Ask HN: Has the Internet Become a Burden?
The internet nowadays is boring. Everything on the internet is monetized. From your clicks to selling you subscription. Everyone is trying to make a buck. Going on the internet is stressful and full of anxiety due to social media. People talk about detoxing from the internet. Has the internet become a burden to society? Were we happier when the internet was simpler?
40 comments
I was happier when the internet was simpler… and I don’t think that’s rose tinted glasses either. Back when there wasn’t just 3-4 social networks and every community was pretty unique. Forums provided a framework for better discussions.
It seems everything or everyone on the internet is racing to be reduced into single bits of actions or attention.
A good example from the other day. I made the mistake of looking at twitter trends. Apparently “HES UGLY” and some other thing were trending because a famous YouTuber did a face reveal. I checked it out and he was just an average looking dude at worst. However, the tweets people made ranged from pure reactions of “distain” at best and legitimate racism and hatred at worst.
Seems things are operating on a “click -> run” basis and it is very tiring.
There are of course amazing things to come from the internet, good things everyday… but in general I just can’t say I’m a fan of the general direction.
I always hate voicing this opinion because it just seems like someone on their high horse but I just don’t see any other way to look at it. Interactions are getting less nuanced, content is getting byte-sized and things seem to be getting a mile wide but an inch deep.
It seems everything or everyone on the internet is racing to be reduced into single bits of actions or attention.
A good example from the other day. I made the mistake of looking at twitter trends. Apparently “HES UGLY” and some other thing were trending because a famous YouTuber did a face reveal. I checked it out and he was just an average looking dude at worst. However, the tweets people made ranged from pure reactions of “distain” at best and legitimate racism and hatred at worst.
Seems things are operating on a “click -> run” basis and it is very tiring.
There are of course amazing things to come from the internet, good things everyday… but in general I just can’t say I’m a fan of the general direction.
I always hate voicing this opinion because it just seems like someone on their high horse but I just don’t see any other way to look at it. Interactions are getting less nuanced, content is getting byte-sized and things seem to be getting a mile wide but an inch deep.
I have been on for quite some time and yes, the early days were more exciting but the reason things are more dull is not only a commercial one.
A lot of things on here are boring just because nowadays they just work well, not a lot of stuff to improve.
Also things got boring because the common folk got online, most people are boring, where in the old days one could have a conversation with interesting professors or other people good at their job, nowadays the internet is a glorified "come see me how wonderful I am and how pretty my life is" egoistic echo chamber of totally uninteresting people.
A lot of things on here are boring just because nowadays they just work well, not a lot of stuff to improve.
Also things got boring because the common folk got online, most people are boring, where in the old days one could have a conversation with interesting professors or other people good at their job, nowadays the internet is a glorified "come see me how wonderful I am and how pretty my life is" egoistic echo chamber of totally uninteresting people.
Yes, it's a burden. It funnels money from the general public to already elaborately wealthy people and corporations.
I can confirm that we were happier when the internet was simpler, and more fragmented.
I can confirm that we were happier when the internet was simpler, and more fragmented.
>I can confirm that we were happier when the internet was simpler, and more fragmented.
Who is "we?" Speak for yourself.
Who is "we?" Speak for yourself.
those of us using the internet back then...
A lot of people who were using the internet back then don't feel the way you do, myself included. I find the modern internet to be engaging, entertaining and useful despite its flaws, not a burden, nor an assault on my emotional or mental health, and I wouldn't prefer to go back to the days of yesteryear.
What we're seeing now is a continuous dilution of the original internet culture of hackers and nerds: selfless knowledge sharing, narrow, specialized communities, critical thinking, valuing intelligence. Content was produced by people who were objectively passionate and knowledgeable about the subject. This content was then peer-verified, shared and discussed which ensured quality.
Nowadays everyone is a content creator, the quality and originality of the content is not important. Contrarian ideas, not following trends is a sure way to loose views, subscribers.
The hackers are holed up in their information bubbles and have no impact on the internet culture and the internet as a whole.
Nowadays everyone is a content creator, the quality and originality of the content is not important. Contrarian ideas, not following trends is a sure way to loose views, subscribers.
The hackers are holed up in their information bubbles and have no impact on the internet culture and the internet as a whole.
I was happier when the internet was simpler because I was excited about all the cool things we could build to make almost every aspect of life better!
Obvious that was a delusion.
Obvious that was a delusion.
In for a penny, in for a pound. When in Rome, do as the Roman's do! Even the part about drinking water from lead pipes. Should be no problem at all.
> all the cool things we could build
What do you feel one cannot build today but could in the past?
What do you feel one cannot build today but could in the past?
I think the question is whether building all these cool things actually makes life better or if the larger effect ends up being net negative a la Facebook.
A life without Frank Sinatra. What a loser!
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> Everything on the internet is monetized. From your clicks to selling you subscription. Everyone is trying to make a buck.
That is categorically false.
Wikipedia is the greatest collection of knowledge ever assembled. It puts the library of Alexandria to shame. And all of it was created by people who did not make a single buck from their efforts, nor were they trying to.
The same can be said for the highly skilled professionals who devote their free time to building amazing Open Source technologies, for the contributors on sites like Stack Exchange, for the creative geniuses that write certain comments on Reddit, and for millions of others who tirelessly work to make the Internet what it is.
Of course, if you try to view the Web through the narrow lens of Silicon Valley business, you are bound to be disappointed. Join a few subreddits that aren't constantly on the front page. Get an IRC and/or Matrix account, and hang out in the channels. You may find that the Internet you are feeling nostalgic for has never disappeared in the first place.
That is categorically false.
Wikipedia is the greatest collection of knowledge ever assembled. It puts the library of Alexandria to shame. And all of it was created by people who did not make a single buck from their efforts, nor were they trying to.
The same can be said for the highly skilled professionals who devote their free time to building amazing Open Source technologies, for the contributors on sites like Stack Exchange, for the creative geniuses that write certain comments on Reddit, and for millions of others who tirelessly work to make the Internet what it is.
Of course, if you try to view the Web through the narrow lens of Silicon Valley business, you are bound to be disappointed. Join a few subreddits that aren't constantly on the front page. Get an IRC and/or Matrix account, and hang out in the channels. You may find that the Internet you are feeling nostalgic for has never disappeared in the first place.
> Wikipedia is the greatest collection of knowledge ever assembled. It puts the library of Alexandria to shame. And all of it was created by people who did not make a single buck from their efforts, nor were they trying to.
I’m not trying to counter anything you have stated - in fact, I agree with the majority of it. I just wanted to share this: https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/29/18644158/north-face-wikip...
I’m not trying to counter anything you have stated - in fact, I agree with the majority of it. I just wanted to share this: https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/29/18644158/north-face-wikip...
Right. Obviously, there are (a very small number of) people who try to abuse Wikipedia for their own gain. They are almost always identified quickly, and dealt with accordingly.
But they are not the ones who "built Wikipedia". The ones that did never made a dime. If someone sticks an advertising poster to the front door of a human rights advocacy group's headquarters during the night, and the poster is removed the next morning, the fact that it hung there for a few hours says absolutely nothing about the organization or the people who work for it.
I see articles like the one you linked to, which try to extract sensationalist value out of such non-events, as part of a deliberate smear campaign against Wikipedia. The idea is to create the impression that Wikipedia has been infiltrated by political and commercial interests, which is absolute hogwash. This smear campaign has been going on for many, many years, and I've just learned to ignore such claims entirely, since I've convinced myself long ago that they are without any merit.
But they are not the ones who "built Wikipedia". The ones that did never made a dime. If someone sticks an advertising poster to the front door of a human rights advocacy group's headquarters during the night, and the poster is removed the next morning, the fact that it hung there for a few hours says absolutely nothing about the organization or the people who work for it.
I see articles like the one you linked to, which try to extract sensationalist value out of such non-events, as part of a deliberate smear campaign against Wikipedia. The idea is to create the impression that Wikipedia has been infiltrated by political and commercial interests, which is absolute hogwash. This smear campaign has been going on for many, many years, and I've just learned to ignore such claims entirely, since I've convinced myself long ago that they are without any merit.
For clarity, that wasn’t my intention even of the slightest.
Isn’t Wikipedia a classic example of what the internet was like before it became hyper commercialised?
Yes, there were monetised sites and products during that period. But it didn’t feel quite as hyper monetisation & growth focused as it is today.
It was certainly before the social media giants of today conquered online communities & blogs.
Yes, there were monetised sites and products during that period. But it didn’t feel quite as hyper monetisation & growth focused as it is today.
It was certainly before the social media giants of today conquered online communities & blogs.
Highly debatable. Wikipedia is great and all sure but I think HN glorifies its role in society a little too much these days. Lots of people still use Wikipedia of course but Youtube eclipses it easily these days for most people I've found.
I agree with your general point. It seems that every site I visit from my phone now demands I decline an offer for 10%-20% off where I am asked to share my email before proceeding. Unfortunately half the time it’s impossible to X out of it and I end up leaving that site in frustration.
The other annoyance is trying to read an article and having a couple paragraphs of text broken up by an ad, then another two paragraphs of text and another ad and another and another. Then if you dare use an ad blocker these site whine at you about being ad supported.
I do enjoy the minimal nature of Reddit, HackerNews and the like. Also, there are plenty of subscription web apps and services that make our lives easier that we take for granted.
But ads and monetization are 100% why the much of the internet feels like hot garbage these days.
The other annoyance is trying to read an article and having a couple paragraphs of text broken up by an ad, then another two paragraphs of text and another ad and another and another. Then if you dare use an ad blocker these site whine at you about being ad supported.
I do enjoy the minimal nature of Reddit, HackerNews and the like. Also, there are plenty of subscription web apps and services that make our lives easier that we take for granted.
But ads and monetization are 100% why the much of the internet feels like hot garbage these days.
The internet where you spend money is the worst. Lots of SaaSy like practices everywhere, like forcing you to answer 100 questions FOR THEM NOT YOU before you can use a thing. Even Windows is now doing this on install. And all the things that pop up - cookie notices, email address collectors, ads, chatbots etc. Let alone all the tracking and so on that comes with it. And the slowness of such sites too, and inability to scroll or use on small screens like a full HD 14". Terrible.
No, ads have become a burden to society. Everything you describe is a byproduct of ad-supported business models that power majority of the internet today - search, mainstream websites and social media. Remove reliance on ads and things start to get much simpler.
It's not the internet that's the problem, it's how people use the internet that's the problem. I know plenty of well-adjusted people who use just enough of the internet to get their through their daily lives. If everyone online is trying to make a buck, no one us forcing you to participate in their commerce. Just scroll past whatever insane things the salesmen are saying.
Yep. And as sibling comments have stated, the advertising “life blood” of the internet is very much a deeper root cause.
A perhaps overlooked aspect of this “post-pandemic” moment we’re arguably in right now is how we can RE-assess our relationship with technology.
Recent artistic AI phenomena have made me feel this quite strongly for some reason, where it feels inevitable that mainstream internet is just gonna be full of bots posting “art” made by other bots. Makes me think of unplugging back to email/phone/text/Fax and maybe a well curated forum or two if they’re still around and spending time in the real world.
A perhaps overlooked aspect of this “post-pandemic” moment we’re arguably in right now is how we can RE-assess our relationship with technology.
Recent artistic AI phenomena have made me feel this quite strongly for some reason, where it feels inevitable that mainstream internet is just gonna be full of bots posting “art” made by other bots. Makes me think of unplugging back to email/phone/text/Fax and maybe a well curated forum or two if they’re still around and spending time in the real world.
I feel like computers in general were a bad idea. Have they genuinely improved our overall wellbeing as a species? I'm sceptical.
Sounds like you are just visiting the wrong sites tbh.
Na its the greatest thing but I'll inevitably shut it all down.
The internet is the new TV.
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