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So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

cole-k.com

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Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#311
post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I doubt it. The scraper botnets aren't going to bother with niceties like APIs, they just come in over HTTPS and grab anything they can.

If there were a well-known URL that retrieved all content added to a site after a given date, and a meaningful number of sites implemented it, I bet the biggest scrapers would use it. Except, of course, that then sites would start lying and sending abridged, poisoned, or nonexistent data. Nice things cannot be had, no matter how many levels you go down.

Reddit used to have something like that. And what you said happened. They shut it down, so that they could ask AI companies for payment.

Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#312

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Still works as long as you don't care about recent results and are okay with filtering for pre-2023 answers. (So like, 20% as useful, but still...)

at least with pre-2023 those shillbot accounts were run by people directly!

Many still are

Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#313
If you want to be paranoid it's a decent idea, if you also make your own internal html/xml alternative you can then say your sanctioned html flavor is safe, but regular html would mean it has to came from an outside third party no matter where you encounter it.

Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#315
post #288

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I think at this point I'm ready to give up on Reddit, most of my questions are already answered by LLM. That's a bizarre and self-sabotaging path to take. Almost all LLMs get a substantial portion of their knowledge from Reddit. In order to evaluate the quality of those LLM responses, you'll have to click through to the Reddit threads and critically evaluate the quality of the underlying discussions. If you just bl…

I'm a moderator on a moderately popular and active subreddit, and I can assure you that there is an unreasonable amount of bot activity on reddit. They range from just spam (usually obvious) to bulk astroturfing. We try to stop what we can, but plenty gets through.

Any ideas to mitigate?

Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#316
post #293

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're just trying to manufacture a reason to kill off old reddit. Someone internally clearly hates the fact that its still quite popular, despite all the efforts to make it unusable so far

New Reddit for my phone has decided to put a bottom popup forcing me to the app. The second old goes away I’ll never go that site again except for search results. I ADORE that a publicly traded tech giant is so fucking stupid.

Their users and those users data are the product; you are insignificant in the eyes of their shareholders.

Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#317

Earlier quoted context omitted.

New Reddit for my phone has decided to put a bottom popup forcing me to the app. The second old goes away I’ll never go that site again except for search results. I ADORE that a publicly traded tech giant is so fucking stupid.

Their users and those users data are the product; you are insignificant in the eyes of their shareholders.

You don’t seem to understand. It isn’t about me. Or even people like me. Slowly they kill themselves. It might not even be obvious to people, but they’ll slowly turn away at this or the next thing or the next one after that.

I’ll be here long after Reddit at this rate.

MySpace seemed like the shit until you put Facebook next to it. Does anyone think Reddit is the shit in 2026? And that is without anything put next to it.

Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#318
post #315
post #288

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm a moderator on a moderately popular and active subreddit, and I can assure you that there is an unreasonable amount of bot activity on reddit. They range from just spam (usually obvious) to bulk astroturfing. We try to stop what we can, but plenty gets through.

Any ideas to mitigate?

Call your buddy and come up with a meeting spot.

Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#319

I think at this point I'm ready to give up on Reddit, most of my questions are already answered by LLM. And the discussions quality on Reddit are abysmal, its filled with bots.

I left Reddit years ago and it’s been an absolute pleasure. I’ve never come close to wishing to participating there again, and everything I hear from people who still hang on seems to reinforce my decision.

Re: So Reddit has decided that plain HTML is unsafe

#320
post #244

I read the author's post and many of the comments and decided that I was finished with reddit, finally. I have always used old reddit to surf the subs and have never used new reddit. I did my normal morning routine of checking 8-10 subs that still have interesting content and did not see any nag screen for logins at all. Everything worked on my end just as it always has worked. I read comments and post titles with no…

I got presented with the "login or switch to the new UI" thing on my laptop yesterday. I don't think this is mobile-only.

I can confirm it's not mobile-only.
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