I keep seeing articles about Mastodon slumps, and journalists going back to Twitter. Is it fair to say, that maybe Mastodon isn't for journalists, or brands, or even people who want large accounts? Maybe Mastodon is true social media, for people who want to interact and discuss, not be influenced, sold to, or manipulated with cult style tactics and followings. There will always be groups who dislike the idea of the people controlling their own inputs, people who don't like the idea of accessible Administration, and people who don't like the idea that if we don't like a space that we can just move to another one, or even create our own. Individualism is scary to the kind of people who thrive on complacency, and not challenging the status quo.
Just installed a utility that locally indexes your Apple Photos and gives outstanding textual image search capabilities.
Here is a search for “kids at the beach” in Apple Photos native search (left, zero results) vs the same search in "Queryable" on the right (lots of accurate results).
This is all local and private!
App store link (runs on macOS, iPadOS, iOS): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/queryable/id1661598353
All of these hot takes about how Mastodon is too hard to use for mass adoption are missing the point entirely. We are not some tech startup trying to "disrupt" the social media ecosystem. We don't have VCs breathing down our necks pushing for continuous growth at all costs. We're just regular people out here building communities.
If people don't like Mastodon and decide to go back to Twitter, that's fine. They are not commodities to be exploited. If people like Mastodon and decide to stay, that's great! They are going to be more invested in the community because they are actually deriving real value from it.
If there's one thing the global capitalist system cannot fathom is that value can exist that is not fungible with monetary value. There are plenty of ways to create value for people that do not involve buying and selling. In fact the whole notion that value = monetary value is a relatively recent innovation in human history.
I'm not saying that capitalism doesn't have its benefits, but our minds have become so warped by its zero-sum game vision of the world that it's easy to believe that generating profits is the only thing that matters. We may have to play that game to justify our existence on this planet, but there's a whole world of value to be found outside of it. Just because we're forced to play the game doesn't mean the game is all there is.
I wince every time I see someone saying "I had my students use ChatGPT to..."
Unless you gave them your own login, or did it collectively through your own login, then you had them give up a bunch of personal info (email, phone number, etc.) to a 3rd party that has no privacy protections whatsoever in their terms of use. As an educator, you have no influence over that data, because there is no contract between your institution and that company. Open.ai is not bound by FERPA.
Please be careful.
Come with me if you want to live.
#TheTalkingValentineBearSaid
#HashtagGames
#14DaysOfValentines
#mastodon #monday
The winner for today's #HashItOut, #ButtMovies, is @TechBean for "Polyp Fiction" which is now linked on the game in the archive! Good stuff!
Another Colorado hospital stops letting women get their tubes tied, renewing questions about reproductive rights
https://coloradosun.com/2023/01/31/durango-hospital-tubal-ligations/
...lucky charms
I can't help pushing, or bumping into, big red buttons.
Could explain my marital status.