Everyone is talking about Threads. What is a social network and how it works

What is Threads

Threads is a new social network from Mark Zuckerberg's Meta* company. It offers the easiest way to conduct public conversations in real time using a smartphone.

To do this, Threads has the most necessary: ​​the ability to write small text posts (“branches”) with photo or video, comment on them, like, repost in your feed and share with others users. Yes, in general, everything is like on Twitter.

The very concept of "thread" (literally - "thread"), which has long been included in the modern lexicon, came from Internet forums and blogs. It describes the sequence of replies to a post, i.e. the "thread thread", when one small post gives rise to a whole discussion.

How to register

Threads is designed for Instagram* users. Accordingly, without an insta account, getting into a new social network will not work. And since Instagram* is still blocked in Russia, Threads will also need VPN (although formally Roskomnadzor does not block).

Your Instagram* nickname will be used for authorization, and all subscriptions can be easily imported into Threads. Literally at the touch of a button, you can immediately start following everyone you have followed on Instagram*.

You can also invite friends via WhatsApp or email, and you can find other profiles you need through the search inside the application.

You can make your account private or public. In the second case, your posts will be visible to everyone, as well as a link to your Instagram in the profile header. In Instagram itself, a link to Threads will also appear under your avatar.

Who to subscribe to

You can subscribe to sites, bloggers, services, companies, media people and artists that you are interested in. Over time, Threads accounts may appear for many socially active people and brands. Only for the first seven hours registered over 10 million users.

For example, right now you can subscribe to "Lifehacker», «Kinopoisk" And Netflix, Marvel And DC Comics, as well as our friendly women's publication "burning hut».

Why so much noise

The launch of Threads was fueled by a conflict between Zuckerberg and Elon Musk, who recently bought Twitter. Their skirmish on the Web can turn into a real fight in a cage in the arena of the Colosseum (and it's not a joke).

And while Elon is establishing new orders and introducing extremely controversial restrictions, Mark took advantage of a good moment of user dissatisfaction and offered them his alternative, literally copying Twitter.

Zuckerberg himself clearly does not hide the fact that he simply "copied" Musk's social network. He even decided to joke about this topic by posting a famous Spider-Man meme on Twitter, and it was his first tweet in 11 years.

How Threads is different from Twitter

In fact, the services are identical, with a couple of exceptions. First, you can't sign up for Threads without Instagram*. This is both a disadvantage and an advantage at the same time, since the Instagram * base has more than 2 billion active users per month. And all of them are now potential Threads users.

The second point: Threads does not have the ability to send private messages. You can only write in the feed, publishing posts or answering in the comments. But nothing prevents developers from adding this feature later, if such a need arises.

And one more thing: in Threads there is only a recommendation feed. You can't select chronological. Content will always adapt to your actions, whether you like it or not.

How to delete your account

Delete threads profile it is forbidden - only with an Instagram account. But it is possible to deactivate the account, hiding all your posts, replies and likes. You can also always delete specific posts.

Where to download Threads

The Threads mobile apps are now available for free download on the App Store and Google Play (don't confuse it with another app of the same name). The service is available for download from Russia and supports the Russian language.

You can also read Threads posts from a PC through the web version of the service indicating a branch or profile. For example, a link to a user account would look like this: https://www.threads.net/@lifehacker_ru.

Threads is now available in more than a hundred countries around the world, but not in the European Union due to the new Digital Markets Act. And it is Meta* itself decided do not rush to launch, so as not to create problems for yourself. But it's probably just a matter of time. Threads has already become a new hit, and while the platform is only gaining momentum, it is unlikely that Zuckerberg will decide to bypass the European market.

Any other questions about Threads? Write them in the comments and share your profiles.

*Activities of Meta Platforms Inc. and its social networks Facebook and Instagram are prohibited in the territory of the Russian Federation.