Frederik De WildeNov 29, 2022
Sheril Kirshenbaum

Having now been on #Mastodon for 1 month, a few observations:

- Mastodon makes me realize how much the #Twitter algorithm maximized user outrage to boost engagement for profit. Gross. Here, my feed is interesting & supportive.

- There's a culture of kindness - at least so far. It's extremely appealing & should be normalized on & offline.

- Beyond reactions to toots, people share songs, poetry & ask great questions. I can't remember the last time I found social media to be fun.

Nov 28, 2022 at 11:20pmWeb
Show thread❄ SnowWrite ❄Nov 28, 2022
@Sheril also on here a month and feel the same!
Show threadThe ExileNov 29, 2022
@snowwrite @Sheril I just joined yesterday. I agree!
Show threadMatthew FaccianiNov 28, 2022
@Sheril it is really night and day when comparing the experience of Twitter vs Mastodon. Would be interesting to do a study on the effects of polarization & mental well-being after spending time on each! @sociology @psychology @communicationscholars
Show thread[AF]2050Nov 28, 2022
@Sheril Unlike Twitter and Discord, i feel like i've found lots of kinder people and never had come across one that is meaner.
Show threadAndy WaschickNov 28, 2022
@Sheril Same 100%. This is the only social media experience I’ve had in recent memory where using it for more than 15 minutes doesn’t leave me with a feeling of dread and helplessness. There is no way that’s not an engineered outcome on the part of the non-federated entities.
Show threadLady GeeNov 28, 2022
@Sheril Same ❤️
Show threadFallon StoneNov 28, 2022

@Sheril I feel the same way. The other thing I've noticed is more interactions of substance. Twitter normalized snark as a ploy to gain visibility.

More often than not my tweets disappeared into the void.. it felt like shouting in a hurricane. For me, social media is about connecting with people and that what Twitter was more than a decade ago but it has since lost its purpose of connection for clicks and likes.

Show threadBelinda PollardNov 29, 2022
@FallonStone "shouting into a hurricane" - such an apt description. I was actually tempted over here by the thought that it might be more like Twitter back when I joined in 2011. Back then, I was connecting with other writers, and we retweeted things that were genuinely interesting to writers, so that those were the things that got amplified... not random opinions and snark and anger and manipulative hashtaggery...
Show threadFallon StoneNov 29, 2022
@Belinda_Pollard I agree. Early bird app was a wonderful place. I had such great meaningful exchanges with people and the same is true here. Mastodon has the potential to be the app Twitter would have become if it hadn't been commercialized. I think current bird users will have to make a conscious effort to pull away from the addictive behavior the bird app creates ... which is hard.
Show threadBelinda PollardNov 29, 2022
@FallonStone I'm still on Twitter as well for now, but kind of excited by the potential to break free of it at last... even though I put so much work into building connections there.
Show threadFallon StoneNov 29, 2022
@Belinda_Pollard new beginnings, new connections 
Show threadIanDec 22, 2022
@FallonStone @Belinda_Pollard I agree wholeheartedly with both of you. Twitter was brilliant - I originally joined in 2009 - but a few years later it changed and it became harder to avoid the ugly side of it.
I really hope this app can develop in a better way. I am still making connections but everyone I have had so far has been positive. It’s refreshing.
I deactivated my Twitter account & this time I think it’ll stick. Once it’s gone I won’t want to start over again.
Show threadThe ExileNov 29, 2022
@Belinda_Pollard @FallonStone agreed. Twitter used to be lovely. It is great to get a chance to push the reset button!
Show threadBelinda PollardNov 30, 2022
@theexile Kind of like a do-over! @FallonStone
Show threadThe ExileNov 30, 2022
@Belinda_Pollard @FallonStone that's it exactly Belinda!
Show threadMaddler  Nov 28, 2022
@Sheril 100% spot on. A thousand times more relaxing.
Show threadSebas van den BrinkNov 28, 2022
@Sheril yes exactly! It's like the internet back in the early 00's. It's nostalgia inducing, this place ☺️
Show threadElizabethNov 29, 2022
@sebvandenbrink @Sheril I was thinking about this yesterday as well. Getting up, getting a cup of coffee and opening Mas feels like the old days of a cup of coffee, a newspaper and the Today show on the TV. Whereas a cup of coffee and opening Twitter made me want to throw said cup full of hot coffee at the nearest wall followed by my phone.
Show threadSebas van den BrinkNov 29, 2022
@akaBeth10 @Sheril I don't remember who it was, but an acquaintance of mine has done away with all social media and has actually gotten a paper newspaper again. There may be something to that - as long as you don't get one of those conspiracist rags that is 😅
Show threadElizabethNov 29, 2022
@sebvandenbrink @Sheril That's awesome!
Show threadDr. Kacy TillmanNov 28, 2022
@Sheril same!
Show threadKaren E. Lund 💙💛Nov 28, 2022
@Sheril Happy #MastoMonth!
Show threadBoris Builds Nov 28, 2022
@Sheril Exactly my thoughts.
Show threadBarbaraNov 28, 2022
@Sheril yup. You can actually have conversations here without the eye rolling. Makes such a difference. And as for the breadth of content 😳 it's brilliant, engaging and very refreshing #MastoDaoine
Show threadSam BeeNov 29, 2022
@BarbaraEdwards @Sheril I agree - I feel more confident to post something here as a result.
Show threadInfectivityNov 28, 2022
@Sheril We also have THE best cat and dog pics here. :D
Show threadCat NewsNov 29, 2022
@InfectivitySuziA @Sheril I fully concur with this
Show threadThe ExileNov 29, 2022
@InfectivitySuziA @Sheril we are all here for the cats, let's be honest 😂
Show threadHollyAnnNov 30, 2022
@theexile @InfectivitySuziA @Sheril 😂 I once had three cats. That was my limit. I have a friend who traps ferals, gets them fixed, and releases them in her woods. She always puts food out for them that the opossums share.
Show threadHollyAnnNov 30, 2022
@InfectivitySuziA @Sheril I agree! Bring on the dogs, cats, pigs, horses, and kids/grandkids. Birthdays, anniversaries of any sort, marriages, & accomplishments. Hurts too, deaths, cancer treatment, divorce, shunning, etc. I want to say I'm sorry and send virtual hugs in support.
Show threadMirishuliNov 28, 2022
@Sheril Just 3 weeks for me, but exactly the same experience. This feels like the old AOL boards of 93-96 to me. I have friends from those days still. 😁
Show threadMary Ebejer PhDNov 29, 2022
@MiriShuli @Sheril
Same for me … but Compuserv. 😊
Show threadRocky KistnerNov 28, 2022
@Sheril As Rodney King said, can't we all just get along?
Show threadfishybirdNov 28, 2022
@Sheril same! I never actually used Twitter because it was way too chaotic and hard for me to follow. Mastodon feels straightforward and sweet; I like that it feels like a tiny community of just the people I follow and what we all find interesting
Show thread🏰Christophe S.❄IceEnchanter🦢Nov 29, 2022
@Sheril Thank you for expressing this :) And I am glad you find yourself (and all others that share the same feelings) at ease here :)
Show threadGert V 🇵🇸Nov 29, 2022
@Sheril
Kindness and respect is what evolves ecosystems.
Show threadAdaNov 29, 2022
@Sheril Right? I'm posting get to know you memes about board games. A level of casual, fun discussion I'd simply forgotten how to have on other platforms, because I was always in combat mode, ready for the next clash with whoever the algorithm threw at me.
Show threadPaula WhymanNov 29, 2022
@Sheril Same.
Show threadMargareteNov 29, 2022
@Sheril joined here about a week ago and am still trying to figure this out. Hard to find the peeps I followed on Twitter here and what’s with the split screen basically showing me two parallel feeds?
Show threadElizabethNov 29, 2022
@globalnomad @Sheril Welcome! Fear not, there's lots of help. You can search by hashtags like #mastodon and #mastodonhelp and the same on Twitter. There are also YouTube videos that will walk you through it. And there are a few services that will help you find your Twitter people who have Mastodon addresses added to their Twitter account. https://www.thefocus.news/tech/how-to-export-your-twitter-following-list-and-find-friends-on-mastodon/
Show threadFlora FaunaNov 29, 2022
@globalnomad @Sheril movetodon.org
Show threadFlora FaunaNov 29, 2022
@globalnomad @Sheril Here you go: https://techhub.social/users/empress/statuses/109420039611243503/activity
Show threadeviloatmeal, resident Death Stranding 2 apologist (arch, btw)Nov 29, 2022
@globalnomad @Sheril Sounds like you might be using Mastodon's default web interface, the one called the "advanced web interface" (see Fig. 1).

I've included some screenshots, and labeled them in the alt-text, but they should be in the correct order as well.

There's also a one-column layout available that might be more familiar to you. You can access it by unchecking the "advanced web interface" option in the settings (Fig. 2).

The beauty of the fediverse, however, is that nobody is actively preventing anyone from inventing their own way to interpret the user experience. In fact, it's encouraged! For example, there's https://pinafore.social, an alternative web client developed by @nolan (Fig.3). I've customized my Pinafore a little bit by adding a black, starry background. That's not something you get by default.

Later, you have the possibility of getting really creative with it. Fig. 4 shows what I'm currently looking at, which is technically Akkoma, not Mastodon, but that's a minor detail. It's a very silly look and feel, but it makes me happy.
Home · Pinafore

An alternative web client for Mastodon, focused on speed and simplicity.

Show threadMichael SpeyerNov 29, 2022
@globalnomad @Sheril I too have found it something of a free-for-all and quite difficult to find topic-based content that interests me. Give it time though; I do get the feeling that the majority of users here will go to great lengths along with devs and platform owners, to create something awesome!
Show threadDianneVotes💙Nov 30, 2022
@michaelspeyer @globalnomad @Sheril Search hashtags. If you like trains, search #trains. If climatechange or photography interest you, search them as hashtags, etc. Follow lots of people. Most will follow back if you have a bio that lets them know some things about you.
Show threadDianneVotes💙Nov 30, 2022
@globalnomad
Try writing a #bio and an #introductionpost with hashtags so people can learn a bit about you before they follow you. Folllw lots of people. It took me about 2 weeks to feel comfy here. I've been here a month, and it's wonderful. Glad you're here.
Show threadbrentcphotographyNov 30, 2022
@globalnomad @Sheril One feed “local” is of all of the people who signed up on the same server or instance as you. The other is the federated feed which is everyone who is using Mastodon and publishing their “toots” globally.
Show threadAimée B HoganNov 29, 2022
@Sheril It's been amazing so far for me, too. Everyone here has been far more receptive, open, and much kinder than they are on Twitter. It's like night and day!
Show threadlunazeaNov 29, 2022
@Sheril hard to disagree. true.
Show threadYlenia GranittoNov 29, 2022
@Sheril Same here!
Show threadTim HolmesNov 29, 2022

@Sheril I don't have personal experience, but when I expressed the same sentiment, someone kindly informed me of my privileged ignorance.

Sadly, minorities and in particular blacks, have experienced plenty of harassment on Mastodon. Something we all need to do what we can to eliminate.

Show threadSheril KirshenbaumNov 29, 2022
@TPOHolmes yes, I’ve had a couple of nasty antisemitic comments here, but blocking & reporting them seemed to deal with it quickly.
Show threadTim HolmesNov 29, 2022

@Sheril I’m sorry that happened, and I’m glad it was handled well. Of course, you shouldn’t have to deal with it at all.

And, I’m glad you’re enjoying it nevertheless.

Show threadDebbie Goldsmith 🏳️‍⚧️♾️🇺🇦Nov 29, 2022
@TPOHolmes @Sheril I had two nasty mentions from transphobic bigots. Reported them and not only did they get blocked from mastodon.social, their entire instances were as well.
Show threadRJingleheimer 🦣 🇺🇸 ⛵Nov 29, 2022
@Sheril I signed up a few weeks ago(leaving Twitterville) and the first thing i noticed here was the use of an open source platform - And yes, it does 'feel' nicer here 
Show threadRitchie Nov 29, 2022
@Sheril
Exactly this! So agree with the sentiment.
Show threadSudhirNov 29, 2022
@Sheril I tend to agree with you though my interaction is very limited due to less number of Followers. However, it's encouraging that even people having thousands of Followers, do read my Posts and reciprocate with Likes at least. Thanks, Sheril!👍🌹🙏❤️
Show threadSheril KirshenbaumNov 29, 2022
@SKV I believe you are one of my most thoughtful interactions here. Always something nice to say. Thank you ☺️