I just realized that @RickiTarr has a little over 9,800 followers which is SO close to 10,000.
I know pretty much everyone on Mastodon is already following her because she is the absolute best, but I'm hoping we can find 200 new followers to get her to 10K because I really like multiples of five and 10K is a lovely number.
If you're not already following @RickiTarr, will you please fix this ASAP?
For our second #FollowFriday here (we forgot it last week), we wanted to recommend European search engines 
that have accounts here on Mastodon. 
So we tried to find on Mastodon the European companies listed on this post:
https://social.vivaldi.net/@ueeu/114174129661206035
But unfortunately, very few of them are present on Mastodon. 
We believe that those companies who have chosen to join the Fediverse deserve our attention, even if we have not yet used their services.
By receiving their news in our feeds, we might be inspired to explore their services and be informed about their developments.
So we suggest following these 5 accounts to show your support and witness their growth as it unfolds. 
@MetaGer 
(2.2k followers) - Congrats for having their own instance! 
@StartpageSearch 
(4k followers)
@Mojeek 
(3.3k followers)
@Swisscows 
(69 followers)
There is also the Open Web Search account: @openwebsearcheu. While they are not a company, they are a coalition of European research and computing centers that promotes Europe's independence in web search. If you'd like to be updated about Europe's digital sovereignty and search engine markets, follow them too!
Do you know any other European search engine that deserves a follow? Let us know! 
Happy Friday, techies! Please check out these federated Flipboard sources and Magazines. Follow them for product reviews, trends, exclusive interviews and opinion, and the latest in technology news. 
Keep up to date with social media trends and news with Lifewire, https://flipboard.com/@lifewiretech/social-media-beat-p1a7jmh1z
Gamers: IGN has you covered, with news and game reviews, https://flipboard.com/@ign/gaming-news-and-reviews-s4u82mu1z
AI news overwhelming you? Gizmodo can break it down, https://flipboard.com/@gizmodo/artificial-intelligence-7bv07f1uz
Engadget breaks down trends, news and deals on the newest gear, https://flipboard.com/@engadget/gear-nv6v86arz
A small #FollowFriday this weekend
Boosts appreciated 
#photography #art
@mczachurski
@hiro
@sarbre@gram.social
@CatherineBabault
@MarcTAPAGE2020
@murraylivingston
@lottiephotoca
If you have a blog and you take pictures, join maybe
#the100pics challenge - https://the100.pics
It’s Friday again, and if you’re looking for great accounts to follow, here are some more of my favorites! 
Happy #FollowFriday! 
If you are a #photographer, reply and share one of your photos to brighten my feed today. Or, tag an amazing #photography account you admire and share the love.
Here are four of my favourite #35mm #film photos! You can see more film and digital photos in my themed Portfolios - here https://www.obsidianurbexphotography.com/portfolio/film-photography-colour/
Follow Me if you like my work. Let's share cool photos together!
Another #FollowFriday - University of #Groningen accounts
Should we create a #Groningen #academic #mastodonstarterpack?
@facultyofartsgroningen
@facultyofartsug.bsky.social
Happy Friday, technophiles! Please check out these federated Flipboard sources and Magazines. Follow them for product reviews, trends, exclusive interviews and opinion, and the latest in technology news. 
Keep up with all the latest in crypto at Decrypt Media, https://flipboard.com/@decryptmedia/cryptocurrency-cu2q5hejz
Deciding what to watch on Netflix? BGR has you covered, https://flipboard.com/@bgr/latest-netflix-series-movies-to-watch-jo7ipkkvz
News, reviews and trends from Samsung and Android at Android Authority, https://flipboard.com/@androidauth/samsung-r15spj54z
The latest deals on Google products and services via 9to5Google, https://flipboard.com/@9to5google/google-product-deals-ljj5qt2ez
Can't get enough AI? Gizmodo has up-to-date coverage, https://flipboard.com/@gizmodo/artificial-intelligence-7bv07f1uz
My semi-regular #FollowFriday on #Hive. Lots of interesting people there and not just talking about #cryptocurrency
Finally, our team had a wonderful time at #SXSW on Sunday and Monday, where Flipboard and @surf hosted the first #FediverseHouse. Our CEO @mike and the whole team are 100% #TeamFediverse, and were thrilled to meet and talk to so many other open social web advocates. Here’s a feature by @Markoff for @newyorktimes, where Mike, @Gargron and @reckless1280 discuss the rise of decentralized social media, and how it can help publishers and media companies survive and thrive.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/06/technology/mike-mccue-surf-browser-decentralized-internet.html
When the United States went to war with Iraq, nations from across the world fought with them — including Ukraine, which didn’t ask for money or minerals in return. @timkmak and Myroslava Tanska-Vikulova write for Counteroffensive about the “trend of the Trump administration taking decades-long partnerships as mere leverage for transactions.”
https://www.counteroffensive.news/p/ukraine-fought-alongside-us-in-iraq
Is ranch dressing a liquid or a solid? our @ScienceDesk asked, via @TheConversationUS's Curious Kids series (also good for curious adults). Turns out it’s something called soft matter, like cookie dough, toothpaste, and snot.
https://theconversation.com/is-ranch-dressing-a-liquid-or-a-solid-a-physicist-explains-249435
Utah was one of only a few red states to allow universal vote-by-mail, but not anymore. @bolts’s Alex Burness writes about how the Republican-controlled legislature is about to get rid of the practice, which has been in place since 2019, and is imposing new restrictions on absentee voting too.
https://boltsmag.org/utah-legislation-ending-universal-vote-by-mail/
Mahmoud Ahmed is a national icon of Ethiopia, a musician who rose to prominence during the time of Haile Selassie, and whose songs are known by every generation, though he hasn’t released a new track in decades. Now, he’s retiring, and @thecontinent spoke to him days before his final concert in Addis Ababa. Here’s the interview — writer Maya Misikir suggests listening to it accompanied by Ahmed’s most famous track, “Tizita,” (sometimes known as “Tezeta”) which is a song about nostalgia.
https://continent.substack.com/p/i-would-be-happy-to-die-on-that-stage
#Africa #Ethiopia #MahmoudAhmed #Music ##Tezeta #Tizita #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday
School vouchers sure are good for someone — but it’s not necessarily kids. Here’s @TexasObserver on how in the Lone Star state, the push for school choice could provide a huge payday for private contractors. These certified educational assistance organizations (CEAO) will act as middlemen between the state, parents and private schools — for a fee, of course.
https://www.texasobserver.org/school-vouchers-vendors-millions-legislature/
“The Fediverse Isn’t the Future. It’s the Present We’ve Been Denied.” Here’s yet another brilliant feature by @Daojoan. “The fediverse won’t succeed just because it’s better. It will succeed if and only if people choose it. If they reject the idea that being trapped in someone else’s ecosystem is just the cost of existing online. If they stop believing that “free” means surrendering ownership of your own connections, your own history, your own data. If they see that the internet wasn’t built to be a factory for engagement metrics and AI-generated content farms. It was built to connect us, not silo us to pad a wealth-extremist’s bank account,” she writes.
https://www.joanwestenberg.com/the-fediverse-isnt-the-future-its-the-present-weve-been-denied
Speaking of drained brains and France, here’s a gentle reminder from our @CultureDesk of why America doesn’t actually have a Champagne business.
https://www.foodandwine.com/wine/champagne-sparkling-wine/champagne-basics-explainer
Last week, Aix Marseille University in France offered funding to American scientists who feel like their work is being censored. It’s already seeing great interest from researchers at NASA, Yale and Stanford, and the program may extend through more universities across Europe. “We are witnessing a new brain drain,” Éric Berton, Aix Marseille University’s president, said in a press release. Here’s more from @emanuelmaiberg for @404mediaco
~hyde 
It's 
indie 
sweet actual play streams
unique creators & 
random 
