hn.today

X Once Again Marks the Spot

daringfireball.net16 points14 comments
Screenshot of X Once Again Marks the Spot

X has regained footing under Elon Musk's ownership, becoming the primary platform for many prominent figures and a richer source of content than its rivals. Apple executives including John Ternus, Greg Joswiak and Tim Cook now post on X, and organizations and creators publish originals and retweets there regularly. A Merriam‑Webster comparison shows many more new posts and retweets on X than on Bluesky in October. Compared with Threads, Bluesky and Mastodon combined, X surfaces more varied tech, sports and cultural items; Threads suffers from a peculiar algorithm and engagement‑bait, while Bluesky and Mastodon are smaller and often dominated by political argument.

The platform's tone has shifted to a friendlier, cheerier culture that welcomes returning users, and the timeline has been quietly de‑Musked so users no longer see unrelated Musk posts forced into their feeds. People now post long essays and blog‑length pieces on X, which boosts utility despite the lack of RSS and the need for discipline to avoid time wasting. X delivers the "action" most users seek, and the visible decline of overt Musk micromanagement shows the platform is functioning more like a conventional social network than the chaotic experiment it once was.

Read on daringfireball.net14 comments on Hacker News

Summary generated by AI from the linked article. hn.today is not affiliated with Hacker News or Y Combinator.

More in Web

The daily digest

Today's best Hacker News stories, summarized and screenshotted, one email a day.