The Fediverse - What’s It All About?
Many years ago I deleted my Twitter (as it was known then) and I only look at Facebook on the rarest of occasions.
I don’t use Snapchat, TikTok or Instagram.
My vice is YouTube - there is no real alternative (yet!)
However, I am on Mastodon (actually it’s GoToSocial, which is another alternative to Mastodon, but works in almost exactly the same way).
It’s a part of what is commonly referred to as ‘the fediverse’.
I am not going to attempt to explain it myself - but this video from Elena Rossini does it very well…
It’s Not Complicated
Do you remember when you set up your first email address?
You had to decide if you were going to use Gmail, Outlook, Hotmail, AOL etc.
It didn’t matter which one you chose, because the technical protocol for email means that you can send from a Gmail address to an Outlook address and vice versa.
The same is true for Mastodon and other Fediverse platforms.
They are interoperable. You can have an account on one ‘instance’ and connect and chat with all the others.
So, don’t be too concerned about where you sign up - you can still have the full experience.
Going Solo
I created my first Mastodon account about 2 and half years ago, and recently decided to have my own instance (server).
Using a Virtual Private Server, I set up a GoToSocial instance that works in tandem with other federated services.
It connects with Mastodon, Pixelfed, PeerTube, Friendica and so much more…
The real beauty of using these services is that they are not owned by anyone or any corporation.
There are no algorithms deciding what you must look at, and there are no adverts being pushed to the top, middle or bottom of your feeds.
Follow Me / Follow You
You can follow me on the Fediverse here - GoToSocial
I also have a Pixelfed account, where I post my photos (it’s like Instagram but without the ads).
The other beauty is that you don’t need a Pixelfed account to follow me there - just search for me on Mastodon, and I will appear in your feed there.
A single place to follow the people you want to see.
I may be preaching to the converted, so if you have a Fediverse account let me know in the comments and share your profile name (and instance).