this post was submitted on 14 Jun 2023

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The Reddit blackout was pretty underwhelming (beehaw.org)

submitted 2 years ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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In the last 3 days I've been paying attention to r/all, expecting several posts about it and...

Yeah

Wasn't expecting the website to literally shut down nor to monopolize r/all, because 3rd party users are the minority, but I hoped for more than whatever this was.

At least there's a silver lining, I discovered new alternatives that have healthier communities

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (8 children)

It went about as expected, IMO. 90% of redditors just don't care that much - even if they agreed with the blackout in principle, most of them were likely just waiting patiently for their favourite subs to reopen so they could go back to browsing as usual. A quick browse through some of my subscribed (and still open) subs revealed a lot of commenters weren't even clear about what was going on.

But it has had the effect of essentially kickstarting a community here which seems to be taking shape nicely and there's finally a (small but growing fast) alternative to reddit - which didn't really exist before. I can see the following months and years seeing a gradual shift in user base from reddit to here.

Reddit's not going to die overnight; that was never going to happen. But it's possible it's the beginning of the end of their empire and the slow decline to the ranks of the remember-that-website-whatever-happened-to-that club. Time will tell I guess.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

I think the death of 3rd party apps in a few weeks could be another moment when we see a big change in consumption habits. I don't know that it'll push people here, necessarily, but I would imagine it'll hurt reddit traffic.

The other wildcard is what do mods do? If some big subreddits never come back, or a lot of moderators leave, what will that do to the quality of reddit?

I agree, this could be a slow burn, and these communities definitely have been kickstarted, which is nice. I just think the slow burn might be over the course of months, not years.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I'm actually pretty surprised with, despite how few people there are by comparison, how active and useful this has already been. And I'm expecring it to only continue to get better. Pretty sure I'll have little reason to go back to Reddit except for some useful historical posts.

Especially after apps are shut down I'm expecting another flood of new users. And the numbers keep climbing (today kbin alone has gone up another at least 10%)

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Cheers to that ! Just decided to register here today. I won't ditch reddit entirely but will slowly migrate away.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

I never would have found kbin if it weren't for the blackout. I plan on staying around too. I will still use reddit for the smaller subs I'm in were discussion threads are actually that, but I unsubed from all the news and politics type subs. I was weening off those anyway since they make me want to just go to comments for entertainment instead of reading the article.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I agree, but those who are left are either looking for easily digestible memes or content created by others. Without an engaged community, Reddit has to be afraid of the next shiny thing that comes along, and I think that TikTok has shown us that they don't even care if that next shiny thing is spying on them.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

think that TikTok has shown us that they don't even care if that next shiny thing is spying on them.

I think "is spying on them" has been baked in since Snowden at least. The TikTok early adopters grew up in a post 9/11 world predicated on being spied on.

The only real difference is it was someone else's government doing the spying, for a change.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

The migration will definitely pick up once the apps no longer work, and even if there isn't a seismic growth in users in the fediverse the seer size of reddit was both a blessing and a curse.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 2 years ago (6 children)

I think Reddit has become too mainstream to die. I think it will simply continue to become mainstream, perhaps eventually become more like Twitter in terms of userbase. and the next generation of niche forums will be born, and therefor the next Reddit. But maybe I'm wrong, maybe reddit will 'never die.'

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Yep! Reddit won't die. It is becoming (and in some ways has been for some time) one of a very limited number of sites that the majority of the interconnected globe uses to exchange information, like Facebook. Even if it loses .5% of its current userbase to some alternative, it's barely a drop in the bucket to Reddit, but that number is HUGE if it's mostly dorks like us setting up a new home here in the Fediverse.

It's a win-win; we want quality discussion here. Your average modern Reddit user wants the information drip. (And I should say, it's entirely possible to be someone who uses both during this transition phase)

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (3 children)

Reddit isn't going to disappear, but that doesn't mean it won't die. Going public will kill Reddit. The parent company isn't profitable, and the product isn't profitable, and public investors will only tolerate that if growth suggests future gains.

Those future gains will be had by strangling Reddit and twisting its corpse into something much less useful, interesting, and fun.

Reddit's animated corpse will carry on for years, but that IPO will be a poisoned pill for what we know and recognize as Reddit.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

So how do we stop that happening here? Do we just bounce between admins as they eventually can't pay for their servers?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Support your admins, if you can. But yes, bouncing around will happen. Hopefully with added development support coming from an expanded userbase, account migration can be implemented on both Lemmy and kbin and people can move around with relative ease, as the need or desire strike.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Digg was around for a long time after Reddit took over. Hell even fark is still kicking.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

They telegraphed this when they started forcing users to look at depressed buskers (in between ads for Jesus and pizza rolls) and making posts scream almost uncontrollably as you scroll by them. It's like someone really wants sfw OnlyFans, or Twitch without the video games, or YouTube except the content isn't very curated. Instagram but live? Anything but Reddit.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Reddit has become one of that "primary reference" for answers, especially with Google search.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (2 children)

The difference that I see between reddit and twitter is that reddit hasn't been purchased to be the plaything of a billionaire. This matters because unlike facebook and google, reddit and twitter aren't profitable. That means that reddit doesn't have to pockets to buy up competitors, lobby for beneficial regulations, focus on expanding overseas, or move into making hardware.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

Reddit is just the plaything of anonymous billionaires that's the whole reason they want the IPO at all costs because they can't cash out without it, even if it is less than they had hoped for.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Yet. It hasn't been bought up yet, but they really really wish they were. Reddit has flipped to profits only mode already and they're never going to change now. Being bought out during
IPO isn't going up change that either, only intensify it

[–] [email protected] 0 points 2 years ago (2 children)

It will be like Facebook, once massive, now where genx parents get their ads and warn others to get off their porch

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

As a Gen-X parent, I've abhorred the look and feel of Facebook even from the beginning. When I first made an account I got connected with old high school people and thought it was pretty neat. But then I tried to share some thoughts for discussion like one would do on a BBS/forum/Reddit, and realized that wasn't what it was for. That was the last I posted. I know I'm in a minority and people who love it have a need for sharing everything they do, but that isn't me.

There's a saying I like: "Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people." I don't think this means that a person can only be one of those, but that in discussions there is a level of thinking going on with the category. I prefer the first one more, and even Reddit had places where you aren't going to find that...but it had some, and I enjoyed my time there.

Oh, and get off my lawn. You too, boomers. Everyone get off the damn lawn!

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

There are dozens of us!

I like that saying, by the way. I want to discuss everything, but when someone is limited to that lower level it's quite disappointing.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Facebook is still the top of monthly MAUs by millions though. The whole “facebook is dead” mantra isn’t true as all.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 2 years ago (5 children)

Possible it'll go the direction of Neopets and stuff. Still around, but not what it once was.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Alternatively, it could go in the direction of facebook - still around, but packed full of everybody's racist great aunts, romance scammers, and weed dealers.

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

You have to remember that the internet in general has short term memory but surprising good memory at other things. It was good to see people actually get together for a few days and see that there are still subreddits that stayed dark. I know people are still leaving after these apps start to close down as well.

It's hard to fight EVERY corporation, but I feel like the amount of people that have been burned by Twitter will have that lingering thought in people's mind with Reddit as well.

Only time will tell, but I hope that people continue to fight these greedy CEOs that think that they can literally get away with literally anything...

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

The blackout caused some more media attention beforehand, so that's part of the win I guess. Perhaps all the negative attention still isn't enough, but it did sent a message.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (2 children)

I have had at least a dozen instances where I have done a Google search for a problem, and clicked a Reddit link without thinking, only to get hit with a private message. I do have an unusual number of problems per day (software dev who seems to spend their evenings trying stupid technical stuff), but I guarantee the impact is not seen on Reddit, but in the many users who never get there.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

If you need these infos, you can find reddit mirrors and reddit dumps on torrent

[–] [email protected] 0 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Where? Removeddit and unddit need access to reddit to work. And where are the torrent dumps you're referring to?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

The torrent dumps they are referring to are probably the pushshift dumps which can be found on here but they're a good bit complicated to use efficiently and are mostly text/link dumps only. I'd love to know if there are other torrents though which offer more readability or similar.

edit: also the filesizes are HUGE unpacked. The sizes shown on the page are the COMPRESSED sizes and I haven't yet tried unpacking a file newer than 2009.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

I was having similar experiences this week but with niche 90s music history. It scared me to think that Reddit has so much control over that data. Makes me wonder if it's possible/feasible for a single person to download a few subreddits as a precautionary archive..

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Don't underestimate the power of disgruntled users. There is no place right now that can handle Reddit - all the alternatives that aren't monolithic corporations can't handle the traffic. Kbin included. So the best anybody can do right now is be on the lookout. This isn't like it was when people left Digg for Reddit almost two decades ago. It takes quite a bit of resources to manage a large migration - it will be in small steps, but rest assured.... Reddit's mods and their communities now are forever changed....

As a mod of some reddits that will go back online, we're now going to be actively promoting alternative sites to also post content on and congregate - we have to do it piecemeal because of the technical requirements. We'll also be expanding the topic of our subs to include any news that's critical of reddit proper and these issues, so we won't let things die.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

I'm hoping that people who are annoyed by the direction Reddit is taking will help migrate over their subreddits to here.

There's been a huge uptick in users joining by the looks of it and hopefully that upwards trend continues, it'll take months or years I'm feeling to get to the million users mark but so long as there's somewhat of an active scene here then people will come..

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

A private subreddit isn’t going to bubble up to the top. It’s bound to happen.

I think a better option is to let subreddits stay open and simply push their migration agenda to the top of the algorithm naturally. It might be telling their community to move to discord, fediverse, or something else.

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