*banned 4 MarkDown love* @design_RG@qoto.org

@freemo @hansw@mastodon.social

I imagine a tool that allows a user to explore their backup archive like a small database would be good.

Similar display to how Pinafore displays toots, for example. That I could open my profile and see the Toots, just like if I visited the profile in the live instance.

Searching for keywords, displaying results and allowing viewing the toot.

At that point, maybe the tool could copy or save the toot to a text file (just plain text, or maybe markdown if included; plus any attached media, exported in the same format as store in the archive.) The mastodon headers, etc not necessary.

With that exported text, a new post could be made in a live new account, somewhere -- in a manual mode. I would love to be able to access that large backup archive this way as I have lots of content rich posts.

**This would be a Life Saver for everyone**, as we do know **instances do implode and disappear all the time**.

To do a full import of original contents from the archive into a new live instance involves a myriad complications; which is why we don't have that so far, and maybe won't ever.

There's info all over the fediverse, pointers, links, timestamps, etc - I wouldn't imagine a backup export could be imported into a new account and post in it with the original content and original timestamps -- that would not be real, and really weird, I feel.

Thank you all for reading this and considering the request.

@cy @Gargron @olamundo

@freemo

If someone could take a shot at creating a JSON viewer, with the proper intelligence to handle the mastodon exported archive, it would already be a HUGE improvement.

Currently, **there's no tool that I know of** -- and [I have posted **a detailed Blog on this**](https://write.tedomum.net/rgx/mastodon-options-for-moving-an-account), and asked friends in various instances.

Got a few pointers but the only viewer I could use was not intended for this and a bit cumbersome.

We are potentially looking at large amounts of personal data; **7000 plus toots, thousands of images in my 450 MB archive**, from this account here at Qoto.

Importing the data into a new instance has big difficulties as it will be propagating to other instances, etc. So this is a difficult and critical job.

**But an archive handler which can navigate the saved data would advance things a lot** and not pose this type of problem. We would be very grateful to anyone who took that project on.

@cy @Gargron @olamundo

@Phaedrus LOLL... Thannks, good chuckle here1!

@cy

> They… that… they didn’t just delete his account. They impersonated him, spamming other instances with fake Delete messages, to trick them into helping retroactively censor him, regardless of their ToSes. Because he may have spoken with someone who was likely to be a wingnut.

Very true -- that is one angle I hadn't thought about. In fact, the account deletion at the one instance, a huge Abuse of Power considering the circumstances (honestly and clearly documented in the blog post, linked above in a previous comment), that also meant a deletion of the user account content EVERYWHERE.

I have read and thought about the way Hubzilla does things, and it seems a lot better. There, we can pack up at move, with ALL our content preserved, intact.

Which is impossible in Mastodon. The only tool offered is a backup archive creation. This archive, with all toots, images etc, currently cannot be imported in any other instance; and there's no software to view it, to retrieve a toot's text or the attached media, etc.

Not only the @admin did this, surprising since their is supposed to be a Left wing instance, (which I am aligned with).

I had the displeasure to see a good friend lose completely his account and all data from mastodon.social - and no appeal was possible or got any results.

No abuse from this user either. We need smaller instances and closer control of our data, plus portability.

@Gargron

@freemo @olamundo

@torresjrjr not likely, as the State there has active surveillance and censorship. So it wouldn't happen unless they decided to allow it.

@olamundo @freemo

There is a lot of back history involved. Some admins don't like the terms of service used at Qoto -- **specifically some quite Libertarian statements** on it which I personally have made motions to change.

In some other cases it's because this instance did not block some other instance which they found deplorable and a nest of iniquity, etc.

I have been out in Diplomatic missions in the past, but not much resulted -- other than me sending detailed correspondence and sometimes being :

* told to not contact them again.
* or losing my local account at that instance for the attempt.
* or simply getting a polite rebuff on the attempt, which appears the most positive result.

#QOTO is **perceived negatively in some quarters** - and that has implications on **who sees your posts here as well**.

See these two blog posts for detailed info on some of my past attempts :

https://write.tedomum.net/rgx/when-you-discover-your-instance-is-blocked

https://write.tedomum.net/rgx/todon-nl-admin-reacts-to-polite-inquiries

@olamundo @freemo
> Is our instance blocked? Do we know when we get blocked and by whom?

Sometimes an instance will list their policies and any restricted or blocked instances in their About/More page. That is the case with Renato's instance, which has a wonderful and detailed page.

https://masto.donte.com.br/about/more#unavailable-content

Not all do, and some don't like to even get asked the question. 😛

## What The Netherlands would naturally look like...

...**if they hadn't built any dikes** to prevent flooding.

#Geography #Engineering

@freemo @olamundo Yes, there's a block on the remote server side.

I do have an account there as well. 😺

@mikelalasmuto Son todas Rubias. 😜

Y Americanas.

@ccc
> The pinned posts point is also good. That means I can take my time, figure out the perfect introductory post, and then pin it at my leisure!

Yes, that is always possible. Plus it can be edited and a new version created any time you want.

Pinned posts are great. I don't keep an 'Introductions' post here at Qoto, but [do have it at another couple of accounts in other instances](https://muensterland.social/@rgx/104278768548989947).

Really helps finding connections with relevant people, as they can read more about ut in one single, highlighted spot.

@Phaedrus > I guess I didn’t pass

LOL, no it's not supposed to show up - but **the lack of a space between the Hashmark and the following text** did not render it as a Heading 4 as you intended. E.g :

##### This is a Heading 4 line.

#####This is **NOT a Heading 4** line.

You are very welcome -- I had thought that Markdown would really enhance your posts. Glad you took the tutorial and enjoyed it. It's really excellent.

A tip for debugging Markdown enhanced posts -- if I am using fancy formatting, a good way to make sure there's no errors and everything is perfect is to :

* Set the post Privacy to 'Direct message' and add an address you own somewhere.

* Create the post with all the intended pizzazz. Post it.

* Then look at in (either on the remote instance you addressed it to, or in your own profile, under Direct Messages).

* Anything off, not right? Use Delete/REdraft to bring the post up for editing. Send it again.

* Check it until it's perfect. Then...

* One last Delete/REdraft -- this one to Change the Privacy level to Public (or other level if desired). Remove the DM's attribution address from the message.

* Hit send and enjoy a perfectly formatted post without ever showing the intermediate staps in public view.

I use this method and it works excellent. Good luck!

@gramos Very nicely done. 😃

Welcome, Gramos.

## "The Election that could break America"

A repost from my [original Toot at **Muensterland.social**](https://muensterland.social/@rgx/104920018749024139) -- an important article which got the cover for The Atlantic's November issue.

Turns out we have tension, unclear path ahead and it's a good reference. Recommended.

***Original post follows.***

Must-read, excellent in depth article at The Atlantic -- discussing the what ifs and the possible avenues for the current president to dispute a loss in the upcoming election. ***And refuse to yield to a loss***.

> There is a cohort of close observers of our presidential elections, scholars and lawyers and political strategists, who find themselves in the uneasy position of intelligence analysts in the months before 9/11. As November 3 approaches, their screens are blinking red, alight with warnings that the political system does not know how to absorb. They see the obvious signs that we all see, but they also know subtle things that most of us do not. Something dangerous has hove into view, and the nation is lurching into its path.
>
> The danger is not merely that the 2020 election will bring discord. Those who fear something worse take turbulence and controversy for granted. The coronavirus pandemic, a reckless incumbent, a deluge of mail-in ballots, a vandalized Postal Service, a resurgent effort to suppress votes, and a trainload of lawsuits are bearing down on the nation’s creaky electoral machinery."

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/11/what-if-trump-refuses-concede/616424/

@ccc @ElektrikChameleon
> Oh... so it needs to be tagged with Introductions?

It helps if someone is searching for that specific hash tag. Otherwise there's no difference -- you could create a personal introduction post without any hash tags at all.

I would recommend using the Introductions one. I do not like a list of hashtags and no text at all; it's a personal introduction, after all.

The 'shopping list' hash fest is not useful in that, I feel. But you are free to do it whichever way you prefer.

Words count. We have a large, 65 thousand charactes space per toot here, so don't be shy.

@ccc
> Whatever else I do, this will always be at the top of my timeline. However things change.

Welcome to Qoto and the Fediverse. 😃

The posts here will show in reverse chronological order in your profile -- the most recent ones always at the top.

You can have up to 5 'Pinned posts' - which you select at will; important ones you would like people to see first when visiting.

So there's lots of opportunities for craking that awesome post; the pinned ones on my profile had been there for a long time, and I still like them.

Enjoy your stay. We have some good user guides that can be suggested here if you like; just let me know.

@realcaseyrollins

Oh, yes -- there's a lot of different cases that might come forward. As mentioned in the article linkd.

Obstruction of Justice is a big one, and that could arise. Plus NY taxes, the NYT did an exposé of what their family had been doing for years and years.

More recently also. The Washington Post has some excellent articles with details.

Have you seen the story of his Chicago building? He got hundreds of millions of dollars in loans cancelled by the creditors. (you would think they would have learned after all the similar losses that equally happened in the 90s; all those Atlantic City casino bankruptcies.

If it wasn't for the Deutsche Bank being silly and loaning him money (which the US banks wouldn't, knowing the past stories) History would be different.

Most of the 2000's activity of the company depended solely from foreign banks. I am not even mentioning the Russian ones, as details on those are shadier and less well known.