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Kbin is currently designed to encourage brigading. The fix is easy. (kbin.social)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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The current default "Homepage" value is "All". That makes sense for users with zero subscribed magazines, so they see something.

But for users with one or more subscribed magazines, the default value for "Homepage" needs to be "Subscriptions".

That's partially just because subscriptions mean little if the default frontpage ignores them. But there's a more important reason than that.

The current situation is that posts in m/Conservative are heavily downvoted, and barely upvoted. (Whatever your politics may be, consider if this was happening to you.) As more ex-redditors join, this problem is likely to worsen.

Eventually moderators need better controls, to say things like "Only members can vote", etc.

But for now, a very easy fix is to change the default value of "Homepage" to be "Subscriptions". Of course, "All" should still be a selectable option for those who prefer it.

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

instance competes in a market of commoditized goods, which leads to coalescence.

Any user on one instance can interact freely with users and content on another instance as if they were on that instance, unless there are specific restrictions put in place, or one of the two instances has blocked the other. This is rare and often to prevent brigading, as your main post complained of.

So, not really. Normal people understand the concept of email. I don't agree with the "It's too complicated" suggestion. It's been presented confusingly in this mad rush, sure.

At any rate, even if you're right about federation, any social media service should seek to accommodate a wide diversity of ideas, opinions, and perspectives.

I think that's entirely up to each instance. Not every instance has to be about everything or for everyone. Again, that's the point.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

With regard to federation, that's true, but consider the bigger picture. A major news outlet discusses the up-and-coming website kbin, and a hundred million people show up to create an account. A popular search engine returns search results linking to kbin, and nobody says "I could click on that, but I have an account at some other instance, so I'll just manually edit the URL." The bigger picture is that the world wants a single instance.

With regard to the diversity of of ideas, opinions, and perspectives being up to each instance, I suppose I agree with you in principle, though I would find it deeply disappointing if any platform intentionally wanted to create a hivemind and actively silence dissenting voices. But if that's where I am, then I suppose I'll have to leave.

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

A popular search engine returns search results linking to kbin, and nobody says "I could click on that, but I have an account at some other instance, so I'll just manually edit the URL." The bigger picture is that the world wants a single instance.

I think this is a valid issue and I think it's something that deserves some attention if it isn't on the mind of developers already.

From a generic developer perspective I see no reason why it would be impossible or even that difficult to improve the roaming experience.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Thank you. But judging from the number of downvotes I've received here, I'm pretty sure the community prefers to stick its fingers in its ears.

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

Eeeh...

It seems to me like people have quickly identified the group you are attempting to get started (Or simply looked to see that you were), and it's a group that is almost always involved in contention and drama at best, and actively causes problems in the community otherwise.

It's the first thing I did, anyway. And I downvoted the OP, because it was clearly presenting the most optimistic version of the situation not the one that usually follows - and I don't want to deal with it here. You still seem pretty.. I duno. "Willfully ignorant" of the context around a lot of communities and media that identify as conservative. It's baggage that really can't be ignored, even if you should be allowed the opportunity to move past it occasionally - ignoring it seems disingenuous.

I've been ignoring that and attempting to focus on other things you've mentioned, eg the above scenario with search results and how federation works. Because regardless of my feelings about other things, we could still have a productive conversation about other issues.

I would not enjoy holding a "reasonable" conservative opinion (subjective, I'm not saying that as an insult) and be faced with the challenge of trying to establish a community for it on an instance like this or many others with a heavily progressive lean.

Which really does lead me to saying that starting your own instance really is in your best interest. If your instance behaves well, other instances won't blacklist it, and it will be standing on its own feet and won't have to deal with admins that would likely be personally difficult to deal due to that context.

It could even become a force for positive conservatives. That would be a good outcome for everyone - I would like to see divides healed.

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

Thank you for doing your best to look past our political differences. In retrospect, I wish I hadn't named the magazine, because I believe it applies to all minority groups with unpopular perspectives. And if I'd phrased it that way to begin with, I suspect many on the Left would be more receptive.

To your point that conservative groups have been problematic in your experience, I'd wager that perspective is wholly rooted in your personal politics. No disrespect intended. FWIW, on behalf of conservatives everywhere, I'm sorry for whatever problems you've encountered in the past. (And I hope you're not confusing "conservative" with other groups that are decidedly not conservative.)

With regard to starting a new instance, I hear you, and you're not the only one to suggest it. It seems like it would be a massive undertaking for little payoff, so I won't be the one to do it. I believe kbin should embrace a wide variety of minority groups, without inviting the whole world to vote on their content. If it wouldn't have conservative users, then it would likely block a conservative instance, and then we'd be left with a subpar version of Gab. I'm not looking to create yet another filter-bubble. I'm looking for a wider community that on principle accepts a wide diversity of thought.