Any platform that helps free speech ought to have a content material warning system just about just like the one Mastodon presents. I guess Musk will not implement it, although, as a result of his snowflake followers would discover this sort of free speech upsetting (and he is afraid of them). 

Mute People For a Little While

Sometimes an individual you get pleasure from following will get in a temper. You do not wish to unfollow them, however you additionally do not wish to take care of no matter factor they’re presently yelling about. Maybe they’re endlessly discussing a film you’ll by no means watch. Maybe they’re stay tweeting a sporting occasion, or perhaps they’re labored up about one thing political. On Twitter you do not have many choices—you may unfollow them, mute them, or block them. All of these modifications are everlasting, although. 

Mastodon lets you mute folks for a set period of time—wherever from 5 minutes to seven days—sufficient time for the particular person to work by way of no matter has them posting a lot in the meanwhile. It’s an awesome compromise, and Twitter ought to add it. 

A Simpler Verification Process

The objective of Twitter’s verification system, no less than within the early days, was to substantiate {that a} given account was truly run by a given politician, superstar, journalist, or group. The system for getting the checkmark was opaque, although, which led to the checkmark changing into considerably of a standing image. Having stated that, Musk’s early makes an attempt at “reform” largely simply created a spammer’s paradise. 

Mastodon, in the meantime, has a system that enables for fast verification with none overhead. Basically, for those who hyperlink to your Mastodon account with the tag “ref=me” in your web site, Mastodon will spotlight that you just management the positioning in your profile. This offers folks a fast approach to verify your identification with out creating a whole lot of work for moderators. Twitter may do worse than copying this technique for “official” accounts. Elon Musk will not implement this, although, probably as a result of he desires to make you pay for verification whereas calling it democratic. 

A (Free) Edit Button

Twitter customers need an edit button. They can get one in the event that they’re prepared to pay $8 a month. Mastodon customers get an edit button at no cost. Elon received’t supply this, although—in all probability as a result of he likes cash greater than he likes you. 

Actual Support For Third-Party Clients

The greatest approach to make use of Twitter was third-party shoppers, which typically provided a a lot smoother and customizable expertise than the official Twitter app and web site. TweetBot, for instance, is a a lot nicer approach to make use of Twitter on a Mac than something constructed by Twitter. The drawback: Twitter severely restricted its API a couple of years in the past, which restricted the sorts of issues third-party shoppers may do. You cannot get notifications for likes, or retweets. Polls are simply damaged. I may go on. 

Mastodon would not have this drawback. Third-party shoppers can do all the things—and in some circumstances, extra—than the official web site and purposes can do. It’s refreshing, and one thing that Twitter ought to do to reward its energy customers. It will not, although. Because …

Following Hashtags

On Twitter, you may observe accounts and seek for hashtags. Mastodon permits customers to observe a complete hashtag, so that every one associated posts present up on your property display screen. I do not know if Twitter ought to add this, however lots of people prefer it, and it is a actually nice approach to discover individuals who recurrently put up in regards to the topics you’re desirous about. 

No Ads or Subscriptions

Town squares are open to everybody. They do not cost admission, and so they’re not coated with advertisements. Sure, there could also be a enterprise or two adjoining to the city sq., and there may be a couple of partitions coated with flyers for punk live shows, however for essentially the most half a city sq. is primarily a noncommercial area. Twitter, if it was actually a city sq., could be like that. Mastodon already is. There’s no firm concerned with Mastodon—it’s an open-source program owned by a nonprofit. The community is run by volunteers who arrange servers for his or her pals and communities. Anyone can arrange a server and hook up with all the different ones, and moderation is finished by volunteers. 

Now, I do not assume Elon Musk goes to make Twitter free and noncommercial. It’s a enterprise, and he is a businessman—not an engineer, not a free speech advocate, and never somebody who truly cares about neighborhood on the finish of the day, no matter his public statements. He’s a cash one who likes cash and wish to have extra of it (regardless that the cash he presently has is clearly not doing a lot for his psychological and emotional well being). 

And that is the issue: A city sq., by definition, cannot be a enterprise. It must be an area owned by the folks. That’s what an Elon Musk Twitter can by no means be, and what Mastodon already is. I wrote about how to get started with Mastodon, so test that out for those who’re curious.