[lapcat]

Have you looked at a Mastodon archive? The posts are just one giant json file. Good luck finding and reading anything.

The ability to read threads of conversations is totally destroyed with the content cache retention period, and nothing can really recover that for a Mastodon user, not even an archive. That's why it's called an "archive" and not a "backup". Backups can be restored. And indeed, you can't even export/import your posts from one Mastodon instance to another instance.

[jtode]

I was led to believe you could; when I left the main instance, I downloaded my data and have been planning to try uploading it to my new one but have not yet done so. But that's whey they have an export and import page.

But your case is one of demonstrating the strength of Mastodon. If you don't like what Twitter is doing, your only choice is to leave. If you don't like what your instance is doing, you have any number of others to try out.

I'm not defending the server option or its use; I don't have to because it's Mastodon. You should likewise point out the problem in a more constructive way.

And if you find the format unreadable, perhaps you should work on a little code yourself to make a Mastodon Archive Reader app. Or perhaps... oh look, here's a few for you to try:

https://www.google.com/search?channel=fs&client=ubuntu-sn&q=...

You're working very hard to not accept responsibility for your own data. You are not bad for this fact, but you are pretty typical.

[lapcat]

> I was led to believe you could; when I left the main instance, I downloaded my data and have been planning to try uploading it to my new one but have not yet done so. But that's whey they have an export and import page.

Look at the /settings/imports page. These can be imported: following list, bookmarks, lists, muting list, blocking list, domain blocking list. Also, your followers are automatically migrated. Nothing else can be migrated or imported, definitely not your posts.

> You're working very hard to not accept responsibility for your own data.

You're working very hard to absolve Mastodon administrators and developers of any responsibility for user data.

> You are not bad for this fact, but you are pretty typical.

Exactly. If the "price" of joining a social network is becoming an administrator or a developer yourself, then forget it. Hardly anyone wants to deal with all of that crap just to write little social media posts online.

I suspect that in your own mind, you believe that you're defending Mastodon, but in reality this attitude scares most people away from it.

[jtode]

I'm more indifferent than hostile, but you don't need to become an admin. You do, however, have to find the instance that's right for you, and that will take effort.

The only thing I would have a problem with them doing with my data is exploiting it; the idea that they delete it after a period is a selling point for me if it's anything.

[lapcat]

> You do, however, have to find the instance that's right for you, and that will take effort.

This is why I said, "I can't recommend joining an instance other than the biggest one, mastodon.social." I learned this through harsh trial and error. You claim that's not the answer, but for most people it is.

> the idea that they delete it after a period is a selling point for me if it's anything

Good for you, but many people disagree vehemently.

On the other hand, as a user, you have no idea whether the admin has enabled the content cache retention period, and if so, how long it is. So even if it's a "selling point" for you, there's no visible option to "buy".

Also, I don't think you're understanding the technical details of the content cache retention period. It's not deleting your data per se; it's deleting posts from other Mastodon instances. Some of those may be DMs that people sent to you. Some of those may be replies written to you. Some may be posts that you replied to. So I'm not sure what exactly you take to be a selling point.