this post was submitted on 27 Jun 2023
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I had been feeling a bit drawn in to reddit for the past few months before the divorce. I feel like the slower pace at which content comes out on Lemmy is good for me in that way. I can't just scroll and scroll and scroll my entire day away.

Does anyone else feel similar?

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[–] [email protected] 79 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I definitely find the content to be deeper and more meaningful. I like the slower pace but I find myself excited to see posts with lots of comments.

[–] [email protected] 39 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

There also seems to be a deeper sense of community, at least in a few instances and communities, than I've experienced in a long time, excluding some of the more niche-er subs

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 year ago

I've engaged more with posts on Lemmy than all of my years on Reddit due to the deeper sense of community.

It's really cut down the amount of endless doom scrolling I'd do throughout the day as well

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

It sort of feels like the old days of reddit. I had forgotten how nice it was.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (1 children)

deeper and more meaningful

Ah yes, like the "how do I not poop for 3 days?" post.

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[–] [email protected] 48 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I definitely see it as a double edge sword. On one hand I don’t mindlessly scroll as much, on the other, the lack of content is just because I’m figuring out the quirks, and I have a feeling finding new and weird communities could be a McGuffin quest.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I've been constantly going on https://browse.feddit.de/ to see if there any new communities that I'd like to join. Really do wish it were easier to discover communities but it is what it is

[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago (3 children)

You could try sub.rehab for a list of sub equivalents.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (5 children)
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[–] [email protected] 32 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Idk about everyone else, but I sort by new on Lemmy and "all" WAY more than I ever would on reddit. Even sorting by new or all on reddit it just shuffles around the same 100 posts they want you to see. Here people post about all kinds of stuff!

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

I feel like sorting by new on reddit for many years has just kinda been a cesspool. Like 1 post worth seeing per page lol

[–] [email protected] 29 points 1 year ago (2 children)

No, honestly.

I hate that the algorithm is super broken and the only meaningful sort option is "TopDay", which means Lemmy is only good for me to look at once every day at the same time.

Admittedly, I'm so bored, I open Boost for Reddit for more content.

Really hope more content comes to lemmy before third party apps shut down.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Since the 0.18 update I find that the sorting is working pretty well. I also like that there are now options for Top 1 Hour, Top 6 Hour and Top 12 Hours.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago (1 children)
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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Agree. I find the slower pace or lack of an algorithm or whatever it is is leading to me opening lemmy, then kbin around once or twice per day (have 2 accounts and slightly different subs between them which is frustrating in itself).

Then I find myself back on reddit for a bit more scrolling, particularly of the communities I haven't found an alternative for or that are still more active on reddit.

I suspect this will change come July when the Relay app that I use on mobile presumably ceases to function due to the API changes. And my routine will just be kbin/lemmy (hoping for a unified app soon on android). But I'm not sure that's necessarily a bad thing and might reduce my overall screen time a bit.

Still, I am sad the reddit golden age is effectively over at this point.

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[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (7 children)

Honestly It's been way worse for me lol, the discussions here are actually meaningful so I can sink way too much time reading threads instead of getting bored after looking at 5 consecutive reposted memes on reddit

Edit: I'm not complaining though, this is definitely better

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[–] [email protected] 20 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I feel more the lack of my favorite communities that haven't made the jump. Some alternative attempts exist here but are dead. I miss the variety of topics and random discovery as well.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

I miss the /r/legaladvice drama and the fun on /r/bestoflegaladvice. That was my go-to "take a break and feel better about my life" sub where I would also learn things occasionally.

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[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I've become used to the endless stream of content from Reddit, so a part of me says no and the other says yes

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[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago (2 children)

For the popular communities, yes. For the smaller niche communities it just feels empty and sad. Hope this platform catches on so the "there's a subreddit for everything" quote could be a thing here too.

[–] OptimistPrime 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I feel that. I'm finding myself gravitate back to going directly to individual blogs. Just in the past couple of weeks, I've been introduced to new blogs on these smaller, more slower-paced niche communities. So it feels reminiscent of how I used to use the Internet 10-15 years ago before Reddit and monetization of everything. I had a handful of places I'd rotate through. It was just enough that there was usually something new everyday, but not an infinite sea of content. And I'm finding now that I'm actually reading the links being posted instead of just reading the comments. It kind of makes me think of how people used to watch TV. A show would release one episode a week and you had to wait for next week's show. And there was a limited number of shows. Now with all the content on all the streaming platforms plus YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, etc. there's an endless amount of content to consume and no built-in breaks so you can literally binge non-stop.

With Reddit or other fill-in-the-blank service where your attention is the end goal to sell ads, the incentive is to get you to never pause, never take a break, never leave. It was exhausting. Here, it feels more relaxed.

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[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yes, kinda, sorta. It’s like an addict going cold turkey. I feel the urge for a faster paced feed from time to time. It’s unsettling how much I’ve been accustomed to this kind of BS.

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[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago

The lack of unwanted rage bait posts and karma farmers has improved my mood by a lot. I gotta be honest though, I’m still scrolling through Apollo and giving myself my last dopamine hits before July 1st. Won’t miss that place

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Being used to high-traffic subreddits it's definitely a change one needs to adapt to. But I slowly start enjoying it. I just wish there was more non-meta content. Most of it is directly or indirectly related to Lemmy oder the Fediverse in general.

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[–] csm10495 16 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Personally no. I used the scrolling to escape stress and just be mindless.

Now I don't do it as much since there isn't as much. When I try, it's not the same since it's slower and just not as much stuff. Also too many posts either about reddit or the fediverse. Honestly I'm tired about (metaish) posts of either of those.

Also the comments were better on Reddit (for me) just mainly because of higher quantity leading to semblance of quality.

I personally hope it goes faster over time with more variety and niches... I miss posting a comment on some places and getting more responses/conversations.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago (2 children)

No. I really hope a few million users move over to lemmy and make it a bigger platform. I want to see more diverse content more frequently. I don't need infinite content like on Reddit but I don't want to see the same posts days in a row.

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I don't know. Feels like a lot of content is mirrored from reddit, just with less engagement. That being said the quality is a lot higher. I also like that there are less comments trying to be comedians with quirky one liners

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago

I do! Reddit had turned into a sort of TikTok, mindless scrolling and no time to enjoy actual, original and intelligent content.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I do, but sometimes I get a feeling that I'm not seeing all the content I should be seeing.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

I think that's the feeling that I don't miss. It was like with reddit I could always get that fix. There was plenty of blue links left to satiate my dopamine drip. With Lemmy, the content is a lot less so I don't feel the need to just scroll and scroll. I hope on, get my kick, hit the end for that day, then go back to doing stuff IRL.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago

No. I feel like I'm stumbling in a desert.

[–] nanoUFO 11 points 1 year ago (8 children)

The thing with reddit is you would scroll and scroll and not find anything interesting, just little blips of dopamine in sea of inane content. I don't like everything posted on lemmy but I find it far higher quality overall.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago

It's taken a bit to get accustomed to it, but I am finding that I can go longer periods without checking the feed now, so overall it's a positive effect.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

I think I find it a bit harder to find exactly what I'm looking for on Lemmy for support and help on various topics. So, it's good and bad. When it becomes easier to search for content Lemmy will definitely improve on that front.

I'm still discovering new instances every day and it has been a much more slow paced browsing experience due to load times and the frequency of new content.

It's definitely a different (but in no way worse) experience to what I'm used to on Reddit, but there's a whole lot less upsetting content (like personal stories of abuse and such) that show up on Lemmy, so I think it's been better for my mental health, even if I feel a bit less connected to the internet than before.

And let's be fair, it's probably for the best.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yes. Truthfully for the last 2-3 years I have been dismayed with the direction social media in general were going, not only Reddit. Here were the 3 major issues I had: 1- lower quality of content & the volume of bad content drowning out the good, 2- the corruption of the companies themselves, and 3- the toxic social environment with nasty behavior becoming the norm. I think that fragmenting the web into smaller and more distributed communities, with a slower pace, will probably be a good thing at this point in time.

PS I'm happy to admit the web has always had a dark side, but it had gotten noticeably much worse in recent years.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

3 is the biggest thing about pivoting more towards Lemmy / traditional forums for me. It's been really nice feeling like I'm not drowning in a sea of trite idiocy and unempathetic rage every time I open a comment section. It's genuinely refreshing to feel like I'm actually engaging with normal people again.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I'm personally opposite. Lack of content and discussion in my opinion. I'm yearning for more. Orders of magnitude more

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Because of the slow nature of content I ended up being subscribed to more communities than I would have back at Reddit. My feed is still 99% 196 just like in Reddit, but instead of needing to pop into r/all or r/popular every few hours, the New Comments sort ends up "sprinkling" interesting stuff from other communities into my feed.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Honestly: no.

But I must say that I wasnt enjoying reddit in the way I used to anymore. I used to scroll reddit in bed to wind down, mostly text posts (meaningful conversations) or cute animal pictures. Last few years it turned into doomscrolling with way too much video content like tiktok/reels/shorts. So I enjoy the text and image focus on Lemmy which also seems more civil (for now?).

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[–] PeachyMcPeachface 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yes and no? I'm definitely checking for content less but also... I have IBS and I spend a ludacris amount of time on the toilet. Sometimes, I just need some content.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

In the early 2000s there were a couple of different forums I liked, so once a day I’d walk over to the library to use the internet and catch up. I’ve missed having that kind of healthy relationship with the internet, haha.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Yes absolutely! I like that I can basically catch up on all Lemmy content in an hour or so. It means I don't spend hours mindlessly scrolling (like I did with reddit) and gives me more time to do something more meaningful

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

If you ever need to scratch the itch for content, I suggest checking out https://upstract.com/ - you might even find something to contribute. ;)

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

No, it depends on the number of community subscriptions. Still not nearly the firehose that is Telegram.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago
[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

It is a blessing for someone like me who had a lot of difficulties to stay away from reddit. Lemmy gives me a slow paced window of reddit, with RSS feeds taking up the rest of the free time. So in the end the time I spend is more focussed on my interests but driven by reputable sites instead of someone in reddit.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Breaking free of radicalizing algorithms and agenda driven rage farmers will feel weird for a while. There's a process of recovery when healing from any destructive addiction.

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