Bluesky Social Network Introduces New Features to Enhance User Experience

Bluesky, the social network that recently celebrated reaching 40 million users, is set to launch a beta test for a “dislikes” feature aimed at improving personalization on its platform. This new functionality will allow users to provide feedback on the content they prefer not to see in their feeds.

The platform also announced several updates focused on enhancing conversation control, including improvements to reply mechanisms, better detection of toxic comments, and the prioritization of relevant discussions for individual users.

With the introduction of the “dislikes” feature, Bluesky aims to leverage this new signal to refine user personalization. By allowing users to indicate their preferences through dislikes, the system will learn to curate content that aligns with their interests, not only affecting content ranking but also reply prioritization.

Bluesky’s overarching goal with these changes is to foster a space for enjoyable, authentic, and respectful interactions. This direction comes in response to recent platform unrest, with some users calling for stricter moderation policies. Despite being a decentralized network where users manage moderation, there are calls for the platform itself to take a more proactive stance against harmful users.

Bluesky’s approach, however, is centered on empowering users to tailor their own experiences. This includes features such as moderation lists for blocking unwanted interactions, content filters, muted words, and the ability to subscribe to various moderation services. The platform also enables users to detach quote posts to reduce unwarranted attention, a practice that has contributed to a negative culture on other platforms.

Enhancements and Future Plans

In addition to the dislikes feature, Bluesky is exploring a range of updates, design modifications, and feedback tools to enhance conversations on its network. One notable initiative involves mapping out “social neighborhoods” to highlight connections between users who frequently engage with one another. By prioritizing replies from users within one’s social circle, Bluesky aims to make feed content more relevant and familiar.

Bluesky’s efforts in this area aim to address challenges faced by competitors like Threads, which have struggled with presenting coherent conversation threads to users. By streamlining the display of interactions, Bluesky hopes to offer a more intuitive user experience as it continues to grow.

Moreover, the platform has refined its moderation model to identify and downrank replies that exhibit toxic, spammy, or off-topic behavior. It has also adjusted the Reply button functionality to direct users to full threads before composing responses, reducing content duplication and irrelevant replies.

Another user-centric enhancement involves making reply settings more visible, empowering users to control who can respond to their posts. These changes aim to promote healthier and more engaging conversations within the Bluesky community.

Conclusion

Bluesky’s latest updates underscore its commitment to creating a safe, engaging, and user-centric social networking environment. By introducing innovative features like dislikes, refining moderation mechanisms, and enhancing user controls, the platform seeks to elevate the quality of interactions and content shared among its growing user base.