In the short time since this instance and bot launched, I’ve been seeing the same questions resurface multiple times. This is totally understandable, since the concept of a Fediverse is still new to most (myself included), and this server is not like the others.

Q: What is Lemmit?

A: Lemmit is a Lemmy instance specifically designed for archiving Reddit content. Users can request new subreddits to be included in the archiving process by posting in the !requests@lemmit.online community. It is powered by a python bot, which periodically checks the request list, adds new requests to the queue, and continuously monitors the Hot feed of those subs for new posts to cross-post here.

Q: Does it synchronize comments?

A: No, that would be impossible. Considering there are thousands of posts already on Lemmit, many of them having at least several hundred comments on Reddit, often buried in deep layers, it simply wouldn’t be feasible to index those for more than a few posts, let alone keep them up to date.

Unfortunately, this means that archiving certain subreddits, such as Ask Historians/Men/Women/Hyperintelligentshadesofthecolourblue-type subs, is going to be rather pointless.

Q: Can it send comments back to Reddit?

A: No, it cannot. The purpose is to help bootstrap the Lemmy platform, not to serve as a bridge between the two networks. Also, see the answer about synchronizing comments.

Q: Can I request any subreddit?

A: Technically, yes. However, as the list of subs grows, the time it takes to update all of them will also increase. I do not have strict guidelines in place for this, so I’m relying on your common sense (hoooo boy). At some point, I will probably have to either stop accepting new requests or disable scraping for very low-traffic communities.

Q: Does this use the API? Will it keep working after July 1st?

A: Nope, it uses a combination of the public feed and scraping old.reddit.com. So, as long as those are still available, it will continue working. And even if they close those sources, there will probably be new ways to achieve the same effect. “Content, eh, finds a way.”

Q: What started this?

A: Okay, nobody asked this, but I’m going to tell you anyway. After Reddit made it clear that they are effectively killing third-party apps and implementing plenty of other anti-end user decisions, I realized that I would either have to accept not being able to access my time-wasting content or have to do so in a rather uncomfortable way (either through the official app or old.reddit.com for as long as they’ll allow it to exist).

Being a stubborn developer, naturally, I chose option C: Have my own Reddit. With blackjack, and hookers. This way, I would still be able to access my beloved content without being beholden to Reddit’s mood swings and abusive relationship tendencies.

Q: Are NSFW subreddits allowed?

A: Absolutely. Like I said: Blackjack and hookers.

Q: My request isn’t picked up by the bot!

A: That isn’t a question. But yeah, the process isn’t flawless yet. I’m trying to iron out all the bugs as I encounter them. In the meantime, feel free to re-request the subreddit by making a second post. No harm done.

Q: No new posts are showing up at all on Lemmit

A: If no posts are appearing on the Lemmit Frontpage (sorted by NEW), it’s possible that the bot has crashed or is stuck on something. Since no software is flawless, this sometimes happens. I usually fix this as soon as I’m aware, and I’m happy to say that these kinds of fatal errors are becoming less and less frequent. However, they may still occur, and as a human with needs of sleep and other responsibilities, I’m not always able to fix them immediately.

Q: Posts aren’t showing up on my instance, what’s up?

A: First, check if any posts show up on the frontpage (see previous question). Other than that - I wish I had an answer to this. I’m not an expert on the inner workings of the Lemmy service. If you’re an experienced Lemmy admin and think you may have a clue, please reach out.