow @AltTextHallOfFame for some inspiration!), and if you need some help, try adding the #Alt4Me hashtag to your post
- you can also add content warnings when discussing national politics and other sensitive, or phobia-inducing matters
- many servers add their own custom emoji that you can use in posts
As for some of the the lingo that’s commonly used:
- posts are just posts (although some still call them “toots”)
- a repost is sometimes called a boost
- likes are favorites, or just likes (some fediverse platforms have even more types of reactions)
Private messages are a bit confusing at first, as everyone you @-mention will be included, so watch out for that. And be sure to check your settings for things like notifications, and whether your profile shows in search.
Do you prefer to browse the fediverse on a computer or a mobile device?
(Feel free to share your favorite apps in the comments!)
Do you use the one-column or multi-column (advanced) web interface on Mastodon?
#fediverse #mastodon #poll #survey #SocialMedia #AdvancedWebInterface
Verification
With no central authority, verification works a bit differently on Mastodon. Here you prove that a website, that you run and others may already know and trust, belongs to you or is associated with you.
This works particularly well for larger organizations, like newspapers, or government agencies, but also for people who are already connected with their friends or fans through their own personal website. This also work with some services like Threads, GitHub, Gravatar, and Wikimedia.
And if you have your own blog, you can add an author tag (instructions for Blogger, courtesy of Dr Footleg) that show up when your article is shared.
Culture
Fediverse has a rich history. The culture is diverse and built around consent and empathy, hence the importance of features like content warnings and image description. Joining a server is typically free, but someone still has to pay the bills, so if you have the means, be sure to support your admins and moderators.
The fediverse is by no means perfect, but as a community we all work together to make it more inviting and safe. And with tools like blocking whole servers that host offensive accounts, you have a lot more control over your own experience.
Just wanted to thank all in this instance for adding image descriptions. To a totally blind person like me it means a lot to have a picture in my mind of your images, especially the animal pics.
As a Blind person i never thought i would be on social media savoring photos. But the communal Mastodon alt text game is so strong that sweet, poetic or silly descriptions abound on my timeline. Thanks to legions of people who take time to write a meaningful description of the ephemera they post, i learn so much about insects, plants, buildings, memes — all dispatches from a dimension of the world that i otherwise wouldn't experience. If you're wondering whether anybody reads these things: YES.
More resources
- fedi.tips (@FediTips) is an unofficial non-technical guide to using Mastodon and the wider Fediverse
- The Future is Federated newsletter, run by Elena Rossini, with in-depth deep dives into the the different fediverse platforms
- The Fediverse report (@fediversereport): for all the relevant news on the Fediverse
- We Distribute (@hello): independent news publication dedicated to user empowerment, decentralized communication, and the future of the Internet
And some of my own work:
- here’s a longer introduction with some fun polls
- on Fediverse Explorations I publish studies, research papers, and informal polls that explore the fediverse (including some of my own work)
- go follow some of my creative bots
- and I wrote a separate article for government agencies interested in joining the fediverse
And the best part is, you don’t have to join Mastodon to be par of the fediverse, which is made up of a variety of platforms, and they’re all worth checking out.
I hope this quick overview was informative, and please do reach out if you have any questions!
As more people are abandoning X, again, perhaps my short introduction to Mastodon might be of use, if you'd like to share it with your friends?
Image credit: Mastodon gGmbH
