Whalebird

Mastodon.social is a free and open-source microblogging network with features similar to Twitter. However, it's decentralized and community-based, which means that it's hosted on independent servers running freeware programs.

Whalebird is a desktop client for Mastodon, facilitating direct access to instances (or accounts). You can use it to send and receive messages, check out the latest posts (also known as "toots" in the Mastodon universe), mark favorites and perform searches, among other things.

Following a speedy setup operation, you can get started by specifying your instance domain name. It's necessary to authorize Whalebird from your Mastodon account via the web browser to proceed. If you have many instances, you can log into all of them, thanks to the fact that multiple accounts are supported by this program.

Once logged in, you can read posts made by other users, double-click a post to view replies, view missed notifications, mark favorite toots, as well as check out the local and public timeline. Separate sections are dedicated to finding toots by hashtag and by performing regular searches (by keywords).

New toots can be posted just like on Twitter. However, unlike Twitter, Maston permits posts up to 500 characters. Plus, you can attach photos, make the toot public, unlisted, private or a direct message, as well as write warnings (e.g. NSFW) to keep things user-friendly.

As far as general program preferences are concerned, you change the theme color (from white to dark, ideal for nightly activities), set the font size and display name style, disable sounds, and remove associations with your Mastodon accounts.

Whalebird worked without error on the newest Windows edition in our tests, running on low system resources. Thanks to its familiar interface and options, it can be easily used by those interested in staying connected to their Mastodon instances.