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@davetroy@toad.socialA few recommendations for life on Mastodon:
1) Follow anyone you think looks potentially interesting; you can always unfollow later, and they may lead you to new people via boosted posts.
2) Boost posts you think are worthy, so others can discover new content.
3) Don't obsess on replicating your Twitter follows on Mastodon; let it be its own experience, and grow it organically. Obvs follow anyone you miss from Twitter, but this isn't a 1:1 replacement; have fun, follow your instincts.
Some folks have asked, "why not replicate your Twitter follows?" Obviously you should do what you want, but the Twitterverse was created with a lot of perverse incentives and strange distortions. To discover what makes this design unique, you may have better luck hand-curating your experience here than simply trying to replicate something from before, which is arguably broken in weird ways. A slower, more considered approach is, I think, worth trying.
@davetroy I have replicated some, but not fixated at all. Have found other interesting people
@davetroy to be fair, many popular Twitter users attract their fan base to learn about and join this place too!
@Namarie yes, and nothing at all wrong with that. I would simply encourage an organic approach to exploration here vs. looking for a 1:1 matching experience.
@davetroy of course, that’s wise advice. What’s intriguing to see imo is how quickly the user base has grown on Mastodon. Unlike Twitter’s growth, the growth here is fueled in big part by disenchantment with an existing popular platform.
@Namarie and Twitter's growth and usage patterns were fueled by a lot of perverse incentives and inauthentic behavior also. That's one reason I would tell people it's not worth replicating; let's do something new.
@davetroy absolutely! 100% agree with this. What I’m optimistic about is that this platform, at least at this stage, has offered many opportunities for interesting forms of engagement.
@davetroy which button is "boost"?
@davetroy @HarryCallahan
Boost is equivalent to RT.
@scubaval @davetroy @HarryCallahan and to my taste some use it too much.. so much that i can't read what they write because it's hidden between retoots/boosts
@HarryCallahan @davetroy The circular arrows 
@davetroy in germany a very nice project was started, to collect and share noteworthy profiles. They put them into categories and everyone can explore them. Maybe that would make sense on an international scale (but I'm to lazy to create it) 
@davetroy agree ... a sigh of relief for a new and refreshing adventure
@davetroy agree 100%. It's an opportunity to craft a better SM experience
@davetroy I just jumped right into this only knowing a couple of people. I immediately met a bunch of really cool musicians I never would have met via any of the other places. It's been great trying to start over completely instead of attempting to recreate the network I have other places
@davetroy also check out the local timeline it's very different from seeing random accounts on twitter (if you are on the right server).
@davetroy I’m still on Twitter for now, but haven’t imported following & followers ..so, allowing things to happen naturally, it feels very fresh.. like many here on this thread, discovering people I haven’t come across on the other side…thanks again Dave and thank you to everyone for their kindness & generosity in sharing content, knowledge etc very grateful 
@davetroy Very thoughtful way to too look at it. We shouldnt try to copy what was there but let it become its own thing. Forcing it will just lead to a bad experience imo.
@davetroy 4) Always toot when drunk. Ideally with pictures.
@davetroy I think you are spot on. I’m following lots of new people never come across on Twitter and it’s great. A breath of fresh air.
@davetroy Great advice
@davetroy 1) Agreed. Is it possible to follow everyone who appears in my feed because of boosts?
@davetroy I am looking to replicate some of my news/current events list, but also enjoying random interactions with people.
@davetroy
Newbie here... Which button do I push to follow my instincts? ;)
@davetroy That's exactly what I'm doing. Following a few people I know from Twitter, but letting things grow organically to see where it goes. Already getting completely different content which makes sense. No point replicating what I had before.
@davetroy how do I look up someone who i want to follow. I'm new to this format. Help!!!
@oddJob54 just use the search box. Give it a second as it has to look in multiple places for search results.
@davetroy what does it look like. Sorry for sounding like a div. I thought it would be a magnifying glass. Oh well
@davetroy Neat precis. 
@davetroy thanks for that good guide
@davetroy
I think we truly don’t want this to be Twitter, or rather the darker parts of Twitter.
I like the growing organically approach. Great way to put it.
@davetroy some birdsite ppl with big followings have come over here and are mainly worried about replicating that: different experience, different relationships. This feels more like a chat across a local pub than a lecture in a town hall. ;-)
@davetroy I'm still lost here.
@davetroy thank you. I appreciate the advice.
@davetroy I definitely want to follow close/most-admired Twitter crew over here but I'm meeting loads of interesting people I never knew - artists of all sorts, academics, etc. Trying to keep politics out of my new mix - unlike on Twitter.
зима @davetroy Dave, I am so chuffed you let me into your party 
This place has been amazing so far 
@winter awesome! Welcome! 
@davetroy Definitely #1. I'm not still following everyone I started following since I joined, but following anyone who's piqued my interest has led to discovering more interesting people than dropping the few that didn't work out.
@davetroy
However, if you do recall somebody on Twitter you want to find, save your followers there now. I am thinking there is a small chance Twitter will just 404 one day. Reading thru your local list of contacts can trigger your memory of people to add here.
@lauxmyth totally. I would just do that manually than trust a machine to do automatic adds.
@davetroy I just joined today but I didn't migrate from Twitter. I love posting my art but there's no real reward for posting on FB and insta anymore due to algorithms. Even people who follow me just didn't see it.
Hoping here is different, and I'm able to make actual connections with those with similar interests!
@BrianAlls @lteegs that's very nicely said. Yes, I think there is a certain amount of being "on stage" with a platform like Twitter, and I definitely feel more comfortable to be my full self here, not just a version of who I want to portray to a wide audience.
@davetroy thanks Dave. Just landed, so this is useful.