Commenting with Mastodon
This blog allows people to comment on the posts using Mastodon. So, if you've already got a Mastodon account, feel free to comment on any of the posts! If you don't have an account but are curious about it, then read on.
What's Mastodon?
Mastodon is similar in functionality to Twitter, currently known as X. Both are described on Wikipedia as "social media services with microblogging features".
There are key differences, though.
- X, as is well known, is a huge platform connecting millions of people via a single, central server managed by a for profit company.
- Mastodon, consists of a large number of smaller, interconnected servers running on open source software.
Mastodon was started largely to offer a social network that alleviates many of the problems X seems to have. In particular, each independent server sets its own policies and culture. Thus, individual users can choose a server that best meets their needs. It's easy, for example, to find servers (like Mastodon.Social) that respect privacy and won't use your data for profit.
It's also worth emphasizing that the Mastodon servers are interconnected. Thus, you don't need an account on Mastodon.Social to leave comments there; any server will do.
Mastodon as a commenting system
I've experimented with a few systems to host comments that are then embedded into my sites. I maintain another blog in the Observable Cloud that's very tech focused. The comments there are hosted by GitHub, which makes sense for that community.
Mastodon makes more sense for the broader community, though, and it's super easy to get an account. It's also easy to embed those comments here using Dan Pecos's MastodonComments component.
So, if you'd like to leave a comment on a post, simply hit the "Add comment" button at the bottom of any post, then Create an Account on Mastodon.Social or use the Mastodon server of your choice. You should then be able to leave your comment.
You can even comment on this post below!