The Casual Dork Weekly #26

TECH

Some Are Calling It A Mass ‘eXodus’

bluesky and mastodon are up…

The digital landscape is witnessing a mass exodus from Elon Musk's X, with many users, including prominent figures like Stephen King and Don Lemon, deleting their accounts in response to recent events.

This 'great migration' has sparked a search for alternative platforms, and three contenders are rising to the challenge: Bluesky, Threads, and Mastodon. Each offers a unique experience, catering to different user preferences. Let’s look at what some of these alternative platforms offer:

Bluesky

Bluesky, founded by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, is the most similar to the old Twitter, both in appearance and functionality.

It provides a nostalgic experience, reminiscent of Twitter a decade ago, with a chaotic yet passionate community. The platform offers custom timeline filters, algorithms, and accessibility features, creating a more tailored and inclusive environment.

Bluesky's user base currently consists of English-speaking, left-leaning individuals, which gives it a distinct vibe, which some have described as 'theatre kid energy'. The site attracts news enthusiasts, political aficionados, and a plethora of journalists, creating an intellectual and vibrant atmosphere. However, its niche demographic and potential technical glitches might be drawbacks for some.

Threads

Threads is positioning itself as a mainstream alternative to Twitter, attracting a wide range of users with its casual and visually-centric nature. With a massive user base, it offers a more relaxed social media experience, appealing to influencers, celebrities, and everyday users who want to avoid the political fervour often found on other platforms.

Its strict content moderation and de-emphasis on politics create a unique environment, though some may find the heavy-handed algorithms and potential privacy concerns associated with Meta a drawback.

In the ongoing competition for users, Threads stands out as a powerful contender, providing a simple and controlled social media journey, especially for those who prefer a more laid-back online experience, free from the intensity of political discourse and tailored towards a broad, inclusive audience.

This platform is a direct challenge to Twitter's dominance, offering a different path in the ever-evolving social media landscape.

Mastodon

Mastodon stands out as the most complex and decentralized option in the social media arena. It's a unique platform where users choose their own 'instance' to join, each with its own rules and moderation, offering an unprecedented level of user control and customization.

This structure allows for a diverse range of communities, catering to specific interests and values, from free-speech absolutists to those seeking heavily moderated, safe spaces. The platform's design gives users the power to create their own online environments, almost like setting up a personalized social media world.

As part of the "fediverse," Mastodon envisions a future where social media platforms seamlessly interconnect, providing users with a unified yet diverse experience. This ambitious concept challenges the traditional model of centralized social networks, giving rise to a new era of online freedom and community-driven engagement.

With its focus on decentralization and user autonomy, Mastodon attracts tech-savvy individuals, open-source enthusiasts, and those passionate about internet freedom, creating a haven for 'super nerds' seeking an alternative to the mainstream.

MUSIC

What Can We Say About This?

this switch up needs to be studied…

What can be said about Post Malone’s career? First, we need to look at some of his early music tastes. He was exposed to a wide array of genres by his dad in those early years—anything from rock, punk, hip hop and country. This all shaped his musical palette.

This shows up in the kind of music has made over the years. Post Malone has never been afraid to experiment and bend genres to create his unique sound.

He raised to prominence in the mid 2010s with his first hit single White Iverson, which was first uploaded to SoundCloud and later gained a lot of mainstream success and from this point, Post Malone was on his way.

From there it was basically hit after hit and he had fully arrived. A mainstay on the charts with pop-infused hip-hop bangers and by this point everyone knew the type of artist he was. To this day, one of my favourite Post Malone songs is Motley Crew. Play it and turn the volume up! That bass hits your chest hard!

At the height of his popularity, Post Malone decided to take a short hiatus from making music to focus on dealing with some personal demons.

When he returned in 2023, his sound shifted dramatically, and it seemed that he might have wanted to appeal to a more mature audience. This 2023 album, Austin, received mixed reviews from critics and fans alike, who had come to expect a certain sound from him, but change can be good.

As the months marched on, it became more clear that his sound was changing forever. One day, Post Malone had completely changed genres. He transitioned fully into being a pop/country artist, leaving his hip-hop roots behind.

This switch-up was quite the surprise to everyone who enjoyed his music, including me.

This new Post Malone is not my cup of tea and I miss this Post Malone:

CROSSWORD #16

The Last 10 US Presidents

seeing as though the US recently had their elections…

MEME OF THE WEEK

Sign This Man Immediately!

g.o.a.t status guaranteed…

Didn’t drop the ball.

Didn’t drop his drink.

Didn’t drop his child,

and the child didn’t drop their ball.

I wonder what his wife said after seeing this?