Ilyaz NasrullahNov 7, 2022

#feditips 1/3 Mastodon doesn't have DMs. Don't tell people that it has, because it is conceptually confusing. DM triggers the idea of a private chat separate from the timelines. Again, Mastodon doesn't have that.

Mastodon has visibility options. If you choose “Mentioned people only”, and add the handle of a person you are complaining about, then they will be able to read your complaint because you are mentioning that person!

So again. No DMs. Just visibility options. This ain't Twitter.

Show threadIlyaz Nasrullah
#feditips 2/3 So the problem is this. If you go to somebody's profile, it has a “Direct message” option. This needs a different name, because it is just a shortcut to that “Mentioned people only” option.
Nov 7, 2022 at 10:08pmWeb
Show threadIlyaz NasrullahNov 7, 2022

#feditips 3/3 You can easily see that when you choose the “Direct message” option. It will set the visibility setting to “Mentioned people only” (the @-sign in my UI, shown in the screenshot below).

Again, “DM” is not a DM! It shouldn't be called as such.

Show threadGreyshley Nov 8, 2022
@ilyaz sir, as a fedi user that has never been on twitter, I don't fucking care.
that is what a DM is.
you want encrypted chats, get an encrypted chat app.
Show threadRoel WillemsNov 7, 2022

@ilyaz That is indeed a confusing/misleading name for the "Mentioned people only"

I do like that functionality though. It is easy to reach out to someone who than is able to include/add others to a hidden (from the timeline) conversation.

Would be good if this was renamed to reflect current way it is implemented.

Would be great if DM's would also be available by integration with Signal (although you need a phone number) or Matrix messaging.

Show threadthomassthNov 8, 2022
@ilyaz but it’s a good thing to make everyone feel comfortable and the site easy to use. People knew how to DM so having a button there meets how people used to think in other platforms
A better solution is to add a toast, like “a DM is just a toot with limited view perms” so people would know how to do it “right way round” next time