Duane JohnsonNov 26, 2022
Greg Wilson
If you are leaving Twitter, do not deactivate your account. Instead, please set it to private. (If you deactivate it, someone else may be able to claim it in future, and identity squatters are a problem no-one needs.)
Nov 6, 2022 at 11:03amWeb
Show threadDavid JayatillakeNov 6, 2022

@gvwilson @leoebfolsom I was thinking about having some auto reply to any mentions, saying I'm here now.

I wonder if that's possible.

https://smallbusiness.chron.com/set-autoreply-twitter-41620.html

Show threadLambert HellerNov 6, 2022
@gvwilson
First of all, thank you. It's the right time again to discuss how to #leave a service like Twitter.
I'd strongly prefer to leave your Twitter profile open, though. Here's my reasoning. Past Twitter posts are sometimes not sufficiently bei Web Archives (yet). Findable, referable, potentially useful (you just never know, right?) public knowledge on the web shouldn't go dark. Yes, this is an issue of cultural heritage preservation, nothing less.
Thanks for considering!
Show threadLambert HellerNov 6, 2022
@gvwilson By the way, super happy to see you here. I'm a huge fan of the Carpentries, from my perspective this is a bright model for how education on digital things can be organised today.
Show threadGreg WilsonNov 6, 2022
@Lambo thank you - I haven't had much involvement since 2017, but am really pleased by all the great work the team is doing - glad you've found it useful.
Show threadAdrianNov 6, 2022
@Lambo @gvwilson Re. identity squatters: Won't this not be a problem only for the people who stay on Twitter? I just deleted my account and don't see a big risk for myself. On thebother hand I am all for making the hellsite less attractive to so that more and more people stop using it. If more and more mentions lead to deleted or even squatted accounts this will definitely not be fun for those who continue using it.
Show threadLambert HellerNov 6, 2022
@acka47 @gvwilson Please, let's agree not to delete online cultural heritage intentionally in order to damage a bad business model. Ultimately, it will hurt "them" only this much, but it takes away a unique piece of a common good effectively for everyone.
Show threadAdrianNov 7, 2022
@Lambo "online cultural heritage" is a big word. The mistake was that we created such a "unique piece of common good" on a commercial platform in the first place. @gvwilson
Show threadjorolNov 7, 2022
@acka47 @Lambo I‘ve downloaded my profile data before deleting all my stuff (tweets, likes, dm). I keep my account open for while with a message that I moved to the fediverse. @gvwilson
Show threadJoão SantosNov 10, 2022
@acka47 @Lambo @gvwilson if you don't mind people impersonating you sure, it's only a problem to people on Twitter. If you have your Twitter account tied to your real identity, and people in your personal and professional circle know that's your account, then it's a big risk to leave the handle available.
Show threadAdrianNov 10, 2022
@jmcs You could just communicate to your Twitter followers in your professional and personal circle that you are gone and shutting the account down. If someone comes to impersonate you, they should realize. @Lambo @gvwilson
Show threadJoão SantosNov 10, 2022
@acka47 @Lambo @gvwilson easier said than done, when your handle is in things like conference presentations and blogs you don't control. And even without that, how would I reach out to everyone? Phone call hundreds of people?
Show threadAdrianNov 10, 2022
@jmcs " And even without that, how would I reach out to everyone? Phone call hundreds of people?" – I thought about posting it on the account to be shut down for some weeks before deleting it. @Lambo @gvwilson
Show threadAdrianNov 10, 2022
@jmcs @Lambo @gvwilson Also, impersonation has been a problem there for a long time: accounts with the same bio and profile pic & maybe similar use name as the original accounts are a regular thing. The targets are usually big accounts (like Musk right now) or people who are also subject to other forms of online harrassment, especially women who are addressing things like rape culture or racism. And if you want to avoid _that_ kind of impersonation, it is even better to leave twitter for good.
Show threadLambert HellerNov 6, 2022
@gvwilson *not sufficiently covered by Web Archives
Show threadKori Maleski 🐘Nov 7, 2022
@gvwilson Or - Hear me out, change your name to Elon Musk and write something epic.
Show threadstop genocide punch nazisNov 8, 2022

@gvwilson Why set it to private instead of letting it lie fallow?

(Doesn't setting it to private break links to your old tweets?)

Show threadKara ShallenbergNov 8, 2022
@gvwilson oh! Great tip, thank you!
Show threadTeresa Rothaar  Nov 8, 2022
@gvwilson I feel like I need national TV time so I can beat this drum. I keep seeing it, and I'm flipping out like a crazy person. 😂​
Show threadDiabetic HeihachiNov 8, 2022
@gvwilson
Another alternative is keep it up but totally silenced, uninstall phone app if needed, plaster your profile with relevant Fediverse info, share your acct if needed, pin your last tweet and leave your torches lighting the way before you go. :D 🖖
Show threadloganNov 8, 2022
@gvwilson or leave it active, put a link in the website url they have for twitter profiles and point it to your account url over here.

then anyone who is determined to follow you over here can then find you again if they so choose. #🤔
Show threadCatherineNov 8, 2022
@gvwilson won't leave for a while but great tip. Thanks
Show threadAphrodite (recharging)Nov 8, 2022

@gvwilson Thanks for the suggestion.

I’m going to adjust my strategy appropriately.

Should one obliterate their history on that site though?

Show threadMargaretNov 8, 2022
@gvwilson thanks for the tip 🙂
Show threadBrian DearNov 9, 2022
@gvwilson Speaking of identity-squatters, does Mastodon follow the Highlander rule ("there can only be one") or, can there be lots of brianstorms's out there on different Mastodon instances?
Show threadLindaLERNov 9, 2022
@gvwilson You can also set a timer to delete tweets every few weeks, I'm told.
Show threadDonkeys Years 🇪🇺 🇪🇸 💚Nov 9, 2022
@gvwilson Thanks for advice.
Show threadStephanie WardNov 9, 2022
@gvwilson thanks for the tip!
Show threadTino EberlNov 9, 2022
@gvwilson @Lambo I see no reason whatsoever to consider user content as "cultural heritage". Twitter is no museum. You can download your data as archive and leave any plattform once and for all. If you let your account stay, it is a security risk reg. leaks and hacking. It is counted in the Twitter statistics and this number has value to Twitter reg. ads. After deleting your account: if anyone ever pretents to be you on that plattform, it is idendity theft.
Show threadJoostNov 10, 2022

@gvwilson

Just chiming in to second some people's call here to actually just leave your Twitter account open, instead of either deactivating or setting it to private.

Twitter content is, much more than on Facebook or Insta, an interactive creation. We replied to each other, quoted and riffed on each other, highlighted great points from each other. Deleting/closing accounts tears up that whole fabric.

Leave Twitter, pin a tweet saying you've gone here; but why make years of content disappear?

Show threadHansDieterNov 10, 2022
@gvwilson to late...
Show threadA Cidade BrancaNov 10, 2022

@gvwilson

Mas há quem esteja a sugerir ao próprio Elon, que as contas inactivas sejam apagadas para as pessoas usufruírem do nome. E ele concordou.

Show threadADHDel-DRAFT-v10-final (2).docDec 18, 2022
@gvwilson I wonder how long keeping your Twitter account private will work for. Inevitably Elon will consider looking at culling inactive accounts (private or otherwise) in an attempt to make active account’s more valuable to advertisers.It might be private but he’ll be able to see if you’re still active.