Dear Fedi friends,

[rysiek@mstdn.social]

@_elena here you go:

Best social network money can't buy.

And:

Fediverse proves that if nobody is tipping the scales to artificially boost "engagement", toxic people end up being blocked. Mainstream media toxicity is not inevitable, it's a business decision, a choice. And Fediverse chooses not to have any of it.

[folfdk@helvede.net]

@_elena
This is mostly Mastodon experience but:

I feel like I'm in control.
The system is made for me and I can sort and select what I see through filters and lists.

[germosch@troet.cafe]

@_elena I been part of building the internet here where I‘m from.
Yes, I‘m an old nerd. I never got into SocMed
bc so annoying! Fedi just works fine and doesn’t annoy me. Love it.

[onepict@chaos.social]

@_elena On the fediverse we have real choice in who we can communicate with.

We can choose where we communicate in safety. It's not a centralised community, it's overlapping communities choosing to communicate with each other.

We can choose to exercise freedom of association on here, not just free speech.

[aaronmccollum@fosstodon.org]

@_elena The fediverse is special to me because everything I post and do is my own. I own the data and can delete or move it as I please. I’m not in a deep-web silo found on closed ecosystems controlled by a guy who just wants to make money from me.

[brownphotographic@fosstodon.org]

@_elena [1/2] Une chose me frappe. Les humains forment naturellement de petites communautés — familles, quartiers, groupes d'intérêt. On jette un œil au monde plus large de temps en temps, et on évite naturellement les extrêmes. Les grands réseaux sociaux reposaient sur l'idée d'une seule communauté géante. Pour émerger du bruit — et gagner de l'argent — les algorithmes ont pris le contrôle, amplifiant les plus bruyants comme s'ils représentaient la culture.

[chrismayla6@zirk.us]

@_elena

The key attribute of the Fediverse (and Mastodon) is civility - my three and a half years (so far) have included a range of discussions I could never have imagined having on other platforms.

[paco@infosec.exchange]

@_elena I used to go to a restaurant that was super popular and really small. They had a sign in their door:
Too small?
Too loud?
Too crowded?
Too bad.

I think I can adapt that to the #fediverse

No AI?
No monetisation?
No algorithm?
No problem!

[brownphotographic@fosstodon.org]

@_elena [2/2] Le Fediverse brise ce modèle pour le mieux. De petites communautés de gens partageant les mêmes idées peuvent se former et communiquer — sans algorithmes. D'autres peuvent rejoindre, mais la communauté gère les points de vue extrêmes. Vous n'aimez pas ? Ne rejoignez pas. Ou faites vos valises et allez ailleurs. C'est à nouveau un modèle de un-à-plusieurs. En résumé : une façon de communiquer plus naturellement humaine.

[sn@social.josko.org]

@_elena little to no attention seekers, genuine communities, 2000s vibe of free internet.

[brownphotographic@fosstodon.org]

@_elena (Claude translated for me. Mon francais est nul)

[emjonaitis@mathstodon.xyz]

@_elena Je me souviens que l'algorithme de Twitter me fut sentir terrible. J'aime que Mastodon n'a pas d'algorithme; c'est moins addictif, je croix.

[eetschrijver@mastodon.social]

@_elena Le Fédiverse, c'est le premier et le seul medium où l'on est maître de son contenu et de ses préférences. Il n'est point 'téléguidé' par des algorithmes qui pourraient falsifier l'importance des contributions avec quoi que ce soit comme objectif--l'intérêt que l'on voit, est toujours réel. C'est ce qui rapproche le plus l'interaction humaine dans la vie de tous les jours, car dans le Fédiverse, ce que l'on y met, ne subit aucune altération. Ce qui évite pas mal de choses fâcheuses.

[eetschrijver@mastodon.social]

@_elena Bon bol avec la présentation !

[redscare@snabelen.no]

@_elena Fediverse is user-policed, empowering and Musk-free. And we got furries and pinball-machines.

[s1m0n4@ohai.social]

@_elena le moment où on franchit cette porte, on comprend à nouveau la différence entre être utilisateur et utilisé.

Les réseaux sociaux les plus connus aujourd'hui réduisent les personnes à leurs données et à tout ce que l'on peut exploiter de leurs clicks, leur navigation et leurs questions.

Sur le #Fediverse l'humain redevient un être social capable de bâtir une communauté de gens avec les mêmes centres d'intérêts sans, pour autant, être exploité ou piègé par l'addiction aux contenus.

[elmine@deepthought.infullflow.net]

@_elena
@sturmsucht said something to me during FOSDEM that stuck with me. Posting in the fediverse liberated him from all the 'playing to the algorithm’ behaviour. What are the best viewed tags, what is the best day in the week to post, what is the best time of day to release something. All micro decisions that you can let go of in the fediverse. Also, I see many posts days, weeks, even years old being reshared here. Only possible in human to human communication without algorithms interfering.

[snowgaze@masto.pt]

@_elena What I love about fedi and mastodon in particular
1. Cronological order of posts and we are the algorithm
2. Being able to follow pixelfed and peertube from mastodon
3. Real engagement and feel of community
4. Filters that work, no adverts

[musevg@23.social]

@_elena
If you look closer at it, the Fediverse isn't a social network but a network of social networks: Local communities, political communities or commumities based on arts, hobbies, common interests, no matter what. Each of them thrives on its own with its own members and their topics. While at the same time each local user can talk to everybody else, everywhere else about every other topic they may have a common interest in. Across the whole Fediverse.

[showitt@mastodon.social]

@_elena Personally speaking I adore the absence of adverts, I never find myself quick-scrolling (not to be confused with Rick-scrolling!) through endless pages of rubbish content, it's like every post in my feed sparks my interest or curiosity, even during these trying times. And the content of posts here is succinct, informative and not manipulative. I have also had nothing but positive interactions with posters, which is quite restorative. Good luck!