Aeronaut Is an Actual Mac App for Bluesky

Unfortunately, keyboard shortcuts are not. Exactly the same ones Twitter used fifteen years ago, but they’re pretty easy to learn if you look at the menu bar. (Command-R to reply, Command-L to like, and Command-T to repost are just a few.)

Aeronaut also supports notifications, which is useful if you regularly find your messages answered a few days after the fact, like I was. I like that you can configure the types of notifications you want: I generally only want to be notified if someone says something to me and not when they quickly hit the like button. And you can have different notification settings for different Bluesky accounts.

What ties it all together, however, is the varnish. This app allows Bluesky to integrate seamlessly with other windows on my Mac desktop, which is exactly what I wanted.

There are some things that this app is decidedly not. There’s no support for multiple columns, which means you can’t use it as an alternative to the Tweetdeck of old. I haven’t found an easy way to create a thread. And Aeronaut isn’t completely free either.

The app offers a free version, which lets you scroll through your feed and like or repost items. If you want to write articles or respond to articles, you will need to pay for a subscription, which costs $2 per month. It’s an additional subscription, sure, but it supports the development of an app that probably couldn’t exist otherwise. If, like me, you prefer your microposts in a small window, this price may be worth it.