@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

JustinHanagan

@[email protected]

I write StayGrounded.online a newsletter about establishing healthy boundaries with the digital world.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Exactly! I actually talked back and forth with him a bit and eventually said that "complaining about a missing FOSS feature is like complaining to the volunteer ladeler at a soup kitchen about the lack of a gluten-free option. It's just not the path to getting the change you want."

In the end he seemed to get what I was saying, but was still irritated. I've been really learning lately how hard it is for some people not to see themselves as customers in FOSS land.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

I and a few other people kinda chatted with him a while and the reality kinda seemed to click with him? He was very stuck on "it is a product and I am the customer" mindset that is very ingrained into so many people. He said filing a bug report felt "dehumanizing" and we tried to illustrate that it can actually feel empowering if you view yourself as a collaborator, not a customer. I think he's coming around.

At least I hope he is because (opinion on FOSS aside) he really is one of the all-time best creators on YouTube right now.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

"Hey so my free car that was built and maintained entirely by volunteers who received no financial compensation and was provided to me no strings attached is making a weird noise and I don't want to learn how to fix it myself nor am I willing to wait for someone else to fix it, nor am I willing to even tell the car-builders it has a problem."

In this context suggesting they complainer pay for a car doesn't sound so crazy?

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

It’s like telling someone with a shitty landlord to move to a new free house which they get to own

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

I actually did jump into the replies and went back and forth with him a bit and I do think he (finally) understood the FOSS perspective. I think a lot of people get very hung up on this concept of a customer-product relationship and for some people it's a very hard mindset to break out of. I often forget that while "FOSS" is software, the "free software movement" is not really about software, it's political.

"The (Trust and) Safety Dance" - When an ostensibly “social” company has a Trust and Safety department, try and see it for what it is: a sign that failure is an option. (www.staygrounded.online)

"Lemmy might not ever influence global culture to the degree that Facebook and Twitter once did. But it proves that 'people constructively and healthily socializing via the internet' is entirely possible without being forced to tolerate any more nonsense than one would normally expect when humans get together. 'Social media: The...

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

You're not incorrect, but I think the thing that differentiates this era of social media from the "before times" (I was there too) is that it's significantly easier for non-techies to join. The internet nowadays has significantly more diversity of perspectives than back then. Those differences are exploited and exaggerated by social media companies to generate engagement. It seems to m that the fediverse model allows for diversity and sanity (or at least not algorithmically-encouraged _in_sanity).

Thanks for reading and the comment!

JustinHanagan, (edited )
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Absolutely. The essay does actually address that towards the end:

There’s no shame in turning to the internet for supplementing socialization when doing it “better” isn’t feasible. It’s easy to imagine situations where someone might not have access to a community that keeps them sane. A gay teenager stuck in rural Alabama. A woman born into a controlled religious society. A New York sports fan in Boston. Some days in life, the best we can hope for is making it until tomorrow in one piece.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

I personally wouldn't judge any Yankees fan living in Boston who chooses to remain closeted about their allegiances and only discusses sports online.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

The example you mention is actually in the essay itself. But yes, it would be nice if the technology companies could work on a way to automate the stuff we don't enjoy doing instead of the stuff that brings meaning into our lives.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Now you're catching on

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

I fear for the soul of the person who read this and thought "yup this is all normal ways to feel"

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

You didn't read it did you😉

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Yes my thoughts exactly. When email was too confusing ISPs included it pre-configured as a perk initially and Gmail came later.

My feelings in regards to social media are stop the bleeding first, remove society's dependence on X, Meta, and other for-profit platforms. Then we can worry about educating "normal" people on Federation, ActivityPub, etc.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

No, it does. Sign up is extremely straightforward now. All things involving federation are essentially optional on the official app.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

It's a bit of a joke post because a lot of the coverage around Mastodon gets really into the weeds with Federation, ActivityPub, etc. and journalists often describe it as "too techie" for "normal" users.

Well, "normal" users don't care about the technical backend of Twitter or Facebook so it always felt a bit disingenuous to me it was presented this way. Hopefully my post can dispell some of the confusion!

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

You can just click "no thanks" to the subscription box, but I've copy-pasted the full guide (short version) here for you:

  1. Download the Mastodon app from the Apple app store or Play store.
  2. Create an account (just like Twitter or any other social media)
  3. Follow people, and get posting.
JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Yep. "Slowly, then all at once".

Personally, I think once the journalists and news orgs (finally) get on board, that will inspire government agencies to make the change, and that will be the true tipping point away from 𝕏.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

If it's still too complicated for someone after reading this I think it's safe to say they're a lost cause

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

✨much elegance✨

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Absolutely. And to be fair, "a chance at fame and attention" is the sales pitch from the commercial platforms. They don't want users having "meaningful conversation". There's a great essay/rant from Cat Valente called "Stop Talking to Each Other and Start Buying Things".

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Thank you! I put a lot of effort into it.

To cross-post on Lemmy/kbin you just... make the new post right?

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

I did that, thanks. And the “crossposted to…” showed up. Pretty cool!

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

In this "idiot-proof" guide I recommend the app because it smooths over anything to do with Federation which is where people get confused. Choosing an instance and following people in the app is as easy as any other app.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

FYI you haven't needed to choose an instance in the official app for a while now. It just defaults to mastodon.social unless you request otherwise.

Not ideal long-term to have it be centralized like this, but it's still leaps and bounds preferrable to Twitter or Threads.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

I know, it's just too technical 😭

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Exactly. From the article:

As far as Reddit’s fate is concerned I predict that what will happen to it is the same thing that is happening to Twitter and has already happened to Facebook and frankly, actual shopping malls. The business side of things will churn along divorced from the content which will become ever more generic and culturally irrelevant. The users who stay on Reddit will be of the unadventurous variety, not inclined to make waves or analyze their habits.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

The "mall" analogy works for Reddit because the point of it existing is to buy things there. Lemmy instances and communities only exist because people want to make space for conversation. If spaces are empty, I see that as a sign that someone, somewhere cares so much that they will happy build the space and wait for others to arrive.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

💯

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Thanks lol

JustinHanagan, (edited )
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

I personally am a big advocate of "no entertainment on mobile devices" whatsoever, but that said- I've played around with this modified version of Instagram and it's pretty cool. I don't think it changes the sort to chronological, but it does remove suggested content and allows users to turn off stories, reels and more (use at your own risk, I have no idea the safety of this).

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

The essay is not about suggesting a dichotomy. The article is about how corporations sort their content feeds based on maximizing profitability, and the subsequent consequences that result for the end user (humans) in the form of endless distractions.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Lemmy devs actually publish their goals/methods for "hot" and "active" sorting here. You may find it of value!

The important difference, imo, is that Fediverse users have final say over the sorting of their own feeds. Reddit/Twitter/etc prioritize engagement, not actual value added to the user.

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

You are most welcome!

JustinHanagan,
@JustinHanagan@kbin.social avatar

Well said, your comment reminded me of this essay I recently read by @carl that has a great opening analogy:

Imagine all the squares, streets, parks, and venues you visit or live by in are owned by just one or a few companies. They not only own all these places but also determine what they are to be used for, and who can use them. They decide who can be there and who cannot. Mostly, it's free rent, for these companies finance everything through advertising.

Because of this, all places are designed so that everyone will consume the advertising. In the town hall, the agenda of the municipal council is adapted according to the length of advertising breaks. In the park, you can hear advertisements over the loudspeakers at regular intervals. At the playground, there's advertising targeted at the very youngest, and at the retirement home, ads for the very oldest.

  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • •
  • random
  • uselessserver093
  • Food
  • aaaaaaacccccccce
  • test
  • CafeMeta
  • testmag
  • MUD
  • RhythmGameZone
  • RSS
  • dabs
  • KamenRider
  • TheResearchGuardian
  • KbinCafe
  • Socialism
  • oklahoma
  • SuperSentai
  • feritale
  • All magazines
    •