Max Kennerly

Twitter messed up by allowing locked accounts to quote tweet, thereby empowering harassment by making it impossible to find and block the source.

Mastodon takes the opposite extreme by preventing quoting entirely, which I must admit inhibits they way I often promote other people's tweets / articles / etc with a favorable quote-tweet.

Here's the long-standing explanation why: https://fedi.tips/how-to-use-mastodon-and-the-fediverse-basic-tips/#WhyCantIQuoteOtherPostsInMastodon

How To Use Mastodon and the Fediverse: Basic Tips | Fedi.Tips – An Unofficial Guide to Mastodon and the Fediverse

An unofficial guide to using Mastodon and the Fediverse

Nov 6, 2022 at 1:19amWeb
Show threadParker MolloyNov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly this is really interesting
Show threadwarrior rabbit Nov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly I really dislike the absence of the QT.
Show threadGlenn FleishmanNov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly I am fascinated by the scope-limiting controls, too. I would love to see geotagged controls: only visible for people who identify as in certain places (so not invisible, but able to scope for things like lost people, cats, etc.)
Show threadMax KennerlyNov 6, 2022

@glennf Agreed, and this is precisely a situation in which I'd quote you and add some thoughts of my own... but I can't!

I get the reason why, I'd just take the middle ground (no secret quoting) and would utilize better content moderation to weed out abusive users.

Show threadGlenn FleishmanNov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly Yes, it’s definitely designed to avoid creating a Internet Main Character, but there’s room for improvement, for sure.
Show threadAntone JohnsonNov 6, 2022

@glennf @maxkennerly As an alternative to screen shot, can we get around it by just copying the link to the post (really don’t like “toot” either, ugh) being quoted and pasting it to the end of a new post, just like a link to an external URL?

Like this link to Max’s earlier post. Except pretend I’d hit compose instead of reply. I’m essentially quote tweeting him here:

https://mstdn.social/@maxkennerly/109294228374212355

Max Kennerly (@[email protected])

Twitter messed up by allowing locked accounts to quote tweet, thereby empowering harassment by making it impossible to find and block the source. Mastodon takes the opposite extreme by preventing quoting entirely, which I must admit inhibits they way I often promote other people's tweets / articles / etc with a favorable quote-tweet. Here's the long-standing explanation why: https://fedi.tips/how-to-use-mastodon-and-the-fediverse-basic-tips/#WhyCantIQuoteOtherPostsInMastodon

Mastodon 🐘
Show threadAntone JohnsonNov 6, 2022
@glennf @maxkennerly Ah, never mind, I see it doesn’t render a preview of the linked “toot” (at least on the iOS app I’m using). So it’s an extra tap to see what’s being quoted.
Show threadbeetlejuice's ghoulish wifeNov 6, 2022

@maxkennerly an interesting thing is that one fork of the mastodon software is committed to supporting quote "toots" (ugh) although it does not yet

https://github.com/hometown-fork/hometown#its-more-than-just-reading-more-stuff

GitHub - hometown-fork/hometown: A supported fork of Mastodon that provides local posting and a wider range of content types.

A supported fork of Mastodon that provides local posting and a wider range of content types. - hometown-fork/hometown

GitHub
Show threadMax KennerlyNov 6, 2022

@mark I am sure that, over time, I will call it "toot." People get habituated to things.

But for now, no. I am calling it a goddamn tweet because that's better than toot.

Show threadRichNov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly thanks for that link - that is a really good point and I support it. Less inflammatory this way.
Show threadJeri DanskyNov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly Yeah, I used QTs a lot on Twitter. A possible alternative here: Reply to the post and then boost it.
Show threadAntone JohnsonNov 6, 2022

@jeridansky @maxkennerly Sounds a good workaround.

There’s never been an ideal solution to the reply/mention/quote/subtweet conundrum. There are times it’s reasonable to point to and critique a tweet by some pugnacious bigwig without trying to pick a fight with them or induce a pile-on by their bazillion crazed followers (*cough* Musk *ahem*).

Show threadMurshed ZaheedNov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly one way to go is probably screenshot and then tag and then blog it. Not ideal but could be a viable fix for now.
Show threadOracleClyde 🔮Nov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly Excellent point and thanks for the article.
Show threadpeaopoeNov 6, 2022
@maxkennerly i find the lack of quote tweeting annoying but I think I might agree with the rationale overall.
Show threadBobNov 8, 2022
@maxkennerly I was curious about it as well. Thanks for the pointer.
Show threadDr. Russell PierceNov 8, 2022
@maxkennerly woah. Well that's solid reasoning. Thanks for sharing what was written there. I'd been wondering
Show threadMartijn Dekker🇪🇺 (OLD ACCT.)Nov 8, 2022
@maxkennerly I just got here and this instantly made me like Mastodon. Quote tweeting was probably one of my top 3 hated Twitter features, it's exactly as awful as described in your link and routinely abused by assholes with millions of followers to cyberlynch vulberable people.
Show threadIgnas KielaNov 8, 2022
@maxkennerly Eh, other software has quote-boosts.

And like, you can just tweet the link to the post, with some commentary, and it's essentially the same. Having native quote-boosts would at least give the original poster a notification when that's happened.