I deleted FB 15 years ago and haven’t missed it once.
I (maybe, kinda) miss what Facebook was like in, er, 2008-ish. But then again I was also 25 so maybe I just miss what life was like back then.
Same. I got on it in 2006 and it was great up until about 2010, 2013-2014 was when the shit started to hit the fan.
2013-2014 was when the timeline shifted from being a chronological timeline to a feed. The algo took over and it went to shit.
yeah. the platforms aren’t so bad in and of themselves, it’s the engagement algorithms that turn everything to shit.
just like IG, YT, video/music stremaing etc. you could stumble upon random and interesting shit… now the algo is just trying to shove kendrick lamar and joe rogan at me none stop because that is what is ‘popular’ and whatever shitty movie that netflix is trying to promote.
browsing is dead and search is also mostly broken. you can’t even effectively search for shit anymore.
the only place i can freely browse anymore is my local library. and discover lots of cool things. that experience on the internet is dead.
That sounds roughly about when I bailed on it.
Me too and me either.
I only miss it because Facebook Marketplace has killed Craigslist and I have some crap I need to sell
Marketplace is much worse than Craigslist, I don’t get it.
Craigslist was always on the fringes, before Facebook marketplace came in there were a bunch of separate and disconnected online marketplaces. Facebook marketplace had the advantage of already having a massive user base (larger than any of the existing online marketplaces), causing it to become the largest one right out the gate, which then of course makes it the most attractive option for sellers since they will reach more people.
I gave up selling on marketplace, and donate everything. People messaging you for months asking questions or wanting a refund after they broke it. I’m not your tech support, and no warranty claims. Have heard this is a regional issue and also depends on the category. I will never sell another car on marketplace. Craigslist is great for the anonymity.
Can’t even give shit away on Facebook’s buy nothing groups cause people fucking ghost you after saying they’ll take it
iS tHiS sTiLl aVAILaBlE.
Marketplace when I was moving saved me many trips because people will come pick up any old thing, but it was the pits of hell to deal with. Some lady ghosted me picking up some doors, so I moved on to the next person, and she messaged me back three weeks later saying she was interested again, and was mad as blazes I hadn’t held onto them.
Fortunately, my area has a popular classifieds at a local newspaper website, so I’ve never even looked at Facebook marketplace.
It’s also real annoying when trying to look up business hours or a restaurant menu only to find all their links are to Facebook.
No, you didn’t, it is still there! Facebook.com
I stopped actively using it in about 2015 and every time I happen to go on it (like once every 3 years because, like a lot of people, it’s how I communicate with family members I don’t see often) it’s like uncovering and diving into a cesspool.
YouTube is getting particularly bad about this to, unfortunately. They need to do more to remove harmful misinformation, but they don’t care because it won’t make them money.
I’ve had to remove a lot of recommendations. Man, PragerU, Crowder, Shapiro and Joe Rogan were in my feeds. Jeez.
The unfortunate thing is a lot of people won’t remove it from their recommendations and will watch it, and the worse thing is there’s actually even worse content than those you listed, it’s awful.
Youtube is good as a video hosting website, but bad as anything social-related. I just treat it like a video website and ignore the rest. Private browsing mode, no login used is my preferred way to access youtube videos
Honestly I prefer having an account specifically so I can filter out the garbage fake harmful dangerous content so I don’t have to see it.
For real. Not logged in, on a new PC, just having watched a few gaming videos and got recommended US right wing nonsense. I am not in the US, no VPN, nothing. No ability to tell them to stop showing me that garbage. Hell, just let me disable shorts in general.
It really sucks that YT has such shit “don’t show me stuff” controls. Sometimes it feels like asking to not get recommended a certain channel will instead show all the alternatives that feel and look just like it
I have blocked so many right wing channels that my de facto suggestions after watching political shit is Zach gun rants, Arma ops, and Animarchy or one of the other NAFO associates. Its fucken great.
I deleted Facebook Jan 7 2021.
I envy you. In my country (Hungary), I just cannot really live without it.
I just created an account a couple of months ago after never using it. It’s easy to filter out the dummies.
deleted by creator
I wish I could get my parents to unplug from Fox for a while
Parental controls on the cable/satellite box are a two-way street, IMO. 🤷🏻♂️
Parent control
Block Fox and the other right wing news stations, but also a couple liberal news stations like NBC. When they call you for tech support, tell them it’s a weird issue happening with cable lately
My dad would figure it out pretty quick, he’s no ludite
Not being stuck inside of an echo chamber really does wonders for the brain. And yes, I know the irony of saying this on Lemmy, but it’s true.
Lemmy isn’t really an echo chamber. It’s like saying going over to a friends place is an echo chamber because you and your friend get along. There’s nothing wrong with hanging out with people who share your values and beliefs.
The problem with social media are their algorithms. They aren’t designed to connect you with like-minded people, but to keep you engaged. The content that keeps people engaged tends to be terrible content.
The recent “a man or a bear” trend is a perfect example. Algorithms love divisive content like that because it drives engagement, but it also leads to people getting really upset over nothing. Lemmy doesn’t have any algorithms driving engagement so it doesn’t have that problem.
Lemmy’s a lot better than Reddit for not being an echo chamber because the communities are less interest specific, and most of us are here because we’re the type to seek out a better discussion rather than stick with status quo.
But as it gets bigger and the communities become more niché it will become a bigger issue.
Lemmy is definitely an echo chamber, but I agree that it’s not necessarily a bad thing as long as we recognize it for what it is. There are a large number of people out there that have very different opinions than the majority of users on this platform, we need to keep things respectful even in our disagreements with them instead of tearing them down for their opinions.
I strongly disagree.
I don’t think lemmy is necessarily an echochamber per se, rather its just a place where misinformation exists and opinions are manipulated.
Lemmy does use algorithms to show you the most engaging content, and there are absolutely bots and bad actors manipulating which content is prioritised.
The genocide Joe / vote abstinence thing was a very clear example.
… That’s not an echo chamber though. That’s propaganda and vote manipulation mostly by literal state actors and brainwashed rubes.
An echo chamber is when people literally self segregate enough to the point that they no longer consume almost any media that doesn’t fit their belief. Its exacerbated by large corporations who profit from ad revenue driven through user engagement.
Lemmy is not an echo chamber no more than the literal radio.
Reddit is not an echo chamber.
You can make these an echo chamber through varying degrees of ease. But places like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter have been proven to drive you into one by exploiting ragebait for clicks.
You can say they’re both fruit, sure. But one is like eating cantaloupe and the other like eating bananas laced with speed.
No, this isn’t like that at all. Mods here are actively pwning anyone who slightly disagrees with them. This is very definitely an echo chamber.
Echo chambers are a lot easier to recognize and ignore when they aren’t filled with your friends and family.
Have you tried Linux, communism, and being gay?
yes, yes, and yes.
and i no longer like any of those things.
Damn, speedrunning the Lemmy topics! I only do 2/3 of them, otherwise we’d probably already be married!
Given how FB’s algorithm stacks their feed and hides real information, that’s not surprising.
My mom was permabanned from Facebook in 2020 for constantly posting anti-vax nonsense so she just went to places like Gab and Parlor. 😑
Yowza. My dad did the same until he died (shockingly, of COVID), so I just wanted to say I’m sorry. I know what it’s like having a crazy parent and it sucks.
Truth depends on whoever you’re buying it from.
Truth is truth, how it is described may be subjective. But there is still only one truth.
And lies are lies. How do you decide which is which?
Damn, you’re so enlightened.
How do you decide which sources are credible? I can’t decide. Literally everything can be faked, and the more there is on the line, the more incentive and resources there are to do so.
What important stuff do you think there is that isn’t faked? How do you decide that it’s not fake?
Damn near everything you’ve ever accepted as true is stuff you were told or read and just accepted it based on how it was presented.
“I can’t decide”
yes, we are all well aware of how dumb you are. Your stupidity is becoming quite well known on Lemmy.
I believe that some popular news organizations are sufficiently trustworthy. At the very least, you can find sources that rank higher than others on the scale of trustworthiness.
This is why, in a lot of universities, they’re trying to teach you how to learn, not necessarily how you should think.
We need to be able to examine the claims for ourselves and learn what red flags look like.
And a lot of the time we mix up “facts” with “opinions”. Even when we are looking at facts, most of the time there are lies mixed with truth or conveniently forgotten truths. If we only get our information from a single source, or from biased sources, then we’re going to miss some key information.
That’s why it’s good to make sure that you look at any story (especially politicized ones) from different angles and sources even if you don’t agree with them.
Not only that but it can be enlightening to hear about a story from someone who’s much more intimately familiar with the subject themselves.
For example, whenever it comes to news stories about the Supreme Court, I like to look for commentary from lawyers such as Steve Lehto or Legal Eagle. You’ll find that they typically provide some very important context into why a particular decision was made that cuts through a lot of the outrage material that reporters push for clicks.
I disabled my account four years ago when I realized how much plague stupidity and election stupidity on there was harming my mental health.
I doubt I will ever formally delete my account, as it’s the only source for pictures of some now-deceased family members. If hell freezes over and there’s a legit unavoidable need for me to be on there, I’m using desktop+web browser only, and probably in a browser that only gets used for the monthly visit to FB.
it’s the only source for pictures of some now-deceased family members
Download them ASAP. You can never trust an external service like that to keep them available in perpetuity.
Be careful, I logged out for too long and forgot my password and they wanted a copy of my driver’s license before letting me have access to my account.
Can’t you download those pictures locally? It would be good practice anyway to not rely on Facebook of all places to host your beloved photos indefinitely
I’m convinced those who want to be fearful of things will immediately latch onto a new source of misinformation.
This isn’t to say Facebook is good, or that we shouldn’t try to have stronger punishment for misinformation that leads to public harm, just that “people are dumb, panicky dangerous animals”
I want to quit Facebook so badly, but I NEED to use WhatsApp. Family, friends, work even. All informal and semi-formal chats go through WhatsApp where I live.
You can quit Facebook, just not Meta as an entity.
Right. I’m still used to the parent company being named Facebook.
I have no Facebook, I want no Facebook. When I got my now job a few years back they said “we couldn’t find you on Facebook.” That’s right, you can’t.
And yes I get left out of that communication stream, but absolutely don’t care. Like, not even a little bit.
I’m waiting it out. Already my kids see it as “boomer shit”.
I hate Facebook. Marketplace is unfortunately the only place a lot of stuff is listed, even though it also sucks. I said I wanted stuff within 85 miles, why are you showing me stuff that’s 400 miles away??? Craigslist is genuinely a better experience (via the mobile app) these days, but no one uses it.
This.
I buy and sell heaps of stuff on Facebook.
We have young kids. It must have saved us thousands buying everything second hand and flipping it later.
I guess I’m at least lucky that marketplace isn’t used here primarily.
I just use Craigslist anyway and accept that I’m missing out on selection.
Often I do too, but I’m in a mid-sized city so sometimes it isn’t an option if I want to find a deal on something.
I only set up notifications on Craigslist’s app though.
You don’t need Facebook to use WhatsApp.
Meta
You’re not required to go on Facebook just to use WhatsApp 😉
I haven’t viewed the actual Facebook app/feed in probably 7 or 8 years, but I have a Facebook for messenger. There are just too many people that rely on it as a sole form of communication, I was just getting left out of shit.
I don’t really see the problem though, do you not have the self control not to browse?
I do, luckily. But I’d rather not use any Meta apps.
Facebook is 100% shitposts. Most of my friends on it have aged out of posting every little thing and so it’s mostly shitposts and soft core porn disguised as short form videos on the Facebook feed and not any of my friends that I actually wanted to follow when I made my account in the 00s.
I really want to delete my account but I still have to use it to organize class reunions and alumni events for my old high school. I’m going to try to float the idea that we move to a mailing list instead. I’d rather buy a domain and maintain a website for that than continue using Facebook for free
Start a signal group and people may start switching their messenger altogether.
My mother in law entered some contest where the votes had to be verified through Facebook. It was the first time I logged in since 2016 or so. The majority of my feed was AI pics of kids missing limbs, or chicks with impossibly large tits/body proportions with the description “Please wish me a happy birthday no one else did” with 40 hashtags of celeb names or movies/shows that came out around then. Mixed in was fake news bullshit or videos that had 4 different watermarks on it. Maybe if I used it more I would see somewhat relevant things, but its worse than I thought if that’s a normal feed.
It’s been since 2020 that I stopped browsing Facebook
What took you so long? 😉
I got banned for calling someone a pigeon, I left and didn’t look back.
You must have really ruffled some feathers!
The person reacting to your comment calling them a pigeon:
Calling people pigeons isn’t coo, man.
not coup at all.
Social media in general is full of people that want to rage or exert control over someone else. I had two of my comments here on Lemmy (not sure what server) under the News community for “Victim Blaming” and “Victim Shaming” for saying that people need to take responsibility for their actions occasionally instead of constantly blaming it on the other party.
Clearly it was your fault, you should be ashamed…
/S
The saving grace is Lemmy isn’t just algorithms doing the banning.
One of the best decisions I made was deleting my Facebook. I really mean that, one of the best decisions in my entire life. Not getting sucked into the absolute bullshit fest that greedy shit fuckers like Mark Zuckerberg set up for humanity is extremely relieving. Don’t compare yourself to other people, you be you, just try to be your best self, it’s worth it. Don’t let the billionaire leeches of society take everything from you, fuck Facebook.
The downside is that everyone around you in real life is stuck in that loop, so you can’t really escape it anymore.
Eh, someone needs to be the first to exit the matrix.
Shut it down like Tiktok. Those platforms are brainwashing people into believing far right and far left ideas.
removed by mod
But, but I like far left ideas. The pictures about people dancing in circles, living in communities without the need of money, make me giggle.
Time to start a Facebook account. /s
That isn’t far left though.
More like overthrowing governments, disbanding corporations, abolishing personal properties, completely removing currency, controlling speech, …
I myself am a socialist, but what you describe is closer to centre left than far left.
Okay my comment was a little bit sarcastic, but there is some truth in it. Removing currency and removing private property isnt that bad. How would we live then? You just have your skills and trade/offer them every day against the skills of someone else, who makes food for example. No third person would make profit of your trade. Sounds better then what we have actually. Today the Top 10% literally do nothing and get all things they want.
But removing everything sounds odd, I know. Let’s start simple: how about it isn’t allowed to have more than 1 mio. Dollars. I mean 1 mio. is a lot. If you have more you pay 100% tax. Nobody needs more than 1 mio.
Btw “controlling speech” is one of the far right favourites, not left.
We tried the “trade your skills for something you need”. In every surviving society it eventually lead to the development of a currency (not hard to see why), which requires/leads to regulation, which requires enforcement, aaaand you’re back at a modern society. I’m all for more regulation to reduce economic and social differences in society, but the people that are talking about abolishing governments and currencies need to pick up a history book and follow their ideas to their natural conclusion.
“Controlling speech” is a hallmark of authoritarian governments, be they far-left or far-right, there are plenty of historical examples of both.
Yes those are the problematic fantasies that corporate social media is brainwashing people towards. Too many of the youth are wasting their time on fantasies of revolution when they could be acting within the scope of reality to achieve something actually meaningful.
They would be better off actually working instead of wasting their time protesting and getting useless degrees
Damn those far left ideals like liveable wages!
I think Tiktok can often be creative and informative, which Facebook is definitely not though. I don’t use Tiktok but what people have sent me have usually been funny.
I’ve seen quite a few commies on Lemmy. Just saying.
