Mastodawn

@britt

Can you or someone else please explain to me what the advantage of being on a different server is?

I'm still learning #Mastodon, but it seems to me that if you follow certain hashtags you will pull posts from any server?

What am I missing?

@Strider absolutely! Your server is your home base of sorts. It opens up a special timeline called ‘Local’. Some people like having that on top of their ‘Home’ feed (all Following posts) so they can browse posts only from the people on their server outside of everyone they follow everywhere else. It gives you topic flexibility and let’s you network with others with similar interests.

For example, our local feed is full of a diversity of #gaming chatter. It’s really awesome. Hope that helps!

@britt Thank you

@Strider you’re very welcome. Anything else I can help with, I’m a ‘toot’ away :)

Thorsten Dec 6, 2022

@Strider @britt
Differences in content are in the "Local" area (menu on the right of he screen) where you will see others on your server.

Some features differ between servers (some have deepl or google translate integration, some allow more than 500 characters, etc.)

Performance might differ.

The admins might make different decisions regarding blocking other servers or banning users based on questionable toots.

Not sure if I missed anything

@th0r5t3n @britt

Thank you. Google Translate integration is something I'd like. How do I identify if a server has this functionality?

@Strider I believe this is server dependent feature. depending on the version of Mastodon they’re running plus any API’s they’ve integrated to support google translate.

guildz Dec 6, 2022

@Strider @britt It has to do with your "local" and "federated" timelines; there isnt an algorithm so if you want to mainly participate in a specific community as opposed to everyone, then going to a dedicated server helps you discover more people in that community. At least thats how I see it

@guildz @britt

Thank you.

Aaron Ghirardelli Dec 6, 2022

@britt But you lose your previous posts, correct? Also, what's the advantage of migrating to a different server, if I can still read messages posted there and can interact with its users from my original Mastodon account?

@botolo86 I answered this below for another user. It’s about community. Your Local timeline. It’s separate from your Home feed, and allows you to network with users on your server directly. Some people prefer a smaller Local feed with topics that interest then rather than a large general server Local feed. To each their own.

I left over 1k posts when I transferred, but they’re still on the old server to read/view, they don’t get deleted :)

Aaron Ghirardelli Dec 6, 2022

@britt thank you. About the old posts, do I regain control of them if at some point I migrate back to the old server?

@botolo86 I hope I helped. :) The old posts are stored on the old server and as of right now do not transfer. Mastodon documentation states it’s due to ‘technical limitations’ but we hope it’s possible one day. I know some people copy them, screenshot their fav posts and repost them gradually again on their new home.

Personally, I have alt servers for specific interests as well. It helps me stay connected with niche topics. The beauty of the Fediverse.