Hive Social

I know I said last week that I would delve into Mastodon and cover the how-to things. But on further consideration, it seemed better to give you more alternatives for Twitter. As these are social media apps and not technical writing or marketing apps, I think you can navigate them with ease. Hit me up if you get stuck, though.

Be aware there is also a project management app also named Hive. This might be a great resource for writers, but we are talking about social media today.

Hive Social is a social media app similar to Twitter. It allows users to post, make friends, and follow social trends. Reportedly, it does not have complicated algorithms to influence what you see or hear. It’s available at the Apple Store and Google Play. There is no desktop version currently.

Guidelines for the app ask users to be appropriate with their posts and keep things spam-free. They also have a strict privacy policy to protect you and your personal information, but like any app, it will collect some data.

Download the app to your mobile device and create an account. You can use your Google credentials or just an email. Once you verify your account, you need to make a display name and a unique username. Next, the app asks your interests. Now you are ready to go.

The app looks very much like Twitter. On the bottom, the menu items are Discover, Search, Post, Notifications, and Profile.

Under your profile, you can add your picture, a banner, other social media links, a bio, your pronouns, and even display your zodiac sign. There’s a button for music, but this option is under construction. There’s a question-and-answer section where users ask you questions. Click on the gear for options like turning off questions, allowing anonymous questions, and who is allowed to ask.

On your profile page, you can sort how you view your posts—linear, gallery, or something I can’t quite figure out yet. The Aa button doesn’t give me a hint, but I’m searching. If anyone knows, post in the comments!

Click the gear to add more info and settings to your account like phone number, and see posts you’ve liked. The security tab allows you to block certain words (like Instagram does with spam words), turn on mature content (under NSFW), choose who can comment, show muted, and blocked accounts. You can also change your colors, music, and questions here.

Note: Apparently, Hive Social is a newish startup. According to the articles I found, there are two, yes two, people running this app. Since the announcements about Twitter, they’ve had a deluge of users sign up. Please be patient with the app as it goes through some growing pains.

 

 

Mastodon

 

Is anyone else’s ears ringing with the advice every author receives about newsletters? Every successful author I know has told me, “Have a newsletter and maintain a copy of all the emails on it. You never know when social media sites will disappear.” This week that advice hit home. Twitter may be in trouble.

I’m no business nor social media expert, but I see some writing on the wall. If you have Twitter, I recommend you ask for an archive of your tweets. (Only if you want to keep those bad boys.) Also, you might want to jot down your followers and those who follow you. Twitter may not be long for this world, or it may be fine. Preventative action does nothing but help. Here’s a link to the Twitter help forum to ask for that archive.

Many users are turning to a new social media “microblogging” app called Mastodon. Here’s the skinny.

Mastodon is an app similar to Twitter, where users can post small messages. They used to be called “toots,” but apparently, they are now just posts. (snicker) The app works on the principle of servers. Users join a server. They can interact with others on other servers, but each has its own rules. It’s not one big app but a bunch of sites that can interact.

Posts are also different on Mastodon. Users can choose either public or private. Public posts (like tweets) are available to anyone and everyone. Private posts on Mastodon will only be seen by those who follow you. Posts are still short, up to five hundred characters (about 125 words), but the app lets users “thread” their thoughts easily by replying to their post.

The software is free and open-sourced, allowing users to add to the code. The level of security doesn’t change. Posts and accounts are secure. The open source allows users to set up their own community within the software (i.e., a server), and new users must be invited to the server. One of the popular servers is mastodon.social. If you need an in, Neil Gaiman put out an invitation to his server.

The app does not have paid verification. Users can verify their identities by linking their profile to an owned website (great for authors). You still get a nice blue check mark. But you can still be removed from the app for misbehavior. Because you are working on someone else’s server, if you violate their rules, you’re out.

I’m not recommending anyone abandon Twitter, nor am I predicting its complete downfall. But that advice about newsletters and controlling who sees my material rings in my head.

Next week, we’ll do a How-To on creating an account and navigating Mastodon.

 

 

KeePass for Authors

 

Successful authors are using a variety of apps to get their books in front of readers. We’ve talked about quite a few from Scrivener to Book Brush to Google Keep. Many require unique passwords or have complex purchase codes. An important part of the “author” business is keeping these organized and ready for use.

I’ve mentioned that my PC of ten years crashed. Luckily, I purchased a backup drive for the house, and most of my work was saved. But not my passwords. I used Chrome and Firefox as browsers and relied on them to keep track of my passwords. It wasn’t a good system when it broke down. I’ve been using KeePass since the crash, reloading my passwords, and realizing how many things I need to track. If we crash again, my data file is safely secured away, and I can get back up again quickly.

Needless to say, KeePass keeps everything organized and in one place. It’s important to keep your passwords complex as many are tied to your brand and your credit card. Perhaps you’ve made your Amazon Author Page with a complex logon, and it keeps that data secure. But what if your Instagram or Facebook account does not have that security? Those apps are your links to social media and your fans. No one wants to get hacked, lose face, or have their brand tarnished. Using KeePass, authors can create hard to hack passwords for all apps and still have easy access to those accounts.

The nice option about KeePass is you can make it as complex or simple as needed. Make a Master password and memorize it. Then you only need to remember one code and can tap into your database to grab the ones you need later. You can make the database simple with a list of each app and pass, or you can create groups. Separating household logins from your author brand is a great idea. KeePass lets you make as many groups as needed.

Again, there are other password keepers out there. KeePass is only one in the long list of useful apps for this function. Research what you need for your level of security for your home and business. Because writing is a business. Our author accounts are tied to our credit cards, bank accounts, and our social outlets. You are your brand, and no one wants to be the victim of identity theft.

Even if you don’t separate author items from personal, even if you don’t have pen names and multiple accounts to juggle, use some sort of password keeper beyond a black notebook on your computer desk.

Trust me.

 

 

 

How to Use KeePass

Let’s save your passwords. Here’s how.

Once you’ve loaded the software on your computer, click on the File menu and choose New. The prompt will tell you instructions about saving in a specific location. Make a note of where you save your database. Remember, it’s one file with all the data.

Next, create a master password. This pass will allow the user access to the database of passwords. In other words, make this sucker strong. Use random strings of letters, numbers, and symbols with the occasional capital letter. Write the sequence down somewhere or memorize it. It’s the key to everything. Try to make it long and complicated enough to hit the green zone on the Estimated Quality field.

You can choose Expert options to create a key file. (I’m not sure how this one works. Even the help files at KeePass didn’t make it clear.) Under Expert, users can also link to their Windows account for version 2.0 and higher. It also comes with a warning to only use the option if you really know what you are doing. I chose neither as I’m a newbie.

Once your master password has passed the mustard, name the database on the first tab and add a description. If you plan to have multiple databases (i.e., one for banking, one for social media, etc.), name as needed and write the description below. On the Security tab, you can fiddle with the degree of security on this database. On the Compression tab, moderate the level of space the database takes up by changing the settings. The recycle bin tab lets you turn on/off this function. I recommend keeping the recycle bin, just in case. Let’s skip Advanced for now.

Last, the program allows you to print an emergency sheet. The sheet contains the location of where you saved the file. It has a space to write the backup file’s location and a field to write out your password. It’s a handy backup for when your machine goes kerflooey.

KeePass will now show your current database. Check the name on the top of the window to ensure you are inside the right set of data. Click on the yellow key icon or the menu, Entry, Add Entry to put in new information. The Add Entry pop-up asks for a title, username, password, URL, and notes. Fill in at least the username and password. A title can be helpful when sorting the data later. Also, you can change the icon for the entry. The default is a yellow key. You can add more information with the other tabs, but you probably won’t need these advanced options. Changing an entry is easy. Either double-click on it or go back to the Entry menu and choose Edit Entry.

Searching for passwords is easy in KeePass. Users can sort the displayed form by clicking on the column titles. Too many passwords for a simple sort to work? No problem. Click on the Find menu. You can search the current database for keywords. It also displays the last used entries. The bottom of the menu lets users see the strength of the passwords, and you can edit as necessary. Under Tool, KeePass can generate sample passwords you can cut and paste to use.

When you exit KeePass and reload it, the software will prompt you for the master password.

Next week, we will look at how authors can best use this software.

 

KeePass

 

I’ve had a recent setback with computing. My PC of eight years died. I like to think I’m a savvy computer user, but, alas, no. I relied on Chrome and Firefox to save my passwords and to keep me connected. When the machine went down, my quick access shortcuts to various apps also disappeared. I learned my lesson the hard way.
Let’s talk about password managers.
Many apps can manage passwords with different levels of security. Some charge a monthly cost, and others are free. I picked KeePass because it’s compatible with Apple, Windows, IOS, and Android. It’s also free.
KeePass can be downloaded on a mobile device as well as a desktop or laptop computer. It’s available in the App store for all platforms. The product is open source—meaning users can check out the code, but don’t worry, it’s still safe and secure. The open source is more for users to check that KeePass is living up to its claims.
With this software, you will create a database of your passwords. One master password will open the database to give you access to all the entries. There is also the option of using Key files which can be saved on a disc or USB.
The software can work off a USB stick, so it does not need to be loaded on a computer to work. (Great for when your PC crashes and you need those passwords to start!)
Files can be exported to various text formats or as a file to be transferred. The entire database is one file, and you can easily move it to that new computer.
You can create groups of passwords within the software for quick searches to find a missing code.
Next week, I’ll share how to use KeePass as I build my database and get a sigh of relief from my husband.