{"p":"","h":{"iv":"ROXSYW+cfvEbFHu5","at":"ocxplSQjdRC3tXEtB/9/wg=="}}

Probably not a lot of people know this now, but Mastodon's web app started out with "Publish". In 2016 a famous YouTuber jokingly offered to support Mastodon's Patreon forever if I changed the button to say "Toot" instead. Needless to say, this was a really early, and not very informed decision. The first glimpse of attention and financial support. As a non-native speaker I had no idea there was another meaning.

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Anonymous Llama

@Gargron

Oh lordt 🙀😹

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Spatula

@Gargron it's apropos though, given the nature of social media...

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Cyberlandgal 🇺🇦🇺🇸

@Gargron Thanks for a good laugh. That is hilarious

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GeekGuy

@Gargron you mean like “farts” lol

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JustRosy

@Gargron Thank you for changing it back to "Publish." ❤️

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Strange_Bundle

@Gargron So it WAS true! :)

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Szymon Nowicki

@Gargron ok, but is he or she still support Mastodon on Patreon?

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Strypey

@Gargron
> As a non-native speaker I had no idea there was another meaning.

The infamous other meaning of "toot" is very specific to US English. Like calling a tap a "faucet". As used in England, and thus in Aotearoa, a toot is the blowing of a horn (eg tooting at someone when they cut you off in traffic). This always seemed very appropriate for posting on social media, regardless of the elephantine associations ;)

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Daniel Howard

@Gargron

As a native English speaker, I think “toot” is pretty great and I hope y’all come back around to it. We respect that Germans are exceedingly polite but our language is rife with “double entendres” such that any word could be used to describe a “toot.”

The other good feedback I agree with is that “post” beats “publish” because, like “toot” it works as a noun as well as a verb.

At any rate, “danke schon” for everything you have brought us!

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Superfreq

@Gargron
This has turned my entire world upside down.

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