Getting Started on Dirt Social

I’m going to guess that you’re here because you joined Dirt Social, and you’re a little lost. So first, Thanks for joining!

Dirt Social is a little different than most social media that you’re probably used to. You build a network of folks to talk to based on who you build a network with. Not who the platform shoves in your face. There’s no outrage algorithm pushing you to view what’s hot. This can be a blessing, and a curse, because when you first join, it can feel a little empty. There will be a list of recommended users to follow, but those are more like suggestions, and less in your face.

Today (December 2024), we only have a few users, but we’re growing. The good news though, is one of the things that makes Dirt Social different, is that it’s a federated social platform. It’s based on Mastodon. Mastodon is a twitter-like platform that talks the same language as many other similar federated platforms. This is commonly called the Fediverse. To put it simply, that means that just because Dirt Social is just getting started, there are already a lot of folks to interact with. Millions of them in fact. I made Dirt Social so I could bring the community of off-road and outdoor sports to the Fediverse.

I’ll spare you the technology though, and get down to some basics.

Usernames and Handles

You tag and find other users on Dirt Social by using their handle, with an @ symbol at the beginning. Just like you’re used to on other networks. If you’re on Dirt Social, and look up @nate you should find me. But users on OTHER servers can also be found by using their full handle including their server address. This is very much like an e-mail address. @nate is my full handle. As you interact with people on Dirt Social you will probably run into other folks from other servers. And that’s a great thing!

Mobile Apps

Most of us like to use Social Media on the go, so you’ll probably want a mobile app. If you searched your app store for Dirt Social, you wont find anything. That’s because there is no app that -only- gets you to Dirt Social. Instead there are many Mastodon apps. There is an official Mastodon app, called Mastodon. There are many third party apps as well. It would be tough for me to keep a list of apps up to date on this page, so instead I’m going to suggest that you head over to Mastodon’s official listing of apps. Many of these are free, and others you’ll have to buy. Pick one that suits your needs (and budget) and you’ll never have to change again. I have used the official Mastodon app on both Android and Apple, it works pretty well. Tusky I’ve heard good things about. I ended up on Mona, which I paid a few bucks for, but works really well on Apple devices.

Once you pick an app, you’ll have to set it up. This isn’t all that hard. It will ask you for a server address, that’ll be https://dirt.social, and then your username and password. For example, on the official Mastodon App, it works something like this:

First, assuming you already have an account, select Login down at the bottom of the welcome page.

On the next page, you’ll be given a text box to enter your server name into. Here you’ll enter dirt.social, and then click on the colored “dirt.social” that comes up below it.

Next you’ll enter your e-mail address and password that you entered when you signed up on dirt.social. If you enabled two-factor authentication, you’ll also be asked to provide that on the next page.

And finally you’ll have to accept the permissions that the Mastodon app needs in order to do it’s thing. Once you authorize Mastodon, you should be logged in and brought to your timeline.

Reporting Problems or Abuse

I can’t ignore this, and I also can’t stress this enough. Social media can be a rough place. Part of that is those outrage algorithms, and part of it is the people. I believe that people can be good as long as they keep a few things in mind. Please treat others as you’d like to be treated. However, I know we’re not all always going to agree, and we’re not all going to get along. Not to mention, the nature of federated social is that you can come across folks from all around the world, with a lot of different views and cultures. Mastodon makes it easy for you to report posts. Please feel free to use that report feature if you come across something that you feel is truly a problem. However, also please remember that disagreeing with someone does not mean they are abusive.

You also have the power to block people, or entire instances. You also have the ability to filter words. Don’t like politics? You can add filters for keywords related to politics, don’t like bunnies? You can filter terms related to bunnies.

One last note, on Content Warnings. When you make a post, you have the ability to flag it with a content warning. This is a very common practice in the Fediverse when you share something that may be even just a little offensive. I don’t expect you all to go crazy here. But if you’re sharing something sensitive, a content warning would be appreciated.