With "author" and "mentioned" labels, Twitter furthers tests new ways to make conversations on the site easier to follow. The social network has been experimenting with a number of new stuff in recent months, including a prototype app called twttr that introduces threaded replies, and "original tweeter" labels to show a content's original author.
Twitter appears to be changing this labeling system. The company just recently announced that it's rolling out a new test that would label the original tweeter as "Author" instead. This makes sense, and it's more straightforward and succinctly understood at a glance.
Twitter's New Labels
The term "original tweeter" was a nod to the commonly used term "original poster," notes TechCrunch, which refers to the user who started a conversation on a message board or online forum. "Author" might be more easily understood by people who aren't necessarily tech-savvy and aren't familiar with that reference.
In addition to that label, Twitter is also adding two new ones: "Mentioned" and "Following." Mentioned will be added to any tweet posted by a user who was mentioned in the author's original tweet. The Following label, on the other hand, will appear on tweets from people a user is following.
Twttr
These are the same features being tested on Twttr, but a bit differently. The app, which is invite-only, highlights the original poster with a thin gray line next to their tweet, while people a user is following is highlighted in blue.
In any case, it's clear Twitter wants its platform to be better designed for longer discussions as it's often easy to get lost when scrolling through reams of threads. Labels can also help distinguish parody accounts, which adopt usernames and profile picture to dupe and troll users.
Despite the convenience and efficiency of labels, there's one more feature sorely missing from the platform. Users have long been asking Twitter to finally add the ability to edit tweets. CEO Jack Dorsey has expressed ideas on how that could work, but there are still no concrete plans set in place.
