p.s. For those wondering how this can happen, the .pe domain which gup.pe used has a highly unusual clause which allows anyone to buy the domain 12 days *before* it expires:

"The .CH, .ES, .FR, .LI, .PE, .SG, .COM.SG, .COM.AU, .ORG.AU, .NET.AU TLDs must be renewed 12 days prior to the actual expiration date. If not renewed, the domain will enter the redemption stage right away regardless of the number of days left until expiration."

https://www.namecheap.com/support/knowledgebase/article.aspx/9916/2207/tlds-grace-periods

(Thanks @anonax for info!)

Okay, some really bad news but also a suggestion for a way forward.

The Guppe groups domain name was sold by their registrar before they could renew it. This means all Guppe groups are broken, and their web addresses point to a spam blog

However, there is another group provider called FediGroups, you can find out more on their site:

️ https://about.fedigroups.social/home

FediGroups has features that Guppe never had, including private groups.

(More info about #Guppe situation: https://github.com/immers-space/guppe/issues/118 )

I'm an unpaid volunteer, I run 5 websites and 5 accounts helping people use Mastodon and the wider Fediverse. I pay their bills every month.

If you want to help these sites & accounts keep going, you can buy me a coffee:

️ https://ko-fi.com/fedithing

(No registration, choose any amount, all currencies work, one-off or monthly donations)

Alternatively, become a patron:

️ https://liberapay.com/FediThing

All support greatly appreciated!

️ @FediTips, @FediFollows, @FediVideo, @FediGarden & @homegrown

The "unlisted" or "quiet public" post visibility setting on Mastodon is often misunderstood.

An unlisted post DOES NOT show up in search results, trends, hashtag follows or the Local/Federated timelines.

An unlisted post DOES show up in the Home timelines of your followers, including when you make a thread with replies.

If you want to avoid your own long threads cluttering up followers' Home timelines, use a Fediverse server or platform that supports very high character limits.

#FediTips

Do you have a friend who has joined a different server and you want to follow them, but their account doesn't show up in searches?

The surest way to find each other's profiles is to exchange account addresses with your friend and paste these into the search box in your app or server. You can find your account address on your profile page:

️ https://fedi.tips/whats-my-accounts-address-how-do-i-follow-other-peoples-addresses-how-can-people-follow-my-address

Pasting an account address causes that account's profile to show up on your server, you can then just click "Follow".

#FediTips