…and do you think that you posting it has a positive, neutral or negative effect on the world?
By content I mean what ever you’re posting online. The pictures you post on Instagram/Pixelfed or messages you’re writing on Lemmy, YouTube comment section, Facebook and so on.
If you look back at what you have posted in the past year for example, do you consider it to be the kind of content that you would gladly consume if it was coming from someone else? If not, then why are you posting it in the first place?
Yes. If I can enjoy other people’s corny jokes and snarky comments, I would probably like my own too.
Arguably, if you’re producing your own content then you’re consuming it too. It takes a lot of watch and/or listen multiple times to produce a final product which means you’re more than consuming it.
Lemmy has actually made me more thoughtful about this. Like a lot of people here, I was previously on reddit, where most interactions were pretty toxic. Now I do try to think about how my contributions make the platform better or more useful for others.
I was a “top 1% poster” on reddit (according to them), but it was mostly garbage and reposts and “zingers” so even though it got a lot of updoots, it was not really helpful to people. There were some communities that were exceptions, where I put a lot of effort, research, etc., but they were more niche.
If it’s any consolation, reddit sort of trains you to post things like that because that’s what the masses like and recognize the most.
My 'content ’ is almost entirely dumb comments that are often barely related to the post. Definitely not adding to the world, but hopefully no one takes it seriously enough for it to have any negative impact other than just wasted space.
My comments are pure Internet gold. I’m actually only here to read my own comments. It helps me remember how brilliant and humble I am.
My posts help people discover MineTest. It’s pretty great, and it’s free.
What is minetest?
MineTest is an open source game engine that allows running various open source Minecraft clones.
and open-source.
True. I don’t post the license prominently, but my comments are Creative Commons, Attribution, Share Alike
Okay, I’m actually kidding about misunderstanding which bit of my comment your reply was to.
Yes, it’s great that MineTest is open source! And the mod community is impressive.
You actually did reminde me to try minetest again right now! I tried it last like a decade ago and been meaning to try again
Yes, and I often reread my own comments and feel a deep sense of satisfaction.
You’re not alone in that.
I also reread your comments sometimes with a deep sense is satisfaction.
(I’m kidding. Although I did check your comment history to make sure you weren’t a monster before even making that joke.)
I don’t post almost anything online. I mostly just comment. But even the comments I make I sometimes consume as content - I really like comming back and rereading them to enjoy how good and smart I’ve been.
What made me think about this is my girlfriend, who is quite vocal about the harms social media can have on the mental health of young girls, especially when influencers post heavily edited photos of themselves and their lives, which for the most part are fake.
However, she’s active on social media as well, and being quite an attractive woman, she seems oblivious to what I consider a factual statement: her own content is also causing the same kind of concerns for other women who are not as genetically blessed as she is. What she’s posting is not fake, but it is heavily curated nonetheless. She obviously knows this herself, but do her followers?
I don’t personally follow her social media, but I’d be willing to bet she hasn’t posted about being sick for a week and not taking a shower for four days. I don’t mean that as a criticism per se, but I think it highlights how little we think about the effect our own content has on others while still being quick to judge others for what they post.
“She’s hot, but really ought to keep it on the DL for me to enjoy and no one else to see because think of the children”.
What a weird little humble brag while also putting down your girlfriend and blaming her for broader society’s behavior. If she’s not lying, advocating for unhealthy habits or trends, encouraging parasocial relationships, or spreading misinformation, she’s not the problem.
What’s up with the quotation marks when you just came up with that “quote” yourself? I don’t feel the need to defend views I don’t hold.
But if you don’t thoughtfully respond to every strawman, then the internet WINS!
Now what were we talking about? Something about how content impacts us or what?
I hope that’s not the only lens you see the world through. I don’t think anybody else saw that comment the way you did.
I am vegan (pull out the pitchforks) and am pretty vocal about it on here and used to be on the other website. I wouldn’t say I’m an activist per se, but every comment and post I make about the subject whenever it’s brought up makes me feel like I’m making a difference. If the comment resonates with someone reading and leads to fewer animals and animal-derived products being consumed, I’m happy. So yea, for sure.
Same goes for the two communities I created and mod (c/sekiro and c/bloodborne if anyone’s curious). A bot has recently helped me fill the communities with content since engagement isn’t super high from community members themselves. Before the bot, I tried to make daily posts in both communities, thinking it’s content that I enjoy so others would likely too. Since they’re still quite niche and don’t have a massive following, I think it’s definitely a good start for people interested in the games
Cool post btw. I think it’s easy to lose oneself in the daily monotomy that is life and work and stuff, so reminding oneself that participating in communities such as Lemmy is making a difference in one shape or form
Depends on the content. I’d play games I make. But I wouldn’t read my own stories outside of proofreading. What would be the point? I already know the story because I wrote it!
As for my SM posts: Same as the writing. But if someone else was posting what I post, then yeah. I would follow that person because we are practically the same person.
I occasionally go through my old comments to see how things got received, see if I could improve my wording, things like that. General communications skill polishing. It’s not consuming as much as critically reviewing, but whatever.
Since I’m adding engagement on lemmy, and I do put some effort in to be amusing or informative or whatever (usually anyway), yes I do feel like I am helping. If I was on reddit or something, not so much.
Sure. Heck, occasionally I do actually do that, like if I post a piece of information that I’ve looked up and then refer back to it later.
Yes. Positive. It won’t be a big difference but everything matters in its own small way. Posts that piss off dozens of people can still have one person who loves your perspective. That one person can be you. Ignore the haters.
If it pisses off dozens of people but there’s one person loving it, wouldn’t it still be accurate to say that the effect is net-negative?
No because we ignore the haters.
I publish my music online. Since I make that kind of music because I like that genre, then I’m pretty optimistic I will like it if it wasn’t me who made it. As for comments on lemmy, reddit, etc., no so much; but I have given advice from time to time that people appreciated based on their replies. Usually it’s about music, cooking, and movies.
I already do that for nostalgia and memories, I like going through my camera roll every so often despite the fact I don’t take many pictures.
