Not everyone is impressed with Mastodon. Some call it clunky and slow, some in the security world say it’s far from perfect, and because different servers may be run differently, there’s no consistency to moderation and rules.
And you may be philosophically opposed to the fact that instead of “tweets,” messages on Mastodon are called “toots.”
The Case for Post, Hive Social, or Other Networks
Post News is another interesting option; it seems built for newshounds and journalists. But it only just launched in late November, so it’s still in beta and has a waiting list. It was founded by former Waze CEO Naom Bardin, and it seems geared to allow users to buy, comment on, and share articles from news providers, as well as tip creators, with no character-count limit on posts.
Hive Social, another new social network, is mobile-only and currently ad-free. It feels a lot more like Instagram, or even a throwback to MySpace, than Twitter, in that it’s very media-focused and geared toward connecting with friends, not discussing serious world events or running for office. You can add a theme song to your profile and share things like your zodiac sign on your profile.
The Case Against Post, Hive Social, or Other Networks
Many of the same reasons against moving to Mastodon apply to these other social networks. They have far fewer users than Twitter, they may be missing features you’ve come to depend on, and because many of them are startups, they may not be around long-term.
Security is also iffy on the newer social networks, and we don’t know as much about how they will handle an influx of users and the challenges that poses, or whether they will do much to moderate content.
Ultimately, it’s risky to put a lot of energy into unproven social networks that may go the way of Plurk or Google+. Instead, you could just focus more energy on established platforms you’re already using such as Instagram, Facebook, or Linkedin. Obviously, they all have their own issues, but there’s little danger they’ll disappear, and they’re much more stable than Twitter has been in 2022.
The Case for Ending your Twitter Career
What if you just let go? How about accepting that Twitter was a moment, a very lengthy run of time when people posted their micro-thoughts, and those micro-thoughts had an unprecedented influence on politics and culture—and that time finally passed?
Rather than continuing on a path that has run its course, what about just stopping? Not seeking another way to do the same thing, but finding something else entirely to do with that time and energy? What if you got a hobby that didn’t involve posting anything at all?
It sure feels like many users have been reevaluating their entire relationship with social media these past few years, and that may go further than just deciding whether or not to keep tweeting.
You could leave your Twitter account in place, frozen in time, without deleting, or just save your archive of Tweets for posterity, delete the account, and walk away forever.
Maybe this is the moment when your life completely changes because you decide to never tweet again. If that idea fills you with nervous, thrilled excitement, it might be the best, most overdue decision you could make.