The Phone Analogy
a.k.a. Why Are There So Many Servers?
Written by tikli.
Page last updated on 24 July 2023 [change log].
You get a mobile plan from one of the various providers.
You get a phone number.
Now, you can call or text anyone who has a phone, as long as you know their number. The provider they use doesn't matter.
You can always change your provider if you're not happy with the one you picked.
Contents
What does a Mastodon server do?
A Mastodon server (also known as "instance") provides you with a user account and hosts it. Hosting means that they keep your user data on their server, the same way Twitter does with your Twitter account's data.
Unlike Twitter that runs on Twitter's centralised server, Mastodon runs on several decentralised servers that are owned by different public organisations and individuals. The servers are connected to each other, forming a vast network. When you have an account on one of the servers, you can interact with anyone who has an account on any server that is connected to your server.
Individual servers can decide which servers they want to connect with (also known as "federating"). The owner of the server has tools to limit or restrict traffic from other servers. They can also completely block other servers (also known as "defederating"). This is usually done because of spam, trolling, hate speech etc.
What's the difference between servers?
There are plenty of Mastodon servers. The differences between them are usually the size (number of users) and whether the server is focused on a specific theme or topic, like a shared hobby or other interest. Some servers also allow you to make longer posts than the Mastodon default (500 characters) or create polls with more than 4 options / longer options than 50 characters.
All Mastodon servers that are promoted on Mastodon's official site have committed to having active moderation against racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia.
Each server self-governs. This means that the owner of the server can decide what sort of policies are in place on the server and what rules should be followed by its users. It's very "my house, my rules" sort of thing, so make sure you agree with the server rules and policies before creating your account there.
Bigger, general purpose servers are usually more like Twitter, with only a few basic rules. Smaller niche servers get more detailed with their governing style, because they are usually more focused on creating a safe space that caters specifically to their users' needs. Smaller servers might also have tighter moderation rules, and might restrict/block other servers more readily.
Remember that the owner of the server can do whatever they want with their server. You are a guest at their house and they have the keys to every door. This means that they can access your account data, including the posts you've made that aren't public (visibility "Followers Only" or "Mentioned People Only"). They can also delete your account. So keep this in mind when choosing the server. Who do you trust, and what sort of information do you trust them with?
How to choose your server
Because Mastodon servers connect with each other, you don't need to make a new account for every server, the same way you don't need to get a new phone number to call to someone who uses a different mobile plan provider than you.
The server you choose doesn't really matter—unless it matters to you. In a technical sense, you can pick whatever server you want, they all work the same way.
If you don't know where to start when choosing your server, decide which of these sounds more appealing to you:
- a bigger, general purpose server
- a smaller, niche server
The difference between these is usually the amount of rules, guidelines and policies and how much they moderate against other servers.
Some of the biggest servers, like mastodon.social and mastodon.online, might be silenced by some of the smaller servers, because of the likelihood of spam. Silencing doesn't stop you from following/being followed by an account that's on a server that silences your server. It just means that posts from the silenced server don't show up on the public timelines of the server that silenced it.
You can use instances.social to help you find a server that fits your needs. It lets you find servers based on the following criteria:
- languages spoken
- user count
- specific moderation rules regarding nudity & pornography (with & without NSFW tag), links to illegal content, spam, advertising and spoilers without content warning
Creating your account is easiest via your web browser—you don't even need to have an app yet. Either pick the server from the list on Mastodon's official site, or go directly to the server website (server.name) and press the "Create account" button.
Changing your server
If you're not happy with the server you picked, you can migrate your account to a new server.
- You can migrate your Followers and Following lists, so you don't need to refollow everyone, and they keep following you.
- You can't migrate the posts you made on the old server.
- After you've migrated, you have a 30 day cool-off period before you can migrate again.
Cutie City Guide: Migrating Servers
Nerds Chalk: Change or Switch servers on Mastodon: Step-by-step guide
Fedi.Tips: Transferring your Mastodon account to another server
But why are there so many different apps too?!
The same reason there are so many different phones. Not everyone likes the same type of interface.
Mastodon is open-source and nobody owns it. This means that software developers are free to make their own interfaces for Mastodon. There are several third-party apps available for different operating systems. Some of them are free, some aren't.
Mastodon's official site has a list of available apps.
An in-depth spreadsheet comparing the features of different apps
There is also the official Mastodon app that's available for Android and iPhone, but the collective opinion of Mastodon users is that the official app isn't that good. Sure, it might be the "best way to get started" as they say on the official site, but think of it as training wheels. When you start to understand how Mastodon works, it's time to upgrade to a better app.
Personally, for iPhone/Mac I recommend Ice Cubes (free) or Mona (free with limited features + pro version with one-time purchase). Tusky (free) and Fedilabs (paid) are popular among Android users.
Mastodon can also be used via the web browser. Open your server's webpage (server.address) and log in. You might need to use the browser interface to set some of your account preferences, because some apps might not let you access all the settings.