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The internet is already over (2022)

samkriss.substack.com

61–70 of 283 posts

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#61

> It’s already trite to notice that all our films are franchises now, all our bestselling novelists have the same mass-produced non-style, and all our pop music sounds like a tribute act. This whole article reads as "i expected things to stay the same and they are" There are still tons of great films being made, and new concepts spinning up - just in non-traditional places or ways - netflix, apple tv, etc. So they're…

> There are still tons of great films being made, and new concepts spinning up - just in non-traditional places or ways

Are there? People parrot this over and over but rarely provide any reliable evidence.

Even if there is interesting stuff being done, if it has no impact past three people then it is by definition not "great".

By most measures I can think of, there are NOT lots of "great" things being made.

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#62

> It’s already trite to notice that all our films are franchises now, all our bestselling novelists have the same mass-produced non-style, and all our pop music sounds like a tribute act. This whole article reads as "i expected things to stay the same and they are" There are still tons of great films being made, and new concepts spinning up - just in non-traditional places or ways - netflix, apple tv, etc. So they're…

There’s even new top 40 pop music that’s doing well. It’s hard to say that Chappell Roan is particularly derivative of anything, as an example, and before that you had Billie Eilish breaking in, the popularization of niche genres like Jersey club music, etc.

A lot of the pop music kvetching is usually code for “new music that I like and find familiar is hard to find.”

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#63

I am old enough to remember when people said TV was a passing fad. And the radio. And the printing press. And the telegraph. And the written word. I mean come on you lazy shlubs, memorize Beowulf like we had to back in my day. OK, I am not actually that old. My point is, that with every technology that has been invented to improve, or expand the ability of humans to communicate, there have been the detractors and nay…

I'm not sure if the examples you bring make the point you're trying to make. For most practical intents and purposes, printed press is but a small shadow of its former self. Pretty much all outlets focus on the digital and many have stopped printing altogether. Radio is the same, as a fraction of the population, the numbers are hitting record lows. Most people listen to Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, podcasts, etc, not radio. I doubt I need to even mention classical TV. Point being, all of these technologies exist and people do consume them, yes, but compared to their former glory they're all practically dead.

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#64

I am old enough to remember when people said TV was a passing fad. And the radio. And the printing press. And the telegraph. And the written word. I mean come on you lazy shlubs, memorize Beowulf like we had to back in my day. OK, I am not actually that old. My point is, that with every technology that has been invented to improve, or expand the ability of humans to communicate, there have been the detractors and nay…

And bad for kids. Go back and you can read about how dreadful it is that some people are letting their children read novels . What sort of person would do that? But the article isn't really about that, to the extent it's really about anything except the author's need to feel very, very smart. It's a vague gesture at how "over" it they are, for any value of "it". Best to pat them on the head condescendingly and then m…

The person who wrote the article used the internet for all the sub-references. Had it not been for the internet, this person most likely would not have known all the things they mentioned. I don't know if they are listening, but it would be an interesting question.

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#66

I am old enough to remember when people said TV was a passing fad. And the radio. And the printing press. And the telegraph. And the written word. I mean come on you lazy shlubs, memorize Beowulf like we had to back in my day. OK, I am not actually that old. My point is, that with every technology that has been invented to improve, or expand the ability of humans to communicate, there have been the detractors and nay…

I'm not sure if the examples you bring make the point you're trying to make. For most practical intents and purposes, printed press is but a small shadow of its former self. Pretty much all outlets focus on the digital and many have stopped printing altogether. Radio is the same, as a fraction of the population, the numbers are hitting record lows. Most people listen to Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, podcasts, etc, n…

And yet they persist. And continue to evolve. And TV, now streaming over the internet. The way humans communicate evolves. And so will the internet, and social media and all the rest to come.

Think of it like this...

Radio didn't die, it evolved, into streaming music.

TV didn't die, it evolved to streaming TV>

The printed medium did not die, it evolved into HTML and web pages, a fancier form of type setting.

The telegraph didn't die, it evolved into digital communications.

See, it's not that things die and go away, it is a process of improving how humans interact.

Some may find it difficult, or maybe the isolation is a problem, then there is an evolution.

It will not stop, it will evolve to the next step.

What that is, will be fun to watch.

I hope I am still here to see it.

I wait in anticipation, not negativity.

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#67
post #17

I agree with a lot of this, but think the future of the Internet will be u-shaped: - People will use it drastically less. I got rid of my smart phone ~2 years ago and it's been a huge life improvement. Still on the computer a lot, but when I leave the room I'm in the real world again. - When they do use it it will be drastically higher quality. I'm working on building the World Wide Scroll as a successor to the web (…

100$ for a folder? Fellas, I'll give you a folder for 50$ over here!

For 10 years. $10 a year. The important thing is to find people committed to building great sites for the long run. If you're not willing to put in a little bit of money, then it's not for you.

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#68

My take on declining online social engagement is; a lot of people like to consume online content passively e.g. just reading Facebook posts or watching a YouTube video without actually liking or commenting. Another thing is; increasing number of people came to realize that privacy does matter and they refuse to participate in online dramas that can damage their reputation or harm their mental health.

What’s the point of commenting a youtube video, have you ever seen the comments there?

Liking a video makes your feed piled up with a semi-relevant crap for a week.

Sometimes (increasingly often) I have to dislike an otherwise good video because I don’t want to screw up my recommendations.

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#69
This had my attention at first but I’m not sure it led me anywhere. For discussion of the fundamental contradictions with the current structure of the Internet (that lead to the problems described herein & more), I highly recommend The People’s Platform by Astra Taylor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_People's_Platform

It’s a decade old at this point & yet continues to be startlingly relevant.

Re: The internet is already over (2022)

#70
post #61

> It’s already trite to notice that all our films are franchises now, all our bestselling novelists have the same mass-produced non-style, and all our pop music sounds like a tribute act. This whole article reads as "i expected things to stay the same and they are" There are still tons of great films being made, and new concepts spinning up - just in non-traditional places or ways - netflix, apple tv, etc. So they're…

> There are still tons of great films being made, and new concepts spinning up - just in non-traditional places or ways Are there? People parrot this over and over but rarely provide any reliable evidence. Even if there is interesting stuff being done, if it has no impact past three people then it is by definition not "great". By most measures I can think of, there are NOT lots of "great" things being made.

Provide reliable evidence of your own, then. What objective measures are you using, other than your own personal taste? What quantifiable data can you provide to back up your claim that great films are no longer being made?

And how does your definition of greatness apparently presuppose widespread impact, but somehow presumably exclude any modern films that have demonstrably widespread impact?

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