Posts in Mastodon can be set to automatically self-destruct after a certain time period, with exceptions made for posts you want to keep. Here’s how to do it:

1. Log in through your server’s website or the web app
2. Go to Preferences > Automated post deletion (on mobile web click ⚙️, then ☰, then Automated post deletion)
3. Tick the box at the top marked Automatically delete old posts
4. Choose the Age threshold to set how long posts are around before they’re deleted. This can be from 1 week to 2 years.
5. Set the exceptions for posts you want to keep, in the section marked Exceptions and also in the section marked Exceptions based on interactions
6. Click the Save changes button ( ⚠️ Only click this button if you are sure you want to activate autodelete and if you are 100% happy with your settings!)

What if I want to keep some old posts and autodelete the rest?

The autodelete options let you choose many types of exceptions that don’t ever get deleted, for example pinned posts, DMs, polls, image posts etc.

If you want to keep specific posts that don’t fit into a neat category, bookmark your posts that you want to keep before setting up autodelete, and then during autodelete setup choose the option to keep bookmarked posts before you click “Save changes”.

What if I want to keep my most popular posts?

There’s an option in the autodelete setup which lets you keep posts that have more than a certain number of boosts or favourites, it’s in the section marked Exceptions based on interactions.

What if I don’t want autodeletion at all?

Autodelete is off by default. If you never activate it, it will not do anything.

What if I change my mind? How do I stop posts being deleted automatically?

If you activate autodelete but then change your mind and want to stop deleting posts automatically, UN-tick the box marked Automatically delete old posts, and click the Save changes button.

⚠️ Will stopping the auto-deletion bring back posts that are already deleted?

No. Once a post is deleted it is gone. Be sure you want to use auto-deletion before you activate it.

What happens to discussions based on my posts?

If you delete a post that other people replied to, the replies to your post will be orphaned, and it will become impossible to discover or browse such discussions. If you want to keep certain discussions you’ve started in existence, make sure you include your posts from that discussion in the list of exceptions (see Step 5 in the instructions at the top of the page).

What happens to links to my posts?

If you delete a post, any links to that post will immediately be broken and will just show an error message. If you want to keep a post, make sure it is covered by the exceptions list in Step 4 of the instructions.

I activated auto-deletion but it hasn’t deleted posts that are way past the threshold. What’s going on?

If servers are busy, they create queues of tasks to work through. Automated deletion tends to go at the back of the queue, so it may take longer to happen than other tasks. If the settings are correct and it’s way past the deadline for the deletions to happen, ask your server’s admin for advice.

How does this affect server running costs?

When this feature is discussed, the issue of server running costs is often raised:

• On the one hand, automated stuff always adds extra tasks for the server to carry out. Servers are only capable of doing a certain amount of tasks at once, and expanding this capability costs money.
• On the other hand, deleting posts (and especially attachments like images or videos) would mean the server doesn’t have to store as much data, which saves money on storage costs. It would also reduce storage costs for any servers that have federated the posts being deleted.

You would have to speak to your server’s admin to find out exactly how it affects their setup, as different servers may have different resources available.

I asked a couple of very large server admins for their thoughts on how this balances out. Both of them said the added tasks were insignificant compared to everything else the servers have to do. Both of them also said deleting posts (especially posts with media attachments) saves storage, but one of them added that there may be fees to be paid if the deletions happen for very recent posts. On their server, it would be cheaper to only delete posts more than 90 days old, and leave any newer posts intact.

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Fediverse groups are special kinds of accounts which let you connect with other people who share the same interest. You can join a group by following it.

At the moment, most Fediverse groups work like this:

1. Join a group by following its account
2. Posts from that group will start appearing in your Home timeline
3. If you want to post something to the group, just mention its account address in a public post
4. If you want to leave a group, unfollow it

It’s somewhat similar to following hashtags, and people who have used email discussion lists will also find this structure very familiar.

The main Fediverse group provider at the moment is Guppe ⧉. It’s platform-neutral, their groups can be followed from all kinds of Fediverse servers including Mastodon, GoToSocial, Friendica etc. It’s also free open source software so anyone can start their own Guppe server if they want to.

Where can I discover existing groups?

I’ve compiled a curated list of interesting Fediverse groups on fedi.directory ⧉. I’ve tried to only list active groups with a respectful atmosphere.

Guppe has a list of their top 50 active groups at the bottom of their website at a.gup.pe ⧉.

You can also try searching for @a.gup.pe in the search box on Mastodon, this will show Guppe groups that at least one person on your server is following. However, bear in mind if a group has no followers from your server it won’t show up in searches.

How can I create a group? Are the groups moderated? What if I see something unsuitable?

Guppe groups don’t require any kind of registration, you can create a group simply by mentioning the group name in the form “@YourGroupNameHere@a.gup.pe”. However, because there’s no registration there is no group moderator either. Guppe groups rely on members reporting bad group posts the same way they would report bad non-group posts.

What do I do if I see spam or something unsuitable in a group?

Do exactly the same thing you would do if you saw spam/abuse outside the group on ordinary posts. Whatever kind of group you are following, you can report, mute and block just like you can with ordinary non-group posts.

When you report bad posts, the admins on your server (and possibly also the server of the spammer/troll) can take action to block it and remove it.

What if a group is really busy? How do I stop it overwhelming my timeline?

You can use Mastodon’s Lists feature to set up lists for groups, and then set those lists to hide posts from your Home timeline. This will let you keep groups in their own mini-timelines you can dip into whenever you want, without causing any posts to appear in your main timeline.

Groups federate content more effectively than hashtags

Hashtag follows and groups have some overlap, and appear to work in a similar way on the surface, but there are significant differences behind the scenes.

The biggest advantage of groups is you automatically see all of the group’s posts, even if they’re from accounts that haven’t federated to your server before. Because all the group’s posts are shared to all the members’ servers, you never miss a thing.

With hashtag follows, this mass federation doesn’t happen. Hashtag following means you will only see posts from accounts that already federate with your server. Hashtags are essentially passive filters for your server’s Federated timeline and do not actively draw in any new content.

What about Mastodon’s own built-in groups feature?

Mastodon has been developing a built-in groups feature for some time now, but it hasn’t been released yet. From the screenshots posted so far, it seems it will be more of a Facebook Groups type forum rather than a public discussion list. (You can see highly technical details and screenshots of this upcoming Groups feature on their github page ⧉).

However, it is unclear if Mastodon groups will work across the Fediverse or only on Mastodon. Guppe is platform-neutral, and will work on any kind of Fediverse server that supports microblogging including Mastodon, Friendica and others.

Can I set up my own Guppe server?

Guppe is free open source software, and if you have the necessary technical knowledge and resources, you can install your own Guppe server by following the instructions on the Guppe Github site ⧉.

Groups on Friendica

The Fediverse server type Friendica includes built-in group support, which works in a broadly similar way to Guppe. Creating a Friendica group requires a Friendica account, but anyone can join the group from other Fediverse server types including Mastodon servers.

A Friendica group can be moderated by the person who created it, and they can also add additional moderators to the same group.

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On Mastodon, if you’re browsing someone’s profile page you can click the Media tab to just show their posts which have an attached image, audio or video file. Text-only posts and posts shared from other accounts are not shown in the Media tab.

The Media tab is especially useful if you’re browsing for works on an artist’s profile for example, or any account that posts interesting bits of media. It means you can go straight to specific works instead of having to scroll through non-media posts or boosted posts by other people.

Usually the tab is indicated by the word “Media”, but in some apps it may be an icon such a series of pictures.

Does this work on the apps and the website?

Yes. There’s a media tab on your server’s website, the web app, the official apps and most of the third party apps. Most apps show this as a list of posts, but the web interface shows it as a grid of images where you click on an image to enlarge it.

On Mastodon’s web interface, how do I see the post the image came from?

If you’re browsing the Media tab on the web interface, you can see the original post the image comes from by clicking on the box icon just below the image in the bottom right corner.

Does the Media tab show boosts of media posts by other people?

No. The Media tab just shows media posts from that account. Shared media from other accounts are not shown in the tab.

Does it show embedded media such as links to other websites?

No, it only shows posts with attached images, audio files or videos. Links that automatically generate a preview of media hosted elsewhere (such as YouTube links) are not counted as media posts.

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If you’re posting an image on Mastodon and there is a particular part of the image that you want people to pay attention to, it is recommended that you set the image’s “focus” on this part. This setting tells Mastodon which part of the photo is most important, and it means Mastodon will prioritise showing that part of the image if it ever has to display a cropped preview version.

Here are some possible situations where people may see a cropped preview of your image on Mastodon:

• If you attach multiple images in the same post
• If people are viewing timelines on older versions of Mastodon or Mastodon forks based on older versions
• If people are viewing timelines on certain apps

Whatever the reason, people can still see the full non-cropped version if they click on the post or the image itself, it’s only the preview versions of images that may be cropped in certain circumstances.

How do I adjust an image’s focus so that previews always show a certain part of the image?

1. Log onto your server’s website, the web app or your app
2. Start creating your post and attach the image, but don’t publish it yet
3. If you’re using the website or web app, click Edit on the image (other apps will have their own ways of adjusting images)
4. Move the circle to the part of the image you want people to see the most
5. Remember to add a text description to the image
6. Click Apply
7. When you’ve finished writing your post, click Publish

(Some of these steps may be called different things or be done in a different order on different apps. Hopefully these instructions give you the general idea.)

Wait, images are cropped on Mastodon?

Images aren’t cropped, but the preview versions of them may be cropped in certain circumstances. Even if people see a cropped preview, the original version is visible if people click on a post or the image itself.

On some versions of Mastodon’s web interface, and on some apps, timelines show all previews in a 16:9 aspect ratio. This means any images not in 16:9 are shown in cropped previews. People can click on the post or image to see the full original version, but while it’s on their timeline alongside other posts it may be shown cropped.

What if I don’t adjust the focus?

If you don’t adjust the focus, it will default to focusing on the exact centre of the image. This can cause portraits of people to be shown without their heads, for example.

I can’t see any photos cropped to 16:9 on my timeline?

The latest version of Mastodon’s web interface doesn’t crop previews of individual images any more, but people on other versions of Mastodon, other types of Fediverse server or other apps may see things differently. Also, attaching multiple images can cause cropping of previews on whatever you are using.

If you want a photo preview to look nice, it’s always worth adjusting its focus setting.

What if the image is already 16:9 aspect ratio?

Images that have a 16:9 aspect ratio will not seem to show any differences when you adjust the focus setting, but it’s still worth adjusting the focus as some previews may be a different aspect ratio (for example if you’re attaching multiple images in a single post).

What if there are multiple images attached? What happens then?

It depends on how many attachments you have, and what kind of software is being used by the person who sees your post. The aspect ratio of previews will usually change as you add more images and it tries to tile them together in your post.

Can I adjust the focus setting after posting an image?

Yes, you can use Mastodon’s edit feature to adjust the focus after the image has been posted.

What does “aspect ratio” mean? Why 16:9?

Aspect ratio is how wide something is compared to how tall it is. For example, if an image is 1000 pixels wide by 1000 pixels tall, it would have an aspect ratio of 1:1. If it was 2000 pixels wide by 1000 pixels tall, it would have an aspect ratio of 2:1.

The 16:9 aspect ratio is very common on cinema screens, TV sets, laptops, smartphones, games consoles etc. The popular 1080p standard has pictures displayed at 1920 pixels wide and 1080 pixels tall, which means it has an aspect ratio of 16:9.

I thought Mastodon had got rid of cropped previews on the latest version?

Individual images are no longer cropped to 16:9 on the latest version of Mastodon’s website, but not everyone is on the latest version, not everyone uses the website or the same apps, and not everyone is on Mastodon.

Also, if you’re attaching more than one image to the same post, then they will be shown as cropped previews whatever version you or other people are using.

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Some third party Mastodon apps have a built-in draft posts feature.

There is no official drafts feature in the Mastodon website interface, but unofficially you can use the Delete & re-draft option combined with DMs to create drafts:

1. Log on through your server’s website and create your draft post, but don’t publish yet.
2. Set visibility to mentioned people only, and don’t mention anyone.
3. When you’re ready to save it, publish it.
4. When you want to edit it, go to your Direct Messages tab and find the draft.
5. Click the draft open, click ⋯ and select Delete & re-draft, the draft will open in the message editing window
6. When you’re ready to publish for real, set the visibility to the correct setting and add any mentions you want, then press the Publish button.

…but, as many people have pointed out, it might be easier to just use a notepad app and copy and paste drafts from a text file on your computer or phone 😁

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On the Fediverse, and especially on Mastodon, if you follow an account by clicking the “Follow” button it changes into a “Following” or “Unfollow” button, depending on what you’re using to view Mastodon. Clicking this changed button lets you unfollow the account if you want to.

However, sometimes the follow button turns into “Pending” or “Cancel Follow” or “Follow Request Sent”, and this means the follow hasn’t actually happened yet.

If the follow hasn’t happened yet, this usually means you’ve tried to follow an account that needs manual approval of followers, and you have to wait for the owner to approve your request. You can tell if an account requires approval as it will have a padlock icon 🔒 on its profile next to the username. (If the account does not have a padlock 🔒 on its profile, then an error may have happened. See below for what to do in this case.)

How do I get people to accept my follow requests?

An account will be more likely to accept your follow request if you fulfil their requirements. Quite often accounts that have follow requests switched on will have criteria for accepting follows mentioned in their profile text (for example many require followers to have posted before, or to have a profile text).

They don’t have follow requests switched on, there is no padlock on their profile. So why is it giving me a message like they do?

Sometimes the follow request message appears even when the account you’re trying to follow doesn’t have manual approval mode switched on. In this case, the message may be caused by several other things:

• A temporary glitch stopped it going through. If it’s been a while since you did the follow, cancel it and try following again.
• A software bug has prevented the follow going through properly. This kind of bug is especially common if you’re trying to follow an account on a new or experimental type of Fediverse server.
• The server of the person you’re trying to follow has “silenced” your server. This is a special moderation setting that means all follows from your server to that other server turn into follow requests automatically, even if the person on the other server doesn’t have follow requests on. The person on the other server will get a follow request which they can accept or deny.
• A server is overwhelmed with stuff it has to do, and is struggling to keep up so it puts tasks into a queue to deal with later.

What do I do if my follow has turned into a follow request?

If you see that an attempted follow has turned into a follow request but the other account doesn’t have requests switched on, try leaving it for a while as it may just be a temporary glitch.

If that doesn’t help, try cancelling the follow completely, wait for a while and then try clicking follow again, which sometimes helps the follow to go through properly.

If it still doesn’t work, contact your own server admin, and if they can’t help try contacting the admin of the server for the account you’re trying to follow.

Does this message mean someone has blocked me?

No, you don’t see this message if you’ve been blocked by someone.

The message means the account you’re trying to follow probably just have follow requests switched on, and if they don’t then there’s just a technical problem.

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If you’re looking for a long list of tips on how to make your account and posts more visible, please click here see the guide to increasing your visibility.

If you’re deciding on a posting schedule, it’s a good idea to wait until you have at least some followers from other servers before you publish your most interesting stuff. Even a handful of followers will give your posts much more visibility across the Fediverse, as you only need one follower from a server to make your posts visible to that entire server. You can find out more about this in the guide to what servers can see.

Due to the way the Fediverse currently works, if you publish a post while you still have zero followers, that post will probably not be visible to anyone except people on your server. If someone is the first person to follow you from their server, they will see your posts from that moment onwards, but there’s generally no backfilling to show them your previous posts.

Once you have one person from a server following you, everyone on that server will be able to see all your future posts from that moment onwards. Even tiny amounts of followers make a big difference to visibility, they are always much better than zero followers.

How should I handle posting stuff?

Build up a following and gradually add a steady stream of interesting posts. Don’t do massive dumps of content before you have any followers.

This applies especially to people who run PeerTube accounts, which often start out with massive uploads of video archives that no one on other servers can see because no one has followed the account yet. They would get a lot more views if they upload the archive gradually as they build up a following.

Is there ANY way to make posts visible to everyone even if I have no followers?

On Mastodon, the only way to make posts visible to absolutely everyone who ever looks at your profile is to pin the posts on your profile. Pinned posts are backfilled and will become visible to anyone who follows you. You can pin up to five posts at once, and they will all be backfilled. You can also reply to pinned posts, and the replies will be backfilled too.

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If a profile looks blank, don’t assume it is blank.

Fediverse servers work like this: servers only really notice accounts from other servers if someone on your server follows or interacts with them.

The reason servers work like this because of resources. If servers had to keep a copy of every post from millions of users on thousands of Fediverse servers in the world, server running costs would become prohibitively expensive (and most of those posts would probably never be read by anyone on your server anyway).

The idea of the Fediverse is to let anyone start their own server if they want to, and this process of servers “noticing” accounts helps keep servers cheap enough for anyone to run their own ⧉.

What happens if I follow an apparently blank account?

Once you follow an account, your own server will start paying attention to whatever that account posts. This means if it creates any new posts or shares any posts after your follow, they will be visible on your server as well.

If you want to stop someone’s account looking blank, give it a follow. There is no harm in following people, there is no algorithm to worry about so a follow won’t start doing weird things to your feed. All that a follow does on the Fediverse is show you that account’s posts and shares, it doesn’t have any other effects.

How do I check what a blank account really looks like?

To see the most complete version of an account, go to its profile, click on ⋯ and then “Open original page” or “Open in browser”. This should open the profile on its home server’s website, which will show the most up to date version of the profile.

Note that you can’t easily interact with a profile on its home server’s website, because the other server doesn’t know who you are. You will find it easier to interact with a profile within your own server’s website or within your app. If there’s a particular post that you really want to interact with and it isn’t visible on your server, you can force your server to notice it by copy-pasting the post’s web address into the search box on your server.

How to prevent your own profile from ever looking blank

There is a really simple way to prevent your server ever looking blank to anyone: pin some of your posts on your profile. You can pin up to five posts on a profile, and these can include attached photos, video and audio. You can also make them into threads of unlimited length, and the entire thread will be automatically federated to everyone who browses your profile.

Pinned posts behave differently at a technical level. Mastodon servers automatically fetch pinned posts for all accounts viewed or mentioned by someone on a server, even if no one is following that account. This doesn’t currently happen with unpinned posts, which is why pinning is so important in preventing blank profiles.

This is really silly and complicated, isn’t there some simpler way to fix this situation?

There may be a possible solution to blank profiles on the way called “backfilling”. This would mean as soon as you follow someone your server would automatically check the account for past posts and display some or all of them on your server. With backfilling there would be much less need to fiddle around with original pages etc, and backfilling already happens for pinned posts as noted above.

At time of writing backfilling is the most popular suggestion on the Mastodon github site, and if you’re comfortable using github you can go and give it a thumbs up ⧉.

The reason it hasn’t happened before is concern over server resources, the developers of Mastodon don’t want to overload smaller servers. However, there is a promising draft proposal currently being worked on which would keep load to a minimum ⧉.

Accounts with restricted post visibility

An alternative reason why an active account might look blank is this: if the account has follower requests on (indicated by a padlock 🔒 next to their name), and if all its posts are followers-only, then you will not see any posts on their profile until you follow them and your follow request is accepted.

These kinds of account will look blank to anyone on any server, even their own, because the account holder has chosen to deliberately hide their posts except to their own followers.

Some accounts really are blank, of course

If an account profile looks blank, and you check the original page and it’s blank there as well, and it doesn’t have follower requests activated, then perhaps it really is blank.

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There are tens of thousands of Fediverse servers with millions of users in total, and this amount is growing all the time. There are hundreds of millions of posts going back almost a decade.

However, each server only “notices” posts and profiles that are connected to its members in someway, either through an interaction, or a following, or various other specific situations.

The reason why servers only notice certain posts and profiles is because would be horrifically expensive for every independent server to keep a complete, up-to-date record of every post ever made by every user on every server in all languages. The only people who could afford such a comprehensive system would be megacorporations like Facebook, Google, Twitter etc.

The whole point of the Fediverse is to allow small independent servers to exist as part of a larger network, so that the network is as spread out as possible (click here to find out why this is a good idea). The smallest Fedi server starts from about US$10 a month to run, and this low cost is possible because the server only needs to display posts and shares from people its users follow. Even the largest Fediverse servers are able to operate on a fraction of the budget of a commercial social network because they are only showing posts their users have to see. (If you’re interested, there’s a complete list of what a server can see here.)

So, what are the downsides of not having all posts from every server visible everywhere?

If you discover an account that no one on your server has followed or interacted with, it may look totally blank even if it has posted lots of times. This can mislead people into thinking a profile is inactive and not worth following. If you follow a profile you will start seeing all its posts published from that moment onwards, but older posts are not loaded retrospectively.

Also, searches will produce fewer results and threads may look less complete if your server hasn’t noticed accounts related to the topics you searched for.

Couldn’t Mastodon at least show a few old posts instead of blank profiles?

Yes, this is a good point. One of the main shortcomings on Mastodon and many other Fediverse server types is the lack of “backfilling”.

Backfilling is when an account’s posts are automatically fetched to your server when you follow or view an account’s profile. Without backfilling, profiles can look blank if no one on your server has followed it before. At the moment, the only posts backfilled by Mastodon are pinned posts.

The main thing preventing backfilling from being used has been concern about stress on servers, especially if an account has thousands of past posts to backfill. A possible compromise might be letting servers decide for themselves if they will allow backfilling, and how many posts they are willing to backfill.

If you’re comfortable using Github, you can let the developers of Mastodon know you want some kind of backfilling to be implemented by giving a thumbs up on the relevant issue ⧉, and if you have your own ideas you can contribute to the thread.

Is there any way to get round the problem of search results and threads?

Yes! If you’re an ordinary user you can follow and post to groups, which distribute all of their content to everyone in the group no matter which server they are on.

If you’re a server admin, there are ways you can get more results visible on your server, even if your server is small and new.

How about just having everyone on one huge server?

Well, you could do this, but then you end up back where you started with a server that can be easily bought out by Elon Musk or whoever as soon as it gets popular. It would be entirely missing the point of the Fediverse.

How about having one giant relay server?

Again, you couuld do this, but then whoever controls that giant relay server would have an unusually large amount of power over what is visible on the Fediverse. It would also be expensive to run. Combining massive expense with centralisation makes it very likely that such a relay server would end up being sold to the highest bidder and start going down the path of “enshittification ⧉“.

Do any Fediverse server types use backfilling right now?

Yes! PeerTube automatically backfills all of an account’s videos as soon as an account is followed from a PeerTube server, even if the videos are very old. This works fine, and shows that backfilling can be done on the Fediverse.

Also, as mentioned above, Mastodon does backfill pinned posts already.

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If you are searching for something on Mastodon and the Fediverse, you will get different search results depending on which server your account is on. This is because each server sees a slightly different view of the Fediverse.

In general, your server can see the following content:

• All accounts on your server
• All posts made by accounts on your server
• All posts shared by at least one account on your server
• All accounts that at have at least one follower on your server
• All posts made by accounts that have at least one follower on your server
• All posts shared by accounts that have at least one follower on your server
• All posts from groups that have at least one follower on your server
• All replies to posts on your server
• All posts mentioning accounts on your server
• All accounts that have replied to posts on your server or mentioned accounts on your server
• All posts that have been searched for by their original page’s web address
• All accounts that have been searched for by their account address
• All accounts that have been mentioned in posts that your server has noticed
• All posts pushed to your server by a relay server, relays are added to servers by admins
• All posts pushed to your server by scripts, for example the script hypebot pushes trending posts from other servers to your server. Scripts are generally added by technically skilled admins.
• ON MASTODON SERVERS RUNNING NIGHTLY TEST SOFTWARE: All posts within all threads that have been seen by at least one account on your server. Even if the account has only seen part of the thread, the entire thread is then automatically fetched by the server including posts from unfamiliar accounts.

How do I make my server notice more posts and accounts?

If a specific post isn’t visible from your server but you know it exists, you can manually force your server to notice it by copying and pasting the post’s web address from its original page on its home server into the search box on your server. This will make the post appear within your server so you can interact with it and search for it just like any other post.

If a specific account isn’t visible from your server but you know it exists, you can manually force your server to notice it by copying and pasting its Fediverse account address into the search box on your server.

If you want your server to notice a lot more posts and accounts in general, ask your server admin if they have considered using a relay service and/or scripts. Modern relay services can be for specific topics so they don’t take up as many resources as general relays. Scripts can be used to show trending posts from other servers or backfill missing posts from profiles and conversations.

Why doesn’t my server just notice all posts and accounts from all servers?

Fediverse servers are selective about what they see, because keeping a complete copy of all posts from all other servers regardless of whether they’re needed would be incredibly expensive and wasteful.

The point of Mastodon and the Fediverse is to create a social network where anyone can make their own server, so that the network remains in the ownership of the people and communities that use it. This is possible partly because of the structure, but also partly because the running costs of servers is comparatively low. Fediverse server prices at hosting companies start from about US$8 a month, including full tech support that covers all the technical stuff.

If servers had to notice all content from all other servers, they would become incredibly expensive to run, and only megacorporations like Google or Meta/Facebook would have enough money to do so.

Can a server stop noticing posts and accounts?

Yes, if the server’s admin decides to defederate from another server. When a server defederates from another server, it can no longer see posts or accounts from the defederated server.

Alternatively, a server admin may instead decide to suspend a specific account on another server, which will make that account and its posts no longer visible on the admin’s server.

Are there any exceptions to these rules?

If you’re a member of a PeerTube server, it works very differently to most Fediverse servers. When a PeerTube server notices a channel or account from another PeerTube server, it also notices all the videos ever published by that channel or account. This is known as backfilling and at the moment it only happens fully on PeerTube, but there are plans for it to happen more widely.

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On Mastodon, if you have posted in a thread or been tagged in it, but you don’t want to take part any more, you can mute the conversation so that you won’t get notifications from it. No one will know you’ve done this, and it will only affect that thread:

1. Log in through your server’s website or web app (and some app store apps also include this feature)
2. Go to a notification you’ve received from the conversation you want to mute
3. Click ⋯ on the notification and select Mute conversation

If you change your mind, just do the same thing again but select Unmute conversation.

You might also be able to access the Mute conversation option while browsing the thread itself, but for some reason this isn’t as reliable as muting it from the notifications.

What if I want notifications about that conversation, but there are just one or two people in the thread who are causing problems?

If the problems in a thread are limited to a small number of people, you might want to try muting their accounts instead. You can mute people indefinitely or temporarily.

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On Mastodon, if you follow someone and you want to see their posts but not their boosts, you can hide just their boosts without blocking or muting them. This doesn’t affect their normal posts, and they have no way of knowing you’re doing it.

Log in on your server’s website, and go to the profile of the person whose boosts you want to hide. Click on the ︙ button and select Hide boosts from. If you change your mind, go back to their profile and select Show boosts from.

This only works on accounts you follow.

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If you’re using Mastodon through your server’s website or the web app, you can optionally have it ask you for confirmation before deleting or boosting a post:

1. Log in through your server’s website or web app
2. Click on ⚙️ Preferences
3. Scroll down to the section marked Confirmation dialogues
4. Tick the boxes for the things you want Mastodon to ask confirmation for
5. Click Save Changes at the bottom of the screen

What if I’m using an app?

Mobile apps usually have similar settings available, often with even more options, but it will vary from app to app. Click on your app’s settings page (often indicated by a ⚙️ symbol) to see what options your particular app has.

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If you add a poll to your post on Mastodon, by default it only allows people to select one option.

However, if you use your server’s website or the Mastodon web app or certain third party apps, you can customise the poll so that it allows people to vote for several options at once.

Changing poll type on the web interface

If you’re using Mastodon through your server’s website, you can choose a poll type by doing the following:

1. Log in through your server’s website or through the web app
2. Write your post and create the poll as normal, but don’t actually publish it yet
3. On some versions of Mastodon, click on one of the circles next to the options, the circles will all change into squares, and the poll will now allow multiple option selection. If your version of Mastodon doesn’t show circles or squares, click the option that says “Style: Pick one” and change it to “Multiple choice”.
4. When you’re happy with your setting, post the poll

Changing poll type on apps

The official apps don’t yet support creating multiple poll types, but you can choose poll types on some third party apps.

Third party app interfaces are very varied, but for example Ice Cubes for iPhone/iPad has a menu when you’re creating a poll that lets you choose between “One Vote” or “Multiple Votes”.

⚠️ Editing poll types resets the vote numbers

You can also edit the poll type after you have posted the poll, but this will reset all of the votes to zero (without any warning) when you publish the edit. Also, editing any of the poll texts causes this same reset to zero.

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Most accounts on the Fediverse are on a standard Mastodon server, which has a 500 character limit for posts and a four option limit for polls. However, sometimes you’ll see people with posts that are much longer than 500 characters. By default Mastodon doesn’t allow admins to adjust character limits, so how is this possible?

There are three ways that someone’s posting limit might be larger than 500 characters:

Method 1: The server admin has customised their server’s software code

There’s nothing in the admin interface of standard Mastodon that allows character limits to be adjusted. However, Mastodon is free open source software and anyone can customise it to suit their own needs. This means admins with the right technical knowledge can adjust the Mastodon code to have a different character limit.

Method 2: The server is running on a fork of Mastodon

There are many pre-customised versions of Mastodon, often with significantly more features for admins and members. Pre-customised versions of open source software are called “forks”. The most popular forks of Mastodon are Glitch ⧉ and Hometown ⧉, which add lots of extra features including the ability for admins to easily adjust their server’s character limit.

Method 3: The server isn’t Mastodon at all, but a totally different type of Fediverse server

Not all of the posts you see on your timelines are from Mastodon. There are many other Fediverse server types that aren’t Mastodon, and these other servers may have much larger character limits for posts. Some like Friendica or WordPress have no limits at all!

What happens if a post is really long? Will standard Mastodon show really long posts?

Standard Mastodon will show long posts but they will be automatically truncated with a Read More link at the bottom, so that timelines remain easy to browse. You can view the full version of a truncated post by clicking on Read More.

Can I ask my server’s admin to increase the character limits?

You can ask them, but bear in mind that standard Mastodon (aka “Vanilla Mastodon”) does not have any options in its admin interface to adjust character limits. The only way they can adjust it is by using one of the unofficial methods listed above, and not all admins can use these options because they may require additional technical skill and/or resources.

Where can I find well-run servers with higher character limits?

You can see some nice, well-run servers with higher character limits on the “Larger Post Size” section of the fedi.garden website ⧉.

Why does standard Mastodon have a 500 character limit? Why won’t they let admins choose the limit more easily?

The lead developer of Mastodon gave the following explanation in 2017 ⧉:

I have denied such patches in the past. If somebody wants to hack it in, they may do so, but I don’t want to encourage it. I feel like (Mastodon’s) UX is designed, visually and behaviourally, around a certain number of characters, and deviations have a negative impact on it. For example, I want people to pick their Mastodon based on, for example, the policies, or the theme, but I want the base level of functionality to be the same so it doesn’t go into the choice.

Of course nothing is set in stone. If you’re comfortable using Github you can give a thumbs up in the relevant issue ⧉.

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By default, Mastodon servers’ websites use a simple single column interface.

However, if you’re using the website through a computer (or a tablet/phone in horizontal mode) there is also an optional multicolumn interface you can use instead. Here’s how to activate it:

1. Log in through your server’s website
2. Click ⚙️ Preferences
3. Tick the box marked Enable Advanced Web Interface
4. Click the Save Changes button
5. Click the Back to Mastodon link at the left of the screen

If you’re already in multicolumn and you want to go back to the normal single column interface, here’s how to do it:

1. Click on the ⚙️ cog gear icon
2. UN-tick the box marked Enable Advanced Web Interface
3. Click the Save Changes button
4. Click the Back to Mastodon link

How to add more columns by using the pin feature

When you first use it, the advanced web interface only contains four columns with one of these columns dedicated to whatever you last selected. Every time you select something, it replaces the contents of this fourth column.

However, if you want to keep a column permanently visible you can pin it, and the pinned column will be added to your previous columns.

• To pin a column, click on the ⚙️ cog gear icon in the top right corner of the column and select Pin
• To unpin a column, click the same ⚙️ cog icon and select Unpin

When you pin a column, it expands the interface sideways, and some people have lots of pinned columns. Pinning is well suited to widescreen monitors, and you can scroll the interface sideways to see any columns that don’t fit on the screen.

How to change the order of the columns

You can move a column left or right by clicking the ⚙️ cog icon in its top right corner and then clicking one of the < or > buttons to move the column. These buttons are next to the Unpin option.

What kind of columns can I add?

Any column with a ⚙️ cog icon in the top right can be pinned or un-pinned, which includes hashtag searches, all types of timeline, private mentions (DMs), Lists, Bookmarks, Favourites etc.

Advanced multiple hashtag searches using pinned columns

You can pin multiple hashtags in the same column, and you can also combine them in unusual ways to create a feed of advanced search results:

1. With the Advanced Web Interface activated, search for a hashtag
2. Click ⚙️ in the top right corner of the results column for that tag, and then click Pin
3. Click ⚙️ again and then Include additional tags. This will open three special sections where you can enter hashtags.
4. Enter one or more hashtags in one or more of the sections, depending on how you want the tags to affect what is displayed in the feed.

The sections affect the feed like this:

• Any will show posts that contain one or more of its hashtags
• All will show posts that contain all of its hashtags
• None will hide posts that contain one or more of its hashtags

Pinning accounts as new columns using Lists

You can’t pin an account’s profile page directly, but you can pin particular accounts (or combinations of accounts) as new columns by using Mastodon’s Lists feature:

1. Click Lists on the Getting Started menu on the right (or click ☰ on the left if you can’t see Getting Started)
2. Create a new list and add the account(s) you want to that list (see the guide to using lists if you haven’t created one before)
3. Click the list you want to pin to bring it up as a new column
4. Click the ⚙️ cog icon in the top right corner
5. Select Pin

Help! The columns are scrolling too quickly and I can’t keep up!

If timelines are updating too quickly, you can switch Mastodon to “slow mode” so that columns only update when you click at the top of them:

1. Log in through your server’s website
2. Click on ⚙️ Preferences
3. Tick the box marked Slow Mode, then click the button marked Save Changes

Slow mode also works on Mastodon’s single column interface.

Using Advanced mode through your keyboard

If you prefer using just your keyboard, the Mastodon web interface can optionally be controlled almost entirely through key commands, click here to see the section on hotkeys for a complete list. These hotkeys also include some commands that only work in Advanced mode.

If you prefer the normal control method using the mouse, that works fine too.

Is pinning a column related to pinning posts on my profile?

No. There is a totally different, totally separate feature also called pinning where you can pin posts to your profile page. This has nothing to do with pinning columns, they just have a similar name.

I can’t see a ⚙️ cog icon in the top right of columns, but there is a different icon?

If your server is running an older version of the Mastodon software, it may show a slider icon instead of a ⚙️ cog icon. They do exactly the same thing, they just look different.

Why are there two official interfaces on Mastodon?

The original website version of Mastodon from 2016 used the multicolumn interface, but while some enjoyed it others found it confusing and overwhelming. Eventually a simpler single column interface was introduced, and single column became the default. The multicolumn interface was renamed “advanced” and made available as an optional mode in settings.

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If you’re running a Mastodon account that isn’t monitored by a human, it’s considered polite to mark it as an automated account (also known as a bot).

How to add the “Automated” label to an account:

1. Sign in through your server’s website or web app
2. Click on your profile image to go to your profile page, then click Edit profile
3. Scroll down to the box marked This is an automated account, tick the box
4. Click Save changes

I thought bots were bad? Why is Mastodon encouraging them?

Bad bots are discouraged and blocked, good bots are encouraged and followed.

Good bot accounts can be extremely useful. For example, some bots post sports results or weather alerts, which are exactly the kind of thing people might appreciate seeing in their feeds at any time of day or night. This kind of account would be difficult for a human to maintain 24 hours a day.

Bots can also be entertaining, with some bots running games or posting amusing content.

Can bots interact with people?

Some bots can interact, yes. When there is interaction, it is usually automated, hence the “Automated” label. Vote Chess ⧉ is a nice interactive account, it lets people play chess against a computer by voting for the next move (you can follow it at the address @votechess@bots.petras.space).

Also, sometimes the bot’s human maintainer will post via the bot’s account and reply as well. However, on automated accounts this is rare, and the assumption should be that there is no one monitoring the account.

Where can I find a list of good bots to follow?

The excellent folks at Botwiki have a brilliant categorised list of useful Fediverse bots ⧉. There is also an uncategorised list over on Fedi.Directory ⧉.

So why do bots have a bad reputation?

The bad bots you sometimes hear about are where someone has automated an account to do something nasty or anti-social such as posting spam. Bad bots tend to be rare on the Fediverse, and would usually be blocked pretty quickly once the nastiness is reported.

So “Automated” isn’t a bad sign?

If you see an account labelled “Automated”, that is actually the sign of a good bot, because it’s the owner of the bot who chose to label it as such. Another good sign is if the bot’s creator has included a link to their own account on the bot’s profile page.

Bad bots usually try to disguise the fact they are bots, and don’t use the “Automated” label.

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You can embed posts from Mastodon on your own website, blog or other platform that lets you post HTML code. Here’s how to do it:

1. Log in through your server’s website or the web app
2. Go to the post or reply you want to embed and click on it to show the enlarged view of that post
3. Click ⋯ at the bottom of the enlarged post or reply, then select Get embed code
4. Copy and paste the HTML code into your website’s page code

NOTE: Step 2 above is really important, the embed option may not be visible if the post or reply isn’t enlarged.

What does embedding mean?

Embedding means the post itself will be displayed on the website, and all the post’s interactive elements such as links, images, video, audio etc can be clicked on and will work.

How do I embed Mastodon posts on WordPress sites and blogs?

If you’re using the block editor in WordPress, don’t use WordPress’s “Embed” block. Instead, use WordPress’s “Custom HTML” block and paste Mastodon’s HTML embedding code there.

Alternatively, if you’re editing the page’s code you can paste the embedding code directly.

How is embedding different from posting a screenshot?

Embedding a post means the post itself is displayed. Any edits/updates made to the post will be automatically shown within the embedded post.

Wait what… the post can be edited after I’ve embedded it? What happens if it gets edited into something nasty?

Whenever you embed something on the web, it can be edited after you embed it. This is to do with how embedding works, it’s basically like a little window into the post’s own website.

However, in the particular case of Mastodon, there is a way of making sure you don’t get caught out by malicious edits: if you also boost the post from your Mastodon account, you will be notified if it is ever edited.

Can I embed other people’s posts?

Yes, if they’re public.

Some posts don’t have an “Embed” option. How do I embed them?

Click on the post to switch to the enlarged view of that post, then try clicking ⋯ again.

If you’ve enlarged a post and clicked ⋯ but it still doesn’t have an embed option, it may be a post with restricted visibility. If a post has a restricted visibility, it cannot be embedded because the creator of the post doesn’t want it to be widely seen. You can only embed posts with a public visibility. Alternatively, it may be a post on a platform that doesn’t support embedding.

I embedded a post but it doesn’t look like a Mastodon post any more? It uses some other format?

The post you embedded may be from a different type of Fediverse server. Embedding shows the post in the format used on its own server rather than your server.

Timelines on Mastodon servers show posts from all across the Fediverse. Some of these posts are from other Mastodon servers, but some are from different kinds of servers. For the sake of making timelines easy to read, your Mastodon server will display all posts in the same Mastodon format, but that’s not necessarily how they appear on their own server. If you embed a post from a different kind of server, it will look different when you embed it.

Not every server type supports embedding, and you may sometimes find there is no embed option for their posts even when you’ve done everything correctly.

Is there a way to embed Mastodon feeds rather than just individual posts?

Yes, but they may require additional software or scripts on your website or blog.

Every Mastodon account and hashtag has its own RSS feed, so if your blog supports embedding RSS feeds you can use that feature to embed a Mastodon account or hashtag feed. If the RSS titles don’t display properly (which seems to be a problem sometimes) try a different feed script or add-on.

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If you’re using Mastodon through your server’s website on a computer, you can control it almost entirely through your keyboard. Particular keys will carry out particular functions, and you can type emoji too.

Keyboard shortcuts on Mastodon

Mastodon’s keyboard shortcuts are always on, press shift + ? (or just ? on some keyboard layouts) to see a complete guide to which keys do what. The shortcuts are also known as “hotkeys”.

Note that some of these shortcuts are only useful in the advanced web interface (multicolumn) mode, but most of them can be used with the default single column mode.

For your convenience, here’s the complete list:

Typing emoji through a keyboard on Mastodon

If you’re using Mastodon on a computer, you can type emoji directly with your keyboard:

1. Type : (colon) and a keyword without a space, a dropdown menu will appear with the top five matching emoji. For example :sun will bring up the top five emoji matching the keyword “sun”.
2. Pick the emoji you want by moving the arrow keys, and then press enter on the one you want.
3. If the emoji you want isn’t there, click on the 🙂 icon at the bottom to open the emoji picker which shows the complete selection.

If there are more than five matches for a keyword, they will not all appear on the dropdown. If so, you’ll need to search for them by clicking on the picker icon 🙂 at the bottom of the post writing box.

An emoji may appear for several keywords, and the keywords are also partly based on the alt text name of an emoji. If the keywords you type don’t bring up the emoji you want, typing the emoji’s name will always work. To find an emoji’s name, go to it in the picker and then hover your mouse over it to show its name.

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This tip no longer works, I’m leaving this page here in case anyone follows a link to it, but it’s no longer listed on the front page.

On older versions of Mastodon you could see an account’s first page of posts by adding ?min_id=0 to the end of its profile URL. This no longer seems to work on current versions of Mastodon.

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Remote following or remote interaction is where you go to the website of a different Fediverse server which you’re not a member of, and try to follow an account or interact with a post there. By default it will ask you the name of your server, because it’s asking your own server to confirm who you are. It will then take you to your own server’s website where you can sign in and the interaction can happen.

This is obviously pretty cumbersome, especially if you’re browsing the websites of many different servers as they will each ask you for your server separately. But there is an easier way:

1. Log in on your own server, either via your server’s website, wep app or app store app
2. Copy the web address of the post or profile from the other server’s website
3. Paste this web address into the search box on your own server. This will make the other server’s post or profile appear within your own server, and you will be able to interact with it directly without having to log in again or give your server name.

Does copying and pasting web addresses work with addresses from different types of Fediverse server?

Yes! For example you can copy and paste the web address of a PeerTube video or Pixelfed photo into the search box on a Mastodon server, and the video or photo will appear within Mastodon. By the way, it will look like a Mastodon post if you paste the address into Mastodon, but you can see its true form by looking at its original page.

Why is this so awkward and cumbersome? Why can’t it be smoother by default?

Remote following is meant more as a method of last resort, rather than the main way of using the Fediverse. You’ll find it a lot easier to follow people from other servers within your own server’s interface, and once your server has noticed an account or post you will be able to find it again by searching for it within your own server.

Why can’t the apps do this automatically?

The latest versions of a lot of apps do recognise Mastodon and other Fediverse links, and do the copy-pasting for you seamlessly behind the scenes. That’s why you may see a brief delay after clicking a link, while the app does the copy-pasting and presents you with the post or profile within the app itself.

However, this automation doesn’t always work. If your app fails to recognise a link as leading to a Mastodon/Fediverse server, that’s when it shows you the server’s website and you need to manually copy-paste it back into the app’s search box.

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Every account and post on the Fediverse has an “original page” on the server that the account or post is hosted on. The original page shows the latest and most complete version of a profile or post. They’re called original pages because they are the origin of posts and profiles that are federated to other servers.

How do I find a profile or post’s original page?

If you’re using your server’s website or web app:

1. Log in through your server’s website or the web app
2. Go to a profile or post and click on ⋯ or ︙
3. Select Open original page, which will open the original page in a new browser tab

If you’re using a mobile app:

1. Log in through your app
2. Go to the profile or post and click on ⋯
3. Select Open in Browser (if that option isn’t available, select Share, then select the option for opening it in a web browser)

Once the page is open, the original page’s web address will be visible in the browser’s address bar at the top.

How to copy original page links for posts more quickly

You can also copy original page links for posts without actually opening them in the browser.

If you’re using the website or web app:

1. Go to the post
2. Click ⋯ on the post
3. Click Copy link to status, this will copy a link to the original page onto your device’s clipboard so you can paste it elsewhere

If you’re using a mobile app:

1. Go to the post
2. Click ⋯ on the post
3. Click Share, then select Copy, this will copy a link to the original page onto your device’s clipboard so you can paste it elsewhere.

What’s the point of original pages?

The main reason for looking at the original page is to see the latest and most complete version. However, you can also use original pages to do many useful things, with some examples given below.

Checking if a blank profile really is blank

If no one on your server has interacted with a profile before, it may appear blank. You can open the profile’s original page to check if it really is blank.

Browsing a profile’s followers and follows lists

Sometimes a profile’s follows and followers may not be visible to your server, or it may be incomplete. If you go to the original page and click on the follows and follower lists there, you will see their complete versions. (However, note that some people deliberately keep their follows and followers lists hidden for privacy reasons.)

Using original page addresses to interact with posts and profiles

If there’s a profile or post that you can’t find by searching on your server, but it does show up in results on search engines such as Duckduckgo, Google etc, you can use these pages to force your server to notice people and posts it hadn’t noticed before, including pages from other types of Fediverse server. Just copy and paste the page’s web address into the search box on Mastodon, and it will make that post or profile appear within your own server where you will be able to interact with it directly.

Not just Mastodon, there are original pages on all kinds of Fediverse servers

Original pages aren’t just on Mastodon, they work with any Fediverse server type. For example if you know the web address of a PeerTube video or Pixelfed photo, you can paste it into the search box on Mastodon and the video or photo will appear within Mastodon. You will then be able to interact with it as if it was a Mastodon post.

The process of copying and pasting web addresses works in a very similar way to account addresses.

Sharing Fediverse content with people outside the Fediverse

Original pages are really useful if you want to share a profile or post with people outside the Fediverse, as you don’t have to be logged in to see them. Just give people the original page’s web address and it will open in any browser, they don’t have to log in or be a member.

Why doesn’t Mastodon just show original pages everywhere, instead of sometimes showing incomplete ones?

Click here for more discussion about this, including why it happens and what might be done about it.

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You can automatically crosspost on Mastodon and other social networks using third party services. Crossposting means you can post the same content on several social networks at once.

This can be controversial if you’re just posting to Mastodon without interacting on Mastodon at all. Some servers specifically ban such “zombie accounts”.

Which crossposting services are available?

Professional paid crossposting services such as Buffer ⧉ and Publer ⧉ offer crossposting services compatible with many social networks including Mastodon.

Can I schedule posts without using a crossposting service?

Yes! Mastodon has its own built-in scheduling service which can be accessed through third party apps.

Should I monitor my account if it is posting content automatically?

Yes! Your followers will want to reply to your social media posts, and it is a good idea to react to what they say.

However, if it isn’t possible for you to monitor your accounts, please mark them as automated through Mastodon. This lets people know that you’re posting in one direction only.

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On Mastodon, you can customise your notifications to adjust what triggers a notification to appear and what kind of notification it provides. The notification options you have depend on what you are using to access Mastodon.

Customising notifications on the website and web app

If you’re using Mastodon through your server’s website or web app, you will have the largest number of options for customising your notifications.

1. Log in through your server’s website or web app
2. Click on 🔔 Notifications
3. Click on the slider icon in the top right corner
4. Scroll up and down the customisations menu to see all of the options

As well as customising how notifications are displayed, this menu also lets you clear notifications away. Be careful if you use this, as once the notifications are cleared you cannot get them back. There’s no real need to clear them, but some people prefer it.

Customising notifications on the app store apps

The options for customisation of Mastodon notifications tend to be more limited on the app store apps.

• On the official app, go to the main timeline and click on the cog icon ⚙️ in the top right corner, then click on Notifications to see customisation options.
• Third party apps will have various different interfaces for customising notifications, but they’ll usually be in their settings sections.

What about email notifications?

Email notifications on Mastodon are a totally separate system that happens to have a similar name. To adjust your email notifications:

1. Log in through your server’s website
2. Click ⚙️ Preferences
3. If you’re on the desktop website, click Notifications on the left of the screen. If you’re on the mobile website click ☰ in the top right and then Notifications.
4. Choose your email notification settings. If you don’t want to receive any emails, untick all the boxes.
5. Click the Save Changes button in the top right corner of the screen

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If you want a clickable website link within a post or on a profile on Mastodon, remember to include https:// at the beginning when you’re writing it. This tells the server that you want the link to be clickable.

Some other social networks automatically change anything with a dot in the middle into a clickable link, but this doesn’t happen on the Fediverse because some people want to include dots without making clickable links.

Can I make other types of links clickable on Mastodon?

Yes! As well as website links, you can also use many other kinds of links. All of these will work as clickable links on Mastodon: https://, http://, gemini://, dat://, dweb://, gopher://, ipfs:// and ssb://

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Fediverse addresses have two parts, the username and the server name.

By default, Mastodon and most other Fedi server types hide the server part of the address within posts so that they are easier to read. All you will see in conversations is the first part of the address, so you would see @john even if the full address is @john@example.com. (This is similar to how real life conversations often just use a person’s first name.)

This means that it’s a good idea to choose something distinctive for a username, because in posts people will often just see the username on its own.

I’m not sure what you mean. Could you give some examples?

An account with the address @MarvellousWidgets@example.com, would look like @MarvellousWidgets in conversations. People can refer to it in discussions and it’s still clear who is being talked about: “Have you seen the latest release from @MarvellousWidgets?”

If it had a more generic username such as @software@example.com, all that people would see of its address in posts would be @software, and it’s not clear who is being talked about. A discussion using it would look like this: “Have you seen the latest release from @software?”. People would have to click on the username each time to find out who they are, because so many other accounts have a similar username.

I have my own server with a custom domain. That makes my address distinctive, right?

Yes and no. The full address with a custom domain is indeed very distinctive, but because the domain is hidden by default in discussions, it is still important to choose a distinctive username, as this is what most people see most of the time.

Don’t use dots / full stops / periods in usernames

Some Fediverse server types allow you to use . in usernames while others (including Mastodon) don’t allow it. People will not be able to follow you from Mastodon if you use a . in your username, so it’s safest just to avoid using . in usernames.

Don’t use really short usernames

If your username is very short, it is physically more difficult for people to click on it or tap it. Try to use at least four or five letters, preferably more.

What happens if two accounts with the same username are mentioned in the same post?

Mastodon etc will automatically show accounts’ full account addresses if two accounts with the same username are mentioned in the same post. This is also similar to real life conversations: if you were talking about two people called John in the same conversation, you might mention their surnames so that people know which John you’re referring to.

Why doesn’t Mastodon just show everyone’s full account addresses within posts?

Account addresses can be very long, depending on the domain name used by the account’s server. It can be quite hard to read a post where full addresses are used all the time. Just showing the username makes posts a lot more readable.

How do I find out the full account address of a username?

Just click on the username, that will take you to the user’s profile page which includes their full and unique account address.

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The “Lists” feature lets you create mini-timelines that show posts from selected accounts you already follow. You can also optionally hide listed accounts’ posts from your main timeline, and just browse them on your Lists.

Why would I want to make a List?

If your main timeline is getting a bit crowded from following so many people, you can add accounts to Lists and then hide them from your main timeline (see instructions further down the page).

You might also like having themed Lists to browse. For example, you could create Lists which just show posts from artists you follow, or just news accounts, or just sports, or whatever kind of themes you want. You can then click on different themed lists when you’re in the mood for those particular topics.

Or maybe you want to do both of these things? You might want to put all the news accounts you follow into a news-themed List and then hide them from your main timeline.

How many accounts can I put on one List?

As many as you want.

How do I actually make a List on Mastodon?

You can create and use Lists on your server’s website, on the Mastodon web app and on some third party Mastodon apps such as Tusky for Android or Mona ⧉ for iPhone/iPad.

To create a list through the web version of Mastodon:

1. Log in through your server’s website or web app.
2. Click on the Lists link on the right of the screen (if you’re on mobile it will be an icon of a box with three lines in it).
3. Type the name of your new List in the box at the top
4. Click the Add List button

…and that’s it, you’ve made your first List. You can repeat the process to create more Lists.

How do I add accounts to my Lists?

For privacy reasons, you can only add accounts that you follow to your Lists. So, the easiest way to add accounts to your Lists is to scroll your profile’s following list.

1. Log in through your server’s website or web app
2. Open your profile page (for example by clicking on your profile picture)
3. Click on the word Following (it’s just above the section marked Posts, Posts & Replies, Media), this will show all the accounts you are following
4. Browse through the accounts you follow. When you find an account you want to add to a list, click on their name to open their profile page.
5. On the profile page of the person you want to add, click on the ⋯ symbol and select Add or remove from lists. This will cause the Lists editor to open.
6. Click the + sign next to the list you want to add the account to.
7. Click anywhere outside the Lists editor box to close the editor.

You can add more new Lists and more accounts to existing Lists by repeating these steps.

Third party apps may have slightly different interfaces for editing Lists, but it’s the same feature and handles the same Lists.

Can I view posts on Lists without them appearing on my Home timeline?

Yes, this is one of the main purposes of Lists! You can hide posts on a particular List from appearing on your Home timeline, here is how to do it:

1. Log in through your server’s website
2. Go to the Lists section
3. Click on the list you want to hide on Home
4. Click on the ⚙️ cog icon in the top right corner
5. Select Hide these posts from home

This means you can have lists that are entirely separate from your Home timeline.

Am I still following accounts if I hide them from my Home timeline?

Yes, you are still following them. You’re viewing them via a List rather than your main timeline, but it’s still a follow.

How do I browse my existing Lists?

If you’re using your server’s website or web app, you can view Lists by clicking the Lists icon on the right of the screen (three horizontal lines with three dots and a box around them).

If you’re using the official apps, go to your main timeline (the one that appears when you first open the app) and click on the Following link at the top, then select Lists and then the List you want to view.

If you’re using third party apps, they will have various interfaces for viewing Lists.

My List looks empty! Is it working?

Don’t worry if a List looks empty. Lists always start out empty as they don’t show posts from before the List was created. Once the accounts on the List start publishing newer posts, you will start seeing these new posts appear on the List.

How do I edit or delete an existing List?

To edit or delete an existing List, click on the List’s name to open it and then click on the ⚙️ icon in the top right corner of the List. This editor also includes a search box for searching accounts you follow, if you prefer to add accounts to your List that way.

Do the official Mastodon apps support Lists?

The official apps sort of support Lists, but their support isn’t as good as the web and selected third party apps.

The official Android Mastodon app lets you view Lists and add accounts to Lists, but doesn’t let you create Lists. To add a profile to a List on the Android app, click ︙in the top right corner and then Add to list…

The official iPhone/iPad Mastodon app lets you view lists but not create them or add to them.

Why do I have to follow accounts that I add to Lists?

The following requirement is for the sake of safety and privacy. On some social networks such as Twitter, List-style features have been misused by trolls and bullies to make lists of potential victims.

On Mastodon, the follow requirement gives people more control over being listed. If an account has follow requests activated, it lets them control whose Lists they may end up on, and if an account blocks someone that also prevents them being added to that person’s Lists.

Do boosts show up on Lists?

Yes, you see everything you would see from that account on your Home timeline.

Can I follow hashtags on Lists?

No, not at the moment. However, this is a very popular suggestion and if you’re comfortable using Github you can vote for this option by giving a thumbs up on the relevant issue ⧉.

How many Lists can I create?

As many as you want.

Can I share Lists with other people?

No, they’re just for your personal use.

What do all the options mean on the Lists feature?

Edit list – Lets you change the list’s name and add or remove accounts from the list

Delete list – Deletes the list

Hide these posts from home – With this option switched on, posts that appear on your lists will not appear in your Home timeline

Show replies to no one – You will not see any replies in your list, only new posts by the accounts on the list

Show replies to members of the list – You will only see replies by accounts on the list to other accounts on the list, and new posts by accounts on the list

Show replies to any followed user – You will see replies by accounts on the list to accounts that you follow, and new posts by accounts on the list

If I move my account to another server, can my Lists come with me?

Yes. Lists are now available to export and import as part of the account transfer process.

Can I view several Lists at once? Can I pin Lists in the multicolumn mode?

Yes, you can use Mastodon’s advanced web interface to view Lists and then pin them so that you see several Lists alongside each other. To pin a List:

1. Log into the website with the advanced web interface switched on
2. Go to the List you want to pin
3. Click on the ⚙️ icon in the top right corner
4. Click on “+ Pin” to pin the List (if you change your mind, click on “x Unpin” to unpin it)

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First of all, it’s worth saying that most people do not need multiple accounts. The Fediverse is designed in such a way that people on different servers can interact seamlessly, as if they were all on one network. For most people one account is enough, because it lets you interact with people on the whole network. However, there are situations where having more than one account is useful.

So, why have multiple accounts?

Lots of possible reasons:

• Separate personal and work accounts.
• Specialist accounts that focus on particular topics, separate from a general account.
• Some server types are built for particular kinds of content, such as PeerTube for video, Pixelfed for photos, OwnCast for live streaming, BookWyrm for book reviews etc.
• Backup emergency accounts on different servers in case the main account’s server goes down.
• Temporary accounts to try out another server before possibly moving main account there.

What are “alt accounts” or “alts”?

“Alt accounts” or “alts” just mean alternative accounts owned by the same person. They may be permanent or temporary.

Can I be signed into several accounts at once?

Yes, all the official and third party apps support being logged into multiple accounts simultaneously, and you can also be signed into several accounts at once on the web browser and web apps.

Apps normally have an account switching button in the corner of the screen which you can press to select which account you want to use. Alternatively, you can use several different apps if you prefer. The official Mastodon apps have a switcher in the bottom right corner of the screen, hold it down to add an account or switch between accounts.

If you’re using accounts through the web browser and your accounts are on different servers, you can be signed into multiple servers at once and switch between them by keeping each one open in a separate tab. You can use the same email address when signing up for accounts on different servers.

Should I sign up for multiple accounts on different servers or the same server?

If you’re going to have multiple accounts, it’s highly recommended that you sign up on different servers! Having accounts on several different servers brings very significant advantages:

• If a server breaks down, accounts on other servers will still work. It is extremely unlikely that several servers would break down at exactly the same time, so having your accounts on different servers means you will always have at least one working account.
• It will be much easier for you to be signed in on many accounts at once if they are on different servers. Multiple accounts on the same server can mean you have to keep signing in and out to swtich accounts.
• By having accounts on different servers, you can use the same email address for all of them. If you try to sign up for multiple accounts on the same server, you will need different emails for each account.

It’s the independence of each server that makes it good to have accounts on separate servers. It means any kind of problem that hits one server will not affect your other accounts.

Can I sign up for multiple accounts on the same server if I want to?

Yes, you can, but it will be putting all your eggs in one basket. If that server goes down, it means you lose all access to the Fediverse. It also makes it more difficult to log in on web browsers and web apps, as you will probably have to keep signing in and out.

How should I promote my other accounts?

A common way to promote your other accounts is to mention them in your account profile page. It’s also highly recommended that you follow your other accounts, so that their content will federate more widely.

How should I handle emergency backup accounts?

If you run an account that needs to stay operating as reliably as possible (for example if it’s giving out important info), making a backup account on a different server is a good idea. If your main account’s server goes down, you will be able to switch to your backup account to post.

When you choose a server for your backup account it might be worth checking with the admin that they are okay with it, as some admins delete inactive accounts and your backup is likely to stay inactive for long periods. Also, it’s important that the backup account’s server isn’t owned or run by the same people as your main server.

After you’ve set up your backup account, tell your followers about it and encourage them to follow it. Make clear that you will only post from your backup if your main account goes down, so it won’t be any extra strain on their timelines.

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If you have an official website, the most straightforward way to verify your identity on Mastodon is to link to your Mastodon profile from that official website. If you include a special piece of HTML code in this link, it will make your website address turn green on your Mastdon profile and people will instantly know that you are the owner of (or professionally connected to) that website. If people already trust your website to be official, then by extension they can trust your account to be who it says it is.

Alternatively, if you’re really keen, you can also create an official Fediverse server based on the web address of your official website. This is, for example, how the European Union has verified all its official accounts on the Fediverse.

How to make a link on your Mastodon profile page turn green

On Mastodon, you can create a special verified website link on your profile which turns green. This means anyone browsing your profile will immediately know you’re verified as the owner of the website:

1. Log in through your Mastodon server’s website or using the web app
2. Go to your profile page by clicking on your profile picture
3. Click on Edit profile
4. Click on the Verification tab
5. Copy and paste the HTML code from the verification section on Mastodon into your own website’s front page’s source code
6. On Mastodon, add your own website’s address into your Mastodon profile’s Extra fields section, remembering to include https:// at the beginning.
7. On Mastodon, press the Save changes button in your Mastodon profile settings. It is really important that you do this step after you have already inserted the HTML code into your own website. This profile save is what triggers your server to check for the verification code, so it will only work if you do it after you’ve added the code to your website.

After you’ve done all this in the correct order, you should see a link to your official website on your Mastodon profile, which will turn green with a green tick next to it to verify you are the site’s owner. If you have any problems, see the troubleshooting section below.

This can also be used to verify specific pages on a website, for example if you’re listed as a staff member on an organisation’s website. As long as the creator of the website is willing to add the special verification code, you can verify the link.

My website address won’t turn green! How do I make it happen?

Don’t panic, there are things you can do:

• Make sure that all the links to your Mastodon account on your website include rel=”me” in their link code. If there’s one without rel=”me”, for example in a dropdown menu, the verification process may fail.
• Make sure you’ve done all seven steps in the instructions above in the correct order (“How to make a link on your Mastodon profile page turn green”). If you do these steps in the wrong order, or if you leave out steps, it may not work.
• Bear in mind there may be some delay before your website address turns green on your profile, don’t worry if it doesn’t happen straight away.
• The website address can be case sensitive, so try typing it entirely in lower case.
• The website address has to have https:// at the beginning (which also makes it clickable)
• Make sure the HTML code of the a href contains only rel=”me”, the link and no other attributes such as styles.
• Make sure that you haven’t accidentally used http:// instead of https://
• Try using this debugging tool ⧉ to check why the link doesn’t turn green
• If you’re using Cloudflare this may interfere with the verification process. You may need to disable Cloudflare’s proxy protection to allow the verification to happen.

Also, note that each server on the Fedi verfies addresses independently and at their own pace. It is possible that people on other servers may see your address turn green before you do.

If your website link still won’t turn green, try verifying through the header instead

If you can’t get the normal link code to work for verification, you can instead insert this code into your site’s front page’s header:

<link href="https://yourserver/@yourusername" rel="me">

Substitute your profile page’s URL for the example in the code, but leave it otherwise intact.

Alternatively, create your own server and have your official Fediverse account there

If you’re really keen, the most watertight way to verify your identity is to make your own Fediverse server as a subdomain of your official website. This is what the European Union did when they made their own Mastodon server ⧉. Because the European Union’s official website is well known as being at europa.eu, and their servers are all subdomains of europa.eu, it means all the accounts on their servers can be trusted as being official EU Fediverse accounts. Making your own server on a subdomain is much easier and cheaper than you think.

…but don’t verify by doing any of these!

• Don’t use “verified” badges next to your name, they don’t mean anything. Because no one owns the Fediverse, there is no central authority to give out “verified” badges the way Twitter etc do. If you do see any Twitter-style verified badges these are just custom emoji and don’t mean anything, it’s just people having fun or messing around.
• Don’t use centralised “verification” services or sites, even if they seem to be friendly and/or temporary. As the Fediverse has expanded, various brand new websites have sprung up trying to set themselves up as the one and only way to verify identity. It’s rubbish, don’t fall for it. The entire point of being on the Fediverse is to prevent any central authorities taking over, and there are already many tried and trusted ways to verify your identity on the Fediverse without using centralised services.

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