There's a progressive metal band with the same name that I'm a fan of that brought the animal to my attention. I thought it's a pretty cool name/animal.
#### How exactly is it decentralized?
There are different ways in which something can be decentralized; in this case, Mastodon is the "federated" kind. Think e-mail, not BitTorrent. There are different servers (instances), users have an account on one of them, but can interact and follow each other regardless of where their account is.
2. Atom feeds with ActivityStreams, Portable Contacts, Threads extensions for the actual content
3. PubSubHubbub for subscribing to Atom feeds
4. Salmon for delivering certain items from the Atom feeds to interested parties such as the mentioned user, author of the status being replied to, person being followed, etc
The "flagship" instance of Mastodon, aka the server Eugen (lead developer) runs with the latest code. It's not supposed to be the only instance in the end.
Let's call it the "fediverse". It has existed for a longer while, populated by GNU social servers, Friendica, Hubzilla, Diaspora etc. Not every one of those servers is fully compatible with every other. Mastodon strives to be fully standards-compliant and compatibility with GNU social is higher in priority than the others.
#### I tried logging into a GNU social client app with Mastodon and it didn't work, why?
While Mastodon is compatible with GNU social in terms of server to server communication, the client to server API (aka how you access Mastodon) is different. Therefore, client apps that were made for specifically GNU social will not work with Mastodon. The reason for this is half technical, half ideological.
Because Mastodon has been created from a blank slate, it is much simpler to have the API mirror internal structures as closely as possible, rather than build an emulation layer. Secondly, the GNU social client API is actually a half-way implementation of the legacy Twitter API - that's the reason why it works with some older Twitter client apps. However, many of those apps are not maintained anymore, the GNU social API does not actually keep up with the real Twitter API and never fully implemented all its features; at the same time, the Twitter API was never meant for a federated service and so obscures some of the functionality.
Development of Mastodon and hosting of mastodon.social is funded through [Patreon (also BTC/PayPal donations)](https://www.patreon.com/user?u=619786) and [Liberapay](https://liberapay.com/Mastodon/). Beyond that, the project is not interested in VC funding, monetizing, advertising, or anything of that sort.
The software is free and open source and communities should host their own servers if they can, that way the costs are more or less distributed. Many instances have their own Patreon and Liberapay pages, among other community funding methods.
#### This looks a lot like Twitter, what’s the difference?
Mastodon is decentralized. Anyone can run a Mastodon server, under their own community rules. Twitter is run by a central authority, and sets the rules for everyone.
[Many instances exist](https://instances.mastodon.xyz/list) for almost every interest. It's okay to try a couple of public ones while looking for one that feels right. Talking about your interests on a public instance like [Mastodon.Social](https://mastodon.social) may help you get invited to other instances.
To preview what an instance is saying, use [this preview tool](http://www.unmung.com/mastoview?url=mastodon.social&view=local) created by [Kevin Marks](https://mastodon.social/@kevinmarks).
#### Can Tusky do ‘💇’? How about feature “🔥”? And what’s with Tusky’s “⛱”?
You can follow or contact Tusky at [@Tusky@mastodon.social](https://mastodon.social/@Tusky), or the developers [@Vavassor@mastodon.social](https://mastodon.social/@Vavassor) and [@daycode@mastodon.social](https://mastodon.social/@daycode)
#### How do I search?
You can search for people and hashtags, but not general text. Use the box above the tooting area.
#### I don’t get the local vs. federated timeline thing.
“Local” toots are from the server you signed up at. “Federated” are the all the toots your server knows about. (It's complicated, but short version is: “toots from people that you and other locals follow.”)
Some instances are private and will not federate with your instance. Others may be blocked by your instance. To find out more about how your instance federates, ask your admin. (see also: “[Who is my admin, and how do I contact/follow them?](#who-is-my-admin-and-how-do-i-contact-follow-them)”)
#### Can I have more than one account? Can I use the same email on different instances?
Yes and yes! If you find another instance you would like to join, sign up! Note that not all instances are open to new registrations and it’s possible that someone has already taken your preferred username.
#### Can I import the people I follow to another instance?
Yes. This may take time depending on the instance you move to. Talk to the admin of your new instance if you have difficulties. If your new instance does not federate with the instances of the people you follow, you may lose them.
#### How do I prevent people from impersonating me?
Because anyone can create a username on any instance, it is impossible to prevent others from using the same username on another instance. Some people have taken to running their own single-user instance to verify themselves, or use [Keybase](https://keybase.io/).
#### How do I enable Two Factor Authentication?
If your instance supports it, the option will be in Preferences under Two-factor Authentication. [Mastodon's 2FA](2FA.md) uses both a QR code and plain-text secrets.
#### Why can't I see someone's toots?
This could occur for several reasons. A person's posts may be private. You must be a follower of a private account to see their non-public posts. Additionally, if someone has blocked you, you will no longer see their non-public posts.
#### How does the “Mark Image as Sensitive” feature work (“NSFW”)?
When you add a picture to your post using the camera icon, an additional toggle will appear [typically as "NSFW"]. Clicking this will hide your image behind a "Sensitive Content" warning, preventing others from seeing your images until they click on them.
If your instance is running version 1.4.1 of Mastodon or later, yes! Visit the user page of a user on the instance you want to block, then click the drop-down menu on the left-hand side, just above their toots. You should see an option to hide everything from the instance that user is on:
If your instance is running a version of Mastodon prior to 1.4.1, you can't do this without a lot of clicking, sorry. But, your instance admin can do it! Please contact them.
(You can tell what version of Mastodon your instance is running by following the steps in "[Who is my admin, and how do I contact/follow them?](#who-is-my-admin-and-how-do-i-contact-follow-them)". The version number is listed in the right-hand column of that extended information page.)
Each instance handles moderation differently, and each has their own moderators. It’s okay to ask what the rules are for the instance you are on. Usually the rules are posted on the instance's about page ([like the “more” page at Mastodon.social](https://mastodon.social/about/more))
#### How do I report offensive content?
Beneath each post, you will see three dots. Clicking on those will allow you to expand a post or report the content. When reporting content, select all posts that need moderator attention.
If your admin takes harassment seriously, you can report it to them through the post-reporting system. This can be found through the ellipsis (“…”) beneath the post, or by contacting your admin directly.
Yes! Hashtags are tracked and are often fun, but some tags help people avoid triggering posts. This is especially appreciated on public posts of #POLITICS, #HEALTH, #DEPRESSION, or #LEWD OR #NSFW topics. Such posts are also what the Content Warning system was designed for.
#### Do toots automatically broadcast federated, or stay local?
By default, toots are federated (public), and will show on both timelines. You can change the default behavior through **Settings->Preferences->Post Privacy.**
This FAQ was compiled with contributions from [@Gargron](https://mastodon.social/@Gargron), [@raccoon](https://mastodon.social/@Raccoon), [@upside](https://octodon.social/@upside), [@zacanger](https://mastodon.social/@zacanger), [@NthTensor](https://octodon.social/@NthTensor), [@ametlles](https://mastodon.social/@ametlles) and many others in the fediverse!
