Things to know before creating your account on the BlueSky platform
It seems that the attempts to find an alternative to the "X" platform are not over. After the emergence of the promising Mastodon site and the launch of the "Threads" platform by Meta last year, the Bluesky platform is back in the spotlight again and has become the focus of attention of many social media users. The platform emerged in response to the need to reshape social media sites in general - and not X in particular - in a way that gives users more control over their data.
Although it was founded in 2019, it was available by invitation only, until February of this year, when the situation changed and the company achieved 800,000 users in just one day! Bluesky's return to the spotlight at the present time coincides with the success of Donald Trump in the US elections. According to the BBC , Elon Musk's support for Trump was the reason for many "X" users to move to the new platform that is similar in design. If you are thinking the same, let us tell you 7 things before moving to Bluesky.
Before we talk about the seven, let’s first take a look at the platform’s founding story. In 2019, former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey launched Bluesky as a decentralized social media platform that would allow users to control how their data and content are managed thanks to the so-called Trusted Transport Protocol ( AT Protocol ) .
When Elon Musk acquired Twitter in 2022, all legal and financial ties with Bluesky were severed, prompting the latter to accelerate the development of its own social media application. In February 2023, the beta version of the platform was launched, and a full year later, it became available to the public, reaching 3 million users at the time. According to Forbes , Bluesky today has about 18 million users.
Bluesky has been growing rapidly, with over a million new users joining the platform after the recent US elections. As mentioned, the number of users today exceeds 18 million, not to mention that the platform currently has a high ranking on the Apple App Store, with Bluesky outperforming other popular apps such as Threads, ChatGPT, and even TikTok! This rapid growth is expected to continue for some time, so rest assured; you will find a lot of content if you enter the platform.
If you’re not satisfied with the content you see on popular social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, X, and others, then switching to Bluesky might be the answer. The platform is notable for its algorithms being decentralized, similar to Mastodon, which means it won’t forcefully decide what content you see. Posts are prioritized based on real user engagement, so the more likes or “Re-skeet” (the term for retweets), the more likely you are to see it. This feature increases the credibility of the content and puts you in control of what you see, not the algorithms.
Bluesky allows its users to choose the content they want to see thanks to algorithms and the “Feeds” feature. You can have multiple homepages – with the same account – and each page is dedicated to a specific content of your choice. For example, you might have a page for scientific discussions, another for football content, a third for technology content, and so on. As for the “Lists” feature, it allows you to create lists for specific groups of people or things you follow (such as news sources). You can also use this feature to block certain content, and you can share these lists to help others discover new accounts to follow. Overall, this feature helps you personalize your experience on the platform and organize the content you consume.
As for the “ Starter Packs ” feature , it has been present in the app since June 2024, and it is a selection of users and the main content Feed. This feature is designed to help newcomers to the platform follow the accounts and topics that interest them quickly and easily.
Blocking on Bluesky is called a “Nuclear Block” because it completely erases any connection between you and the person you blocked. If you block someone on this platform, they will never be able to see your posts, even if they have previously quoted one of them. Additionally, the blocking feature here allows you to remove any mentions or mentions of you in conversations or posts that others have quoted.
Bluesky platform uses a different method of verification for accounts. Unlike the blue badge and traditional verification methods on other platforms, you can enhance your credibility and distinguish yourself from others by using a distinctive domain as if it were your own website. When you create an account on the platform, you get a username that ends with " .bsky.social ", and in the event of verification of the account, you can change this domain to something that distinguishes you, for example: "AhmedSafwat.com".
Bluesky platform does not rely on ads as a source of income, which means that your personal data is not tracked or sold to advertisers, in addition to the absence of annoying ads that spoil the user experience. In contrast, Bluesky offers a paid subscription model with special features such as downloading videos in high quality, and customizing the profile, but note: This subscription will not give you an advantage in terms of showing posts or making your account verified. If you want to profit from the platform, know that Bluesky supports creators and takes only a small percentage of the profits.
As for privacy, Bluesky’s decentralized platform allows users to create and manage their own data servers instead of having one central server, which puts you in control of your data and how it is used and who can access it. If you’re interested, you can find details on the platform’s GitHub page .
You can download the official Bluesky app on Android through the Play Store or iPhone through the App Store , but on iPad, there are only third-party apps that you can download to use the platform, such as " Skeets " and " Openvibe ". If you are a fan of "TweetDeck", you can use Bluesky through the " Deck.blue " tool. You may encounter some performance issues, not to mention that this tool is limited, but it serves the purpose of use.
Ultimately, if you’re looking for a secure social networking site with solid algorithms, a privacy-respecting experience, and no ads, then Bluesky is the platform for you. So far, the platform looks very promising, but does that mean it will maintain the same momentum? Maybe, and it might even turn into a Threads-like platform. Only time will tell.