Mastodon

We’re excited to announce that Mastodon 4.4 is now generally available as an upgrade for all Mastodon servers. The update brings improvements to profiles, navigation, list management, media controls, server moderation notes, and more.

Mastodon 4.4 also contains the first part of our Quote Post implementation - display of incoming Quote Posts. Full support (including creation) will be part of the next version: Mastodon 4.5, coming later this year. We’re already hard at work on the next set of updates for that release.

We hope you’ll enjoy the enhancements in Mastodon 4.4, and we’re grateful for your support and feedback.

I've had a small mastodon instance for over a year and recently decided to get to the bottom of why the "Explore" tab hardly ever recommended any posts.

When I was a programmer I never used ruby, but reading through the code I think it's down to a hard threshold of 5 minimum interactions for something to even be considered for the trending algorithm. This makes it hard to meet theses conditions on instances with a small number of active users.

Some interesting new features incoming:

• “Featured” tab on profiles
• Browsing user's activity on hashtag
• Quote posts

I curate/mod [email protected]. It's dedicated to "tycoon simulation" and management games. Things like Rollercoaster Tycoon, Transport Fever and Project Highrise.

While engagement and posts not made by me could be better, I feel like there is a solid growth trajectory.

I also have a Mastodon account:

https://mstdn.games/@Landgraab_Industries

I cross-post (manually) more prominent posts from the Lemmy community. I do get some engagement, but subscriber growth is very anemic.

I always add tags and I try to make the posts appealing.

Any other tips to help gain (organic) subscriber growth on Mastodon?

When searching for relevant accounts, I often come across users on Twitter/X with a birdsite mastodon bridge such as @[email protected], which seems to be the most followed Firefox account on mastodon.

However, this account has no visible posts, and when I follow it I get a “Pending”.

How does this work? Thanks

News from the Mastodon engineering team for March 2025 - including some big changes to the main code, updates to the mobile apps, Fediscovery progress, and the end of support for Mastodon 4.1.

SOLUTION IN COMMENTS (by @just_[email protected])

You have a dependency discrepancy with your local node modules and your global. You should be running this in a node virtual environment so all of the local projects dependencies don’t conflict with global.

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/3653495/is-there-a-virtual-environment-for-node-js

https://www.develves.net/blogs/asd/2016-04-28-using-virtual-environments-nodejs/

I have searched around for answers to this, but so far, the solutions I found and tried have not been working for me. Thankfully, the update isn't that critical, so time is not of the essence as of now. But I fear, the problem will only persist.

So, bit of a headscratcher: I am following the guide to upgrade (no Docker) from here.

Simple enough, right? Sadly, I keep getting:

~/live$ RAILS_ENV=production bundle exec rails assets:precompile
I, [2025-04-03T20:30:30.072648 #981372]  INFO -- : [dotenv] Loaded .env.production
Mastodon and Webpacker requires Yarn ">=4 <5" and you are using 1.22.22
Exiting!

So, the proposed solution? Using corepack as intended. That, at first, upon entering "corpack prepare" and "corepack enable" in succession, seemed to run silently and without errors/warnings.

But it changed nothing at all for the error message. Prompting me to search around, haphazardly try to apply fixes, trying to remove and reinstall yarn, "the usual". My last attempt was to globally remove yarn and corepack with npm and then re-install both. Since then, a new, exciting error is happening:

~/live$ corepack enable
Internal Error: EACCES: permission denied, symlink '../lib/node_modules/corepack/dist/pnpm.js' -> '/usr/bin/pnpm'
    at async Object.symlink (node:internal/fs/promises:1005:10)
    at async EnableCommand.generatePosixLink (/usr/lib/node_modules/corepack/dist/lib/corepack.cjs:23156:5)
    at async Promise.all (index 0)
    at async EnableCommand.execute (/usr/lib/node_modules/corepack/dist/lib/corepack.cjs:23143:5)
    at async EnableCommand.validateAndExecute (/usr/lib/node_modules/corepack/dist/lib/corepack.cjs:20258:22)
    at async _Cli.run (/usr/lib/node_modules/corepack/dist/lib/corepack.cjs:21195:18)
    at async Object.runMain (/usr/lib/node_modules/corepack/dist/lib/corepack.cjs:23642:19)

Oh, and when trying to install yarn and corepack, now, I get:

~/live$ npm install yarn
npm error code EUNSUPPORTEDPROTOCOL
npm error Unsupported URL Type "patch:": patch:babel-plugin-lodash@npm%3A3.3.4#~/.yarn/patches/babel-plugin-lodash-npm-3.3.4-c7161075b6.patch
npm error A complete log of this run can be found in: /home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_12_827Z-debug-0.log

~/live$ npm install corepack
npm error code EUNSUPPORTEDPROTOCOL
npm error Unsupported URL Type "patch:": patch:babel-plugin-lodash@npm%3A3.3.4#~/.yarn/patches/babel-plugin-lodash-npm-3.3.4-c7161075b6.patch
npm error A complete log of this run can be found in: /home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_25_678Z-debug-0.log

$ cat /home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_12_827Z-debug-0.log 
0 verbose cli /usr/bin/node /usr/bin/npm
1 info using [email protected]
2 info using [email protected]
3 silly config load:file:/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/npmrc
4 silly config load:file:/home/mastodon/live/.npmrc
5 silly config load:file:/home/mastodon/.npmrc
6 silly config load:file:/usr/etc/npmrc
7 verbose title npm install yarn
8 verbose argv "install" "yarn"
9 verbose logfile logs-max:10 dir:/home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_12_827Z-
10 verbose logfile /home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_12_827Z-debug-0.log
11 silly logfile start cleaning logs, removing 1 files
12 silly packumentCache heap:4345298944 maxSize:1086324736 maxEntrySize:543162368
13 silly logfile done cleaning log files
14 silly idealTree buildDeps
15 verbose stack Error: Unsupported URL Type "patch:": patch:babel-plugin-lodash@npm%3A3.3.4#~/.yarn/patches/babel-plugin-lodash-npm-3.3.4-c7161075b6.patch
15 verbose stack     at unsupportedURLType (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/npm-package-arg/lib/npa.js:369:15)
15 verbose stack     at fromURL (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/npm-package-arg/lib/npa.js:428:13)
15 verbose stack     at Function.resolve (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/npm-package-arg/lib/npa.js:110:12)
15 verbose stack     at #nodeFromEdge (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/@npmcli/arborist/lib/arborist/build-ideal-tree.js:1039:22)
15 verbose stack     at #buildDepStep (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/@npmcli/arborist/lib/arborist/build-ideal-tree.js:904:35)
15 verbose stack     at async Arborist.buildIdealTree (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/@npmcli/arborist/lib/arborist/build-ideal-tree.js:181:7)
15 verbose stack     at async Promise.all (index 1)
15 verbose stack     at async Arborist.reify (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/@npmcli/arborist/lib/arborist/reify.js:131:5)
15 verbose stack     at async Install.exec (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/lib/commands/install.js:149:5)
15 verbose stack     at async Npm.exec (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/lib/npm.js:208:9)
16 error code EUNSUPPORTEDPROTOCOL
17 error Unsupported URL Type "patch:": patch:babel-plugin-lodash@npm%3A3.3.4#~/.yarn/patches/babel-plugin-lodash-npm-3.3.4-c7161075b6.patch
18 silly unfinished npm timer reify 1743710053061
19 silly unfinished npm timer reify:loadTrees 1743710053064
20 silly unfinished npm timer idealTree:buildDeps 1743710057205
21 silly unfinished npm timer idealTree:#root 1743710057206
22 verbose cwd /home/mastodon/live
23 verbose os Linux 6.1.0-31-amd64
24 verbose node v22.14.0
25 verbose npm  v11.2.0
26 verbose exit 1
27 verbose code 1
28 error A complete log of this run can be found in: /home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_12_827Z-debug-0.log

~/live$ cat /home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_25_678Z-debug-0.log 
0 verbose cli /usr/bin/node /usr/bin/npm
1 info using [email protected]
2 info using [email protected]
3 silly config load:file:/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/npmrc
4 silly config load:file:/home/mastodon/live/.npmrc
5 silly config load:file:/home/mastodon/.npmrc
6 silly config load:file:/usr/etc/npmrc
7 verbose title npm install corepack
8 verbose argv "install" "corepack"
9 verbose logfile logs-max:10 dir:/home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_25_678Z-
10 verbose logfile /home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_25_678Z-debug-0.log
11 silly logfile start cleaning logs, removing 1 files
12 silly packumentCache heap:4345298944 maxSize:1086324736 maxEntrySize:543162368
13 silly logfile done cleaning log files
14 silly idealTree buildDeps
15 verbose stack Error: Unsupported URL Type "patch:": patch:babel-plugin-lodash@npm%3A3.3.4#~/.yarn/patches/babel-plugin-lodash-npm-3.3.4-c7161075b6.patch
15 verbose stack     at unsupportedURLType (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/npm-package-arg/lib/npa.js:369:15)
15 verbose stack     at fromURL (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/npm-package-arg/lib/npa.js:428:13)
15 verbose stack     at Function.resolve (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/npm-package-arg/lib/npa.js:110:12)
15 verbose stack     at #nodeFromEdge (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/@npmcli/arborist/lib/arborist/build-ideal-tree.js:1039:22)
15 verbose stack     at #buildDepStep (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/@npmcli/arborist/lib/arborist/build-ideal-tree.js:904:35)
15 verbose stack     at async Arborist.buildIdealTree (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/@npmcli/arborist/lib/arborist/build-ideal-tree.js:181:7)
15 verbose stack     at async Promise.all (index 1)
15 verbose stack     at async Arborist.reify (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/@npmcli/arborist/lib/arborist/reify.js:131:5)
15 verbose stack     at async Install.exec (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/lib/commands/install.js:149:5)
15 verbose stack     at async Npm.exec (/usr/lib/node_modules/npm/lib/npm.js:208:9)
16 error code EUNSUPPORTEDPROTOCOL
17 error Unsupported URL Type "patch:": patch:babel-plugin-lodash@npm%3A3.3.4#~/.yarn/patches/babel-plugin-lodash-npm-3.3.4-c7161075b6.patch
18 silly unfinished npm timer reify 1743710065916
19 silly unfinished npm timer reify:loadTrees 1743710065919
20 silly unfinished npm timer idealTree:buildDeps 1743710070343
21 silly unfinished npm timer idealTree:#root 1743710070344
22 verbose cwd /home/mastodon/live
23 verbose os Linux 6.1.0-31-amd64
24 verbose node v22.14.0
25 verbose npm  v11.2.0
26 verbose exit 1
27 verbose code 1
28 error A complete log of this run can be found in: /home/mastodon/.npm/_logs/2025-04-03T19_54_25_678Z-debug-0.log

Thankfully, mastodon is still working, no database issues, nothing indicating I fucked up beyond repair yet.

I am a bit at a loss, unfortunately, but eager to use my fuckup as a learning experience - am glad to hear any and all more experienced folk chiming in!

So, just to say immediately: I guess if I went deep into the frontend code, this will of course be possible, but I am in this case just talking about an easy way from the admin settings as such.

Currently, my aim is to have a unified little "bar" appearing in all three of my Fediverse services, this is what it's appearing as in PeerTube and Lemmy respectively:

With the images linking to the respective instances on the server.

For mastodon (admittedly, also the service I am using the least, myself) - I haven't found anything on how this could be achieved easily - with my searches so far all just providing results for users wanting to put stuff on their profiles.

Currently, trying Markdown Syntax as I use it for Lemmy does not work, no images show up when putting it in the about page or short description. (I guess not enabled for security reasons in the underlying code?)

If you have any experience or also just a good guess, that is very much appreciated! :)

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/2097067

title says it all. i can register lemmy and matrix account on certain instances without email address, but im yet to find one for mastodon.

Sharing our thinking and progress on bringing Quote Posts to Mastodon, with a goal to create a safe and respectful space for everyone.

News and updates from the Mastodon developers. Technical changes from January 2025, and what the core team did at FOSDEM.

Is there a way to up the char count on a self-hosted (redundant I know) Mastodon that I control?

Or do I HAVE to use Glitch Soc?

So, if you want to follow a Lemmy community from your Mastodon account you can simply do so as you would follow any other account. It will treat both posts and comments on that community as boosts. This quickly clogs up the feed and is very confusing to navigate.

Is there a way to have it show only the posts in my feed?

Has anyone ever considered the potential creation of a Labeler similar to Andrew Lisowski's Bluesky Politician Labeler, but for the Mastodon platform?

This tool, which has been developed for Bluesky, provides valuable transparency by listing top contributors to US politicians.

The Bluesky Politician Labeler

(https://github.com/hipstersmoothie/us-gov-contributions-labeler)

is an innovative Open-Source feature that enhances political discourse on social media.

It automatically labels posts from US politicians with information about their top financial contributors, offering users immediate context about the potential influences on these public figures.

Key benefits of implementing a similar feature on Mastodon could include:

Increased transparency: Users would have easy access to information about political funding sources.

Enhanced political discourse: This feature could lead to more informed discussions about politics and campaign finance.

User empowerment: Mastodon users would be better equipped to critically evaluate political content.

Platform differentiation: This unique feature could set Mastodon apart from other social media platforms.

It could be designed to respect Mastodon's federated nature, possibly allowing instance administrators to opt-in or customize the feature for their communities.

Given Mastodon's focus on user privacy and data control, any implementation would need to be carefully considered to ensure it aligns with these core values.

The feature could potentially be developed as an optional plugin that users or instance administrators could choose to enable.

I personally believe that something like this could SIGNIFICANTLY enhance the political discourse on Mastodon while providing valuable transparency to users.

It would be an innovative addition that aligns with Mastodon's ethos of empowering users and fostering meaningful conversations.

I would consider doing something like this, but, unfortunately, I personally lack the time, energy, and technical knowledge.

https://bsky.app/profile/hipstersmoothie.com/post/3lbl2lgnq7c2f

https://bsky.app/profile/us-gov-funding.bsky.social/lists/3lbgx3lqlwk2d

https://bsky.app/profile/hipstersmoothie.com