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Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

bbc.com

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Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#181

Post by feudalism »

cronix wrote: post #153
durovo wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And now you hang out at HN which is totally different from social media. Where people never seek approval from the masses. Chastising other people as a concept does not exist on HN. HN, the not-social media, does not even have a concept of likes.

> HN, the not-social media, does not even have a concept of likes. Call em what you want, but upvotes/downvotes are in the same sphere as likes. Being downvoted into oblivion has the same mental effect as no likes or dislikes on other platforms, despite not being a 1:1 algorithm (1 upvote on HN does not necessarily equate to +1 in your karma) and even if you're the only one that can see them.

I think the person you're replying to may have been sarcastic in their comment because all those things they mentioned do exist in some form on HN.

Without those things, HN would not have the same allure as it does now. Of course upvotes/downvotes are a core part of HN; they even have a leaderboard. At least one particular "eccentric" character tends to boast about being on it as if it's a status symbol (which it may very well be, particularly if you're frequent on HN).

One advantage with HN over reddit is that buffoonery is generally not rewarded.

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#182

Post by fooker »

908B64B197 wrote: post #163
willcipriano wrote: post #148

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have the kids make a post to see who can get the most likes over a week, the teacher does a lame one as well ("read books this summer!"). Nobody likes the teachers post, until the last day when teacher buys 1000 likes for the post, blowing everyone away for $5. Now the kids know its all made up and the points don't matter.

> Now the kids know its all made up and the points don't matter. Careful, they might start questioning whether standardized testing can be gamed as well.

That will be a fantastic outcome.

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#183

Post by bozzcl »

mywacaday wrote: post #179
spoonjim wrote: post #159

This is akin to the ability to "de-badge" a car, offered by German manufacturers, where the manufacturer logo is visible but the specific model is not. I.e. a Mercedes SL could be a $80,000 V6 or a $160,000 twin-turbo V12 and unless someone was clued into the differences (like the exhaust pipes) they wouldn't know. I've noticed anecdotally that in the US, most of the de-badged cars are the low end models -- people do…

In Ireland/UK any debadged cars are in the boy racer scene, I always found it interesting that without the badges it can be difficult to distinguish the make if the car.

I see that a lot in America as well. Very typical on modded Subarus and Infinitis.

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#184

Post by obiShawnKenobi »

enterdev wrote: post #158
antirez wrote: post #114

It requires a very high amount of naiveness to think this could solve the issue. Only thing that will help is education of children, so that they understand their place in the world, to accept themselves, that the aesthetic standards provided in social networks are very high (but yet, as a central European my sensibility is a bit different than the one in other places -- I would suggest that this must be a stimulus t…

It's not just children that are negatively affected by these apps. It's everyone. The only way not to be affected is to not use them.

The only winning move is not to play

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#185

Post by FalconSensei »

woudsma wrote: post #102
totaldex wrote: post #10

Even with positive intentions, I'm not convinced this will solve the problem in any meaningful way. Turning off likes might be perceived as someone being unhappy with their social media status relative to their peers (ie, not getting as many 'likes' as their friends), which signals its own stigma. Users will be forced into a new dilemma: Enable likes and accept the 'social media pressure', or announce to everyone tha…

I'm not a social media user, but I'm actually considering to start using Instagram with this feature. Disabling likes doesn't show that I harbor insecurity, it simply removes the 'rat race' feeling that I have with social media. (which was the reason why I stopped using it a couple years ago).

I use Twitter and Instagram, and occasionally comment on Reddit. I don't bother to check the like/follow numbers on any of them.

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#186

Post by Workaccount2 »

durovo wrote: post #45
offtop5 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll give it another 5 years before social media is viewed on the same level as cigarettes. The best thing I've ever done for my mental health was deleting social media. I realize I'm not significant enough to argue of other people about my own life. As long as you're not harming anyone else you're free to do whatever you want. Social media says no you have to shape your entire life around what people you'll never me…

And now you hang out at HN which is totally different from social media. Where people never seek approval from the masses. Chastising other people as a concept does not exist on HN. HN, the not-social media, does not even have a concept of likes.

I get that HN is still social media, but the level of sludge here is at least an order of magnitude less than general reddit, and probably way better than twitter (I could never get into twitter despite trying my best).

To me HN is the final hold out of the old social news sphere. Geeky computer nerds with inflated egos having (mostly) geeky computer nerd discussions. That doesn't sound like much, but at least the average IQ is higher than room temperature and knowledgeable discussion is more popular than puns.

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#187

Post by sneak »

nonbirithm wrote: post #175
deergomoo wrote: post #20

Instagram can actually be a nice place, if used as a platform to look at cool pictures and not at all as a social network. I never added any friends or family, I just follow accounts and topics I'm interested in. So my feed is almost entirely pixel art, cool architecture, and retro console mods, and it's very pleasant. Considering they're Facebook-owned, I see surprisingly little effort to cram low-effort garbage dow…

I only use Instagram to send messages to a single person who won't get back to me through text messages. We had serious issues seeing responses to each others' communication until I gave in and made an Instagram account for messaging. But I don't believe I ought to criticize them over this. Instagram is their normal, and the place where a significant portion of their social life converges, and I never had any control…

Mind you, your being on Instagram, via the network effect, makes the platform more valuable and attractive to other users, such as your friend or other people who know you.

If you delete your account, Instagram becomes less useful to your bad-at-SMS friend.

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#188

Post by sneak »

wilsonthewhale wrote: post #138
mattgreenrocks wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I found myself fantasizing about social media digicide, so I went for it. Totally worth it. You’ll know when you’re ready for it. I do miss keeping in touch with some older friends via my FB account. There is certainly a cost.

You can have a "Messenger-only" FB account, which would allow you to keep in touch with said friends.

I'd still have an FB social account if I could have disabled Messenger; people insisted on messaging me there even though I'd log in like once per month. I deleted my actual FB just to get people to stop trying to contact me on Messenger, because it was impossible to turn off.

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#189

Post by Tomminn »

How exactly does this mechanic work? If I hide likes on one of my posts, can no-one who views it see like count?

Does this mean the liker's are also hidden? Or is the information about the number of likes just one more click away for the viewer or the post?

Re: Instagram lets users hide likes to reduce social media pressure

#190

Post by codyb »

PragmaticPulp wrote: post #127
woudsma wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not a social media user, but I'm actually considering to start using Instagram with this feature. Disabling likes doesn't show that I harbor insecurity, it simply removes the 'rat race' feeling that I have with social media. (which was the reason why I stopped using it a couple years ago).

I use Instagram but I don’t bother checking like counts or the list of who liked a post. You have to go out of your way to look for this information anyway. I suppose disabling the feature could help those who can’t resist the impulse to check and who get upset if they don’t see the expected number of likes. It’s more of a forced self-control option. I have known people who struggle with phone and social media addict…

I’d suspect the warping of mental health might be primarily concentrated in younger people?

You probably don’t make it to 35, get all established in life, then Instagram tanks your whole sense of self worth.

Seems more plausible you’d be growing up, trying to find your place in the world, head on Instagram and get depressed cause it seems like everyone’s lifestyles are just so much better than yours.

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