Bluesky has introduced a dedicated tab for mentions in the notifications section as part of its latest 1.96 update. This new feature simplifies the process of tracking conversations and replies in which you’ve been tagged, enhancing the user experience on the platform.
The update also includes improvements to how users can view and manage replies to posts. With version 1.96, you can adjust settings to determine how replies appear. Replies can be displayed linearly, where each post follows the previous one in a straightforward sequence, or in threaded format, which organizes replies in indented threads, similar to Reddit’s structure. Additionally, Bluesky offers several sorting options for replies, allowing users to arrange them by criteria such as newest, oldest, most-liked, “hot,” or even a random order called “Poster’s Roulette.”
Another noteworthy feature in this update addresses custom domain usernames. If you choose to use a custom domain as your username, Bluesky will now reserve your previous .bsky.social handle to prevent others from claiming it. This functionality helps secure your former identity on the platform. For instance, users like me who opted for a custom domain before this update often had to create alternate accounts to park their old .bsky.social usernames manually, ensuring they remained unavailable to others.
Bluesky experienced a significant influx of new users in November, propelling its growth to surpass 25 million total users last week. However, the pace of growth has recently slowed. To continue building its platform, Bluesky plans to roll out a subscription service early next year, along with its own payment system at a later stage.
Despite these developments, Bluesky faces stiff competition from Meta’s Threads, a platform leveraging its scale and feature rollouts to assert its dominance. Threads has been actively demonstrating its ability to introduce features rapidly and appeal to a larger user base, posing a challenge to smaller platforms like Bluesky.
As Bluesky evolves, updates like version 1.96 demonstrate its commitment to refining the user experience while navigating a competitive social media landscape.