Since Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover, many people have started leaving the platform. Reports suggest several are switching to Mastodon, a decentralized community-based platform. Read to know more about the platform and how to use it.
Why are people quitting Twitter?
Within days of taking over Twitter, Elon Musk took major decisions which are irking people to leave the platform. Musk is going to start an $8 monthly subscription for the coveted blue tick in addition to other features. Twitter is also planning to charge people for viewing some videos. Several are criticizing Musk for laying off thousands of employees and charging for verification tags.
What is Mastodon?
Mastodon is an open-source micro-blogging site that works in a decentralized manner using user-managed servers. It has different categories with several servers or communities. Users can join them based on their interests. It has a ‘general’ category where people can talk about general topics. It has several communities such as art, music, technology, etc. Users can migrate to other servers based on their interests.
While the platform does not have all features of Twitter, it functions similarly. You cannot save drafts or see ads. Moreover, Mastodon also lacks a DM section. Currently, it has a few issues with slower loading times and notifications. But, it is fixable with an update due. However, unlike Twitter Mastodon has a hefty cap of 5.000 characters for each message.
How to use Mastodon?
To use Mastodon, install the app and click on “Get started”. Following this, choose a server and create your ID and password. After you verify your account, you can start posting and using the server. Here, likes are called favorites and retweets are reblogs. To post on the platform, tap the edit button at the bottom right and type your message. Mastodon shows content shared by people on a server. You can also see the content from people you follow.
