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Cunningham's Law

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Re: Cunningham's Law

#21

Post by ineedasername »

Arnavion wrote: post #18
ineedasername wrote: post #3

A sort of interesting "corollary" to this is something I've noticed in mobile games with in-app ads for other mobile games: The best way to attract a player isn't by showing them someone playing well, it's by showing them someone playing very bad Because these ads show demo play (usually of puzzles) where the player is making obviously bad decisions, and watching it is sort of like seeing a dozen objects in a row, bu…

Same principle applies to Let's-Players on Youtube / Twitch that play new games "non-optimally". In their comment sections you'll see people commenting about how they bought the game just to be able to play it correctly themselves, to prove to the streamer and themselves that their strategy is better.

Interesting-- that promotes engagement with the content, which is good for viewer metrics & ad $$. If the video is actually sponsored by the game publisher then it's a double bonus for video creator.

Re: Cunningham's Law

#22

Post by dylan604 »

ineedasername wrote: post #19
kerkeslager wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Man, I just don't understand people who don't use ad blocking[1]. You just wrote a whole post analyzing how you are being manipulated, causing you to feel "uneasy", "impatient", so that you almost do things that are "awful and tedious". Why do people live like this? [1] You can block ads in mobile games with a proxy that takes less than a minute to set up, at least on Android.

I wasn't aware you could block in-app ads. (Thanks for the heads-up!) That may be a primary reason that many don't block these ads. Browser adblockers are relatively well known, and relatively popular, but I don't think that's true of blocking in-app ads. For in-app, there's also the tech hurdle. Now that I know there's a method, I'm tech savvy enough to search it out an implement it, but there's going to be a much h…

Many games will allow users to do something advantageous by watching an ad. If they are blocked, then this will not work. I've seen these fail when the device cannot connect to the network or other causes of timeouts, but they are smart enough to know this and not give you the reward.

Re: Cunningham's Law

#23

Post by dylan604 »

chairmanwow1 wrote: post #14
kerkeslager wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Man, I just don't understand people who don't use ad blocking[1]. You just wrote a whole post analyzing how you are being manipulated, causing you to feel "uneasy", "impatient", so that you almost do things that are "awful and tedious". Why do people live like this? [1] You can block ads in mobile games with a proxy that takes less than a minute to set up, at least on Android.

You could probably reframe your post in positive light given that you are suggesting a pretty straightforward solution that you seem to use to help make this problem go away~

I find nothing wrong with someone expressing their lack of understanding of something. They didn't phrase it in a way like "people that don't use adblocking are so dumb". They just stated they don't get why people continue to not use tools.

Re: Cunningham's Law

#25

Post by johnnyApplePRNG »

I have learned so much more about antiques by posting false statements (increasingly knowingly) about things I have found while out thrifting than I have asking for information or help.

If you ask for help, you're usually asking into the void.

If you make an incorrect statement, you get repeatedly bashed with facts and research.

So if I must... I shall.

Re: Cunningham's Law

#26

Post by codlaw »

kerkeslager wrote: post #10
ineedasername wrote: post #3

A sort of interesting "corollary" to this is something I've noticed in mobile games with in-app ads for other mobile games: The best way to attract a player isn't by showing them someone playing well, it's by showing them someone playing very bad Because these ads show demo play (usually of puzzles) where the player is making obviously bad decisions, and watching it is sort of like seeing a dozen objects in a row, bu…

Man, I just don't understand people who don't use ad blocking[1]. You just wrote a whole post analyzing how you are being manipulated, causing you to feel "uneasy", "impatient", so that you almost do things that are "awful and tedious". Why do people live like this? [1] You can block ads in mobile games with a proxy that takes less than a minute to set up, at least on Android.

Thanks for sharing what you know. I believe with a little bit more empathy, you have so much to give to make the world a better place, if you don't mind.

Therefore, including what the parent and the others have already mentioned, I would like to suggest these perspectives:

• maybe not everyone is aware of the ease of setting up ad blocking as you described

• maybe not everyone is on a platform where this is feasible -> you provided an example on Android, which implicitly means it is different or more difficult on other platforms

• maybe someone is using a restricted device provided for work

• maybe experiencing what many others are experiencing is intended. e.g. due to work reasons as creakingstairs suggested, or due to personal fulfillment

• maybe someone values the time spent on writing "a whole post analyzing" the situation more than setting up any modification

• maybe not everyone or no one is exactly Homo economicus [1]

• etc.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_economicus

Re: Cunningham's Law

#27

Post by Arnavion »

kevinventullo wrote: post #20
Arnavion wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same principle applies to Let's-Players on Youtube / Twitch that play new games "non-optimally". In their comment sections you'll see people commenting about how they bought the game just to be able to play it correctly themselves, to prove to the streamer and themselves that their strategy is better.

They could also just watch a speed-runner to convince themselves that they will never play it optimally.

Not every game has a speedrunning community, especially not for new games (which my comment was about), and especially not for new early-access games that most new games these days are.

Not to mention optimal play and speedrunning are orthogonal concepts in general.

Re: Cunningham's Law

#28

Post by Arnavion »

ineedasername wrote: post #21
Arnavion wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same principle applies to Let's-Players on Youtube / Twitch that play new games "non-optimally". In their comment sections you'll see people commenting about how they bought the game just to be able to play it correctly themselves, to prove to the streamer and themselves that their strategy is better.

Interesting-- that promotes engagement with the content, which is good for viewer metrics & ad $$. If the video is actually sponsored by the game publisher then it's a double bonus for video creator.

Yes, there's often speculation that the streamer is playing badly intentionally for this reason. Though Occam's razor dictates that it's more likely that the streamer just doesn't care to get good because they're only going to play the game for a little while anyway.

Re: Cunningham's Law

#29

Post by dylan604 »

prvc wrote: post #12

Beware of this technique. "Speak with authority to attract followers."

One of the things they teach new referees is to make any call with authority. Even when you're not really sure on the call, whatever call you make, own it. If the players/coaches/fans see any kind of ambiguity in your calls, they will eat you alive from that point on.

Re: Cunningham's Law

#30

Post by marcodiego »

xwdv wrote: post #13

This was one of the first things I realized in my early age on the internet. I would often post straight up wrong or wildly flawed arguments that were the opposite of my actual beliefs and when people came to respond against me with well reasoned and thorough counter arguments, I would end up using their arguments as my new arguments in real life.

This.

Actually I use it frequently. Usually I follow the script:

  1) Hear someone saying something I agree with.

  2) Walk there and ask: "Well, have you considered..." and present a counter-argument I think is reasonably strong.

  3) Listen and learn objections, sometimes asking for clarifications, pointing weaknesses or going back to 2 until I'm convinced position is consistent or the person doesn't know what is talking about.

  4) I say: "Thanks, I now understand your point. I actually didn't know or had not thought about it."
The problem is that sometimes I lose a friend between steps 2 and 3.
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