Mastodon
It’s a version of Twitter. Instead of joining a platform, you join a server run by an organisation, individual, or group of individuals. The “decentralised social network” consists of different “communities” and is “built with a focus on privacy and safety”, allowing users to decide who they want to share their posts with and offer content warnings. There is a chronological timeline, custom emojis and a 500-character limit.
Netizens have been using it for years, so there is a reasonable degree of familiarity here. The site is basically a big pool of message boards. The feed is divided into subgroups, known as subreddits, and you can join whatever subreddit that interest you, from knitting to Star Wars, coffee to tech. There is the option to upvote or downvote a topic or one of the entries in a topic.
Tumblr
Tumblr has been there for a very long time and has gone through ownership changes. It’s more of a place for bloggers rather than social network discussion. Each entry offers text, image and video. Recently, the platform updated its community guidelines that now allow a wider range of imagery, allowing nudity (not sexually explicit content). “We now welcome a broader range of expression, creativity, and art on Tumblr, including content depicting the human form (yes, that includes the naked human form),” the company has said in a blog post. According reports, the website is once again attracting youngsters, especially with the mess that’s unfolding after the new ownership of Twitter. Tweepsmap, a Twitter analytics provider, saw a slightly higher than usual drop in the number of “unfollows” on the platform among a sample size of 400,000 Twitter users on October 28, roughly 30 per cent higher than the usual Friday average.
Tribel Social
Developed by Likeopedia, the focus is on news feed customisation, Users are allowed to select a target audience to maximise engagement and there is an opportunity to become a “star contributor” based on the quality of posts and number of likes.
CounterSocial
The interesting aspect here is the VR angle but you can also keep things simple. The social network claims to not allow trolls, ads or fake news. There is also a TweetDeck-like experience on the app side with a bit of the metaverse thrown in. The network is closed to a few countries that are considered sources of bot traffic or disinformation.
