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Is this the end of social networking?

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Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#431

Post by dont__panic »

XorNot wrote: post #376
_nalply wrote: post #375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This article filled me with hope, but I already see a danger: A threadmill of products to "bring the world together" under different names and mottos but all sooner or later devolving into advertisement machines. Maybe next: WhatsApp, then Signal then Mastodon? For this to happen, founders just need to sell out, for example to Meta. WhatsApp already sold out but did not yet pivot.

Signal very obviously has a finite lifespan, but in the moment it's best in class for privacy.

Very obviously? Am I missing something?

That being said, I'm strongly considering switching to a Matrix client these days, since I like the idea of encrypted chat that works across whatever client I prefer. If you're knowledgeable in the encrypted chat space I'd love to hear your thoughts on the pros and cons.

Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#432

Post by dont__panic »

napolux wrote: post #343
dont__panic wrote: post #17

> [TikTok]'s addiction-based advertising machine is probably close to the theoretical maximum of how many advertisements one can pour down somebody’s throat. Well put. It's interesting that we pivoted in my adult lifetime from: 1. Myspace's emphasis on sharing things on your own webpage, essentially a hosted blog 2. Facebook's evolution from "hosted blog" to "friend update aggregator" to "chat client" to "friend upda…

> If we're lucky, that means a federated, open, mostly-ad-and-suggestion-free open source social media experience can fill the power vacuum for intimate, interpersonal, high-latency communication over the internet. microblog seems promising, but I think even mastodon could provide the experience I'm looking for. might be true for people like us. the other 7 billions out there won’t care

That's OK by me. I'd very much enjoy a small community of passionate people like us. My family and friends are fed up with Facebook enough that I could probably persuade them to switch. I don't need everyone on there -- just the people I care about and respect.

Of course I think the whole world would benefit if everyone switched away from Facebook, but no need to rush anything.

Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#433

Post by dont__panic »

cal85 wrote: post #406
jmyeet wrote: post #239

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If we're lucky, that means a federated, open, mostly-ad-and-suggestion-free open source social media ... It's never going to happen. Federation is a solution to a problem no one actually cares about. Obviously "no one" here is somewhat hyperbolic but so few people actaully care about this you may as well round it to zero. We haven't had an at-scale federated network since POTS (and, by extension, SMS). That's a his…

> Federation is a solution to a problem no one actually cares about. Obviously "no one" here is somewhat hyperbolic but so few people actaully care about this you may as well round it to zero. I think this conflates two things: the number of people who are familiar with a problem as a discussion topic (yes, that’s very niche in this case), and the number of people who are affected by a problem and might be receptive…

I see it like Internet Explorer in the 00's.

Did my friends and family hate IE enough to switch away themselves? Nope.

Did I care enough to find out about Firefox? Yup. Did my friends and family hate IE enough to switch to Firefox when I suggested it? Yup.

Social media could be the same situation.

Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#434

Post by dont__panic »

redditmigrant wrote: post #222
dont__panic wrote: post #17

> [TikTok]'s addiction-based advertising machine is probably close to the theoretical maximum of how many advertisements one can pour down somebody’s throat. Well put. It's interesting that we pivoted in my adult lifetime from: 1. Myspace's emphasis on sharing things on your own webpage, essentially a hosted blog 2. Facebook's evolution from "hosted blog" to "friend update aggregator" to "chat client" to "friend upda…

This internet kid of 90s fever dream of an internet thats free and federated is just not gona happen. All evidence we have so far suggests that the scale at which internet is at, the larges opportunities will be in solving for the "non-technical" user. In my view this non technical user now understands that if something is free then that means ads. Thus the next age of social media should be about exploring what busi…

This is largely true, except...

what about Wikipedia? Maybe it's the exception that proves the rule. But as far as I can tell, no online knowledge store has come close to the comprehensiveness and cultural cache of Wikipedia. And it's not showing ads constantly, it relies on donations entirely.

I remain hopeful that a federated social media service that offloads the hosting costs to passionate individuals (with modest ad support to keep the lights on) could survive just fine without venture capital or advertising creep. Think: WoW servers, AKA "blessed" federation.

Venture capital-driven business models will never align with my interest of keeping in touch with friends and family. The desire for profit and revenue growth (what us filthy plebeians call "greed") is simply too strong.

Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#435

Post by dont__panic »

grecy wrote: post #280
dont__panic wrote: post #17

> [TikTok]'s addiction-based advertising machine is probably close to the theoretical maximum of how many advertisements one can pour down somebody’s throat. Well put. It's interesting that we pivoted in my adult lifetime from: 1. Myspace's emphasis on sharing things on your own webpage, essentially a hosted blog 2. Facebook's evolution from "hosted blog" to "friend update aggregator" to "chat client" to "friend upda…

> we basically don't have social media right now, we have advertising engines masquerading as social media And that's been true of mainstream media for a long time also.

Have you ever read Neil Postman's Amusing ourselves to Death? It doesn't quite hone in on the advertising engine piece of this, but I think it hits the nail right on the head about mainstream media's longtime masquerade as "news."

Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#436

Post by EchoReflection »

this author can't see the forest for the trees. "Social networking", for all intents and purposes is just a facet of the internet:

https://www.tumblr.com

https://www.instagram.com

https://www.twitter.com

https://minus.social/

https://www.blogspot.com

https://news.yombinator.com

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_networking_serv...

↑ it's a long list

https://makeawebsitehub.com/social-media-sites/ ← "101 social networking sites you 'need to know about' (ugh) in 2022"

Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#437

Post by dont__panic »

xwdv wrote: post #267
dont__panic wrote: post #17

> [TikTok]'s addiction-based advertising machine is probably close to the theoretical maximum of how many advertisements one can pour down somebody’s throat. Well put. It's interesting that we pivoted in my adult lifetime from: 1. Myspace's emphasis on sharing things on your own webpage, essentially a hosted blog 2. Facebook's evolution from "hosted blog" to "friend update aggregator" to "chat client" to "friend upda…

We don’t really need social media because we’ve discovered we actually hate a lot of people once we see their opinions on full display. Just stick to good content please. Most people though aren’t great content creators anyway.

A lot of people do post uninteresting, cringey, or downright embarrassing content when given the opportunity. I've done so myself plenty of times.

But I think social media brings out the worst in people right now. By constantly "recommending" content that radicalizes people into tiny niche opinions and conspiracy theories and incentivizing "sharing" links and video spam, we're amplifying the worst opinions that people have.

But I'm sure those same people have interesting thoughts too -- something as simple as a cute picture of their dog, or a nice sunset, or information about a hobby they enjoy like woodworking or bike riding. Maybe I'm just an optimist who wants to believe the best in people.

When I look at Facebook these days, I don't assume that my relatives are actually JUST hateful, conservative, xenophobic conspiracy theorists. I assume that's what Facebook brings out of them -- it's what it suggests to them, it's what it suggests to their friends, it's what they see in their feed so it's ultimately what they share and what they end up thinking about more often as a result. But it isn't who they are. I know these people: they love kayaking, and gin & tonics by the ocean, and their pets, and their kids, and fireworks, and campfires, and boating, and books, and gardening, and a million other things. But you'll never see posts about those other things on Facebook because they aren't "engaging."

Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#438

Post by [deleted] »

theshrike79 wrote: post #331
f1refly wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Both telegram and discord need phone numbers though - telegram upfront and discord after your used it for about ten mimutes.

Telegram uses phone numbers just as UIDs, they're not shared to anyone without your permission. As for Discord, I've got a few accounts and have been asked for telephone numbers 0 times. It's only needed when a specific server demands it, haven't seen any yet.

[deleted]

Re: Is this the end of social networking?

#440

Post by pier25 »

woweoe wrote: post #320
pier25 wrote: post #299

Aren't forums and websites like HN and Reddit also social media?

HN is probably the closest to what the old pre-reddit forum culture was like, but obviously structured in the horrible reddit manner. Reddit is probably an unsocial media.

I use forums on a daily basis and that culture isn't dead at all :)
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