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Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

washingtonpost.com

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Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#411

Post by Karrot_Kream »

fragmede wrote: post #408
Karrot_Kream wrote: post #397

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Human attention generally isn't zero sum like that, so I've always been puzzled by this perceived "war" against text on the internet. People who previously didn't want to interact in text probably only used the internet sparingly or only used the internet for certain tasks. I've always been great at interacting with texts but had a strict rule not to try to learn mechanical skills on the internet and checkout picture…

> Human attention generally isn't zero sum like that How so? There's only 24 hours in a day, and so many things to do in them. During those hours, one can pay attention to multiple topics but even then, the time limit means only so many details and thinking time can be acquired during them.

That's where "like that" comes from. We're certainly not at the point where our attention is theoretically maximized.

Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#412

Post by wodenokoto »

What annoys me about the update is obviously the layout and UI. You can’t scroll freely and you don’t know how many flips it takes to move to the next item.

But worse is the content selection.

A really nice feature of instagram used to be that the feed had an end. “You are now done watching who you follow. If you wanna keep hanging around here’s some random stuff”

That was really nice and quite the refresh compared to other doom scrollers.

Then they slowly started adding non-subscribed content into your main feed and I’m sure the metrics were great. I at least ended up looking at them longer than average cause I couldn’t figure out who the hell I knew that was posting _that_. Then realized it wasn’t anyone I followed and got annoyed.

But the metric don’t capture that.

With the redesign you might as well not follow anyone. Its like 75% of your feed is ads and randos.

Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#413

Post by labrador »

tayo42 wrote: post #375
labrador wrote: post #315

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Tiktok has nailed the delightful "stumble upon" I didn't understand the appeal of Tiktok until just now when I read your comment. I was a StumbleUpon.com addict in 2006-07. I spent hours a day on it, saw really interesting content and even made some IRL friends. I have no idea why they killed that site. I'll give Tiktok another try.

I don't get how that description sounds like a good way to spend your time. Why do you need hours of throway content in your life from people you don't have any connection to? Why not like go to the gym or hike or cook your self a healthy meal.

I did those things too, but instead of watching news or TV drama shows, I was on SU (I had to catch up on the shows I missed after SU died.)

Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#414

Post by labrador »

lotsofpulp wrote: post #342
labrador wrote: post #315

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Tiktok has nailed the delightful "stumble upon" I didn't understand the appeal of Tiktok until just now when I read your comment. I was a StumbleUpon.com addict in 2006-07. I spent hours a day on it, saw really interesting content and even made some IRL friends. I have no idea why they killed that site. I'll give Tiktok another try.

But back then, I assume the content was 90% original, 10% ads/marketing/brand building, whereas now it is 90% ads, 10% original.

You are correct

Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#416

Post by Marazan »

fleddr wrote: post #366
Marazan wrote: post #212

This is what happens when you manage to metrics. "Engagement" is the metric and the incredibly obviously stupid problem with it as your optimisation goal that is apparently ungraspable by the leadership of every single social network. It infects everything down even to Google search rankings. If you can quickly and easily find the info you want then that reduces "engagement" and that is bad, apparently.

It's totally graspable. Users are unable/unwilling to spend a penny on social networks, hence ads it is, hence engagement it is. If users would pay a monthly fee at scale, it wouldn't be needed. They'd in fact be happy if you'd keep your engagement brief.

No, engagement is a (bad) proxy for clicking on Ads.

If you want to measure Ad revenue then measure Ad revenue/impressions.

However, Engagement is a great proxy for users listlessly clicking through the site desperately trying to find the content you care about that they know is on here somewhere yet the company has hidden it behind multiple click walls all of which rack up the Engagement score.

Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#417

Post by ramblerman »

lnxg33k1 wrote: post #401
colonwqbang wrote: post #325

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You have a point, but the way Europeans see the US is very different from how they see China. The US has done some morally questionable things in recent memory (War on terror, Snowden/Assange, Trump, etc) but on the whole US is seen as an ally, not an adversary.

Only for politicians, it’s been 20 years that I haven’t met an European who consider the us an ally, and I’ve lived in Uk Germany Netherlands and Italy, but so far we’ve voted US allying politicians because of the threat of nationalist parties, but at least in Italy is about to change due to the energy crisis we’re going through thanks to us

> I haven’t met an European who consider the US an ally,

What hyperbole. There are plenty, myself included. Don't confuse criticism of the US with us not being an ally.

> the energy crisis we’re going through thanks to US

??? The finger is clearly pointed at Putin and Germany's naivity over the past 10 years for this mess we are in.

I'd be curious to read a European publication that even suggests this is due to the US (if you have a link).

Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#418

Post by wruza »

eruleman wrote: post #358
lotsofpulp wrote: post #350

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Boggles my mind how. Unless it is an arts and crafts or mechanical or some other hands on video, it is so inefficient to watch someone talk rather than just read the transcript.

Most people don't judge content based on information density.

It’s not the only difference. If I think along with a video/audio, I lose tracks quickly and have to rewind, but there is no obvious cue to where. Text has a fundamental property of being in sync with whatever level of attention I’m paying to its parts. Talk doesn’t have it.

Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#419

Post by anm89 »

Am I the only one who is deeply unsettled by tiktok as a format in and of itself?

The weird unnatural voice and the fast pace and the shallowness of the content. Is this what people really want? I think the answer is yes. But the people who want this are broken people. There's no sugar coating it. This is like some weird drug for reverting people to their dumbest instincts. The fact that everyone immediately acknowledges that this is great and the future is terrifying.

Re: Instagram is shifting to videos – users aren't happy

#420

Post by thefz »

chowells wrote: post #94
FrenchDevRemote wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>there's some code out there that is a work of art and can inspire awe in everyone. and the people who wrote it didn't spend thousands of hours memorizing the same stupid leetcode exercises to pass lame interviews for 6 figures job, they worked on real projects tell me the fast inverse square root from Carmack would have been praised in an interview...

Perhaps if you spent more time with books, you'd know that John Carmack didn't invent the fast inverse square root algorithm associated with his name.

Ironically Carmack is just one of those technical minded people who also has been hella creative... Fo 30 years
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