Why is Mastodon the best social medium in 2026?
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@caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon
I used to sit near a visually impaired person at work and I would hear about it all the time.
@circuitsunfish @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon I agree that, in fact, my opinion on the subject can be biased. I had a classmate who is blind and, on different occasions, he told me that he simply didn't care about it. This issue ended up becoming the standard for me. I understand that this classmate doesn't represent all blind people. I also keep in mind that when this classmate talked to me about alt text, we were discussing web pages (because I worked with that). So I realize that the context is different. In any case, it's necessary to put into perspective that people who demand alt text in all posts here tend to be a little less patient and somewhat aggressive.
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Why is Mastodon the best social medium in 2026?
Picture 1: If I share a post with some objectively good news, it gets 97 boosts and 140 likes.
Picture 2: If I share the same post on Threads, it gets zero interactions — zero! — because it contains a link to the competing social medium YouTube, and on Threads, Mark Zuckerberg has decided that the algorithm should not promote such content.
Threads is where the rich decide what we can talk about.
On Mastodon, we decide.
@randahl this is what I have noticed here after only being on the #fediverse for 7 days and I love it.
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@winkelmesser It does now.
@gsymon@randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon For the next time I suggest you to tag and/or @altbot which gives you alt-text. I find it really useful
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@caiocgo @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon I wish the alt text police were more friendly, more "hey you did you forget alt text or are you having issues writing it?" instead of "I reposted this because OP didn't add alt text" Do those people forget we can edit our posts?!
@qgustavor @caiocgo @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon sometimes we have no more spoons to repeat the same thing over and over again. at some point not writing alt text is a deliberate choice, even more so when #alt4me exists.
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@qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon the funny thing is I have never seen a visually impaired person complaining about the absence of alt text.
@caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon oh my dog this is the most ableist post I have read all year! DUDE.
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@caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon oh my dog this is the most ableist post I have read all year! DUDE.
@f4grx @caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon techbro not being a shitbag challenge failed -
Why is Mastodon the best social medium in 2026?
Picture 1: If I share a post with some objectively good news, it gets 97 boosts and 140 likes.
Picture 2: If I share the same post on Threads, it gets zero interactions — zero! — because it contains a link to the competing social medium YouTube, and on Threads, Mark Zuckerberg has decided that the algorithm should not promote such content.
Threads is where the rich decide what we can talk about.
On Mastodon, we decide.
imo that only we collectively decide what gets attention via human boosts is why this place matters. why it has revolutionary potential. imagine everyone here and that it was integrated into how we consumed all media. not corporate algos influenced by wealthy owners or advertisers. it would upend the power of money in society.
(I get wanting to exclude some here but that would mean we never get to the above vision. moderate harassment, not misinfo or bad ideas.)
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@qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon the funny thing is I have never seen a visually impaired person complaining about the absence of alt text.
@caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon but all the people who are publicly thankful for alt text don't count, right? And maybe try meeting more people, including those who cannot see pictures.
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@circuitsunfish @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon I agree that, in fact, my opinion on the subject can be biased. I had a classmate who is blind and, on different occasions, he told me that he simply didn't care about it. This issue ended up becoming the standard for me. I understand that this classmate doesn't represent all blind people. I also keep in mind that when this classmate talked to me about alt text, we were discussing web pages (because I worked with that). So I realize that the context is different. In any case, it's necessary to put into perspective that people who demand alt text in all posts here tend to be a little less patient and somewhat aggressive.
@caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon
the "polite suggestion" of the w3c and the ADA (they were not suggestions) did not move the cultural norm of leaving the blind and visually impaired out of online discussion. the frustration drives the tone. every other place besides fedi, it is a constant never ending battle to get the platform to support alt text entry for users *at* *all*. here the alt text entry is very accessible during post so we can and should use it. that your blind classmate wasn't particularly bothered was an outlier
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@randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon you gotta love the alt-text police.
@caiocgo @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon
yeah fuck those guys for trying to make things better how dare they.
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Why is Mastodon the best social medium in 2026?
Picture 1: If I share a post with some objectively good news, it gets 97 boosts and 140 likes.
Picture 2: If I share the same post on Threads, it gets zero interactions — zero! — because it contains a link to the competing social medium YouTube, and on Threads, Mark Zuckerberg has decided that the algorithm should not promote such content.
Threads is where the rich decide what we can talk about.
On Mastodon, we decide.
@randahl fuck off right back to linkedin with slop posting like this
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@caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon oh my dog this is the most ableist post I have read all year! DUDE.
@f4grx @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon I am sorry for this misunderstanding. What I meant to say was: people who can't see pictures are not amongst those who complain the most when alt text is missing. Neither they are aggressive about it.
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@f4grx @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon I am sorry for this misunderstanding. What I meant to say was: people who can't see pictures are not amongst those who complain the most when alt text is missing. Neither they are aggressive about it.
@caiocgo @f4grx @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon
I see people are getting their nerves up. Like, why all this focus on that? Alt text isn't just for the people who can't see pictures.Most times I used alt text was when I was on a really shitty internet and images never loaded at all, or when I could not understand images (for many reasons).
I think the imposition of alt text without proper education is terrible for the fediverse. People feel forced to add alt text and then add shitty alt text, like AI generated text and/or which missing important information.
Also, not everyone has the same skill. If I can't understand an image, I prefer leaving the alt text off (and waiting for someone to help me with it) rather than writing a shitty alt text. I don't know everything.
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@qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon the funny thing is I have never seen a visually impaired person complaining about the absence of alt text.
@caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon - Hi! I'm from a family that carries a genetic form of blindness. While I'm seeing (luck of the genetic draw), about half of my extended family are legally blind, and most are visually impaired to at least some extent. I'm also involved in activism for people with various other disabilities, and live with a disabled partner. With those credentials out of the way:
I can genuinely assure you that when disabled people are "nicer" about an issue than non-disabled allies are, it's very often because they are a) too exhausted to keep fighting you, b) too depressed by the constant ableism they face to believe in themselves any more, c) genuinely afraid you will do them harm if they try to stick up for themselves, or d) embarrassed about being disabled/needing something and don't want to draw attention.
Allies tend to have more energy to stick up for our disabled loved ones, because we aren't also dealing with the daily challenges of, y'know, actually being disabled.
"Bad" alt-text is still better than no alt-text, and you'll never get better at writing it unless you practice. And using limited time and energy to ask someone (who might ignore you, or even respond with hostility) to do what they should have done in the first place? Takes way more time and energy than just re-posting with passive-aggressive captions.
The shame you feel when you are called out for not posting alt-text is nothing compared to the shame of having to constantly ask for help and accommodation, drawing attention to yourself and your disability.
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@caiocgo @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon - Hi! I'm from a family that carries a genetic form of blindness. While I'm seeing (luck of the genetic draw), about half of my extended family are legally blind, and most are visually impaired to at least some extent. I'm also involved in activism for people with various other disabilities, and live with a disabled partner. With those credentials out of the way:
I can genuinely assure you that when disabled people are "nicer" about an issue than non-disabled allies are, it's very often because they are a) too exhausted to keep fighting you, b) too depressed by the constant ableism they face to believe in themselves any more, c) genuinely afraid you will do them harm if they try to stick up for themselves, or d) embarrassed about being disabled/needing something and don't want to draw attention.
Allies tend to have more energy to stick up for our disabled loved ones, because we aren't also dealing with the daily challenges of, y'know, actually being disabled.
"Bad" alt-text is still better than no alt-text, and you'll never get better at writing it unless you practice. And using limited time and energy to ask someone (who might ignore you, or even respond with hostility) to do what they should have done in the first place? Takes way more time and energy than just re-posting with passive-aggressive captions.
The shame you feel when you are called out for not posting alt-text is nothing compared to the shame of having to constantly ask for help and accommodation, drawing attention to yourself and your disability.
@Polywog @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon
You are totally right and thanks for pointing this out.
It's far more likely that I'm bothered by the discomfort of being called upon to pay attention to this. What's most important will always be striving to improve. And that's what I'm committed to doing.
Again. Thank you. -
@f4grx @qgustavor @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon I am sorry for this misunderstanding. What I meant to say was: people who can't see pictures are not amongst those who complain the most when alt text is missing. Neither they are aggressive about it.
@caiocgo @qgustavor@urusai.social @randahl @winkelmesser @gsymon blind people are sick of ableist bullshit and know that it's useless to complain.
IT IS NOT THE ROLE OF BLIND PEOPLE TO COMPLAIN ABOUT MISSING ALT TEXT
IT IS THE ROLE OF SEEING PEOPLE TO MAKE ALT TEXT NORMAL SO BLIND PEOPLE ARE BETTER WELCOMED.
Just like it's not the role of women to ignore sexist bullshit. It's the role of men to callout and condemn the sexist bullshit of other males.
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Why is Mastodon the best social medium in 2026?
Picture 1: If I share a post with some objectively good news, it gets 97 boosts and 140 likes.
Picture 2: If I share the same post on Threads, it gets zero interactions — zero! — because it contains a link to the competing social medium YouTube, and on Threads, Mark Zuckerberg has decided that the algorithm should not promote such content.
Threads is where the rich decide what we can talk about.
On Mastodon, we decide.
@randahl Mastodon just works better for what we were told social networking was for when it was invented (DAE remember when it was a "social network", not "social media"? Cause I do...).
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@randahl I'm quite new to using this platform. Any tips to help initiate curate an algorithm and people to follow?
Hiya!
I've done a guide here on all the different ways to customise what is on your timeline: https://fedi.tips/does-mastodon-and-the-fediverse-use-algorithms-does-it-start-pushing-stuff-at-me-based-on-my-interactions
Let me know if you have any specific questions
