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Bluesky is considered a great alternative to X (formerly Twitter). If you’ve been thinking about giving it a try, you may be wondering how it compares to X and how you can get started with it. Here’s everything you need to know about Bluesky.
What Is Bluesky?
After purchasing X in 2022, Elon Musk introduced many new policy changes for the app. The legacy blue check marks indicating verified accounts were removed, a new subscription program was launched, and an update to the block feature allowed people you had blocked to see your posts still. Additionally, X permitted third-party companies to train their AI models on the content you post on your X account.
Most of these changes were not well-received by the majority of X users, who began searching for an alternative platform. Bluesky emerged as one of those alternatives, which is a decentralized social app developed alongside Twitter. This means you’ll find many similarities to X, from the interface to how the app functions.
The social app was conceptualized by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, who introduced it back in 2019 with the vision of creating a decentralized standard for social media. He aimed for Twitter to adopt this decentralized standard in the future. However, Dorsey is no longer part of Bluesky’s board, and the app now operates as an independent public benefit corporation led by Jay Graber.
Bluesky gained over 800,000 new users on the day it became publicly available in February 2024. As of this writing, the app has more than 15 million users and ranks in the first place in the App Store free app rankings.
How to Create Your Bluesky Account
Bluesky is available as both a mobile app (Android/ iPhone) and a desktop web app. To create your Bluesky account, open the Bluesky app or visit its website.
I’ll be showing you the steps for the desktop version, but the steps are nearly identical on the Bluesky app as well.
Click the “Sign Up” button in the left sidebar.
Enter all the required details, such as your email address, password, and date of birth. Then, click “Next.”
Provide the user handle you want, and choose “Next.”
Upload your profile picture and click “Continue.”
Select the areas you’re interested in and click “Continue.” This will help Bluesky show content based on your interests.
Finally, click the “Let’s Go” button. And that’s it. You’ve created your Bluesky account.
How to Customize Your Bluesky Feed
Once you’ve created your Bluesky account, it’s time to customize your feed. By default, there are two feeds on the Bluesky homepage—Following and Discover. The Following feed shows content posted by people you’re following, while the Discover feed displays random content based on your interests.
You can add additional feeds to the homepage to make it easier and quicker to view specific types of content. To do this, click the “Feeds” option on the left sidebar.
On the Feeds page, click the plus icon next to different types of feeds. For example, if you’re interested in science content, you can click the plus icon next to the Science feed.
After that, the Science feed will appear on your homepage.
By default, Bluesky shows the Following feed when you access the app or website. However, if you want Bluesky to display another feed, such as the Science feed you added, on launch, select the “Feeds” option on the left and click “Edit.”
Use the arrow key to move the Science feed to the top of the list. Then, click “Save Changes.”
How to Manage Followers on Bluesky
Like other social media apps, followers and the people you follow are two of the main aspects of Bluesky. You can search for people to follow on Bluesky using the platform’s search function. Click the “Search” option on the left sidebar, and you’ll see a search bar where you can enter your friend’s account username.
You’ll also see a suggested accounts section with profiles that Bluesky thinks should be on your follow list. This section only includes accounts that share your interests. Simply click the “Follow” button to start following an account.
To view your following list, click the “Profile” option on the left. On your profile page, you’ll find the Following and Followers sections.
If you want to unfollow an account, open the “Following” section and click the “Unfollow” button next to the account you wish to unfollow.
How to Post on Bluesky
It’s very easy to post content on Bluesky. Simply click the “New Post” button on the left.
A typing window will appear where you can type the content you want to post. You can include emojis, videos, photos, and GIFs in your post.
To customize who can reply to your post, click the post-interaction button.
Once your post is ready, hit the “Post” button in the top-right corner.
You can check out all the content you’ve posted in your profile section. And, whenever someone likes, comments, or reposts your post, you will be notified in the Notification section. If you come across a post you don’t like or find offensive, you can report it by clicking the three dots under the post and selecting the “Report Post” option.
To take it a step further, you can block the account that made the post. Simply go to that person’s profile, click the three dots, and choose “Block Account” from the menu that appears.
How to Change Bluesky Settings
Not everyone will prefer the default settings of Bluesky. If you want to adjust certain settings to your preference, such as switching to the dark theme, you’ll need to access the “Settings” option in Bluesky.
On the Bluesky Settings page, you’ll be able to change the appearance, language, accessibility, and more. You can access the “Moderation” option if you want to control the type of content appearing in your feed. You’ll have the option to block or allow adult content. Additionally, you’ll be able to mute specific words or tags that you don’t want to appear in your feed.
The Chat Settings option allows you to configure who can message you.
You also have the option to enable two-factor authentication for additional security.
Finally, if you want, you can delete or deactivate your Bluesky account through the settings page.
This is everything you need to know about Bluesky. You’ll definitely learn more about the app and how it works as you use it more. Given its growing popularity, there’s a high possibility it could become the next big name in the social media app industry.