5 ms·

I'd be curious to see Mastodon attempt to add features which help instances pay for hosting. Otherwise i don't see how this can survive. I'm sitting here waiti

I'd be curious to see Mastodon attempt to add features which help instances pay for hosting. Otherwise i don't see how this can survive. I'm sitting here waiting for a slot to open up on `mastodon.art`, but the same story will play out there i'm sure too. How is it paid for? How can i help? Most people won't, but i'm happy to pay a small fee to hopefully offset my footprint cost. I just think Mastodon needs features to reduce this friction as best as possible. .. though maybe it has them already? I've never hosted an instance so what do i know?

simonw 4y ago
Plenty of instances are using Patreon for this. Seems to be working well for them, though the huge explosion in users over the past few weeks might change that. Here's the Mastodon.art one for example (they have two other crowdfunding services as well, linked on their about page): https://www.patreon.com/mastodonart https://www.patreon.com/mastodonart I think it's going to be OK. People who migrate to Mastodon are the kind of people who understand why it's good to contribute to your instance if you can afford to do so.
michaelanckaert 4y ago
I'm curious why don't join another instance and simply follow people on mastodon.art - Is the local timeline that important for users? I'm genuinely asking since I'm on my own single user instance but follow plenty of people to give me enough content to consume.
- samcat116 4y ago
  I think that the local timeline is the only decent way to have native discovery in Mastodon (especially if you're in a topic-specific instance). I know some people specifically don't want things like algorithmic recommendations, which is fine, but for others this means expanding your following is relatively hard.
  - robga 4y ago
    Say you’re into several disparate topics. e.g. always into a tech area, a sports team, a type of music, a local city. Then you may have time based interests that come and go yearly. It doesn’t seem to make sense to me that you have to choose one as the primary discovery zone, even if one interest was dominant.
- lijogdfljk 4y ago
  TBH, i don't know entirely, it just "feels" like i want the instance i'm most interested in. Yes, local timeline is neat and a feature i'd like to be able to use, but the Social aspect of Mastodon (vs email) means i tend to view the domain as indicating primary interest. It feels like a badge of community/interest. Not sure if it makes sense, just trying to explain what's going on in my head. As i have debated that exact question myself, internally.
- Matumio 4y ago
  Discovery: You'll tend to discover what other local users have already found or subscribed to. (Local timeline, hashtag search.) Culture and rules: In this case this means how nudity is handled, whether anyone will care if you post spiders or gore without warning, some specific rules about AI-generated art, etc. I can confirm that mastodon.art feels cozy and well-moderated, been there for years, also a financial supporter. Another sign that they care is that they've closed registrations, instead of trying to instantly moderate 3x the users. They've recently silenced mastodon.social, which again is mostly about calming down the local discovery features (you can still follow/be followed). They are blocking instances that encourage copyright violations, etc. If you want an .art account, IMO right now you should start on one of the other instances they recommend, and move your account later. You can browse the local .art timeline and their view of hashtags without an account.
lhl 4y ago
I've seen a few Mastodon instances using https://opencollective.com/ https://opencollective.com/ which seems like a pretty reasonable way to cover ongoing costs and the like. Here's an example: https://opencollective.com/libreops https://opencollective.com/libreops
GaggiX 4y ago
Looking at mastodon.art, the admins seem to have blocked/muted hundreds of instances, including mastodon.social, mastodon.online, qoto.org, all of which are moderate instances with a clear policy against racism, harassment, etc., I don't see how this is good for artists, who probably need engagement. I think mastodon.art admins are trying to push their agenda by pressuring other instances to adopt stricter restrictions and limit users' freedom, instead of simply protecting their users (which is not achieved by restricting users from interacting with moderated instances).
- lijogdfljk 4y ago
  Not sure about that, but i'm mostly just interested in the local community. That said if the cost was a bit lower i was mildly tempted to standup a Blender community. However that seems like a lot of work, in addition to being a bit expensive.
- Matumio 4y ago
  Here is some background about silencing mastodon.social, and what it means: https://www.patreon.com/posts/silencing-social-74474015 https://www.patreon.com/posts/silencing-social-74474015 I don't think it's about pushing an agenda. Each instance can only set the rules for their own community. Dozens of art-related instances have popped up like mushrooms overnight, so there is a good chance people will find one where they agree with the rules of the house. And it's easy to move to another instance later.
  - lijogdfljk 4y ago
    What other credible art instances are there in your eyes? I'm having trouble finding them, so search terms (or tools?) would be useful as well :) (I say credible, as in not just a tiny instance with no idea on longevity)
    - Matumio 4y ago
      Credible? Most new instances are literally just a few weeks old. Welcome to the fediverse, where not everyone is on the same big server: There is wandering.shop if you're into writing. If you're into dinosaur paintings, go to sauropods.win. If you like math-art, it's very much on-topic on mathstodon.xyz. Try inkblot.art if you like non-conventional instances. Or genart.social if you like algorithmic art. Those are just the ones I discovered by accident recently, without trying. Try picking a general instance you trust, and browse an artistic hashtag there. Also, most general instances are okay with art (try the #mastoart hashtag). (Also the three instances recommended by .art when you try registering there. Probably not for you if you don't like .art.)

simonw 4y ago

Plenty of instances are using Patreon for this. Seems to be working well for them, though the huge explosion in users over the past few weeks might change that. Here's the Mastodon.art one for example (they have two other crowdfunding services as well, linked on their about page): https://www.patreon.com/mastodonart https://www.patreon.com/mastodonart I think it's going to be OK. People who migrate to Mastodon are the kind of people who understand why it's good to contribute to your instance if you can afford to do so.

michaelanckaert 4y ago

I'm curious why don't join another instance and simply follow people on mastodon.art - Is the local timeline that important for users? I'm genuinely asking since I'm on my own single user instance but follow plenty of people to give me enough content to consume.

samcat116 4y ago
I think that the local timeline is the only decent way to have native discovery in Mastodon (especially if you're in a topic-specific instance). I know some people specifically don't want things like algorithmic recommendations, which is fine, but for others this means expanding your following is relatively hard.
- robga 4y ago
  Say you’re into several disparate topics. e.g. always into a tech area, a sports team, a type of music, a local city. Then you may have time based interests that come and go yearly. It doesn’t seem to make sense to me that you have to choose one as the primary discovery zone, even if one interest was dominant.
lijogdfljk 4y ago
TBH, i don't know entirely, it just "feels" like i want the instance i'm most interested in. Yes, local timeline is neat and a feature i'd like to be able to use, but the Social aspect of Mastodon (vs email) means i tend to view the domain as indicating primary interest. It feels like a badge of community/interest. Not sure if it makes sense, just trying to explain what's going on in my head. As i have debated that exact question myself, internally.
Matumio 4y ago
Discovery: You'll tend to discover what other local users have already found or subscribed to. (Local timeline, hashtag search.) Culture and rules: In this case this means how nudity is handled, whether anyone will care if you post spiders or gore without warning, some specific rules about AI-generated art, etc. I can confirm that mastodon.art feels cozy and well-moderated, been there for years, also a financial supporter. Another sign that they care is that they've closed registrations, instead of trying to instantly moderate 3x the users. They've recently silenced mastodon.social, which again is mostly about calming down the local discovery features (you can still follow/be followed). They are blocking instances that encourage copyright violations, etc. If you want an .art account, IMO right now you should start on one of the other instances they recommend, and move your account later. You can browse the local .art timeline and their view of hashtags without an account.

lhl 4y ago

I've seen a few Mastodon instances using https://opencollective.com/ https://opencollective.com/ which seems like a pretty reasonable way to cover ongoing costs and the like. Here's an example: https://opencollective.com/libreops https://opencollective.com/libreops

GaggiX 4y ago

Looking at mastodon.art, the admins seem to have blocked/muted hundreds of instances, including mastodon.social, mastodon.online, qoto.org, all of which are moderate instances with a clear policy against racism, harassment, etc., I don't see how this is good for artists, who probably need engagement. I think mastodon.art admins are trying to push their agenda by pressuring other instances to adopt stricter restrictions and limit users' freedom, instead of simply protecting their users (which is not achieved by restricting users from interacting with moderated instances).

lijogdfljk 4y ago
Not sure about that, but i'm mostly just interested in the local community. That said if the cost was a bit lower i was mildly tempted to standup a Blender community. However that seems like a lot of work, in addition to being a bit expensive.
Matumio 4y ago
Here is some background about silencing mastodon.social, and what it means: https://www.patreon.com/posts/silencing-social-74474015 https://www.patreon.com/posts/silencing-social-74474015 I don't think it's about pushing an agenda. Each instance can only set the rules for their own community. Dozens of art-related instances have popped up like mushrooms overnight, so there is a good chance people will find one where they agree with the rules of the house. And it's easy to move to another instance later.
- lijogdfljk 4y ago
  What other credible art instances are there in your eyes? I'm having trouble finding them, so search terms (or tools?) would be useful as well :) (I say credible, as in not just a tiny instance with no idea on longevity)
  - Matumio 4y ago
    Credible? Most new instances are literally just a few weeks old. Welcome to the fediverse, where not everyone is on the same big server: There is wandering.shop if you're into writing. If you're into dinosaur paintings, go to sauropods.win. If you like math-art, it's very much on-topic on mathstodon.xyz. Try inkblot.art if you like non-conventional instances. Or genart.social if you like algorithmic art. Those are just the ones I discovered by accident recently, without trying. Try picking a general instance you trust, and browse an artistic hashtag there. Also, most general instances are okay with art (try the #mastoart hashtag). (Also the three instances recommended by .art when you try registering there. Probably not for you if you don't like .art.)