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© 2024 BBCWorld 3:35am I switched from X to Bluesky: What I love and hate about it so far
Along with millions of other people who no longer enjoy the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, I recently switched from X to Bluesky. I still have an account on X, but it’s pretty much inactive now that I’m spending my time on Bluesky instead. And despite having been present on Twitter since 2007, I’ll delete my X account at some point.
There’s a lot to love about Bluesky and it truly feels like a return to the glory days of Twitter, but there are also some obvious issues that may turn you off if you’re switching from X. Here are some things you might want to consider before switching to Bluesky.
Love: It looks like the Twitter of old
Dave Parrack / IDG
Bluesky’s layout, interface, and user experience are pretty much identical to what we had during Twitter’s golden era. Feeds are displayed in the same way, and most of the old Twitter features are here. In fact, the two apps are so indistinguishable that, during my transition phase, I had to remind myself which one I was using at any given moment.
Hate: It’s difficult to find people you know
Bluesky currently has a big discoverability problem. The first thing I wanted to do after setting up my Bluesky account was find the people I followed on X and follow them anew on Bluesky (if they had accounts). But that proved to be harder than it should’ve been.
While Bluesky does have a search function, the naming conventions, the limited verification, and the relatively small userbase all came together to make finding specific people a chore.
Love: Lack of trolling and negativity (so far)
Dave Parrack / IDG
Twitter used to be a place where you could chat with like-minded individuals and respectfully disagree with those who held other opinions. However, over the years, it declined into a cesspool of trolls, professional contrarians, and people seemingly keen to express the most debased opinions regardless of how many people they’d upset.
That situation got even worse after Elon Musk acquired Twitter, changed its name to X, loosened the rules on what would get you banned, and changed the way verification worked.
By contrast, Bluesky feels like a safe haven. There’s very little trolling, and when it does happen, people aren’t biting. There’s a distinct lack of bots and paid users baiting for engagement. In fact, I’d say the interactions on Bluesky are generally quite pleasant!
Hate: Imposters are hard to suss out
Dave Parrack / IDG
Bluesky has an account verification system… sort of. You can self-verify your account by linking it to a particular domain, and then confirming the link from the domain side (showing that you actually own it and approve the verification). That domain becomes your Bluesky handle.
That might be good enough for companies and organizations, but it doesn’t quite work for everyone else. Outside of this limited form, there’s no account verification on Bluesky — and that means it can be hard to determine which accounts are genuine and official.
For example, a search for “Manchester United” throws up seven different accounts, none of which are run by the club itself. There are a couple of recognizable fan accounts, but even they may not be legit. Verification is a big task, but Bluesky will need it for widespread adoption.
Love: No biased algorithms from above
All social media platforms employ algorithms to keep you engaged, generally by learning what you like and showing you more of that. However, X’s algorithms have gone off the rails in recent years, with Elon Musk’s politics influencing every feature of the platform.
Bluesky has its own algorithms, but so far they remain unsullied by politics and nefarious purposes. So, even when browsing the Discover feed, which shows posts from accounts that you do and don’t follow, your past activity is the only thing influencing what you see.
Hate: The limited user population
As of this writing, Bluesky has crossed 22 million total users with no signs of stopping. But while that’s certainly an impressive feat, it’s still small compared to the other major networks: Facebook has 3 billion users, X has 500 million, and Threads has 200 million.
Yes, Bluesky is picking up thousands of new users every day. And yes, the smaller size might actually be a good thing in some ways. But don’t come into it expecting Twitter levels of activity. There are fewer people you know, fewer people posting things you’re interested in, and fewer people to interact and engage with.
Love: Build your own feed or follow others
Dave Parrack / IDG
By default, Bluesky offers two feeds: Following and Discover. The Following feed shows only posts from accounts you’re currently following while the Discover feed incorporates posts from unfollowed accounts that Bluesky thinks you’ll like based on your activity.
But that’s not all. There are custom feeds — some created by Bluesky, others created by the community — that filter and tailor the posts you see according to different criteria. For example, the Popular With Friends feed shows posts liked by the accounts you follow.
And if you have sufficient coding knowledge, you can even build your own custom feed. Learn more in Bluesky’s documentation.
Hate: The growing risk of filter bubbles
Dave Parrack / IDG
For all of its flaws, X (and Twitter before it) boasts enough users that there’s still a wide spectrum of views being expressed, so anything you post will be agreeable to some and disagreeable to others.
Unfortunately, X has devolved into tribalism lately, so who knows how much longer that’ll stay true. Bluesky may not have the same problem, but it does face a different (potential) problem.
For the most part, the people on Bluesky are those who felt compelled to leave X, and many of them left due to clashing political views. With every person who migrates over, X moves further in one direction while Bluesky moves further in the opposite direction.
But here’s the kicker: Bluesky lets anyone create “moderation lists” — lists of accounts to be blocked or muted — and anyone can subscribe to these moderation lists to instantly block/mute tons of accounts. You can see how this could be abused to silence people and create echo chambers.
Love: No advertising (for now)
One of the most immediately noticeable differences after moving from X to Bluesky is the lack of advertising. While many companies have stopped advertising on X over the last few years, you do still see ads between posts and after every video you play.
Bluesky hasn’t yet turned to advertising to fund its existence, instead relying on venture funding while growing its userbase. Advertising will likely come at some point, but right now, in this early stage, it feels great to use the app unencumbered by brands trying to sell you things.
Hate: Starting over from scratch
Dave Parrack / IDG
Given how new Bluesky is and how small its userbase is, switching means essentially starting over from scratch. For someone like myself, who joined Twitter back in 2007, that can feel a little overwhelming.
I never built a huge following on Twitter, and I’ve increasingly been feeling like I’m speaking into the void on X anyway. Still, starting with zero followers and struggling to even find accounts to follow makes the idea of ditching X in favor of Bluesky tougher than it should be.
But despite all the cons, I’m certainly intrigued by Bluesky and will be sticking with it. Perhaps you will, too. As more users migrate over, even more users will follow in their footsteps. Not quite ready to quit X yet? Check out these ways to make it more tolerable for now.
© 2024 PC World 3:15am  
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