/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25365556/HT055_THREADS_CVirginia.jpg "Opening your Threads account for the Fediverse is as easy as one click")
The Fediverse seems to be steadily opening up. At the end of March, Meta’s Threads introduced a beta feature It allows users in the U.S., Canada, or Japan to see cross-posts and likes from Mastodon and possibly other federated social networks. In June, it added this capability More than 100 countries,
If you want to do it the long way, you can also do it from the mobile app or the web version:
Once you have selected Fediverse sharingYou’ll likely be taken through a series of explanatory screens telling you what the Fediverse is and how sharing works (you’ll need a public profile) and you’ll be warned that once your post lands in the Fediverse, threads have no control over the rules of the server it lands on. If you stop sharing, Meta may request that any previously shared posts be removed from another server, but that’s it. [Note: these were the warnings I observed when I first went through the process in March; since they only appear the first time you enable sharing, it’s possible they may have changed since then.]
Some other things to keep in mind:
So, what does this mean?
This means, According to Metathat “your Threads profile can be followed by people using different servers on the Fediverse, and eventually, you’ll be able to follow them from Threads.” If you have your sharing turned on and you select “Fediverse Sharing,” you’ll be reminded of your username and told that you can now connect and share with others on the Fediverse.
How important this is depends on how well cross-posting works in the future, how seamless the process is, and what kind of security measures are put in place to prevent bad guys from using it to attack servers, among other issues. As mentioned above, I’ve been using it since March and have found the process works well. This could be the start of a more widespread type of social networking.
Update on September 13, 2024: Updated to include a single link leading to the Fediverse sharing dialog, among other changes.
