diff --git a/src/en/users/01-getting-started.md b/src/en/users/01-getting-started.md index 5a2f173..5e33fb5 100644 --- a/src/en/users/01-getting-started.md +++ b/src/en/users/01-getting-started.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ ## Choosing an instance -If you are used to sites like Reddit, then Lemmy works in a fundamentally different way. Instead of a single website like reddit.com, there are many different websites (called *instances*). These are operated by different people, have different topics and rules. Nevertheless, posts created one instance can directly be seen by users who are registered on another. Its basically like email, but for social media. +If you are used to sites like Reddit, then Lemmy works in a fundamentally different way. Instead of a single website like reddit.com, there are many different websites (called _instances_). These are operated by different people, have different topics and rules. Nevertheless, posts created one instance can directly be seen by users who are registered on another. Its basically like email, but for social media. This means before using Lemmy and registering an account, you need to pick an instance. For this you can browse the [instance list](https://join-lemmy.org/instances) and look for one that matches your topics of interest. You can also see if the rules match your expectations, and how many users there are. It is better to avoid very big or very small instances. But don't worry too much about this choice, you can always create another account on a different instance later. @@ -8,29 +8,30 @@ This means before using Lemmy and registering an account, you need to pick an in ## Registration -Once you chose an instance, it's time to create your account. To do this, click *sign up* in the top right of the page, or click the top right button on mobile to open a menu with *sign up* link. +Once you chose an instance, it's time to create your account. To do this, click _sign up_ in the top right of the page, or click the top right button on mobile to open a menu with _sign up_ link. [registration page screenshot] On the signup page you need to enter a few things: -- **Username**: How do you want to be called? This name can not be changed and is unique within an instance. Later you can also set a *displayname* which can be freely changed. If your desired username is taken, consider choosing a different instance where it is still available. +- **Username**: How do you want to be called? This name can not be changed and is unique within an instance. Later you can also set a _displayname_ which can be freely changed. If your desired username is taken, consider choosing a different instance where it is still available. - **Email**: Your email address. This is used for password resets and notifications (if enabled). Providing an email address is usually optional, but admins may choose to make it mandatory. In this case you will have to wait for a confirmation mail and click the link after completing this form. - **Password**: The password for logging in to your account. Make sure to choose a long and unique password which isn't used on any other website. - **Verify password**: Repeat the same password from above to ensure that it was entered correctly. There are also a few optional fields, which you may need to fill in depending on the instance configuration: + - **Question/Answer**: Instance admins can set an arbitrary question which needs to be answered in order to create an account. This is often used to prevent spam bots from signing up. After submitting the form, you will need to wait for some time until the answer is approved manually before you can login. -- **Code**: A captcha which is easy to solve for humans but hard for bots. Enter the letters and numbers that you see in the text box, ignoring uppercase or lowercase. Click the refresh button if you are unable to read a character. The *play* button plays an audio version of the captcha. +- **Code**: A captcha which is easy to solve for humans but hard for bots. Enter the letters and numbers that you see in the text box, ignoring uppercase or lowercase. Click the refresh button if you are unable to read a character. The _play_ button plays an audio version of the captcha. - **Show NSFW content**: Here you can choose if content that is "not safe for work" (or adult-only) should be shown. -When you are done, press the *sign up* button. +When you are done, press the _sign up_ button. It depends on the instance configuration when you can login and start using the account. In case the email is mandatory, you need to wait for the confirmation email and click the link first. In case "Question/Answer" is present, you need to wait for an admin to manually review and approve your registration. If you have problems with the registration, try to get in contact with the admin for support. You can also choose a different instance to sign up if your primary choice does not work. ## Following communities -After logging in to your new account, its time to follow communities that you are interested in. For this you can click on the *communities* link at the top of the page (on mobile, you need to click the menu icon on the top right first). You will see a list of communities which can be filtered by subscribed, local or all. Local communities are those which are hosted on the same site where you are signed in, while *all* also contains federated communities from other instances. In any case you can directly subscribe to communities with the right-hand subscribe link. Or click on the community name to browse the community first, see what its posted and what the rules are before subscribing. +After logging in to your new account, its time to follow communities that you are interested in. For this you can click on the _communities_ link at the top of the page (on mobile, you need to click the menu icon on the top right first). You will see a list of communities which can be filtered by subscribed, local or all. Local communities are those which are hosted on the same site where you are signed in, while _all_ also contains federated communities from other instances. In any case you can directly subscribe to communities with the right-hand subscribe link. Or click on the community name to browse the community first, see what its posted and what the rules are before subscribing. Another way to find communities to subscribe to is by going to the front page and browsing the posts. If there is something that interests you, click on the post title to see more details and comments. Here you can subscribe to the community in the right-hand sidebar, or by clicking the "sidebar" button on mobile. @@ -65,8 +66,8 @@ On this page you can also change the email and password. Additionally there are ## Start posting -Finally its time to start posting! To do this it is always a good idea to read the community rules in the sidebar (below the *Subscribe* button). When you are ready, go to a post and type your comment in the box directly below for a top-level reply. You can also write a nested reply to an existing comment, by clicking the left-pointing arrow. +Finally its time to start posting! To do this it is always a good idea to read the community rules in the sidebar (below the _Subscribe_ button). When you are ready, go to a post and type your comment in the box directly below for a top-level reply. You can also write a nested reply to an existing comment, by clicking the left-pointing arrow. -Other than commenting on existing posts, you can also create new posts. To do this, click the button *Create a post* in the sidebar. Here you can optionally supply an external link or upload an image. The title field is mandatory and should describe what you are posting. The body is again optional, and gives space for long texts. You can also embed additional images here. The *Community* dropdown below allows choosing a different community to post in. With *NSFW* posts can be marked as "not safe for work". Finally you can specify the language that the post is written in, and then click on *Create*. +Other than commenting on existing posts, you can also create new posts. To do this, click the button _Create a post_ in the sidebar. Here you can optionally supply an external link or upload an image. The title field is mandatory and should describe what you are posting. The body is again optional, and gives space for long texts. You can also embed additional images here. The _Community_ dropdown below allows choosing a different community to post in. With _NSFW_ posts can be marked as "not safe for work". Finally you can specify the language that the post is written in, and then click on _Create_. -One more possibility is to write private messages to individual users. To do this, simply visit a user profile and click *Send message*. You will be notified about new private messages and comment replies with the bell icon in the top right. \ No newline at end of file +One more possibility is to write private messages to individual users. To do this, simply visit a user profile and click _Send message_. You will be notified about new private messages and comment replies with the bell icon in the top right. diff --git a/src/en/users/02-media.md b/src/en/users/02-media.md index 0e3fa37..93b6d66 100644 --- a/src/en/users/02-media.md +++ b/src/en/users/02-media.md @@ -24,6 +24,6 @@ The main type of content in Lemmy is text which can be formatted with Markdown. ## Images and video -Lemmy also allows sharing images and videos. To upload an image, go to the *Create post* page and click the little image icon under the *URL* field. This allows you to select a local image. If you made a mistake, a popup message allows you to delete the image. The same image button also allows uploading videos in .gif format. Instead of uploading a local file, you can also simply paste the URL of an image or video from another website. +Lemmy also allows sharing images and videos. To upload an image, go to the _Create post_ page and click the little image icon under the _URL_ field. This allows you to select a local image. If you made a mistake, a popup message allows you to delete the image. The same image button also allows uploading videos in .gif format. Instead of uploading a local file, you can also simply paste the URL of an image or video from another website. -Note that this functionality is not meant to share large images or videos, because that would require too many server resources. Instead, upload them on another platform like [Peertube](https://joinpeertube.org/) or [Pixelfed](https://pixelfed.org/), and share the link on Lemmy. \ No newline at end of file +Note that this functionality is not meant to share large images or videos, because that would require too many server resources. Instead, upload them on another platform like [Peertube](https://joinpeertube.org/) or [Pixelfed](https://pixelfed.org/), and share the link on Lemmy. diff --git a/src/en/users/03-votes-and-ranking.md b/src/en/users/03-votes-and-ranking.md index cbdcb17..4e848b4 100644 --- a/src/en/users/03-votes-and-ranking.md +++ b/src/en/users/03-votes-and-ranking.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ ## Votes and ranking -Lemmy uses a voting system to sort post listings. On the left side of each post are up and down arrows, which let you *upvote* or *downvote* it. You can upvote posts that you like so that more users will see them. Or downvote posts so that they are less likely to be seen. Each post receives a score which is the number of upvotes minus number of downvotes. +Lemmy uses a voting system to sort post listings. On the left side of each post are up and down arrows, which let you _upvote_ or _downvote_ it. You can upvote posts that you like so that more users will see them. Or downvote posts so that they are less likely to be seen. Each post receives a score which is the number of upvotes minus number of downvotes. When browsing the frontpage or a community, you can choose between the following sort types for posts: @@ -18,11 +18,11 @@ When browsing the frontpage or a community, you can choose between the following Comments are by default arranged in a hierarchy which shows at a glance who it is replying to. Top-level comments which reply directly to a post are on the very left, not indented at all. Comments that are responding to top-level comments are indented one level, and each further level of indentation means that the comment is deeper in the conversation. With this layout it is always easy to see the context for a given comment, simply scroll up to the next comment which is indented one level less. -Comments can be sorted in the following ways. These all keep the indentation intact, so only replies to the same parent are shuffled around. +Comments can be sorted in the following ways. These all keep the indentation intact, so only replies to the same parent are shuffled around. -- **Hot** (default): Equivalent to the *Hot* sort for posts +- **Hot** (default): Equivalent to the _Hot_ sort for posts - **Top**: Shows comments with highest score first - **New**: Shows most recent comments first - **Old**: Shows oldest comments first -Additionally there is a sort option **Chat**. This eliminates the hierarchy, and puts all comments on the top level, with newest comments shown at the top. It is useful to see new replies at any point in the conversation, but makes it difficult to see the context. \ No newline at end of file +Additionally there is a sort option **Chat**. This eliminates the hierarchy, and puts all comments on the top level, with newest comments shown at the top. It is useful to see new replies at any point in the conversation, but makes it difficult to see the context. diff --git a/src/en/users/04-moderation.md b/src/en/users/04-moderation.md index 4a010ee..2a2d996 100644 --- a/src/en/users/04-moderation.md +++ b/src/en/users/04-moderation.md @@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ All moderation actions are taken on the context menu of posts or comments. Click ![moderation_02.png](moderation_02.png) | Action | Result | Permission level | -|--------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------| +| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------- | | Lock | Prevents making new comments under the post | Moderator | | Sticky (Community) | Pin the publication to the top of the community listing | Moderator | | Sticky (Local) | Pin the publication to the top of the frontpage | Admin | @@ -29,5 +29,5 @@ All moderation actions are taken on the context menu of posts or comments. Click | Appoint as mod | Gives the user moderator status | Moderator | | Ban from site | Ban user from interacting with the community, but can still use the rest of the site. There is also an option to remove all existing posts. | Admin | | Purge user | Completely delete the user, including all posts and uploaded media. Use with caution. | Admin | -| Purge post/comment | Completely delete the post, including attached media. | Admin | +| Purge post/comment | Completely delete the post, including attached media. | Admin | | Appoint as admin | Gives the user administrator status | Admin | diff --git a/src/en/users/05-censorship-resistance.md b/src/en/users/05-censorship-resistance.md index 7f33aaf..6c0ac8d 100644 --- a/src/en/users/05-censorship-resistance.md +++ b/src/en/users/05-censorship-resistance.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ ## Censorship resistance -Today's social media landscape is extremely centralised. The vast majority of users are concentrated on only a handful of platforms like Facebook, Reddit or Twitter. All of these are maintained by large corporations that are subject to profit motive and United States law. In recent years these platforms have increasingly censored users and entire communities, often with questionable justifications. It is only natural that those who are affected by this search for alternatives. This document is intended to help with the evaluation. +Today's social media landscape is extremely centralised. The vast majority of users are concentrated on only a handful of platforms like Facebook, Reddit or Twitter. All of these are maintained by large corporations that are subject to profit motive and United States law. In recent years these platforms have increasingly censored users and entire communities, often with questionable justifications. It is only natural that those who are affected by this search for alternatives. This document is intended to help with the evaluation. For this purpose we will consider as censorship anything that prevents a person from expressing their opinion, regardless of any moral considerations. All the options explained here also have legitimate uses, such as deleting spam. Nevertheless it is important for users to understand why their posts are getting removed and how to avoid it. @@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ The first and most common source of censorship in this sense is the admin of a g The second source of censorship is through legal means. This often happens for copyright violation, but can also be used for other cases. What usually happens in this case is that the instance admin receives a takedown notice from the hosting provider or domain registrar. If the targeted content is not removed within a few days, the site gets taken down. The only way to avoid this is to choose the hosting company and country carefully, and avoid those which might consider the content as illegal. -Another way to censor is through social pressure on admins. This can range from spamming reports for unwanted content, to public posts from influental community members *demanding* to take certain content down. Such pressure can keep mounting for days or weeks, making it seem like everyone supports these demands. But in fact it is often nothing more than a vocal minority. It is the task of admins to gauge the true opinion of their community. Community members should also push back if a minority tries to impose its views on everyone else. +Another way to censor is through social pressure on admins. This can range from spamming reports for unwanted content, to public posts from influental community members _demanding_ to take certain content down. Such pressure can keep mounting for days or weeks, making it seem like everyone supports these demands. But in fact it is often nothing more than a vocal minority. It is the task of admins to gauge the true opinion of their community. Community members should also push back if a minority tries to impose its views on everyone else. All of this shows that it is relatively easy to censor a single Lemmy instance. Even a group of instances can be censored if share the same admin team, hosting infrastructure or country. Here it is important that an admin can only censor content on his own instance, or communities which are hosted on his instance. Other instances will be unaffected. So if there is a problem with censorship, it can always be solved by using a different Lemmy instance, or creating a new one. @@ -16,4 +16,4 @@ But what if the goal was to censor the entire Lemmy network? This is inherently Lastly it might be possible to abuse software vulnerabilities for network-wide censorship. Imagine a bug in Lemmy or in the underlying software stack which allows the attacker to delete arbitrary content. This could remain undetected for a while if used sparingly, but would certainly be discovered after some time. And experience has shown that such critical flaws are fixed very quickly in open source software. It is also highly unlikely that critical vulnerabilities be present in multiple different Fediverse platforms at the same time. -In conclusion, the best way to avoid censorship on Lemmy is through the existince of many independent instances. These should have different admins, different hosting providers and be located in different countries. Additionally users should follow the development process to watch for changes that might create a centralized point of control for all instances. Based on this explanation it should be clear that censorship on Lemmy is difficult, and can always be circumvented. This is in contrast to centralized platforms like Facebook or Reddit. They are not open source and can't be self-hosted, so it is necessary to switch to an entirely different platform to avoid censorship. And due to lack of federation, such a switch means losing contact with users who decide to stay on the censored platform. \ No newline at end of file +In conclusion, the best way to avoid censorship on Lemmy is through the existince of many independent instances. These should have different admins, different hosting providers and be located in different countries. Additionally users should follow the development process to watch for changes that might create a centralized point of control for all instances. Based on this explanation it should be clear that censorship on Lemmy is difficult, and can always be circumvented. This is in contrast to centralized platforms like Facebook or Reddit. They are not open source and can't be self-hosted, so it is necessary to switch to an entirely different platform to avoid censorship. And due to lack of federation, such a switch means losing contact with users who decide to stay on the censored platform. diff --git a/src/en/users/06-other-features.md b/src/en/users/06-other-features.md index 1273a7a..df59c95 100644 --- a/src/en/users/06-other-features.md +++ b/src/en/users/06-other-features.md @@ -8,10 +8,10 @@ Lemmy is written in Rust, which is an extremely fast language. Thats why it has ## Language Tags -Lemmy instances and communities can specify which languages can be used for posting. Consider an instance aimed at Spanish users, it would limit the posting language to Spanish so that other languages can't be used. Or an international instance which only allows languages that the admin team understands. Community languages work in the same way, and are restricted to a subset of the instance languages. By default all languages are allowed (including *undefined*). +Lemmy instances and communities can specify which languages can be used for posting. Consider an instance aimed at Spanish users, it would limit the posting language to Spanish so that other languages can't be used. Or an international instance which only allows languages that the admin team understands. Community languages work in the same way, and are restricted to a subset of the instance languages. By default all languages are allowed (including _undefined_). Users can also specify which languages they speak, and will only see content in those languages. Lemmy tries to smartly select a default language for new posts if possible. Otherwise you have to specify the language manually. ## Lemmy as a blog -Lemmy can also function as a blogging platform. Doing this is as simple as creating a community and enabling the option "Only moderators can post to this community". Now only you and other people that you invite can create posts, while everyone else can comment. Like any Lemmy community, it is also possible to follow from other Fediverse platforms and over RSS. For advanced usage it is even possible to use the API and create a different frontend which looks more blog-like. \ No newline at end of file +Lemmy can also function as a blogging platform. Doing this is as simple as creating a community and enabling the option "Only moderators can post to this community". Now only you and other people that you invite can create posts, while everyone else can comment. Like any Lemmy community, it is also possible to follow from other Fediverse platforms and over RSS. For advanced usage it is even possible to use the API and create a different frontend which looks more blog-like. diff --git a/src/en/users/07-history-of-lemmy.md b/src/en/users/07-history-of-lemmy.md index 743fe97..3c4f687 100644 --- a/src/en/users/07-history-of-lemmy.md +++ b/src/en/users/07-history-of-lemmy.md @@ -18,4 +18,4 @@ We’ve also seen a rise in anti-China posts that have hit Reddit lately, and al The idea for making a Reddit alternative seemed pointless, until Mastodon (a federated twitter alternative), started becoming popular. Using Activitypub (a protocol / common language that social media services can use to speak to each other), we finally have a solution to the “first mover” advantage: now someone can build or run a small site, but still be connected to a wider universe of users. -Nutomic and I originally made Lemmy to fill the role as a federated alternative to Reddit, but as it grows, it has the potential become a main source of news and discussion, existing outside of the US’s jurisdictional domain and control. \ No newline at end of file +Nutomic and I originally made Lemmy to fill the role as a federated alternative to Reddit, but as it grows, it has the potential become a main source of news and discussion, existing outside of the US’s jurisdictional domain and control.