Hi! If you’re reading this then I presume that it’s because I’ve invited you to join labyrinth.social, my Mastodon server.
There’s a couple of things we need to go over before you can decide whether you would like to join, so please take a look at this document. Also bear in mind that it is absolutely mandatory that you read the Code of Conduct if you would like to join.
(If you haven’t been invited, and you arrived at this guide some other way, then I’m sorry but this guide isn’t really for you! Obviously you can read it if you like, but you may find the about page/readme more helpful.)
labyrinth.social is a small Mastodon server for friends of Tom Dickinson. If you don’t know what Mastodon is, or only kind of know what it is, I recommend you read What is Mastodon? Why is Mastodon? How is Mastodon?, my guide designed for curious newbies.
Actually, labyrinth.social doesn’t use the regular version of Mastodon, it uses an alternate version called Hometown which is completely compatible with Mastodon, but has some extra features.
For a fuller and more detailed explanation of labyrinth.social and what it’s all about, check out the about page/readme if you have not read that already.
This server is small and I intend to keep it that way, but if I’ve invited you and you’re interested in accepting, let’s grow it by one user, shall we?
It’s absolutely mandatory that you read the Code of Conduct before joining labyrinth.social. No exceptions. Read it!
I think you might also want to read:
I highly recommend you follow @admin. This is the account I use to make important announcements like server updates, scheduled downtime, policy changes, etc. etc.
You can browse the users of labyrinth.social in the Profile Directory by selecting “From labyrinth.social only” at the top of the page, although some have opted out of appearing in the directory. I recommend that you get to know the other labyrinth.social users, because I think they are cool, and they are the people who can read your local-only posts if you choose to use that feature.
Looking beyond labyrinth.social, because it’s federated, that means you can follow anyone using Mastodon (or any other compatible service), provided that they haven’t blocked you (or this server). If you want to find people you know from Twitter who are using Mastodon, I recommend you use Fedifinder, which scrapes your Twitter data (with your permission) to find users who may also be on Mastodon.
This guide exists to familiarize you with some of the concepts you’ll need to know when using Mastodon, but I haven’t provided a detailed guide to the functionality of Mastodon or Hometown. I might write something like that in the future, but for now, I recommend FediTips. Or just post your questions on Mastodon, there are lots of friendly helpful people who can assist you. I’m also happy to answer any additional questions if you reach out to me.
If you run into problems with the site not working, let me know. You can send a mention or direct message to @admin. If you’re a member of this community or considering joining, you probably know of other ways to contact me, so you can use those.
If you see a post or a user that you think requires some moderation, you can report them by clicking the ‘…’ button and selecting report. You can (and should!) do this for any misbehaving user you see, regardless of whether it’s a labyrinth.social user or someone using another server.
When you file a report, it always goes to the admin of labyrinth.social (that’s me!). It doesn’t necessarily go to the admin of the other server, but there’s a checkbox allowing you to request that it does. I leave that up to you.
Other servers don’t necessarily follow the same rules as us, but it’s still worth reporting so I can look into it and take action to block or silence that user if needed. Or their whole server, if that’s called for.
As for security, I recommend you read the Privacy Policy. To summarize, no messages are encrypted, including direct messages, and I strongly urge you not to share private information on this service.
As for reliability, I recommend you read the Terms of Service. To summarize, this is a hobby project with no guarantee of uptime or availability, but I promise to make a good faith effort to provide ample warning if the service will be made temporarily or permanently unavailable.
As for moderation, as stated in the Code of Conduct, I am the only moderator of this service and I do so on a volunteer basis. I cannot guarantee that moderation will always be provided as quickly as you would expect from a professionally moderated service, but I promise to make a good faith effort to respond to moderation requests in a timely manner, and in keeping with the Code of Conduct.
Really? Okay! Please tell me what it is so I can answer it and possibly add it to this welcome guide.
Just let me know you’re ready! Reach out to me using the same communication channel where I reached out to you, and be sure to respond with the secret word. If you don’t know what the secret word is, then please make sure you have read the Code of Conduct.