I tried to capture a bit of the vibe of this moment, and also explain a bit about Mastodon. I've probably annoyed hardcore Mastodon users and left out some stuff, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ https://thespinoff.co.nz/internet/07-11-2022/why-is-everyone-leaving-twitter-for-mastodon

Thanks @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace for your input 🙏🏼 #NZTwits #mastodon #twittermigration

Why is everyone leaving Twitter for Mastodon?

Maybe next weekend we’ll all be back on Twitter, but at least for one glorious weekend we could see another viable option.

The Spinoff
Also shout out to @utf9k for the Third Place reference.
@aotearoa_ben Obvious question: when is The Spinoff likely to set up a feed? That's one of the big differences here: lack of media feeds to boost and comment on.

@norightturnnz
Has your blog got a feed here? I'd definitely follow and boost that.

@aotearoa_ben

@aotearoa_ben

ngl I chortled out loud at this line "oh god please make it stop this is so nerdy and boring"

@aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace

@DrBex @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace people try to make out like it's hard and complex but it honestly doesn't matter. Imagine if everyone tried to gatekeep email the same way! "Oh but you need to make sure your SMTP server is configured to accept blah blah ..."

@aotearoa_ben @DrBex @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace "So now that you can receive mail, you're going to have to set up your SPF records, which sounds a bit technical but is really easy..."

(10 pages later)

"Now that you've got your SPF records configured correctly, you'll also need to create your keys for DKIM..."

@aurynn @DrBex @explorergrace @idanoo @carey I mean, it’s true but your average email user never needs to think about it, just like an average Mastodon user doesn’t need to worry about the capacity of the streaming server on their insurance.
@aotearoa_ben @aurynn @DrBex @explorergrace @idanoo Very true. I have email on my own domain using Fastmail, with a somewhat custom DNS setup, and I don't have to think about any of that. My wife can use it, and set up aliases on a second domain, without even having to *know* about it.

@aotearoa_ben @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace

"Is Mastodon the new Twitter?

Mastodon feels like the old Twitter."

I wonder if this is why it feels like such a natural fit for #NZTwits - it's got a similar welcoming and warm feeling - almost like SecretSantaNZ - heck, we've even got @FoxyLustyGrover here now (that was a true benchmark for me!)

@aotearoa_ben I support the rename to 'ActivityPup'. It's way more fun!
@drV omg I only just noticed that. Will correct.
@aotearoa_ben @drV did somebody say activity??? No…. never mind.
@wicket @drV is #ActivityPup the new official hashtag for sleeping dogs?
@aotearoa_ben @drV if you need a sleeping dog. I’m a very good boy.
@aotearoa_ben This article is great. I had totally forgotten about Bebo... God that was a long time ago....

@aotearoa_ben @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace

I thought it was quite on point. The only thing I felt was missing is a mention of the more general #Fediverse, network of networks of platforms that all use #ActivityPub. There might be some room to squeeze it in before the «yadda yadda boring nerd talk» quip (loved that, BTW), and maybe throw in @axbom excellent picture
https://axbom.com/fediverse/

The many branches of the Fediverse

As more and more people are asking me about Mastodon I felt a need for a picture to point at, showcasing how the software known as Mastodon fits into the much larger concept of the Fediverse. I made this infographic to help myself and others explain the many different use-cases

Axbom • My Next Heartbeat

@oblomov
> The only thing I felt was missing is a mention of the more general Fediverse

This is my gripe with 99% of the articles about the fediverse, focusing on Mastodon as if it's the whole thing. Yes, Mastodon has the largest number of instances, and yes, probably also all the largest instances. But it's like writing an article about the web but only talking about FarceBook. Or an article about email but only talking about GMail.

@aotearoa_ben @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace @axbom

Having gotten all the 'get off my lawn' out of my system, thanks for writing this @aotearoa_ben . It's very gratifying to have anything about the 'verse featured in theSpinoff at all :)

@oblomov @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace @axbom

@aotearoa_ben
Do you think theSpinoff would be willing to publish an article about the fediverse in general? If so, I'd be more than happy to write something. What I'm thinking is to focus on the ways that linking different services together employers people to craft our own experiences of the social web, rather than having commercially-motivated algorithms do it for us. I even have a title in mind, riffing of the theme of your article;

The Matrix Has You, Follow The Hairy Elephant

@aotearoa_ben @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace looks fair and have posted it cheers Ben and thanks

@aotearoa_ben @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace Very well written! As someone who (except for briefly trying it a few years ago) is new to Mastodon, and who was around fairly early on Twitter, it really feels like the old days in some ways.

Except that we have images here and no awkward manual retoots 😅

@aotearoa_ben @aurynn @idanoo @explorergrace Nice article. The only thing I think I would have included is just how easy it is to have your own instance. Either set up yourself, or through a hosting service.
@aotearoa_ben it’s how I found myself here so thank you e hoa!

@aotearoa_ben l am constantly surprised that praise for Mastodon leads with “there is no algorithm”. It’s a true enough statement but implies that Twitter’s algorithm is inescapable when it most certainly is not.

I have been using Twitter for 13(?) years and have never done anything other than read a chronological stream of tweets from only people I follow. By using a third party app, I don’t even see the ads.