From 3338c018f6c56aa8fc89d76ca4872b755ae1bada Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Eugen Date: Sat, 12 Nov 2016 02:07:36 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] Updated FAQ (markdown) --- FAQ.md | 8 +++++++- 1 file changed, 7 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/FAQ.md b/FAQ.md index b18e11f..ad0b9e8 100644 --- a/FAQ.md +++ b/FAQ.md @@ -28,4 +28,10 @@ The "flagship" instance of Mastodon, aka the server I run myself with the latest #### What else is part of the federated network? -Let's call it the "fediverse". It has existed for a longer while, populated by GNU social servers, Friendica, Hubzilla, Diaspora etc. Not every one of those servers is fully compatible with every other. Mastodon strives to be fully standards-compliant and compatibility with GNU social is higher in priority than the others. \ No newline at end of file +Let's call it the "fediverse". It has existed for a longer while, populated by GNU social servers, Friendica, Hubzilla, Diaspora etc. Not every one of those servers is fully compatible with every other. Mastodon strives to be fully standards-compliant and compatibility with GNU social is higher in priority than the others. + +#### I tried logging into a GNU social client app with Mastodon and it didn't work, why? + +While Mastodon is compatible with GNU social in terms of server to server communication, the client to server API (aka how you access Mastodon) is different. Therefore, client apps that were made for specifically GNU social will not work with Mastodon. The reason for this is half technical, half ideological. + +Because Mastodon has been created from a blank slate, it is much simpler to have the API mirror internal structures as closely as possible, rather than build an emulation layer. Secondly, the GNU social client API is actually a half-way implementation of the legacy Twitter API - that's the reason why it works with some older Twitter client apps. However, many of those apps are not maintained anymore, the GNU social API does not actually keep up with the real Twitter API and never fully implemented all its features; at the same time, the Twitter API was never meant for a federated service and so obscures some of the functionality. \ No newline at end of file