Good morning and Happy Sunday to everyone here in Mastodon! My name is Majid Padellan, but most folks know me as Brooklyn Dad Defiant from the bird site.

This is my #introduction: I like democracy, voting rights, equal rights, education, the environment. Also like old (and new) TV shows, love movies, comedy, big comic book nerd, pizza and Buffalo wings will be my last meal.

Also like not being swarmed by thousands of nasty trump bots, so this space feels nice. Thanks for the warm welcome!

What’s different about Mastodon? Here are some cultural observations that I’ve noticed through my own “digital ethnography” over the past two weeks or so.

I’m sorry that this is a thread and that feels a little Twittery but that’s how I have to roll on this one, friends.

Welcome to @Mastodon! If you’re fleeing the #Twitterpocalype, let me know you’re here (below) so I can connect with you and try to be useful.


I have a feeling we’re going to see a lot of new folks join shortly. If you’re just landing, please have a look around and check things out for a bit.


I have curated lots of relevant news, explanations, and perspectives in my feed below, so that might be a good place to start.


#Introductions #Mastodon #TwitterMigration #Welcome

The legacy of Twitter is such a complicated topic. It's difficult to parse out its influence.

I was recently chatting with another trans woman, and she emphasized that, for all the bad it has put out, the site has been a critical lifeline for isolated trans folks.

I've read similar for migrants, refugees, natural disaster victims, etc.

Our society has so failed marginalized communities that even this shitty website has been a blessing for them.

Food for thought.

Good we reporting on @Mastodon here, including asking critical, reflective questions like this:

“If so many people are expecting a Twitter-like experience, maybe it’s time for us to question our expectations about what social media is, what it can do, and whether we even want it in the first place.”

#MastodonNews #Fediverse @Vice

https://www.vice.com/en/article/m7g4vx/the-future-of-the-internet-will-be-nothing-like-twitter-and-thats-a-good-thing

Mastodon will update to 4.0 soon! Here are the most exciting new features (in addition to fixes & changes):

- ability to follow hashtags
- ability to filter by language
- ability to translate posts
- ability to post HEIC files (i.e. your iPhone’s native photo format)
- define user roles (big deal for admins)
- define sign-up process on your Instance (admins again)

See all changes here: https://github.com/mastodon/mastodon/releases/tag/v4.0.0rc1

Thanks, @Gargron and @Mastodon Team. #Mastodon4

KEEP IN MIND! #Mastodon doesn't work like #Twitter!

Have you just made the #Twexit or the #TwitterMigration?

Favorites ⭐ - they're not "likes". They don't "elevate" posts, they just the poster know you liked their post.

Boosts 🔁 - these push someone's post into your friends feeds (and help discovery).

So if you ⭐ my posts, that's great (and I love you too)!

But if you 🔁 posts, then more people see them!

OH! - #Hashtags are how you search!

#mastodon #MastodonTips

We're a few days into the current wave of #TwitterMigration, and we're all excited for all the #NewHere folks to have joined.

But please be mindful you are joining a social network that was not a barren, desolate desert before. It was a blooming, cozy garden.

It's not just about finding your old connections from  , it's also about making new valuable connections with folks on here, who might have moved years ago, or who might have never had an account on hellbird.