Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors • Hacker News Board

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#91

Post by brownkonas » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:33 AM UTC

ori_b wrote: post #88

jstgord wrote: post #87

Dear Reddit, for the love of Mike .. PLEASE treat reddit as a web-first platform. You are killing the golden goose by trying to force people toward the app - by gradually removing features and usability from the mobile web site and constantly reminding people they "should" use the app. I don't want reddit as an 'app', I want reddit to be readable/scrollable on mobile and web without any form of coercion.

That goose already got killed with the new UI. It's only usable via old.reddit.com now.

Maybe in the minority , but I think the UX of the mobile app is fantastic: * attractive card view * good actions from the list * good actions from the comments view * great performance

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#92

Post by sushid » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:33 AM UTC

jstgord wrote: post #87

Dear Reddit, for the love of Mike .. PLEASE treat reddit as a web-first platform. You are killing the golden goose by trying to force people toward the app - by gradually removing features and usability from the mobile web site and constantly reminding people they "should" use the app. I don't want reddit as an 'app', I want reddit to be readable/scrollable on mobile and web without any form of coercion.

Moreover, if I relent and click "View on app" while on mobile, it directs me to the App Store instead of opening the app to the thread I was attempting to read. At least handoff correctly if you're going to force me to use your stupid app.

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#93

Post by hazz99 » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:34 AM UTC

jstgord wrote: post #87

Dear Reddit, for the love of Mike .. PLEASE treat reddit as a web-first platform. You are killing the golden goose by trying to force people toward the app - by gradually removing features and usability from the mobile web site and constantly reminding people they "should" use the app. I don't want reddit as an 'app', I want reddit to be readable/scrollable on mobile and web without any form of coercion.

I don't think they're killing it. Anecdotally, all my friends prefer the app and the redesign to the old web client.

I suspect this anecdata is supported by Reddit's metrics, otherwise they wouldn't be pushing so hard for it (barring some other long term goal)

Not that I like the changes. I much prefer the old version.

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#94

Post by sushid » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:35 AM UTC

henryfjordan wrote: post #53

Why stick to the insular Silicon Valley club and not get someone who's devoted their life to civil rights? There are a ton of community activists who could actually bring a fresh perspective. EDIT: I do not mean to question his particular qualifications or his commitment to change, only to comment on the fact that it could have been someone from a different walk of life. Tech leadership in Silicon Valley does not app…

Reddit is first and foremost a business. Does that answer your question?

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#95

Post by austenallred » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:35 AM UTC

jstgord wrote: post #87

Dear Reddit, for the love of Mike .. PLEASE treat reddit as a web-first platform. You are killing the golden goose by trying to force people toward the app - by gradually removing features and usability from the mobile web site and constantly reminding people they "should" use the app. I don't want reddit as an 'app', I want reddit to be readable/scrollable on mobile and web without any form of coercion.

The app is much, much better than the site. I think you might be in the minority.

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#96

Post by zaksoup » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:35 AM UTC

godzillabrennus wrote: post #81

henryfjordan wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is exactly my point. They brought someone in who presumably is going to see Monthly Active Users as the metric to live or die by when what the world needs from Reddit/Twitter/FB is a more social-good focus. It might be worth it to shed a few users and lose a few ad dollars to make positive change on their platforms but with a Silicon Valley CEO on the board that is unlikely to happen.

Let me know when you figure out how to build a social network that can profit from social good. These days, profit and social good are rarely aligned.

This reads to me as a stunning indictment of social networks and profit more than it does a defense of Reddit's board choice and their potential motivations.

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#97

Post by bzb3 » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:35 AM UTC

henryfjordan wrote: post #53

Why stick to the insular Silicon Valley club and not get someone who's devoted their life to civil rights? There are a ton of community activists who could actually bring a fresh perspective. EDIT: I do not mean to question his particular qualifications or his commitment to change, only to comment on the fact that it could have been someone from a different walk of life. Tech leadership in Silicon Valley does not app…

What the fuck do "civil rights" have to do with being a director at Reddit? Sorry but is this a bait message?

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#98

Post by austenallred » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:35 AM UTC

henryfjordan wrote: post #53

Why stick to the insular Silicon Valley club and not get someone who's devoted their life to civil rights? There are a ton of community activists who could actually bring a fresh perspective. EDIT: I do not mean to question his particular qualifications or his commitment to change, only to comment on the fact that it could have been someone from a different walk of life. Tech leadership in Silicon Valley does not app…

Because the role of a board member is to help run a business

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#99

Post by cmdshiftf4 » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:37 AM UTC

jstgord wrote: post #87

Dear Reddit, for the love of Mike .. PLEASE treat reddit as a web-first platform. You are killing the golden goose by trying to force people toward the app - by gradually removing features and usability from the mobile web site and constantly reminding people they "should" use the app. I don't want reddit as an 'app', I want reddit to be readable/scrollable on mobile and web without any form of coercion.

>constantly reminding people they "should" use the app.

It's not merely suggestions though. They have one button - stay in your mobile browser - greyed out and one bright and active - open the mobile app.

It also uses a native-ish looking UI that pops up as the sharing UI does.

It feels like they're trying to trick people into using the app, over merely reminding people that they "should".

Re: Reddit Welcomes Michael Seibel to Board of Directors

#100

Post by flyinglizard » Thu, Jun 11, 2020, 12:37 AM UTC

henryfjordan wrote: post #75

whatshisface wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Presumably the duties of a Silicon Valley board member would center on running a Silicon Valley company, which a Silicon Valley CEO would be uniquely qualified to do.

This is exactly my point. They brought someone in who presumably is going to see Monthly Active Users as the metric to live or die by when what the world needs from Reddit/Twitter/FB is a more social-good focus. It might be worth it to shed a few users and lose a few ad dollars to make positive change on their platforms but with a Silicon Valley CEO on the board that is unlikely to happen.

What is social good focus to you? If you mean “bring onboard the platform more of what’s currently going on outside”, then I can’t really imagine reddit going any further than they did, other than putting some kind of a conservative-busting CAPTCHA.