avatarSmillew Rahcuef

Summary

The author expresses a strong preference for Mastodon over Twitter, citing its name association with intelligent animals, decentralization, community of online friends, increased visibility for Medium writers, and a personal choice not to join Mastodon despite its growing popularity.

Abstract

The article titled "5 Reasons Why I Love Mastodon" delves into the author's fondness for Mastodon as a social media platform, contrasting it favorably with Twitter. The author appreciates the name 'Mastodon,' which evokes images of smart, grounded creatures with good memory, unlike the chirping birds of Twitter. The decentralized nature of Mastodon is seen as both a challenge and a trendy, early-adopter feature. The presence of many online friends and Medium writers on Mastodon, including notable figures like Eric Filipkowski, enhances the author's connection to the community. The recent integration of Medium with Mastodon through the 'me.dm' server is perceived as a strategic move for increased visibility and engagement, especially for content creators. Interestingly, the author takes pride in not having a Mastodon account, enjoying the feeling of not being part of every social media trend, which they liken to the strength of resisting other social media like Wordle and TikTok.

Opinions

  • The author has a negative view of Twitter, exacerbated by Elon Musk's leadership, and sees Mastodon as a superior alternative.
  • Mastodon's name is preferred for its association with intelligence and memory, as opposed to the perceived frivolity of 'Twitter.'
  • The decentralized aspect of Mastodon is valued as a sign of technological trendiness, despite its added complexity.
  • The author feels a sense of community on Mastodon, as many of their online friends and Medium connections are active there.
  • The integration of Medium with Mastodon is seen as a smart move for writers seeking visibility and engagement with their audience.
  • The author takes a contrarian stance by choosing not to have a Mastodon account, finding satisfaction in resisting the pull of new social media platforms.

5 Reasons Why I Love Mastodon

The opportunity to delete Twitter would be a good enough reason to love Mastodon, but I have more.

Photo by Christopher Alvarenga on Unsplash

Mastodon is like Twitter, except it’s better.

I’m partial because I hate Twitter and think Elon Musk is making it even worse, but don’t get me wrong, my love for Mastodon isn’t only a negative mirror of my relationship with Twitter; I also love it in and for itself.

Here are five reasons why.

#1 — The name reminds me of intelligent animals

Contrary to birds who spend their time chirping and not doing anything much constructive, mastodons are intelligent animals, very down to earth, and with extensive memory.

It’s what I aspire to be; I don’t want to be the guy “tweeting.”

#2 — It’s decentralized

Yes, it makes it a bit harder to use, but it also means that it’s technologically fashionable, and — as you can see from my hat in my profile picture — I love to be trendy.

I’m an early-adopter kind of guy.

#3 — Many of my online friends use Mastodon

I could almost randomly pick any of my favorite Medium members and would find them on Mastodon.

For example, Eric Filipkowski, “one of the lowest-rated writers on this site,” according to this bio, is part of the Mastodon community.

Medium is great for reading and commenting, but when you want to dig deeper into a topic, you want an instant messaging functionality. It doesn’t exist on Medium, but it’s one of the many perks you can find on Mastodon.

#4 — As a Medium writer, it helps with visibility

Medium CEO recently announced the launch of a Medium instance on Mastodon. It’s cleverly called me.dm and already has 6,800+ active users on the server (at the date of writing). Coach Tony is one of them, and he’s much more active there than on Twitter.

It makes sense — Mastodon benefits from the “new thing effect;” Coach Tony joined Mastodon in January 2023, while he has been on Twitter since the beginning (March 2006).

I don’t want to sound toady, but being part of Mastodon is a great opportunity to get noticed by the boss.

#5 — I don’t and will never have a Mastodon account

I wish I were strong enough to delete Wordle and TikTok from my life, but I’m not. However, I am strong enough not to install Mastodon. Color me proud.

The feeling of missing out on yet another social media network is priceless.

Smillew is a modern explorer of the social media landscape. He was the first to masturbate in the metaverse and recently asked ChatGPT for a blowjob. You can read his research articles here.

Mastodon
Twitter
Social Media
Inspiration
Humor
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