Roll Up! Take Your First Steps Into... Mastodon!

AgentPete

Why You Should Consider Joining Mastodon

  • AgentPete
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Pamela Jo

Question: What is screaming in this video?

  • Pamela Jo
  • Replies: 3
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AgentPete

AgentPete

Capo Famiglia
Guardian
Full Member
May 19, 2014
London UK
Untitled design(9).pngEveryone is talking about Mastodon at the moment – the free and open-source alternative to Twitter.

Although at first glance it looks very similar to Twitter, it works in a very different way. Twitter is a highly-centralized system. Should you dare to tweet anything that offends whoever the boss happens to be - then you may find your presence on his platform is… limited. Or shadow-banned. Or something equally oubliette-ish.

That’s not possible with Mastodon, because it's a network of independently-run servers. There is no Mr. Big: therefore there’s no possibility of being banned from the platform. It’s not corporate-controlled social media – it’s user-controlled.

Mastodon has been around for seven years but has only recently seen a surge in growth and media attention.

Litopia has always been at the forefront of tech innovation (think about all the early podcasts we did) and so yes, we’ve just set up our own Mastodon server, which is now a constituent part of the 5000-strong network of Mastodon servers collectively known as the “fediverse”.

The hard part has already been done, i.e. setting it up.

Now it's over to you to experiment with! Will Mastodon overthrow Twitter - and could it become a valuable new way to discover authors and their works?

Sign up on Litopia's Mastodon server now and kick the tyres a bit!

Untitled design(10).png​
 
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Before I sign up ... from how I understand it, to join, we kinda join via the Litopia server. Does that mean we are in a private group of only Litopians? To get posts from Mrs Smith down the road, would we have to join Mrs Smith's server separately? Can we join the whole M thing as "individuals"? I dread the idea of managing several profiles.

Another post from the third cave on the left. (I just heard a noise. Crap. I think there's a bear in here.)
 
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Barbara said:
Before I sign up ... from how I understand it, to join, we kinda join via the Litopia server. Does that mean we are in a private group of only Litopians? To get posts from Mrs Smith down the road, would we have to join Mrs Smith's server separately? Can we join the whole M thing as "individuals"? I dread the idea of managing several profiles.

Another post from the third cave on the left. (I just heard a noise. Crap. I think there's a bear in here.)
Click to expand...

No, in your case I think it's more likely to be a sabre-toothed tiger. ;)
 
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Barbara said:
Before I sign up ... from how I understand it, to join, we kinda join via the Litopia server. Does that mean we are in a private group of only Litopians? To get posts from Mrs Smith down the road, would we have to join Mrs Smith's server separately? Can we join the whole M thing as "individuals"? I dread the idea of managing several profiles.

Another post from the third cave on the left. (I just heard a noise. Crap. I think there's a bear in here.)
Click to expand...
bear GIF
 
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Barbara said:
Before I sign up ... from how I understand it, to join, we kinda join via the Litopia server. Does that mean we are in a private group of only Litopians? To get posts from Mrs Smith down the road, would we have to join Mrs Smith's server separately? Can we join the whole M thing as "individuals"? I dread the idea of managing several profiles.
Click to expand...
All Mastodon servers are federated (the "fediverse") so you can easily follow someone else on another server. Ought to be quite transparent.
 
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@AgentPete what is your vision with Mastodon. How would you like to see us using it? In Social Groups with other Litopians primarily? Do you think it could rival Twitter-does it have the same abilities? What is the best way to use it as we begin this adventure? Is there a page function like w FB and Instagram, Tick Tock or is it more just a fast feed in the moment here today - gone with the wind sort of thing? Should we take it as more of a chat-news update? What does it add to the Litopia world?
 
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Hey Bloo- how do I get there outside this link. Can you post a link I can download to my computer and then tell me how I find Litopia world from there? I know DUH, but maybe I;'m not the only dull knife in the drawer.
 
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Pamela Jo said:
@AgentPete what is your vision with Mastodon.
Click to expand...
All good questions, to which I don't have complete answers at the moment.
Litopia has always been experimental, i.e. we try stuff just to see what it’s all about and how – or whether – it will be useful to writers. Twitter / Mastodon and the social media universe seem to be at something of an inflection point at the moment, so it makes sense to jump in and see what’s going on.
Pamela Jo said:
How would you like to see us using it? In Social Groups with other Litopians primarily?
Click to expand...
Not primarily, but inevitably with a brand new Mastodon instance the early adopters will only mix with other early adopters. But it’s not intended to be a closed user group.

Pamela Jo said:
Do you think it could rival Twitter-does it have the same abilities? What is the best way to use it as we begin this adventure?
Click to expand...
Yes, a lot of people are saying it can and will rival Twitter, hence my interest in setting up a server.

Best way to use it – start to develop a presence, and particularly focus on following folk from outside the Litopia server. This will (a) result in a more interesting home page for us and (b) if you get followed back, will start to develop your own following.

Everything I know about Mastodon – which is currently not a lot – suggests that this is an organic process. You build up a presence and a following by simply being interesting.

It’s unlikely that toots will go “viral”, i.e. suddenly explode onto a million screens. But frankly, that’s very unlikely on Twitter, too.

The level of conversation and interaction on Mastodon seems much higher than on Twitter. It feels more thoughtful and more personal. Which suggests that it could be fertile ground for authors to build sustaining relationships with their audiences. But it won't be a quick process.

Pamela Jo said:
Is there a page function like w FB and Instagram, Tick Tock or is it more just a fast feed in the moment here today - gone with the wind sort of thing? Should we take it as more of a chat-news update?
Click to expand...
@Bloo✒️ , please comment :)

Pamela Jo said:
What does it add to the Litopia world?
Click to expand...
We’re experimenting. Authors have to do that today, or perish.

Not every experiment will be successful, but it will yield knowledge and, hopefully, some fun along the way :)
 
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AgentPete said:
All good questions, to which I don't have complete answers at the moment.
Litopia has always been experimental, i.e. we try stuff just to see what it’s all about and how – or whether – it will be useful to writers. Twitter / Mastodon and the social media universe seem to be at something of an inflection point at the moment, so it makes sense to jump in and see what’s going on.

Not primarily, but inevitably with a brand new Mastodon instance the early adopters will only mix with other early adopters. But it’s not intended to be a closed user group.


Yes, a lot of people are saying it can and will rival Twitter, hence my interest in setting up a server.

Best way to use it – start to develop a presence, and particularly focus on following folk from outside the Litopia server. This will (a) result in a more interesting home page for us and (b) if you get followed back, will start to develop your own following.

Everything I know about Mastodon – which is currently not a lot – suggests that this is an organic process. You build up a presence and a following by simply being interesting.

It’s unlikely that toots will go “viral”, i.e. suddenly explode onto a million screens. But frankly, that’s very unlikely on Twitter, too.

The level of conversation and interaction on Mastodon seems much higher than on Twitter. It feels more thoughtful and more personal. Which suggests that it could be fertile ground for authors to build sustaining relationships with their audiences. But it won't be a quick process.


@Bloo✒️ , please comment :)


We’re experimenting. Authors have to do that today, or perish.

Not every experiment will be successful, but it will yield knowledge and, hopefully, some fun along the way :)
Click to expand...
I absolutely agree with experimentation being the first step to creativity. I'm in. Just trying to figure out how to talk to people. I cant seem to zoom out and get the overview. I heard on Irish radio that Mastodon has grown exponentially in the last few months. So my foremost Q is how do I get to the conversation and interaction? Then I'll have to figure out the being interesting thing. I love being able to share my photos-but dont want to clutter the feed.
 
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Pamela Jo said:
@AgentPete what is your vision with Mastodon. How would you like to see us using it? In Social Groups with other Litopians primarily? Do you think it could rival Twitter-does it have the same abilities? What is the best way to use it as we begin this adventure? Is there a page function like w FB and Instagram, Tick Tock or is it more just a fast feed in the moment here today - gone with the wind sort of thing? Should we take it as more of a chat-news update? What does it add to the Litopia world?
Click to expand...

Wish I had an answer about TikTok, FB, or Insta. I'm not on any of these, so I can't offer a meaningful comparison. Funny place for a new Masto-mod to be, but here we are :D
 
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Bloo✒️ said:
Wish I had an answer about TikTok, FB, or Insta. I'm not on any of these, so I can't offer a meaningful comparison. Funny place for a new Masto-mod to be, but here we are :D
Click to expand...
Basically just trying to figure what is possible. When I got it on my phone it said I couldn't log on becuz I joined differently. I did see a mention of something like a page for long term projects? That seems interesting. But all I'm seeing now is a news feed scroll. Does the communication come in when we DM?
 
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Bloo✒️ said:
Wish I had an answer about TikTok, FB, or Insta. I'm not on any of these, so I can't offer a meaningful comparison. Funny place for a new Masto-mod to be, but here we are :D
Click to expand...
i'm thinking of it as a mix between twitter and discord-- sharing thoughts on whatever & whenever in a stream like twitter, but it's with only a select handful of people and the focus is around a specific topic/interest, like a discord server.
i don't use facebook and don't know of anyone younger than gen X who does, so i can't provide a good comparison for it. the good news is that it's just us litopians, instead of a wide and already well-adjusted user base, so no matter what the intended use for mastodon is, we can make our own! hope this helps
 
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Pamela Jo said:
Basically just trying to figure what is possible. When I got it on my phone it said I couldn't log on becuz I joined differently. I did see a mention of something like a page for long term projects? That seems interesting. But all I'm seeing now is a news feed scroll. Does the communication come in when we DM?
Click to expand...

Hmm...I'm not sure what's up with that. I see you've already posted a lot of content there. I also see you logged in using two IP addresses.

Is it a second mobile device you're having trouble with? I just logged in from another browser (that didn't have my info saved) and it let me.

Can you send a screenshot of the message you got?
 
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Brooke said:
i'm thinking of it as a mix between twitter and discord-- sharing thoughts on whatever & whenever in a stream like twitter, but it's with only a select handful of people and the focus is around a specific topic/interest, like a discord server.
i don't use facebook and don't know of anyone younger than gen X who does, so i can't provide a good comparison for it. the good news is that it's just us litopians, instead of a wide and already well-adjusted user base, so no matter what the intended use for mastodon is, we can make our own! hope this helps.
Click to expand...

You said much of this on Mastodon. I'm glad you're repeating it here.
 
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Bloo✒️ said:
Hmm...I'm not sure what's up with that. I see you've already posted a lot of content there. I also see you logged in using two IP addresses.

Is it a second mobile device you're having trouble with? I just logged in from another browser (that didn't have my info saved) and it let me.

Can you send a screenshot of the message you got?
Click to expand...
It's just the first page of the mastodon. Yes I logged into Litopia from my phone. For the first time. So brave.:rolleyes:
 
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Brooke said:
i'm thinking of it as a mix between twitter and discord-- sharing thoughts on whatever & whenever in a stream like twitter, but it's with only a select handful of people and the focus is around a specific topic/interest, like a discord server.
i don't use facebook and don't know of anyone younger than gen X who does, so i can't provide a good comparison for it. the good news is that it's just us litopians, instead of a wide and already well-adjusted user base, so no matter what the intended use for mastodon is, we can make our own! hope this helps
Click to expand...
Each social media has its "specialty". I suppose FB is still popular because you have a Page. Where you can post your own work. Or advertise and sell stuff. There seems to be the capability of that on Mastodon. I saw something about longer projects mentioned. Since I can upload my EOS photos I prefer this to Twitter, instagram et all. That is what I liked about FB. I can put on my real photos. Tik Tok Books people recommend or flog their own books. If there is a special project page on Mastodon -there could be room for that.
In search of the Mastodon long project page
 
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I think Mastodon has a bit of twitter, fb, Instagram and so on about it - but it is NOT any of those - It's just Mastodon. To me it's like being invited to a party where everyone knows everyone else and fumble around in the dark hoping they don't tread on too many toes and bump into some buddies they like to team up with.
 
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AgentPete

Why You Should Consider Joining Mastodon

  • AgentPete
  • Replies: 0
Pamela Jo

Question: What is screaming in this video?

  • Pamela Jo
  • Replies: 3
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