• lifestyle,  social,  twitter

    Archive Your Twitter Account in Case You Get Hit with a Ban

    December 19, 2022 /

    If you are like me and have no patients for Elon Musk’s jackassery, you might be looking to move to another smaller social media community. I have opened a Mastodon account and am reconnecting with other retro computing fans.

    Under Musk’s “leadership”, Twitter has gone from a stable mismanaged platform to a mismanaged platform under constant churn. Take last night’s unforced error. In a now deleted tweet, Twitter Support posted a notice that the company would begin removing accounts promoting or linking to other social networks. You can read The New York Times and CNN coverage of the latest dust up if you can stomach it.

    Since I have a pinned tweet redirecting folks to my Mastodon account, I was expecting that either the tweet would be deleted, or that I would end up being banned from Twitter. So, I decided to request an archive of my account.

    Here’s how to request your own archive.

    Step 1: Login to your account.

    Step 2: Click or tap on More > Settings and Support > Settings and Privacy

    Step 3: Then, click or tap on Your Account > Download an Archive of Your Data

    Step 4: Click or tap the Request Archive button.

    Assuming that Twitter.com is still functioning at a basic level, within 24 hours you will receive an email with a download link to your archive download.

    I’m not a prolific social media user and do not have any regrets about deleting my Facebook account years ago. As it stands now, I am fine if I get banned or suspended because I am reconnecting to other retro computing enthusiasts, as I said, on Mastodon. I am also supporting my favorite creators on Patreon. When a paid subscription also includes a Discord server, I also occasionally stop in there to hang out with other like-minded nerds. It’s nice to not be bombarded by ads and accounts that just want to cause chaos.

    So, will I delete my Twitter account? I honestly don’t know. As it stands now, I probably won’t delete it yet. I am spending less time on Twitter these days. Just like discussion boards gave way to blogs which stepped aside for Twitter, I’m ready for the next thing. If Musk speeds up that transition to the next thing, so be it. Buckle up!

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  • lifestyle,  mastodon,  social,  technology

    Toot, toot! I’m on Mastodon!

    November 19, 2022 /

    I tend to like my drama on TV, not on my social media platforms. So, after Elon Musk’s $44B takeover of Twitter and the corporate chaos that followed, I started looking for alternate services.

    I ended up on the noc.social distributed Mastodon server as @AlanGrassia@noc.social.

    Mastodon is a distributed open-source social network that is not driven by algorithms or junked up by ads. This means that you have a nice chronological feed of posts, called toots, by the people you want to see.

    The noc.social server that I joined is a Mastodon community for sysadmins, engineers, and tech people in general. Noc’s Code of Conduct is pretty simple. It all boils down to don’t be a jerk and everything will be fine.

    The cool thing about Mastodon is that it doesn’t matter which server you are on, you can still see and talk with people on other servers. This is due to the ActivityPub and other open web protocols.

    So far it has been a wonderful experience. Mastodon is full of other retro computing and technology enthusiasts just like me. The Mastodon web UI and iOS/iPadOS apps are nice too.

    If you are looking for a replacement for the dumpster fire that Twitter is becoming, Mastodon might be the place for you.

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  • android,  facebook,  galaxy s,  galaxy s4,  google,  htc,  htc one,  samsung,  social

    Facebook Home Goes Live on Select Android Handsets

    April 15, 2013 /

    If you are the type that just can’t get enough Facebook and you use a Google Android smartphone, you might be interested to know that Facebook Home is now available for download from the Google Play Store.

    Facebook Home provides deep Facebook integration into your Android-powered smartphone putting your friend’s status updates, notifications, and Messenger chats front and center so you always know what’s going on.

    According to BGR, compatible devices include the HTC One, HTC One X, HTC One X+, Galaxy S4, Galaxy SIII, Galaxy Note II and of course HTC’s (2498) First. Unfortunately, Facebook Home is only available in the US right now and you must be running Google’s Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS or later.

    Want to learn more about Facebook Home?  Check out Facebook’s promotional video.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiqbNxRurFA]

    [Via BGR.com…]

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