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Have ‘hobby’ apps become the new social networks?

theguardian.com

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Re: Have ‘hobby’ apps become the new social networks?

#21

Post by BaculumMeumEst »

dotancohen wrote: post #16
RcouF1uZ4gsC wrote: post #6

For a long term relationship, sex is the icing on a cake made of shared values and interests. It isn’t surprising at all that focusing on real life shared interests and values first instead of sex first would be a good strategy for finding a long term partner.

Agreed 100%. The issue is that a long term relationship (and sex) is often considered creepy to pursue in venues not designated for that.

I mean if you're creepy about it, sure, but as long as you can pick up on social cues you can feel it out without rubbing anyone the wrong way.

Re: Have ‘hobby’ apps become the new social networks?

#23

Post by cuu508 »

ktosobcy wrote: post #7
Gualdrapo wrote: post #4

I do use Strava a lot to record my rides and stuff, and even more since I could afford a Wahoo - but I really hate the 'social' side of Strava. It tries to make you 'competitive' so hard. Granted, as a professional loser I'd like to find someone that likes cycling too, though cycling alone is great too - still, I'd rather find that person in one of those rides than in some weird thing like Strava fly-by's or somethin…

This so much... most of the time I use those online services to track my own progress (reading books, rides taken, etc) and it always results in WTF when someone leaves a like on my activity… Would love for a global setting "disable all social aspects"...

Strava has "Privacy Controls" section in settings. There isn't a single global off switch, but it's not too hard to set everything to private either.

Re: Have ‘hobby’ apps become the new social networks?

#24

Post by naveen99 »

RcouF1uZ4gsC wrote: post #6

For a long term relationship, sex is the icing on a cake made of shared values and interests. It isn’t surprising at all that focusing on real life shared interests and values first instead of sex first would be a good strategy for finding a long term partner.

I thought long term relationships (and sex) were for children.

Re: Have ‘hobby’ apps become the new social networks?

#25

Post by Trasmatta »

IgorPartola wrote: post #11

Sharing a common interest is the best way to meet lots of new people. It creates low stakes interaction opportunities and removes the creep factor (if you are at a meetup for fans of model trains along with like a dozen other people, it’s not weird that you are talking to some of them). Better than any app, go get a hobby in person and get out there to meet people who are into it. Chances are you present yourself way…

This is the common advice, but it's also resulted in many of these hobby based events being overrun by people who are primarily there looking to find a date. It can be a weird dynamic.

My suggestion is get a hobby that you explicitly are interested in, but don't go in with an expectation that you'll find someone, or make that your primary goal.

> Chances are you present yourself way better in the real world vs online

For many of us I don't think this is true

Re: Have ‘hobby’ apps become the new social networks?

#27

Post by Trasmatta »

KineticLensman wrote: post #2

> “The thing about Letterboxd is there isn’t a ‘central town square’ like there is on X; it’s a very single-channel conversation,” says Gracewood. Comments happen in-line – similar to those on the Guardian and Observer websites – meaning that it’s less possible to performatively repost content into a main feed in order to encourage a pile-on. Similar situations exist on platforms such as Goodreads and Strava, where i…

It has to have happened at least a few times, right?

Re: Have ‘hobby’ apps become the new social networks?

#29

Post by wslh »

marginalia_nu wrote: post #3

Can't be overstated how good having a setting centered on some common activity with low stakes social interaction is for building relationships, romantic as well as platonic. Hookup culture just isn't for everyone, and the notion that it is has been the cause of a lot of grief and agony.

> Hookup culture just isn't for everyone, and the notion that it is has been the cause of a lot of grief and agony.

I agree, and that's why I find it important to study and understand the social dynamics of hookup culture through research [1].

[1] What is Hooking Up? Examining Definitions of Hooking Up in Relation to Behavior and Normative Perceptions: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3546226/

Re: Have ‘hobby’ apps become the new social networks?

#30

Post by KineticLensman »

Trasmatta wrote: post #27
KineticLensman wrote: post #2

> “The thing about Letterboxd is there isn’t a ‘central town square’ like there is on X; it’s a very single-channel conversation,” says Gracewood. Comments happen in-line – similar to those on the Guardian and Observer websites – meaning that it’s less possible to performatively repost content into a main feed in order to encourage a pile-on. Similar situations exist on platforms such as Goodreads and Strava, where i…

It has to have happened at least a few times, right?

For certain values of 'love', perhaps...
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