GammaMaDonnaNov 19, 2022
Tom Forsyth

A reminder that Twitter was not made as you see it today. At the start it was literally an SMS frontend. It didn't have concepts like threads, DMs, groups, privacy (ha!), blocking, muting or any of that crap. ALL THAT GREW ORGANICALLY - at first just as conventions, later adopted.

We will figure out how to use Mastodon. And some of those ways will be adopted officially (whatever that means!). This is our place. We'll shape it. Give it time.

Nov 19, 2022 at 4:05amWeb
Show threadKyle AndersonNov 19, 2022

@TomF For those not in the know, this is where the OG 140 character limit came from. SMS limit is 160 - 15 for username to this day and the rest for the tweet body and formatting/metadata.

tbh the history makes current events so much more bitter.

Show threadNancyMDNov 19, 2022
@TomF I think a lot of people need to hear this - lots of anxiety out there/ here
Show threadCleo of Topless TopicsNov 19, 2022
@TomF um. While I understand the notion, saying "we'll shape it" when en masse entering a platform that's already had an established user base for years sounds pretty digital colonizer-ish
Show threadTom ForsythNov 19, 2022
@toplesstopics It's not colonisation when the existing user-base is screaming "come join us" constantly :-)
Show threadOpenDNA⚙️Nov 19, 2022
@toplesstopics @TomF Eternal September is eternal.
Show threadStone Bear Nov 19, 2022

@TomF @solcita

This is a much bigger place than it looks like, because of its federated nature. It had its own culture long before we were here. I for one am trying not to colonize and impose my own culture, but harmonise with and respect the people who worked their butts off to build this, and who are doubling down to keep it from collapsing.

Show threadSunnieNov 19, 2022
@stonebear @TomF sure, but I think the underlying point remains for those who don't remember what the birdsite was like earlier either--things aren't what you expect because they are going to grow and change as more people arrive. It's inevitable, even as we try to respect the existing culture.
Show threadStone Bear Nov 19, 2022

@solcita @TomF

True dat. Perhaps even more so; with the platform being open source, it's relatively easy for anyone with the aptitude and cycles to tear into it and add features. The cathedral may be all pretty and easy to just walk into, but the bazaar wins over the long haul nine times out of ten. (looking at my desktop: Chrome, Firefox, Emacs, Signal, VLC, iTerm2, tools I use all day every day...)

Show threadJacob TenderNov 19, 2022
@TomF I signed up for Twitter via SMS in ‘08 or ‘09. No password. Just a username, a phone number, and these wallet-sized “Tweet Sheets” to help remember what could be done via text!
Show threadIan MaclureNov 19, 2022
@TomF I get really tired of people complaining Mastodon isn't a perfectly sanded corporate product like... no? Do you not remember typing the words "RT:" into twitter before linking to someone else's tweet?
Show threadThe Dink - Christie's ToyNov 19, 2022
@TomF I am trying to friend LincolnWatchman I found him, but it says I have to enter my email/pword. I got an error message. I used what I signed up with toad. When I got my email verification letter, I clicked verify, and it took me to my page. So, what am I doing wrong?
Show threadJames 🦉 #FBPE Nov 19, 2022
@TomF This is one of the biggest battles with software development - people see a mature product with years or decades of development behind it, and say I want that please, and now.
Show thread453289Nov 19, 2022
@TomF I come from a time of dial up and waiting in lobby to get a spot in a chat room. Twitter was pretty polished, it’s hard to say goodbye.
Show threadJon CuttingNov 19, 2022
@TomF I agree with you. One of the things that needs work as a matter of urgency is performance. Dear old ruby, not really designed for this type of workload.
Show threadAnneNov 19, 2022

@TomF

"A reminder that Twitter was not made as you see it today. At the start it was literally an SMS frontend. It didn't have concepts like threads, DMs, groups, privacy (ha!), blocking, muting or any of that crap. ALL THAT GREW ORGANICALLY - at first just as conventions, later adopted."

Ha! I remember those days. It just scrolled on by and you saw what you saw and, if the site refreshed, good luck finding the thing you were reading. Chaos!

Show threadJames StuddartNov 19, 2022
@TomF haha, omg, I remember updating my status via sms. Fully agree with you. Part of it is us learning how to use this new tool and part of it is going to be how this tool grows and adapts.
Show threadTess HarrisNov 19, 2022
@TomF The speed that my federated timeline zips by reminds me of twittervision, which used to mesmerise me. I felt I was listening to the planet.
Show threadInfectivityNov 19, 2022

@TomF Exactly. Right now i'm figuring out the Lists feature and customization. Still can't find a way to select what I want to see on Federated yet. It seems WAY too cluttered as is.

But turning this into a thriving and diverse community is going to take time, interaction and people becoming familiar with the platform's use.

Show threadDreaNov 19, 2022
@TomF I keep reminding people of this. I was an early adopter of Twitter and it was generally viewed as way too complicated for the masses. If you learned Twitter, you can learn Mastodon.
Show threadTom QuinnNov 19, 2022
@TomF This.
Show threadMihailik 🌼🌼🌼🏃🏿‍♀️🌼🌼🌼Nov 19, 2022

@TomF

Exactly this!

As soon as wide creative forces* flow from Twitter into here, they'll bend this place into its destined shape.

*creative forces 👉 #+234 #Nigerian Twitter

Show threadMihailik 🌼🌼🌼🏃🏿‍♀️🌼🌼🌼Nov 19, 2022

@TomF

Dorsey realised that #Black Twitter is the force powering huge chunk of the discourse on social media.

Topics are largely happening there, and spread to other corners in waves.

And #BlackTwitter is in large extent sailing on the winds that is #NigerianTwitter. The sharpest reactions, the wildest takes, the boldness, the passion, the audacity is something that's mined in #Lagos, in #ArewaTwitter, in #SE, in South South, in #South (not the same!!)

Show threadMihailik 🌼🌼🌼🏃🏿‍♀️🌼🌼🌼Nov 19, 2022

@TomF

The pre-Musk guy started to get it, but things didn't work out for his domain.

+234 Twitter moving to #Mastodon could be the shift that seals Mastodon's succession of Twitter crown.

Without +234 folks, it'll be a nerdy Facebook or Insta at most.

Show threadDominik SusmelNov 20, 2022
@TomF not to mention, since lots of us are technical, you can help directly too! Every bit counts. https://github.com/mastodon/mastodon/issues
GitHub - mastodon/mastodon: Your self-hosted, globally interconnected microblogging community

Your self-hosted, globally interconnected microblogging community - mastodon/mastodon

GitHub
Show threadDougN ​ 😷 Nov 20, 2022
@TomF that is an incredibly colonial attitude. You realize that Mastodon has been around since 2016? That there is already a culture here? Please, before you start wrecking the place, take the time to learn why Mastodon is so much better than Twitter.
Show threadTom ForsythNov 20, 2022
@RandomCanuck Aren't you a charming fellow then.
Show threadDougN ​ 😷 Nov 20, 2022
@TomF I am actually. I’m not tolerant of colonizers though.
Show threadDougN ​ 😷 Nov 20, 2022
@TomF if you don’t understand what I’m on about, try a little introspection. Review the post I reacted to and you might find a clue.
Show threadnadin brzezinskiNov 20, 2022
@TomF @wintrymix this feels, in some ways, like an ancient version of twitter. As you said, it evolved.
Show threadRaptor Nov 20, 2022
@TomF fun fact: the reason that twitter used to only be 140 characters per post? it was because that was the max a single text message could be at the time. and since you could tweet by sending a text message.....
Show threadTarbuck Transom 🌹Nov 20, 2022
@TomF First priority to me is quote-boosts. I have high hopes.
Show threadSyscrusherNov 25, 2022

@TomF It is worth remembering that Linux -- the free and open operating system that runs much of the Internet and many other things -- was literally created by Linus Torvalds in his spare time "just for fun." (And yes, that's a quote of his own words.)

Behold the power of a good idea freely shared!