Are you one of the millions of people who have recently migrated from X to Bluesky? If so, let us demystify some of the new terminology you may have encountered.
What Is a Skeet?
First up, possibly the most awkward and not-very-popular term: “skeet.” A skeet is simply a post, what X used to call a tweet. They’re slightly longer than a post on X — at least, a post you can make for free — at 300 characters rather than 280.
You won’t actually see this term used that much or present in the interface. Apart from minor differences, you can think of a skeet as exactly the same as a tweet. The biggest difference is that posts you write are more likely to be seen by people following you. The default feed (“timeline”) shows all posts by people you’re following rather than using an algorithm that tailors your feed for you.
And What Are Feeds?
One popular feed, created by Bluesky developer Jaz, is “my pins.” This handy feed shows you all the posts you’ve replied to with a pin emoji (📌), so it acts as a simple bookmarking service.
Custom feeds are open for anyone to create, although the barriers are fairly high: you’ll need programming experience and a firm grip on the Bluesky API.
How About Lists?
While a feed is a collection of skeets, a “list” is a collection of user accounts. They have become widely used as a moderation tool to gather accounts that engage in negative behavior like spamming or posting abuse. Their use can be controversial, though: lists that are political may only serve to encourage segregation.
“Starter packs” are a specific type of list, serving a wholly positive function. These lists contain user accounts typically themed around a particular topic as recommended accounts. For example, if you want to follow your favorite writers from How-To Geek, there’s a starter pack for that:
Handles Look a Bit Strange, Though…
Just like on X, your username is key to Bluesky interactions. Both services sometimes refer to it as a handle, but Bluesky’s has at least one period since they are also all domain names.
… so, for example, you’ll see “@georgetakei.bsky.social” instead of “@GeorgeTakei.” But you canchange your handle to a custom domainif you own one; big accounts like “@nytimes.com” have done exactly that.
Is There Anything Else I Should Know?
Most of the other terms you see on Bluesky will be familiar and intuitive. “Chat” is the equivalent of X’s “Messages,” hashtags work in the same way, and the service is quickly improving, adding features like video embedding and thread posting. It’s worth checking out ourBluesky guide for beginnersif you’re still unsure how to get going.
Remember that Bluesky offers many options to tweak the service to your liking, so experiment by configuring your “Following” feed or creating a custom one. Also, remember to check out the settings when you post a new skeet.
