3 ms·

I agree with a lot of this, but think the future of the Internet will be u-shaped: - People will use it drastically less. I got rid of my smart phone ~2 years

by breck 2y ago

I agree with a lot of this, but think the future of the Internet will be u-shaped: - People will use it drastically less. I got rid of my smart phone ~2 years ago and it's been a huge life improvement. Still on the computer a lot, but when I leave the room I'm in the real world again. - When they do use it it will be drastically higher quality. I'm working on building the World Wide Scroll as a successor to the web (https://wws.scroll.pub/ https://wws.scroll.pub/), an idea I first had 12 years ago (https://breckyunits.com/spacenet.html https://breckyunits.com/spacenet.html), but took a while to figure out all the infra.

moffkalast 2y ago
There are always stories of people who "quit" normal tech things, buying obscure eink phones and other pretentious minimalist crap, claiming it does this or that to their sleep or attention span. Always devs or at least tech-adjecent people. A lone outlier is what you are. Meanwhile most of the population remains completely (happily?) addicted to scrolling <social app of the year> every free waking moment of every day with no sign of stopping. Not really surprising when the entire tech industry is hellbent on keeping everyone there and making sure the engagement numbers continue to go up for the next quarterly report. Until that changes there won't be any major move away from it. Systemic problems require systemic solutions.
- anal_reactor 2y ago
  > Always devs or at least tech-adjecent people. A lone outlier is what you are. We were the first to come, and we're the first to leave. We're trendsetters, while most of the society just do what everyone else does. It's just that those things don't happen overnight, it's a process. > Meanwhile most of the population have been peasants and slaves in most societies through most of history. The fact that there exist a handful of countries where average Joe doesn't need to worry about biological survival doesn't suddenly remove the truth that most people do and will belong to lower classes and "everyone is equal" is a meme that came to existence very recently so can't be taken seriously. > Not really surprising when the entire tech industry is hellbent on keeping everyone there and making sure the engagement numbers continue to go up for the next quarterly report. Until that changes there won't be any major move away from it. Most people want cheap entertainment and nothing more. That's how things have always been, whether it's gladiators fighting or cute puppy pictures on Facebook. Modern tech industry is just a reflection of this, and things will stay this way. Obviously nothing stops you from seeking better ways to pass time, or at least building some healthy habits if you're not ready to give up on slop completely. Just like Newton chose to think about falling apples instead of drinking wine. My comment might come across as snobbish, but I also recognize the fact that there are lots and lots of people above me, and I will never achieve their level no matter how much work I put into myself.
the_gipsy 2y ago
100$ for a folder? Fellas, I'll give you a folder for 50$ over here!
- breck 2y ago
  For 10 years. $10 a year. The important thing is to find people committed to building great sites for the long run. If you're not willing to put in a little bit of money, then it's not for you.
  - wruza 2y ago
    To commit to something one has to understand what it actually is.
    - breck 2y ago
      > To commit to something one has to understand what it actually is. I wish I could tell you more than what's on the website there now. Right now it's a ticket on a voyage into the unknown!
  - the_gipsy 2y ago
    One, Asking for even a dollar makes it inaccessible to a vast part of the world's population. Two, it just makes the project sound like a scam. There are a myriad of "simple web" projects out there that do technically a "basic web like in the good ol' days", no money required, and actually have specs and implementations to show, in contrast to "a folder". Check out https://geminiprotocol.net/ https://geminiprotocol.net/. They have clients available, and even some content!
    - breck 2y ago
      Here's some more info: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40904466 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40904466 > Asking for even a dollar makes it inaccessible to a vast part of the world's population Downloading/reading the WWS is always free. It only costs money if you want to own/build a part of it. > Two, it just makes the project sound like a scam. I've worked on this project for over 12 years (https://breckyunits.com/treeNotation.html https://breckyunits.com/treeNotation.html). If this is a scam, I'm really bad at scams! First the first time ever, people are now giving me money for it, which will give us the funds to expand the project to realize its potential. > They have clients available, and even some content! Have you tried `wws fetch pldb`?

by breck 2y ago

moffkalast 2y ago

There are always stories of people who "quit" normal tech things, buying obscure eink phones and other pretentious minimalist crap, claiming it does this or that to their sleep or attention span. Always devs or at least tech-adjecent people. A lone outlier is what you are. Meanwhile most of the population remains completely (happily?) addicted to scrolling <social app of the year> every free waking moment of every day with no sign of stopping. Not really surprising when the entire tech industry is hellbent on keeping everyone there and making sure the engagement numbers continue to go up for the next quarterly report. Until that changes there won't be any major move away from it. Systemic problems require systemic solutions.

anal_reactor 2y ago
> Always devs or at least tech-adjecent people. A lone outlier is what you are. We were the first to come, and we're the first to leave. We're trendsetters, while most of the society just do what everyone else does. It's just that those things don't happen overnight, it's a process. > Meanwhile most of the population have been peasants and slaves in most societies through most of history. The fact that there exist a handful of countries where average Joe doesn't need to worry about biological survival doesn't suddenly remove the truth that most people do and will belong to lower classes and "everyone is equal" is a meme that came to existence very recently so can't be taken seriously. > Not really surprising when the entire tech industry is hellbent on keeping everyone there and making sure the engagement numbers continue to go up for the next quarterly report. Until that changes there won't be any major move away from it. Most people want cheap entertainment and nothing more. That's how things have always been, whether it's gladiators fighting or cute puppy pictures on Facebook. Modern tech industry is just a reflection of this, and things will stay this way. Obviously nothing stops you from seeking better ways to pass time, or at least building some healthy habits if you're not ready to give up on slop completely. Just like Newton chose to think about falling apples instead of drinking wine. My comment might come across as snobbish, but I also recognize the fact that there are lots and lots of people above me, and I will never achieve their level no matter how much work I put into myself.

the_gipsy 2y ago

100$ for a folder? Fellas, I'll give you a folder for 50$ over here!

breck 2y ago
For 10 years. $10 a year. The important thing is to find people committed to building great sites for the long run. If you're not willing to put in a little bit of money, then it's not for you.
- wruza 2y ago
  To commit to something one has to understand what it actually is.
  - breck 2y ago
    > To commit to something one has to understand what it actually is. I wish I could tell you more than what's on the website there now. Right now it's a ticket on a voyage into the unknown!
- the_gipsy 2y ago
  One, Asking for even a dollar makes it inaccessible to a vast part of the world's population. Two, it just makes the project sound like a scam. There are a myriad of "simple web" projects out there that do technically a "basic web like in the good ol' days", no money required, and actually have specs and implementations to show, in contrast to "a folder". Check out https://geminiprotocol.net/ https://geminiprotocol.net/. They have clients available, and even some content!
  - breck 2y ago
    Here's some more info: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40904466 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40904466 > Asking for even a dollar makes it inaccessible to a vast part of the world's population Downloading/reading the WWS is always free. It only costs money if you want to own/build a part of it. > Two, it just makes the project sound like a scam. I've worked on this project for over 12 years (https://breckyunits.com/treeNotation.html https://breckyunits.com/treeNotation.html). If this is a scam, I'm really bad at scams! First the first time ever, people are now giving me money for it, which will give us the funds to expand the project to realize its potential. > They have clients available, and even some content! Have you tried `wws fetch pldb`?