r/Fediverse
Why switch from reddit or twitter to fediverse alternatives (or matrix)
Hey, so I'm an avid, and recent user of reddit. I like to read posts and comment on stuff especially about open source (not just FOSS or FLOSS) ,and privacy. the only thing stopping me from switching from reddit (I don't use Twitter, I just have a 3 year old account that I have never used, and just recently gained access to. just because I didn't like it was tied to an old email address.) ,and that is the lack of content. I just really like to have a lot of content on specific stuff, so I have been wondering if my worries were not well-founded, and if that wasn't really an issue for my use case.
https://www.reddit.com/r/fediverse/comments/1vxzfg5/why_switch_from_reddit_or_twitter_to_fediverse/
At 25 replies it wound up being an interesting, generally thoughtful thread from what I could tell. And like an angry mother hen, I tried to do my own part: 😅
No reason to switch unless you like talking to yourself. The fediverse is a ghost town and you'll quickly be bored with the lack of posts or comments on posts.
Sad but true.
agree as someone who used to be on fediverse
There's always shit like this (and always gonna be, most likely), so I tried to keep it civil:
This is just nonsense that doesn't help anyone. The reality is that curation of your feeds, subscriptions and such is more important on the FV due to its naturally smaller size. You also pick up exposure there more easily as a content creator, since communities are more visible to ALL streams.
The Fediverse has its ins, outs and complications, and isn't a full replacement for Reddit yet, but it's certainly not a "ghost town" if you have a reasonable amount of different interests and put the work in.
Anyway, it's pretty cool to me that there's a reasonably pro-FV presence on Reddit, perhaps with many of the folks here doing double-duty, so to speak? I mean, not so long ago I seem to recall the Fediverse being slammed pretty hard at that *very* sub. (zoiks!)
So yeah, how the turn-tables, eh..?
8 Comments
Noklito@lemmy.zip · 7 pts · 6d
This was encouraging to read, I will keep trying to encourage others to give things a try
JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social · 4 pts · 6d
So, question-- do you feel like you enjoy the FV as is, or are there things to improve, and if so, what would you suggest..?
(sorry, not trying to put you on the spot, but... I just kinda go for it sometimes, lol)
Noklito@lemmy.zip · 3 pts · 6d
Nothing to apologize for, wouldn't have commented if I wasn't willing to converse.
So far, I've enjoyed my time here, functionality wise I think things are great as is and have plenty of room for improvement but the biggest issue FV is currently facing is how small the population is. Unfortunately an issue that can't really be "fixed" without time and effort but mostly time.
I understand where the "ghost town" comments come from, and I think it's folks just not knowing how to navigate the site or expecting the site/sites to cater to them. For this same reason we don't have as much spam, bots or engagement bait, so I think it's a fair trade, you have to want to be here to really figure things out.
Off the top of my head, I think some sort of tutorial or intro to help people get started would do wonders for those curious but intimidated from trying out FV.
JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social · 3 pts · 6d
Awesome, thank you for that. <3
Yeah, that's been bubbling en mi cabeza as well, kinda-recently. I do think the various 'Join-the-Fediverse' subs do a good job upon that shizzle IN SPIRIT, but unfortunately, they whiff on much of the downstream, real issues that users encounter.
What to do, what to do...
Now there is certainly much more to say about all of your other observations, but... much of that comes back to a certain reality I'm none too pleased upon, which is roughly this--
Since a vast herd of us are fellow refugees from Reddit & other social media disasters... why aren't we kinder and more supportive upon each other here, huh..?
Noklito@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 6d
If I had more confidence in myself I'd love to make a tutorial or intro vid to get people started but....... I'm not motivated enough to ignore insecurities.
As for your last question, I've seen such behavior before and I think it's sort of group self-defense mechanism at play. I 've not been on the web too long (compared to others), a sort of gatekeeping through obscurity is what keeps everything safe from those that would "ruin the vibe" of things. Which yes, it keeps advertisers, bots and other undesirables out but also it's what's keeping people from even trying to join, let alone stay.
I recall feeling a similar way towards Reddit when it first launched, seemed like everyone just wanted to seem smart, snarky or too cool to deal with each other which kept me from getting on it for years. I think the issue isn't so bad here on most servers, barring a few unusual examples I've seen, I'm optimistic that as our numbers grow things will only get better as a whole.
Auster@thebrainbin.org · 2 pts · 6d
About this reply:
https://redlib.catsarch.com/r/fediverse/comments/1vxzfg5/why_switch_from_reddit_or_twitter_to_fediverse/p5wqv0e/?context=3#p5wqv0e
While you can't browse hashtags, you can pull them with #RSS, e.g.
https://mastodon.social/tags/android.rssAuster@thebrainbin.org · 3 pts · 6d
And about being a "ghost town", if you want #engagement, you need to engage yourself. Drop comments on topic with posts you see over the #fediverse, and people may start replying. The more you do, the more likely someone is to reply.
JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social · 2 pts · 5d
Good comments, yup.