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114 changes: 88 additions & 26 deletions methodshub.qmd
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---

# rtoot - Collecting and Analyzing Mastodon Data
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## Description
<!--
1. Provide a brief and exact description of the method clearly mentioning its purpose i.e., what the method does or aims to achieve in abstract terms (avoiding technical details).
2. The focus should be on explaining the method in a way that helps users with different levels of expertise understand what it does, without going into technical details. It should clearly describe what inputs are needed and what outputs can be expected.
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An implementation of calls designed to collect and organize Mastodon data via its Application Program Interfaces (API), which can be found at the following URL: <https://docs.joinmastodon.org/>.

## Keywords
## Use Cases
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1. The use cases section should contain a list of use cases relevant to the social sciences.
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This package was used in [Wähner et al. (2004)](https://doi.org/10.1007/s11616-024-00855-6) for collecting Mastodon data.
Although not using this package, the data from the Mastodon API has been used in various social science publications on platform migration (e.g. [La Cava et al. 2023](https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-48200-7)) and online network formation (e.g. [La Cava, et al. 2021](https://doi.org/10.1007/s41109-021-00392-5)).

* Mastodon
* Decentralized Social Network
* Social Media Data
## Input Data
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## Science use cases
This method does not require any input data.

This package was used in [Wähner et al. (2004)](https://doi.org/10.1007/s11616-024-00855-6) for collecting Mastodon data.
## Output Data
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Although not using this package, the data from the Mastodon API has been used in various social science publications on platform migration (e.g. [La Cava et al. 2023](https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-48200-7)) and online network formation (e.g. [La Cava, et al. 2021](https://doi.org/10.1007/s41109-021-00392-5)).
The output from this software is a [standard tibble](https://cran.r-project.org/package=tibble) of data collected from the Mastodon API.

## Repository structure
## Hardware Requirements
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This repository follows [the standard structure of an R package](https://cran.r-project.org/doc/FAQ/R-exts.html#Package-structure).
This package runs on any hardware that can run R.

## Environment Setup
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With R installed:

```r
install.packages("rtoot")
```

## Input Data

No applicable.

## Sample Input and Output Data

As a data collection software, this tool does not have any "sample input".

The output from this software is a [standard tibble](https://cran.r-project.org/package=tibble) of data collected from the Mastodon API.

## How to Use
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In general, one should first conduct the authentication to obtain an access token. This can be done with the provided function `auth_setup()`. For more information, please refer to the documentation on [authentication](https://gesistsa.github.io/rtoot/articles/auth.html).

However, it is also possible to use some of functions with authentication. For example, it is possible to obtain the public timeline of a Mastodon instance, e.g. sciences.social.

```{r}
Expand All @@ -56,16 +101,33 @@ get_timeline_public(instance = "sciences.social")
```

Other functions, e.g. `get_timeline_hashtag()`, `get_account_statuses()` require authentication.

Please refer to the ["Introduction to rtoot"](https://gesistsa.github.io/rtoot/articles/rtoot.html) for a comprehensive introduction of the package.

## Contact Details

Maintainer: David Schoch <[email protected]>
## Technical Details
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Issue Tracker: [https://github.com/gesistsa/rtoot/issues](https://github.com/gesistsa/rtoot/issues)
See the official [CRAN repository](https://cran.r-project.org/package=rtoot) for further information about technical details.

## Publications
## References
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1. Schoch, D., & Chan, C. H. (2023). Software presentation: Rtoot: Collecting and analyzing Mastodon data. *Mobile Media & Communication*, 11(3), 575-578. <https://doi.org/10.1177/20501579231176678>
2. Wähner, M., Deubel, A., Breuer, J., & Weller, K. "Don't research us"—How Mastodon instance rules connect to research ethics. *Publizistik* 69, 357–380 (2024). <https://doi.org/10.1007/s11616-024-00855-6>

## Contact Details
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Maintainer: David Schoch <[email protected]>
Issue Tracker: [https://github.com/gesistsa/rtoot/issues](https://github.com/gesistsa/rtoot/issues)
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