Nostr notes by Rob Ricci

What would happen to your timeline if mastodon.social went away? ...

2026-08-14T02:29:59Z

What would happen to your timeline if mastodon.social went away?

(Reposting my tool that helps you figure this out.)

mastodon.social is the biggest server on the #fediverse , with over 21% of accounts, and an even higher percentage of #Mastodon accounts.

But what does that mean to you, personally? Let's say it went away tomorrow - (assuming you aren't on it yourself), how much of your timeline would vanish?

In my case, it turns out - not a lot, actually! The biggest sources of posts that I see are (1) a very small instance that doesn't even federate with much of the Fediverse, but many of my friends are there, (2) my own instance, (3) a large tech-focused instance that is still much smaller than mastodon.social. The big guy is only 5% of the post I've seen recently.

But this might be different for you!

Find out for yourself at https://moderation-explorer.online/ . Use 'advanced mode' to see this analysis, since you need to log into see your actual feed.

You might even decide to try moving to an instance that you're more connected to?

(It's explained more on the site, but all the work happens in your browser, I don't see your identity, auth tokens, posts that get loaded, none of it.)

@nprofile…snss I'm in the wrong field, but I already knew ...

2026-07-22T07:11:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…dnxh
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nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqwtxz0varwgf6gdfe7q4w6ee9setkv4sedulqfwyzsrnej7jnsnjsppsnss (nprofile…snss) I'm in the wrong field, but I already knew that

Dragon Dads (https://dragondads.org/) is a group of dads and ...

2026-06-06T23:43:43Z

Dragon Dads (https://dragondads.org/) is a group of dads and other caregivers who are affirming and supportive of LGTBQIA+ kids. One of their big activities is going to #pride events and giving out free dad hugs. Many of them have been doing this for 10 years or more. This was my first time.

Let me tell you, I saw, and felt, absolutely everything.

There was someone who squealed when they saw the booth and did a ten yard sprint to catch me in a flying hug. There were people who walked by several times before they timidly came up and asked for a hug.

There were people who wanted long hugs, side hugs, pats on the back, fist bumps. (We have a menu.) People who don't like hugs, but were nonetheless thrilled that we were doing it.

People told me that their dads had passed away, refused to have anything to do with them, or that they had had to cut their own dads off. One told me "I miss my dad", and when I said I was so sorry, they said "he's in Arizona".

There was an elderly person in a wheelchair who told us how their alcoholic father used to beat them, then told us all the things they had accomplished in life in spite of him, just to show him.

There were people who trembled. People who sobbed. People who melted.

A giant dude in one of those neoprene dog masks (with my permission) grabbed me in a great big hug and lifted me off the ground.

I leaned down to hug people in wheelchairs, and stretched up to hug a woman who I swear was seven feet tall.

Some people stayed to chat, or to cool off in our misting fan in the blistering heat. Others got a hug and left quickly, tears in their eyes and a "thank you" on their lips.

Absolutely everyone who wanted a hug got one.

I've signed up for more events.

Nostr event nevent1qqsfhs3xc2uhmdmuuh7qp6n66ccf79rtvstszk7prkc44m26jv3smfczyqw2hhstcq58v2hgftt0pga7j0jzxwjeycar9y8k8kvht76d2hjes06dnxn

2026-04-29T23:57:39Z

Sometimes you just have to measure with the spoons you can find

The attempt to read the UNIX V4 tape is underway! ...

2025-12-19T19:18:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…he0w
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The attempt to read the UNIX V4 tape is underway!