In a post to the platform, Elon Musk said that X—formerly Twitter—will remove both the like and retweet buttons from the timeline. Specifically, Musk stated that the platform will “remove all the action buttons” from the timeline in order to “improve readability.”
The post states that the view count is the only figure to display on a timeline. However, Musk assured you that would only be the case until you clicked on the post. Moreover, statements from employees have given a better look at the development and how it could change the timeline.
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Musk Removing Like & Retweet Buttons From Main Timeline?
Since his landmark acquisition of the social media platform, Elon Musk has not been shy about making changes. Indeed, chief among the changes was the alteration of the name of the platform altogether. Specifically, he decided to shift the brand away from the Twitter title to simply call the platform X.
Musk is continuing with these changes, as he has stated that X will remove the like and retweet buttons from the main timeline. Subsequently, he noted that only the view count on a specific tweet will show. He noted that the change is being discussed for the readability factor of the platform.
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Following this, X employee Andrea Conway has clarified the plans that are currently underway at the company. Specifically, she stated that the design team is working on removing the buttons and replacing them with “gestural interactions,” such as double tapping and swiping.
The changes point to readability improvement being the focus. Therefore, the functionality of the features is likely to remain the same. For example, users will still be able to double-tap to like a post and swipe to reply, with the actual buttons hidden from the main timeline. Still, these have been referred to as “current” plans, so there is no telling if they may change in the future.