Reddit - it's not great is it

riffmongous

I've had an account there for a decade now and I used to enjoy spending half an hour there every few days looking at memes, DIY projects, history etc.

But I never really used it that much until the last few years when Boards started to drop off.. and the more I use it now the more I dislike it.

Considering all the crap Boards gets over it's moderation, Reddit is a coin toss depending on the subreddit and you can get permabanned from some of the biggest subs (world news for one) for not having the sub bias. Sure you can go setup your own subreddit for it but it'll never be more than a ghosttown 90% of the time. You know how people get pissed here when their thread gets merged with a long running thread on the same topic? Well on Reddit instead you get the exact same topics coming up every single day, with the exact same replies. Subreddits can just disappear permanently if the head mod gets pissed or fecks off.

There's no real discussion, the downvoting system means any dissenting opinion is buried, and what's dissenting can often depend on who is brigading that post at that moment. It's just a load of thanks whoring for the most part.

Too many Americans. And that used to be a good thing, when I first joined up I really appreciated the American can-do attitude and positive outlook compared to the negativity of Irish posters, but my god the American spirit has degraded badly the last decade.

It's funny cause a few years ago I probably would have supported Reddit on threads here. I know there's a few other posters from here there too, what do ye think?

Mehaffey1

Never used it that much but aside from the nudey sections it is poor😮

cj maxx

I’ve never got into Reddit .Like twitter , I only look at them for Liverpool links . It’s just all over the place .

riffmongous

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643296#Comment_121643296

And ironically that's the section the owners want to get rid of I think

Trigger Happy

I love reddit. Its a great resource and its massive. I can lose hours just browsing random stuff. I post there more than here these days tbh.

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058332314/reddit-its-not-great-is-it

Strongly disagree, reddit is superb, every day it has something interesting to read. The fact is as it has so many users it has 1,000 times the content of boards and this also means your far more likely to learn something new on reddit.

The upvote system is far better if your just casually scrolling but your right if you want to take part in the discussion Boards's system works better.

riffmongous

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643354#Comment_121643354

Yeah it works well with Google as a resource. For history and current affairs though an awful lot of that is "Source? Trust me bro" and as long as it conforms to the sub bias, it gets upvoted

riffmongous

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643383#Comment_121643383

Like I said, you can easily learn something new, but whether that info is actually true or not is another thing.

I know people got pissed at "source?" but spend a few minutes on a current affairs subreddit and you'll see why it's important

CrazyEric

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643296#Comment_121643296

And where would one find the Nudey sections if one were looking...asking for a friend

Gregor Samsa

Theres’s some very informative subreddits, with known folk willing to help in specialist areas.

Used to post a bit on r/Ireland. Until one day I shared a new dish I made. A coddle version of the full Irish breakfast, with boiled sausages, boiled rashers, boiled mushrooms, boiled beans, poached egg, microwaved bread and mayonnaise. Washed down with what I call a “milk MiWadi” (a splash of milk in water). It was universally panned by what I can only call close-minded snobs who can’t handle daring “fusion” cuisine and obviously hadn’t even tasted it. A massive amount of downvotes, over 100 scathing comments and the mods marked the picture as NSFW. So I gave up posting there.

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643396#Comment_121643396

That's true but you also have the option of Googling what they have said although it's extra work.

riffmongous

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643453#Comment_121643453

Oh I remember that, the nsfw breakfast

riffmongous

That's the thing, you've got to be willing to accept the downvotes, but who really wants to spend their time getting downvotes to oblivion just because what you say is unpopular

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643453#Comment_121643453

That looks grim to be fair

maninasia

They may have had a point, NSFW lol.

I also detest the downvoting system there although the site itself is huge and has some fairly decent stuff

It's not great for storing information e.g. being able to go back and check stuff .

CalamariFritti

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643453#Comment_121643453

To be fair, that's not going to be to everyone's taste. Boiled everything and water with a bit of milk and microwaved bread. I kinda shudder/gag myself tbh.

If you like it thats fair and all that matters but I wouldn't go around presenting it and expecting widespread approval...

Gregor Samsa

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643565#Comment_121643565

I think it’s just ahead of its time. But to be honest, the negativity put me off posting some of my other fusion dishes, such as seafood chowder pizza and carbonara profiteroles.

riffmongous

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643687#Comment_121643687

Is long as you call it chow-dah pizza it's fine with me

cj maxx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643296#Comment_121643296

It has nudey sections ?? I didn’t know

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643453#Comment_121643453

I think that's the most anaemic disgusting looking meal I've ever seen. Well done!

What has microwaved bread or water with milk in it got to do with coddle or a full Irish?

Gregor Samsa

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643996#Comment_121643996

My toaster was broken, so I had to microwave the bread. Milk is a bit hard on the auld tummy, so it’s best to dilute it. I washed the sauce off the baked beans before boiling them, because I don’t like spicy food.

yagan

It is good for variety, but I do find the US centric nature of it offputting.

I think there's great potential for an EU site with only EU IP addresses allowed for registration.

silliussoddius

The good thing about reddit is that everyone gets a voice, the bad thing about reddit is that everyone gets a voice.

Mehaffey1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643415#Comment_121643415

Google the night away haha

Giblet

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643453#Comment_121643453

Mam I told you to keep off the internet!

506972617465

Reddit, heh...

1) you can try to feel the mood and post in line with what's popular to get some upvotes.

2) you can post what you actually think and if it fits the narrative you are a) left alone or b) get upvotes. Else - you're downvoted into oblivion.

3) you can just read stuff without posting, there is actually quite a few good technical subs and also some very useful, for instance the one regarding "sailing the High Seas"

Overall I find the whole reddit experience very mixed. As for r/Ireland, for as long as I remember, there's been a golden rule - whatever you post, make sure you never, ever reveal anything good about your life; a good job, financial stability, above-average car(s), fancy holiday, etc. In my experience that will get you downvoted to hell. You have to be poor, miserable, complainig about housing, jobs, low pay, inflation - then, and only then, you "succeed". And if you throw in some mental disorder such as depression or OCD peple are gonna love you.

This post is subjective and may not reflect your experience. It may also not validate your opinion. It's just what I think.

CalamariFritti

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643687#Comment_121643687

To the majority of people your 'wash tomato sauce off the beans' cos you dont like 'spicy' (really? spicy?), carbonara profiteroles, boiled fry-up, water with a drop of milk and microwaved bread will not be fusion nor will it be 'ahead of its time' unless what you mean with that is post-apocalypse.

I said it before all that matters is you liking it but dont expect a following.

Hande hoche!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121644023#Comment_121644023

The baked beans' sauce element is a marvelous touch.

Ubbquittious

No real dialogue. Everyone fires out the most potent version of what they have to say and get 100s of upvotes or down voted to oblivion. I still look at it the odd time but not much

silliussoddius

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121644023#Comment_121644023

Have you tried washing the spice off the sauce and then adding it back to the beans?

the_pen_turner

i like it for the small subreddits. there is usually a place to talk about any hobby or interest

i hate the downvote system. its far to easily manipulated. i like to see both sides of a debate rather than just the side your on.

the biggest problem is that there is no lengthy discusions . here on boards threads can go on for weeks or even years. on reddit a post is dead after a few hours in most cases. if you want to discuss something you need to be there when the post is first made or your post is lost.

For Forks Sake

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643383#Comment_121643383

Quantity ≠ quality

Arghus

I find Reddit to be good for just flicking through or glancing over. Hit and miss if you want proper information about something.

The way that the format has been devised makes it almost impossible to conduct a long running discussion, much less read it.

Obviously it's not great that things can get downvoted into oblivion and, yes, that can produce a group think or consensus culture quite easily - but then on the other hand, you can see how the traditional message board approach of equal space being given to the sane and insane/ rational and irrational can be a different, but equally damaging method to destroying a discussion too. When I pop in to have a look at the endless back and forth here in the likes of the CA forum I do wonder if maybe I've overrated the usefulness of the discussion format.

I suppose it's an irritant to see that there's no "institutional" memory, so you'll see the same subjects/discussions come up CONSTANTLY.

I don't mind that the r/Ireland clearly leans a little more to the left and has different concerns than boards does for instance. Okay, some of it is a bit right-on at times - but I think boards is a bit too far the other way: being a bit reactionary and increasingly fuddy duddy.

Say Your Number

Was looking at the Ireland page and saw posts whinging about immigrants getting a lot of upvotes, also complaining about the GAA, the government and RTE and the neverending Father Ted references.

Doesn't seem that much different to this place.

hoodie6029

I didn’t like the interface so never got into it. Didn’t find it at all intuitive or user friendly.

Glad I didn’t now. They shut down Wall Street bets and passed all the user info to the FBI during the GameStop short squeeze. Users were behaving perfectly legally but the company shut them down to protect pirates. Sorry, I meant hedge funds.

Lillyfae

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121644772#Comment_121644772

If you'd responded with this to his Reddit posts you would have got LOADS of upvotes

The J Stands for Jay

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058332314/reddit-its-not-great-is-it

Boards went to **** when it went offline for 2 weeks and everyone except the old and the right leaning left. Reddit went to **** when they closed off their API and moderation. Both are crap now.

I don’t use it much at all, but when I do it’s usually to give support, affirmation, advice and reassurance to people with questions regarding facing a stoma operation, and other health issues I’ve experienced. People are often in distress over these topics and I often get a lot of upvotes, and I come away feeling good. But I haven’t engaged in debate or opinion like I have here.

The J Stands for Jay

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121643539#Comment_121643539

I dunno, I enjoyed the outraged reaction to me posting the Evanescence are a one hit wonder.

I must go back and tell them the Motley Cru are a no hit wonder

yagan

At best reddit is a throwaway distraction. I'd like to say boards is better but the amount of times I've seen posters here being allowed to repeatedly spam discussions had me tune out often.

I'll use boards for factual stuff like weather, but sometimes general discussions can seem like the comments section of the journal.

The truth is Boards and Reddit are shite in their own ways.

ancapailldorcha

It has its uses but it blows my mind that a website that big has such an appalling interface. Comments sections tend to be very echo chamberish, even in places you wouldn't expect.

Comparing Boards.ie with Reddit is like comparing The Dealer to Amazon. It's not remotely a fair comparison.

Thelonious Monk

irish reddit is ok, at least you get a range of views and people posting there, this site is all one demographic nowadays really, 40+ men who talk about immigration and the greens all day.

EmmetSpiceland

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654021#Comment_121654021

Well, at least you acknowledge that your opinions are, indeed, bad.

riffmongous

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652947#Comment_121652947

You monster, how can you even think of such a thing

SuperBowserWorld

I think there is a lot of hard earned wisdom on boards that is missing from Reddit Ireland. It's a shame that boards is left to languish.

Every generation throws a social network up the pop charts as Paul Simon sang.

riffmongous

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652942#Comment_121652942

That's nice, I remember when I first was on Reddit the positivity was really enjoyable and a welcome change.

I don't know if you can really put it down to The GOP/ Trump and the change in American politics but I feel like the general attitude (as much as you can have one in a place full of echo chambers) changed a lot over the last decade. More cynicism, negativity, less can -do spitit

riffmongous

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121653956#Comment_121653956

Oh r/Ireland is definitely on the way there too

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654843#Comment_121654843

r/Europe is a cesspit. I'm shocked at how vile a place it is and I've been here since 2009.

SimpleDimple

I find that Reddit is great for scratching the surface, but if you start to go deeper or are on a subreddit for something you are knowledgable about, it gets fairly useless.

r/guitar for example is just loads of people posting asking about what guitar suits beginners, same for some other topics I’m interested in.

Also the voting means that it’s just a big popularity contest, and discussion is stifled as dissenting opinions are buried.

Also it’s full of bots and karma whores and too American focused

ancapailldorcha

Some of the subs have weird unspoken rules that, when violated, trigger hordes of angry people. I read a comment on a UK one about someone who asked a question about cats on r/cats. The UK doesn't have much in the way of dangerous wildlife but the poster got such abuse from the virtue signallers on r/cats that they felt the need to withdraw from it. I shared a meme there once and got accused of supporting breeding. Same result.

The J Stands for Jay

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654736#Comment_121654736

I did have to revise my position and admit Evanescence were a two hit wonder.