Wayne GraysonJan 31, 2023
John Gruber

I like the fact that mastodon.social is the biggest instance, but I would leave for an instance that is paid only, say $10/month, has a cool domain name, and thus can afford to raise the rate limits.

Mastodon.social feels like early Twitter both culturally (good), and fail-whale-wise (not good).

Jan 31, 2023 at 10:16pmWeb
Show threadAtharv VaishJan 31, 2023
@gruber been trying out omg.lol but would love to find one that’s both paid and prevalent
Show threadRob AndersonJan 31, 2023
@atharv @gruber I was going to promote https://omg.lol too, fun set of indie services too
omg.lol - A lovable web page and email address, just for you

Treat yourself to an awesome web address, a devastatingly gorgeous profile page, a stellar email address, and tons more

Show threadJanJan 31, 2023
@gruber https://me.dm
me.dm by Medium.com

Ideas and information to deepen your understanding of the world. Run by the folks at Medium.

Mastodon hosted on me.dm
Show threadJohn GruberJan 31, 2023
@jan I love the me.dm domain name, but Medium is a venture-backed company. I don't trust that they'll be around, with the same ideals, for the long run.
Show threadJanJan 31, 2023
@gruber Btw. migrating 28k followers to another instances takes around 3 days cause of the federation :) your target instance should have enough power to handle such a migration. I've supported companies migrating 50k+ followers.
Show threadMartin FeldJan 31, 2023
@gruber I'd recommend https://social.lol/, run by @adam of https://home.omg.lol. He's one of the nicest guys on the Web and runs a great service with cool features. 👍
social.lol

social.lol is a lighthearted social hangout for the omg.lol community.

Mastodon hosted on social.lol
Show threadJ.A. Bell Jan 31, 2023
@martinfeld @gruber @adam I second the omg.lol / social.lol recommendation.
Show thread~hickscaJan 31, 2023
@gruber same
Show threadJustin BrodleyJan 31, 2023
@gruber Yes, the lag of stuff coming to this feed vs my podcast account is quite large, and makes me feel I’m getting an inferior experience. A paid option may make some sense especially as you said if it comes with higher rate limits.
Show threadRadu C. MartinJan 31, 2023
@gruber what could be cooler than @[email protected]?
Show threadJohn GruberJan 31, 2023
@radu I’ve given that a lot of thought but I don’t want to be responsible for the instance. I think.
Show threadAnders Puck NielsenJan 31, 2023
@gruber @radu Get a hosted server. I use masto.host, and it works great.
You should probably have a different domain though for SEO reasons. Like daringfireball.social.
Show threadmark dorisonJan 31, 2023
@gruber @radu Aren’t there managed hosting providers for Mastodon that would fit the bill?
Show threadMichael Welch Jan 31, 2023

@gruber @radu

$6.00 a month from @mastohost https://masto.host. Took me just a few minutes last Friday. Great service.

Masto.host - Fully Managed Mastodon Hosting

Masto.host was built from the ground up to make running a Mastodon instance easy.

Masto.host
Show threadMichael Welch Jan 31, 2023
@gruber I see I was late to the party with this recommendation. And realize in hindsight that the $6.00 plan wouldn't work for you. But the higher level plans probably would and it's super easy.
Show threadReid BurkeFeb 1, 2023

@gruber @radu Consider having another company host it, e.g. https://masto.host/ for $6/month.

Works great if you host on a dedicated domain. If you want to use the daringfireball.net apex domain, you'd need more fancy hosting which lets you set `WEB_DOMAIN` and some config on your blog webserver.

https://docs.joinmastodon.org/admin/config/#web_domain

Masto.host - Fully Managed Mastodon Hosting

Masto.host was built from the ground up to make running a Mastodon instance easy.

Masto.host
Show threadJoanna J. Jan 31, 2023
@gruber You should checkout https://omg.lol. It’s $20/year and you get a Mastodon account and so much more.
omg.lol - A lovable web page and email address, just for you

Treat yourself to an awesome web address, a devastatingly gorgeous profile page, a stellar email address, and tons more

Show threadPhil Jan 31, 2023
@jmj @gruber @film_girl and Merlin @hotdogsladies is here for $20 a year
Show threadChristina WarrenFeb 1, 2023
@phils @jmj @gruber @hotdogsladies oh shit, I got one of these accounts! I didn’t remember it included Mastodon!
Show threadPhil Feb 1, 2023
@film_girl see you on the good side. It’s never been down so far - unlike other instances….
Show threadTim PeixJan 31, 2023
@gruber Very happy with my local mastodon.berlin instance so far. Aren't there any Philly-based ones that you would consider? You're not going to leave your hometown soon I suppose ;-)
Show threadJacob WolmanJan 31, 2023
@gruber I am unsure of the possible downsides of a 1-20 user instance, but I am enjoying using masto.host to host an instance on one of my domains for $9/mo.
Show threadfuzzfaceJan 31, 2023
@jwolman @gruber +1 on this.
Show thread~hickscaJan 31, 2023
@jwolman @gruber this is seeming more and more like the idea best play. I'm not crazy about the local timeline on a huge instance. I guess I could use filters but would love a very small and active local TL.
Show threadDavidJan 31, 2023
@jwolman @gruber With Gruber’s following, a $9/month instance would *not* suffice.
Show threadJacob WolmanJan 31, 2023
@david @gruber this is something I was wondering about - I know having a lot of users on an instance is more demanding, but are a lot more computing resources needed if you are followed by (or follow, I suppose) a ton of people? As you suggest, this is not going to be an issue for me but might be a problem for high profile mastodoners.
Show threadDavidFeb 1, 2023
@jwolman @gruber
Absolutely. The way mastodon works, it has to notify every instance on which you have a follower of every post you make, receive a request for every like/tweet/boost you receive and every post from anyone you follow.
Show threadJacob WolmanFeb 1, 2023
@david @gruber makes sense. Sounds like a recipe for slashdotting if someone on a small instance goes viral.
Show threadDavidFeb 1, 2023
@jwolman @gruber
100% happens. Also happens to any site they link to as every follower’s instance fetches a preview!
This architecture is why the stats for a 28 user instance look like this!
Show threadSyynthFeb 1, 2023
@jwolman @gruber i’m doing the exact same thing and it’s been excellent if you don’t count the emails to approve trends that i failed to configure at first lol
Show threadMartin the paranoid android.Jan 31, 2023
@gruber Everybpdy loved earlyntwotter
Show threadTim BrayJan 31, 2023

@gruber

I'm working with some people who trying to set up an instance which is a member-owned co-op. A bit of spreadsheeting suggests that for a large-ish instance you could run just fine on $5/month.

Show threadGlenn FleishmanJan 31, 2023
@timbray @gruber I’ve been hoping that within another few months, membership organizations that already run some technical resources (like email boxes or forwarding) would add "Mastodon instance" to their package. I expect only a small %age of members would want it, but it would a great tool to encourage sign-ups if run professionally.
Show threadPaul McGraneJan 31, 2023
@glennf @timbray @gruber It would be nice to see it as part of iCloud+ but that would necessitate a big client software change on System Settings & etc (should Messages support fediverse? Mail? neither seems quite right) … so MacOS 15 & ilk? Quite a waiting period.
Show threadStan SeibertJan 31, 2023
@glennf @timbray @gruber I’d love it if a company like @fastmail offered Mastodon hosting. They’ve had my email business for more than a decade, and this feels like a natural extension for them.
Show threadJohn GruberFeb 1, 2023
@seibert @glennf @timbray @fastmail Something akin to Fastmail is exactly what I'm thinking. If it were actually run by Fastmail, all the better.
Show threadGlenn FleishmanFeb 1, 2023
@gruber @seibert @timbray @fastmail Fastodon
Show threadjden redden Feb 1, 2023
@glennf @gruber @seibert @timbray do it @fastmail
Show threadJason Petersen (he)Feb 1, 2023
@glennf lol I left this thread hours ago with this same idea in my head
Show threadDavid WheelerFeb 1, 2023
@glennf @gruber @seibert @timbray @fastmail I’ve been paying to support xoxo.zone for this reason.
Show threadEhler Feb 1, 2023
@glennf @gruber @seibert @timbray @fastmail offering their own Mastodon server would push me over the edge to finally start using Fastmail.
Show threadtheromitFeb 1, 2023
@glennf @gruber @seibert @timbray @fastmail have you seen omg.lol?
Show threadMikeFeb 1, 2023
@gruber @seibert @glennf @timbray @fastmail there are some paid Mastodon hosting services out there, and presumably there’s about to be a lot more. Would that appeal? Your own instance, but pay to make the actual care and feeding someone else’s problem.
Show threadTim BrayFeb 1, 2023

@mikemacleod @gruber @seibert @glennf @fastmail

Exactly. But there's also the hypothesis that if you find the right instance with the right crowd on it, you've got a sort of neighborhood. Thus instances like tech.lgbtq - I've seriously considered a tiny instance just for myself & nuclear family but the jury is out.

Show threadMikeFeb 1, 2023

@timbray @gruber @seibert @glennf @fastmail am I weird in that the local timeline on almost any instance holds no interest for me?

I guess it might be fun to run a hometown instance for a group of friends or something, but social graphs don’t usually have firm edges.

A bunch of small instances with some relays might be a better fit?

Show threadScannerJan 31, 2023
@timbray @gruber mmm. I over speccd my instance at $24/mo but now I am using it to lift multiple things. Helps that I am ancient internet era so this is trivial compared to running your own sendmail service. The trickiest thing is deciding how much I want to open it up to other people.
Show threadketanFeb 1, 2023

@scanner @timbray @gruber

Do you spend $24 a month on a cloud-provided machine?

I ask because I instead chose to run a 32 GB machine at my house and that achieves the same purpose: add new services (such as Mastodon and, most recently, Ghost) with minimal incremental cost.

Show threadScannerFeb 1, 2023
@ketan @timbray @gruber I am moving almost all of the services I run out of my house to cloud providers. Costs more but at my age I am looking to reduce stress and stuff I have to maintain myself for all the services I run. Tailscale also helps me blur the line between those environments where I feel like I can handle the personal load.
Show threadketanFeb 1, 2023

@scanner @timbray @gruber

I get the sentiment but I am still curious why you think managing 1 machine in the cloud is simpler than 1 at home?

Power maintenance? Or is there something else?

Show threadScannerFeb 1, 2023
@ketan @timbray @gruber @timbray I have 10 hours of battery and it is not enough. System maintenance. Hard drives failing. Business quality network to my house is expensive. When I am traveling and anything happens I am screwed. All our email is down. I have five servers and two clusters at home and over 40tb of disk. Just getting out of the business of hardware in the house potentially failing. It is not one more server. It is yet another production service in my home.
Show threadJeff AtwoodJan 31, 2023
@timbray @gruber at Discourse, it was originally $10/month to get a machine to host a "small" community, but over time it crept down to $5 due to competition in the space. So this is accurate based on my lived experience.
Show threadJohn GruberJan 31, 2023
@timbray That jibes with my gut feeling that $10/mo would be profitable for someone.
Show threadDouglas PatriarcheJan 31, 2023
@timbray I registered my interest in cosocial.ca a couple of months ago and had been wondering how it was going. Any status info you can share?
Show threadJay 🆘Jan 31, 2023
@timbray @gruber social.coop is a co-op
Show threadMichael LabowiczFeb 1, 2023
@timbray @gruber opportunity for REI? 🤣
Show threadJohn GruberFeb 1, 2023
@timbray I think I'd prefer a straight-up for-profit paid service, but a co-op model is tempting too. But either way, something that is clearly and obviously sustainable simply through paying users. That's the key.
Show threadJason Petersen (he)Feb 1, 2023
@gruber agreed
Show threadRui CarmoFeb 1, 2023

@gruber @timbray a small community Mastodon server, where patrons get a special tick mark next to their usernames? 😬

Seriously now, I am very wary of smaller instances due to opinionated admins. And I’ve been running a test instance for a month now, but hesitant to self-host or run a community one because I don’t want the admin overhead (or the legal hassles in case something goes south).

Show thread: j@fabrica:~/src;  Feb 1, 2023
@gruber @timbray I’ve been wondering how many folks would pay for a server with transparent expenditures, paid content moderators and documented appeal/due-process.
Show threadKevin Whalen Jan 31, 2023
@gruber +1 for https://social.lol (part of https://omg.lol).
social.lol

social.lol is a lighthearted social hangout for the omg.lol community.

Mastodon hosted on social.lol