@feditips unfortunately while joining a small server might be good for the network, it's not rational for a new joiner to pick one. Unless of course they know someone on that network, and especially if they know the admin. For anyone else who doesn't know anyone on Mastodon before joining, the rational choice is to pick a stable server with good rules and moderation. The easiest way to know a server has that is to see lots of other people using it.

@Gargron great changes.

Are there any private companies running instances? Because I wouldn't put them under the 'public organization' legal structure, I'd only put non-profits there.

@feditips I agree, it's not necessarily true when it comes to moderation, but it's logical to new users. Especially people coming from the birdsite and other centralised platforms. The more people using a thing, the better is, right? (that's rhetorical) It's social proof in action.

It is true for stability, though. You don't want to join an instance only for it to close on you. More people using an instance probably means it's sticking around.

@feditips

> One way to check if a server has been around is go to its website, click "Learn more" and then click on the admin's profile.

That's unfortunately way too hidden for any new user to be expected to find. Date started should be prominently displayed on instance.adress/about and instance.adress/about/more with the server stats.

I'm going to Github right now to suggest it ...

@dansup @pixelfed I think all software creators should be required to take a class with you on how to write clear release notes / share tips / keep people up to date on the roadmap and the status of upcoming features.

I’m not even on Pixelfed but I follow you just because I enjoy watching the progress.

@dansup oooh cool. Does this lay the groundwork for being able to search content by location?

I'm honestly thinking about Mastodon here but I'd love to see geotagging for posts, and then be able to search (and sort/filter the feed?) based on place, or distance from me.

It'd also be useful for searching future events, when fedi event software becomes a popular.

@dansup @pixelfed Can’t everyone who can see your posts also see your stories? In which case any self-imposed difference in posting standard is illusory. In any case, my network seem to post stories in place of posts, which is the source of my frustration.

I like to be disconnected for long periods and then catch up on what people have been up to in one big burst. It’s nice to have ephemeral posting but it’s antithetical to my use case I guess :/

@dansup @pixelfed But they do still force you to check frequently :/

I check in on Facebook and Instagram about once a month (probably even less for Facebook, actually). I don’t like using them but it’s where family and friends overseas are posting. I’m frustrated by the growing trend of many people I know to post almost entirely using stories. I want to catch up on their posts in my own time, not when the app forces me to based on an arbitrary limit.

@dansup @pixelfed Would it work with the Mastodon groups feature that’s in development? https://github.com/mastodon/mastodon/pull/19059

(No expectations here, just curious)

@dansup @pixelfed dude, this is excellent. Could have used this when I first joined Mastodon and forgot which server I joined because I was too focused on the whole Mastodon thing.

@dansup @pixelfed the lovely thing about fiddling with app onboarding is that it’s the one app feature for which you never (or barely) get any complaints from existing users, because they already signed up. 😄

@dansup @chrisafk @pixelfed how secure/private are a private account and follower-only posts (on a public or private account)? Is there a way for anyone besides your server admin to get to those posts?

@dansup @pixelfed this is not a criticism, just a question: how would you do it without some personally identifying piece of information that my contacts have (i.e. my phone number, or my email) being publicly accessible because I have to put it on my account so that my account can be found?

@feditips shoutout to Woolly, my current favourite for iOS and MacOS https://mastodon.social/@woollyapp. Radiant is also looking great (iOS only) https://mastodon.radiant.social/@radiant.

@dansup Awesome work. FYI possible bug here, showing ‘infinity’ percent?

@feditips also available without going to your profile. Frankly it's an odd place for them to exist, but it's there.

@dansup@mastodon.social @Ruth_Mottram @pixelfed @bech @mrmanafon @dansup@pixelfed.social a pity! Was hoping to give it a whirl with my current account before maybe opening a Pixelfed account. Any plans to change this?