this post was submitted on 12 Jun 2023
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I don't mean to be pessimistic, bit since most subreddits are only going dark for a couple days, the site will basically be back to normal soon. I wonder how many users here are only here because of temporary outrage and not because they actually prefer Lemmy. I'm curious about people's outlook on this situation.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago

No idea - but I actually think the Fediverse concept maps to Reddit way better than it has other social networks so I could see some iteration of this really catching on over time.

For something like Twitter, the whole value proposition is "one big universal conversation" and the federated stuff gets in the way of that a little bit, but Reddit has always been a federation of communities (who occasionally fight, join together, cross post, etc) - that maps really well to this stuff.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Impossible to say now, but definitely quite a lot of them are not going to be regular users. I still hope/believe the majority will stay though.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

At the very least the exposure will put Lemmy on the map

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago

I have no intention of installing the official Reddit app. I’ve used Apollo for years and I’ll leave once it’s no longer an option. The way Reddit treated the Apollo developer is inexcusable.

I managed to quit Twitter, I’m certain I can quit Reddit too.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

I can guarantee I won't be going back to reddit on mobile if they go ahead with the API changes. I may occasionally use reddit on desktop but 99% of my reddit usage was on mobile via Sync.

Once they get rid of old.reddit (which they inevitably will) that will force my hand and I'll have to fully move to Lemmy. As luck would have it, the developer of Sync is considering re-purposing it to run on Lemmy which would be perfect for me.

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago

Probably a good chunk, I don't mean to be pessimistic either but that's how it usually works on "big" movements.

Some people follow the flow because they're caught into the enthusiasm of the moment while not being actually convinced about what they're doing, those people are highly likely to go back when things are back to normal (tho in my opinion reddit will never be "normal" again).

How many they are is impossible to tell.

The blackout is only the first wave, there will be another one IMO when 3rd party apps actually shutdown (June 30th), after that, things will settle and population on lemmy will lower, that's not a bad thing IMO, it doesn't do any good to have people here that don't actually want to be here.

As for me, since I joined I'm doing my best to be involved in lemmy communities with the specific purpose of not missing reddit anymore and not care anymore when they'll break old.reddit (they will like their doing with the API).

I already feel at home here, I'm not going drastic as to nuke my reddit account or anything, tho I'll most probably make a GDPR request and leave for good.

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

If there's one demographic of users likely to stick with the fediverse it's going to be redditors.

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

I will likely go where Reddit Sync goes. I don't really mind if the content here isn't as vast as on Reddit, if I have Sync I have all that I need

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

Oh right, until then I'm actually using this platform straight from the browser. It's actually working good enough for me that way.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Same. It would be great if the Sync dev goes through with switching to Lemmy. That would be perfect for me.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I'm probably going to start using Reddit again when the blackout ends and keep using it until the end of the month, but once RIF stops working I don't see myself going back. The way I see it, the last couple of days have been a nice stress-test period for Lemmy, but the real exodus will start in July.

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

Personally, I like it here and will probably stick around. I hope the servers can scale, and that new communities grow.

I'll still wind up looking at Reddit for meme content until it turns up here. There's a lack of goofy pointless shit here currently.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I don't think the kind of people who are willing to try out some geeky experiment of a social network are totally dependent on Reddit culture.

Exodus from one network to another (or to nowhere) is a thing that's happened in the past, and if anything, people aren't willing to go back once they finally take the effort.

Tho I'm guessing lots of people have multiple accounts such as alts for r34, and may keep using those until Reddit finally shuts off all nsfw.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago

It depends on how many communities migrate from reddit to lemmy. I will definitely not return to reddit on mobile once third party apps are shut down, but if reddit changes their stance and third party apps come back, I may go back if most of my communities haven’t migrated to lemmy.

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

I think I'll have a look in a couple of days. But if they go through and kill 3rd party apps that's goodbye from me.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

I like it here actually.

If my communities end up dying, then I'll be forced to move back but like I said, I like it here

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

Even if I get bored here, I won’t go back.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

I'm not here because lemmy is better right now, but because I want to move towards open platforms and a better future. It's an investment. Deciding to move right back to reddit 2 days after they just stabbed you in the back is shortsighted in the extreme. Reddit will not stop until it devours itself and you along with it. Disabling the API is only the latest in a long line of anti-user changes in favor of money, and you can be sure there's more on the horizon.

I'd encourage anyone who isn't 100% satisfied with lemmy and its user experience right now to give it some leeway, because you're comparing the experience to reddit apps that have had years and years of polish. With a community and donations to servers and developers, we can quickly fix the most egregious papercuts. These are growing pains, and they won't last forever.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

As a near strictly mobile only user of Reddit for nearly 10 years, they have made the decision for me by forcing everyone to use their completely horrible app. On the rare occasions at work that a search result populates with a Reddit result, I'll probably still go there, but using an adblocking browser.

To me it is extremely difficult to justify Reddit actually achieving a worthwhile IPO when their product is reliant 100% on user generated content and volunteer moderation. As an investor, I would be concerned about the longevity of a forum that doesn't have adequate moderation tools, shows hostility against their own userbase, and a complete disregard for their own "AMA rules".

Reddit is dead. They have struck their own final blow.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

It depends on a lot of factors, depends on twitter response and what the mods chose to do about it.

Personally, with the twitter shenanigans, I stopped paying for their blue thing and don’t use it unless someone links to it. So my Twitter usage has down to the floor.

I may take the same approach to Reddit. There is still time to change course, but I’ll go where the crowd goes, and keep tabs on alternatives. I will stop paying for premium and don’t open it as much, and hope Lemmy keeps me occupied enough.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (2 children)
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

That's the spirit

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

It depends on whether someone's a member of the community or just because they want to scroll some epic memes. I expect many people are of the latter category and probably don't even understand what the fuss is about.

It's not like I'll never look at Reddit again if there's useful info on it but I won't be part of the Reddit community again after the scorn and disrespect they showed it - I hope to help build something new over here.

I can't do anything about Reddit's decisions but I can vote with my attention and help to build a compelling alternative.

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

I'm going to try my darnedest to not go back on Reddit. I'm sure I'm just a drop in the bucket for them, but it's the principle of the thing. Same thing with Netflix and their recent household bs. Even though I got a discounted plan / free plan for fewer screens with my phone plan, I canceled because I don't want to give them a single cent. I found myself habitually opening Reddit yesterday on my phone and then immediately closing it, so I forced myself to delete Sync :(

Still trying to get used to Lemmy but gotta rip off that Reddit band-aid and start using this more. The biggest thing I'll miss is just how widespread Reddit was. If I had a specific question, typically Googling my question and appending "reddit" at the end would do the trick lol. Hopefully engagement here can slowly build up to that one day.

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

Putting 'reddit' in a Google search is genuinely the only way to find a good discussion on most things nowadays.

Let's hope lemmy gets to this point in the future.

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

I’ll still always rely on Reddit for obscure answers to questions when googling, but I plan on staying with Lemmy once Apollo is taken down. I’ve been trying it out and adjusting to it during the blackout and as long as the community stays somewhat consistent, I like it here more. Reminds me of when I first joined Reddit over a decade ago.

I usually wont quit an app over changes like this but Reddit to me is different. I like Reddit for being a place to find new communities to join and interact with what’s popular, and since the spez ama and the removal of 3rd party apps I just don’t trust it to stay that way anymore. The last thing I want to see Reddit become is another infinite scrolling content feed that an algorithm thinks you’ll like so you never want to stop scrolling. And I’m assuming since they just want to seek profit that’s what it will eventually become.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I'm sure there will be a huge downtick, but there's also people like me who heard about Lemmy because of Reddit but this is totally something I'd support. Now that I know it's here, I have a source for my cat videos and obscure video game recommendations, I don't really need the activity and tumult of Reddit. I'm sure there are dozens like me. Dozens.

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

Not going back unless I’m looking for some obscure piece of knowledge. This fulfills my needs for news and conversations about niche topics. Hoping this keeps growing and new mobile apps come out to support it

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

If I had to guess, I would think that a disappointingly large amount of people will go back to normal reddit use, even if nothing changes. People hate changing their routine.

I had barely heard of Lemmy before any of this started, and many others have similar stories about that. The servers yesterday however, were super busy. That leads me to believe that there may be a lot of lurkers in addition to the new accounts.

In the long run, I feel like many of us will start using Lemmy a lot more often. This kind of reminds me of the death of a few other social media platforms. Over time, I think this community may continue to grow, and could become what reddit once was to digg. This time though, there's federation on the platform.

If Lemmy plays their hand right, they could easily top reddit overall within a few years, especially if reddit keeps treating their mods and communities poorly.

At this point, it's about principle. I would have been less angry at reddit if they just came out and said they were removing 3rd party apps. Instead, we got a sh*tshow with false accusations, lies, and ignorance. I say ignorance, because a lot of people have been complaining about the official apps accessibly options, yet reddit does nothing to help them. Moderators have been complaining about how the official app makes it very difficult to moderate, yet reddit still did nothing. Somehow though, they're awesome at plugging in as many ads as possible, and they are brilliant at eating excessive amounts of data.

Even if reddit comes back, I think I'm gone.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

People hate changing their routine.

They'll have no choice if they use a third-party app.

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

No RiF, no old.reddit, no coming back.

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Whatever happens, once RIF is offline I won't have the muscle memory and habit of opening it. And RIF was the only way I access Reddit, it's a pain in the ass using Reddit on a mobile browser and their app sucks. So I'm just gonna stop using Reddit daily. I'll still wander in from Google when looking stuff up, but I won't be on it daily anymore.

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

The users will go where the content is.

If reddit has 90% of the content it will get 90% of the users. If it has 90% of the users they will generate the content.

It's a chicken and the egg problem that will only changes when someone drops the egg.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Well reddit is currently dropping the egg...

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

What will make me return to reading Reddit is all those old posts and comments on very specific topics. It doesn't mean I'll stop using Lemmy (especially if some communities I follow migrate here entirely), but there's no proper replacement for Reddit yet.

Also, I've found no app for Lemmy working on Android 7. For Reddit, I'm using Stealth: it's incredibly useful that you can create multiple pseudo-accounts with different subscription lists and saved posts without ever logging in or having an account. API changes are a sad development, but Stealth has an option to work by scraping old.reddit.com - unless they happen to delete it, of course.

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

I'm staying here, the community is way better. I'll use both but only post and comment on Lemmy

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

I didn't even know there was a fediverse reddit alternative until the blackout, so that's why I'm here. But if I had known lemmy was a thing before now I would have moved earlier. If the communities here that interest me don't fizzle out I'll stay, I would guess a lot of others are in the same boat.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

To be honest I came here because of the blackout. I intend to stay. I have already been more active here than in years lurking on Reddit!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Depends upon how many people come over here and how much content gets posted. If most communities are ghost towns a lot less people will stay, if it stays interesting more people will stay. Long term depends how quickly devs can catch up in terms of features and user experience.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

From June 14 to June 30, the RIF Android app will mostly work as normal providing access to most of the same subreddits I've been visiting for the past decade+. A few will shut down permanently, but other than that, it'll mostly be the same as before, so I'll probably use Reddit during that period.

However, effective July 1, that option disappears completely. If I want to continue using Reddit, I'll have to download an entirely different app and get used to an entirely different user interface providing an experience much worse than RIF. If I have to learn something brand new anyway, I may as well try an entirely different platform like Lemmy. No idea if I'll stick here long term or not, but the power of Reddit was the community. If the community migrates over here, I'm all for staying here. I suspect one of the Redsit alternatives will attract a critical mass of people at some point.

As every internet platform has shown, the enshittification is inevitable. Eventually, Lemmy too will become an unusable mess of ads and feature creep if/when enough money starts flowing in. However, I'm perfectly fine using the site for the next few years until that happens.

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

most subreddits are only going dark for a couple days Not true, most subreddits are going down for as long as it takes for the reddit admins to change their mind (AKA forever)

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

How many users here do you think are going to get bored and end up back on Reddit as soon as the blackout ends?

Most.

90% of the engagement I've seen regarding Lemmy is "Why isn't this Reddit and work exactly the same as Reddit? When WILL it work exactly the same as Reddit?"

I'm already seeing hostility a la "Well I guess we'll see if the devs LiStEn To ThIeR uSeRs" in regards to communities getting tied to a central authority, aka the thing this was explicitly designed to not do. I've been offloading my data and such to self hosted options for a few years now where I can anyway, so I'm down to stay, but I DO look forward to the end of the protest and the Reddit stans going home like nothing happened like they were always going to. > How many users here do you think are going to get bored and end up back on Reddit as soon as the blackout ends?

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

Every day, I open jerboa and see like 5x more communities with a lot of activity. If we can keep up this level of growth for another week or so, then i don't think I'll miss Reddit much. Especially if i really have to download the official app. On the other hand, if Reddit backs down at the last minute and agrees to allow third party apps, then i could see lemmy users going back to Reddit out of habit.

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

They're starting by going private for 2 days, but almost unanimously they will continue for longer if reddit doesn't concede. Specifically some of the biggest subreddits like funny and videos, those won't be coming back unless reddit backs off or replaces the moderators.

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

I’m optimistic, I signed up for lemmy.ml and it wasn’t available today due to so much traffic I guess… I found lemmy.world and another instance in a few seconds and have been trucking a long. This is coming from me who is not tech savvy inthe slightest. Lemmy is easy for me, and I struggle with learning curves. I deleted my Reddit accounts after a decade of using it, and I’m here for the ride. I use this on iPad, and the install webpage as app functions perfectly. It’s pretty darn beautiful actually

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