Bluesky

Bluesky (Bsky) is a microblogging, social networking service that started out as a Twitter research initiative,¹⁾²⁾ appointed to Jay Graber³⁾ as it went independent, then they began their invite-only beta on April 12, 2023⁴⁾ before the platform finally went public on February 6, 2024.⁵⁾⁶⁾

It is run by a benefit corporation,⁷⁾ that is reliant on seed funding,⁸⁾⁹⁾ and plans to expand its AT Protocol that would 'decentralize' the way people interact with social platforms.¹⁰⁾¹¹⁾ For now, there's just a deluge of complaints towards staff.¹²⁾

Summary

The service revolves around short-form posts, which users attach media and content warnings to, and has a significant focus on 'feeds' and filtering options. As usual, users can like posts, share posts, leave a reply if willing, and follow or unfollow accounts to change their timeline. Of course, the website is still relatively new, so it still has a lot of room for improvement, but a less intrusive subscription service is planned.¹³⁾¹⁴⁾

General tips

Go to Moderation and toggle the 'content filters' if you would like to see adult content.
- Go to the Bluesky Moderation Service and feel free to toggle content that you don't mind being exposed to. This includes the 'Sexually Suggestive (Cartoon)' label, by the way.
Go to Language Settings and clear out the 'content languages' to see posts in any language.
When uploading media, a 'label' button that allows you to attach the appropriate content warnings will appear. Otherwise, users may choose to report the post so it can be labeled properly.¹⁵⁾
For some reason, Bluesky might spit out 'invalid handle' errors, so check if their servers are down before overreacting. These errors don't last long, unless you have a custom domain handle.¹⁶⁾
There is advanced search functionality, but there's no easy way to access it on their official clients, and there's no 'people you follow' function either which makes it kinda annoying to use.
If you're dealing with the age gate, there are a number of workarounds.

Custom feeds

The feeds are custom, user-crafted algorithms which can potentially enhance the user experience beyond the following and discover feed. Some useful non-specific feeds that I've found are:

Mutuals - A feed of the accounts that you follow that also follow you back.
Popular with Friends - A sampling of what your friends may like. Use with caution.
Quiet Posters - A feed that tries to gather accounts you follow that rarely post.
The 'Gram - An image-only feed from the accounts you follow. Useful for artwork.

Labeling services

The labelers are a 'moderation' tool which can be used to attach labels onto accounts and posts, though they can also be used for fun or promote a sense of community if you choose to opt-in.

Third-party tools

Third-party extensions

Sky Follower Bridge [@sky-follower-bridge.dev‬]
A tool for finding Bluesky accounts of users on Instagram, Twitter, etc. May return false positives.

Third-party clients

Boost Blue [@boostblue.bsky.social]
If you want an iOS/Android client that's extremely similar to Twitter, try this one.
Graysky [@graysky.app]
One of the earliest iOS/Android client. Personally, I am not a fan of the 'feeds first' thing.
Klearsky [@mimonelu.net]
One of the alternative web clients. Might feel bloated to some.
Skeets [@skeetsapp.com]
If you want an iOS client that's somewhat similar to Twitter, try this one.
Tokimeki [@tokimeki.blue]
Highly customizable Android client and web client.
Ucho-ten [@ucho-ten.net]
Technically, a web client and an iOS/Android client. Too modern, if you get what I mean.

Notes

I made a Bluesky account during the invite-only beta on October 18, 2023, user #1586918.
On the Twitter–Bluesky relationship, it should be noted that Twitter only held this vague 'advisory seat', and Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey¹⁷⁾ would abandon Bluesky¹⁸⁾ to praise Nostr.¹⁹⁾
Every user's blocklist is 'technically public'²⁰⁾ as a way to make sure that users aren't able to see each other across the network,²¹⁾ though it comes at the obvious downside of airing everybody's dirty laundry and there are a number of ways to circumvent this (e.g. making a new account).
Before going public, Bluesky started migrating accounts to 'personal data servers' in November 2023,²²⁾ then changed their logo from a literal blue sky to a social butterfly on December 21, 2023.²³⁾
There were a number of significant migration patterns to Bluesky as the platform went public in 2024:
- As the platform went public, there was a significant Japanese contingent when it first began.
- Brazilian president Lula joined on April 12, 2024,²⁴⁾²⁵⁾ then Brazil blocked Twitter for a month since Twitter refused to remove accounts associated with a failed far-right coup.
- In late 2024, Bluesky started to gain momentum, as Twitter changed how its blocks worked²⁶⁾²⁷⁾²⁸⁾ and there were concerns over a privacy policy update,²⁹⁾ which trickled³⁰⁾³¹⁾ into a huge boom.³²⁾ Unfortunately, the timing of the migration made it easy for churnalists to misconstrue the migrations as a political spectacle,³³⁾³⁴⁾³⁵⁾ which is why conservatives are more hesitant about joining.
In the Japanese language, Bluesky is 'BurūSukai' (ブルースカイ), and has the clipped compound of 'BuruSuka' (ブルスカ), but it has also been rendered as 'Aosora' (青空, lit. “blue sky”).

External links

Bluesky - The front page of Bluesky.
- @bsky.app, @atproto.com on Bluesky - General updates and the developer team.
- Bluesky Debug - The server status page. You can find all the host names here.
Community Showcase - A collection of third-party clients and projects.
Clearsky - A tool for finding out which Bluesky users blocks who. Just don't drown in the tea.
- @clearsky.app on Bluesky
Anartia - An alternative front-end for people who just want read-only access.