Oh huh! I hadn't realised that it *IS* possible to have an additional hashtag search column without actually following it. (Following the tag would clutter your normal Home timeline.) Do not click Follow for the tag but instead open Settings for the column and Pin it, then Settings again to add other tags if you want. An example I recorded:

#hashtag #search #mastodon #timeline #tutorial #AdvancedView #MastodonSearch #HashtagSearch #HashtagFollow #ColumnView #PinColumns

Pro mastodon #tip: Enable advanced web interface in settings, and you can get as many extra columns as you want. You can the follow one or many #hashtags in each column by pinning them there. It’s an easy way to find posts of interest

#ColumnView #BetterMastodon

Pro mastodon #tip: Enable advanced web interface in settings, and you can get as many extra columns as you want. You can the follow one or many #hashtags in each column by pinning them there. It’s an easy way to find posts of interest

#ColumnView #BetterMastodon