README.md

   1 ![Mastodon](https://i.imgur.com/NhZc40l.png)
   2 ========
   3
   4 [![Build Status](http://img.shields.io/travis/tootsuite/mastodon.svg)][travis]
   5 [![Code Climate](https://img.shields.io/codeclimate/github/tootsuite/mastodon.svg)][code_climate]
   6
   7 [travis]: https://travis-ci.org/tootsuite/mastodon
   8 [code_climate]: https://codeclimate.com/github/tootsuite/mastodon
   9
  10 Mastodon is a **free, open-source social network server** based on **open web protocols** like ActivityPub and OStatus. The social focus of the project is a viable decentralized alternative to commercial social media silos that returns the control of the content distribution channels to the people. The technical focus of the project is a good user interface, a clean REST API for 3rd party apps and robust anti-abuse tools.
  11
  12 Click on the screenshot below to watch a demo of the UI:
  13
  14 [![Screenshot](https://i.imgur.com/pG3Nnz3.jpg)][youtube_demo]
  15
  16 [youtube_demo]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YO1jQ8_rAMU
  17
  18 **Ruby on Rails** is used for the back-end, while **React.js** and Redux are used for the dynamic front-end. A static front-end for public resources (profiles and statuses) is also provided.
  19
  20 If you would like, you can [support the development of this project on Patreon][patreon]. Alternatively, you can donate to this BTC address: `17j2g7vpgHhLuXhN4bueZFCvdxxieyRVWd`
  21
  22 [patreon]: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=619786
  23
  24 ---
  25
  26 ## Resources
  27
  28 - [Frequently Asked Questions](https://github.com/tootsuite/documentation/blob/master/Using-Mastodon/FAQ.md)
  29 - [Use this tool to find Twitter friends on Mastodon](https://bridge.joinmastodon.org)
  30 - [API overview](https://github.com/tootsuite/documentation/blob/master/Using-the-API/API.md)
  31 - [List of Mastodon instances](https://github.com/tootsuite/documentation/blob/master/Using-Mastodon/List-of-Mastodon-instances.md)
  32 - [List of apps](https://github.com/tootsuite/documentation/blob/master/Using-Mastodon/Apps.md)
  33 - [List of sponsors](https://joinmastodon.org/sponsors)
  34
  35 ## Features
  36
  37 **No vendor lock-in: Fully interoperable with any conforming platform**
  38
  39 It doesn't have to be Mastodon, whatever implements ActivityPub or OStatus is part of the social network!
  40
  41 **Real-time timeline updates**
  42
  43 See the updates of people you're following appear in real-time in the UI via WebSockets. There's a firehose view as well!
  44
  45 **Federated thread resolving**
  46
  47 If someone you follow replies to a user unknown to the server, the server fetches the full thread so you can view it without leaving the UI
  48
  49 **Media attachments like images and short videos**
  50
  51 Upload and view images and WebM/MP4 videos attached to the updates. Videos with no audio track are treated like GIFs; normal videos are looped - like vines!
  52
  53 **OAuth2 and a straightforward REST API**
  54
  55 Mastodon acts as an OAuth2 provider so 3rd party apps can use the API
  56
  57 **Fast response times**
  58
  59 Mastodon tries to be as fast and responsive as possible, so all long-running tasks are delegated to background processing
  60
  61 **Deployable via Docker**
  62
  63 You don't need to mess with dependencies and configuration if you want to try Mastodon, if you have Docker and Docker Compose the deployment is extremely easy
  64
  65 ---
  66
  67 ## Development
  68
  69 Please follow the [development guide](https://github.com/tootsuite/documentation/blob/master/Running-Mastodon/Development-guide.md) from the documentation repository.
  70
  71 ## Deployment
  72
  73 There are guides in the documentation repository for [deploying on various platforms](https://github.com/tootsuite/documentation#running-mastodon).
  74
  75 ## Contributing
  76
  77 You can open issues for bugs you've found or features you think are missing. You can also submit pull requests to this repository. [Here are the guidelines for code contributions](CONTRIBUTING.md)
  78
  79 **IRC channel**: #mastodon on irc.freenode.net
  80
  81 ---
  82
  83 ## Extra credits
  84
  85 The elephant friend illustrations are created by [Dopatwo](https://mastodon.social/@dopatwo)