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Worse on Purpose: a site that tracks which brands are still worth their old reputation and which have been enshittified
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- Title
- About | Worse on Purpose
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- Worse on Purpose
I am glad this site exists. However, it should be noted this one is heavily AI generated and I’ve come across a lot of ill-researched pages, enough that I don’t trust any of the recommendations or counter recommendations.
Kind of ironic for an anti-enshittification site to be AI slop.
The author works at Palantir
Looks like he is just starting a new brand to wash away the shitty one he is in.
Ironic.
How is this an exemplary post?
I think it’s more offensive for someone to use the header text to grab attention.
I agree I shouldn't have used header text at alI. I would edit it but that feels wrong as well. For what it's worth, I was somewhat miffed finding out that the author is a Palantir bro and wanted to disseminate that info.
Generally it's less useful to ask why someone flagged something and to simply report it if you think it's given incorrectly.
But one person's snark throwaway is another's "good find, thanks for the effort" and it's better to assume it was given in good faith.
I can't tell how much of
is serious or just a throwaway "dunk", but it doesn't really pass occam's razor if you're trying to make it a serious accusation. Just think about it for a second.
To even know who the author is, you have to go to the about page, which maybe 0.0001% of people will do. So if the goal is to "wash" his brand, it's not doing a very good job.
But even moreso, to know that he works at Palantir, you have to find some random Linkedin post from a year ago. No one knows who this guy is to begin with, there's nothing to "wash".
I thought they meant the author is doing this to ease their cognitive dissonance. Which isn’t really an indictment of the project anyway.
Mm'kay so I hate Palantir too.
Some people work there. Some of them may have had no choice when starting to work there, some may have not been well informed. Some may be trying to stop working there as soon as humanly possible.
Are you saying it's a bad thing they're trying to stop working for Palantir?
It is an indication that the site is probably AI generated and untrustworthy.
I think the copy on the site is already indication enough of AI use.
Is every site that uses AI untrustworthy? I hate AI companies with a passion, probably more than most people on this site. I'm still not writing off a site like this just because the person isn't spending his waking hours doing it manually.
Working for Palantir sure sucks but it doesn't make someone an antichrist, untrustworthy, or any other negative thing - except a Palantir employee. But maybe they don't want to be one? Would it be possible to show some common decency towards a person you (likely) know almost nothing about?
Yes, I consider AI generated articles untrustworthy.
I don't trust the website that they generated. That is not indicative of my judgment (or more lack thereof) of their personal character.
Okay thanks for clarifying!
From DeaconBlue:
And your reply:
DeaconBlue made two separate claims, [probably AI generated] and [untrustworthy] — and then your response not only reinforced one of the claims, it then conflated the two points and then challenged the conflation. It feels like you’re almost arguing with yourself more than with DeaconBlue here. I’m confused.
I trust that you're asking in good faith so I'll try to describe the contents of my brain:
I asked about person X trying to not work for Palantir anymore. DB said that it was indication of the site being AI generated and untrustworthy. "It" in this case, in my mind, being "trying to leave Palantir". I then made the interpretation that the untrustworthiness was perceived to be because of AI, not because of trying to leave Palantir, because the latter would have made even less sense.
In hindsight, I should have understood that both things were actually meant to be related to working for Palantir, not leaving Palantir. That makes much more sense and I'm sure that's what DB meant. I didn't understand that at the time though because that wasn't what I asked about. I know this may be hard to believe but welcome to my brain.
I'd like to point out that this question makes assumptions and is a trap. If someone answers yes or no they must agree to your premise, that he's trying to stop working for Palantir, something for which we have no evidence that I can see.
The common example of this kind of question, framed as you did, would be "are you saying you won't stop beating your wife?" Both a yes and no accept the framing.
Others have pointed out the problems with the assumptions in the post you're replying to, but repeating the error and seemingly setting up a trap question like that is also bad form.
You're right that I could have worded that better. Something like "...if they're trying to stop". I didn't intentionally set up a trap question and I appreciate the feedback.
Someone who works at a slaughterhouse may have had no choice. Someone who works at Palantir always had other choices. Maybe they would have had to give something up to make those choices. Well, the right choice isn't always the easiest choice.
I don't understand what you mean. Are you saying a white collar person always has the option of going blue collar because blue collar is a step down, whereas a blue collar worker doesn't have a similar option available (if I misunderstood, please don't be offended, just let me know what you actually meant)? This is definitely not true.
Also, if I was hiring and one of the applicants was working for Palantir, it would negatively affect their chances to get hired.
Previous discussions can be found here.
Thanks, I should have searched the site before posting.
The older conversation mentions the site being AI slop and I agree that the copy seems AI generated. In this case I don't mind that, especially if it enables the publisher to focus on conducting the investigations and ensuring the results are correct and up to date.
I guess the question becomes, are they doing the investigations? Especially if they're not being open about their AI use. It's just giving them a lot of credit that they're not asking for, ya know?
If they said "here's why I use AI" that'd be different than assuming the AI is helping them do a better job.
I agree that an open disclosure would have served them better. We could send them some recs and comments crowdsourced on Tildes and see what happens. In case it's a complete scam, most likely they'll try to get some money from the featured brands before listing them, in which case it'll take a while. If they're purely just being helpful, it should be really quick to investigate some additional brands and add them to the site, especially with this level of AI use.
I would not like my "crowdsourced" comments sent to them for the record.
Assuming they would react quickly/slowly/at all to comments doesn't track for me either, that's not been my experience with websites. It would not be clear evidence of anything in either direction.
as I noted above, writer works(ed) at Palantir. This whole website stinks of AI slop aimed a building a new brand because he's part of a shitty one.
You're assuming an awful lot about the man's motivations.
It's definitely snarky on my part, but at the same time, I'm tired of giving some folks the benefit of the doubt. Guess I've been around these types more often than I would prefer.
I get it, and truth be told, the dude doesn't seem like a very reliable source of info to me either.
That said, your reasoning for his specific motivations involves a huge leap of logic that just isn't necessary, and doesn't really add much IMO. It crosses the line between skepticism and cynicism, I think. Just something to be mindful of.
I'm glad something like this exists! I found several brands that I love mentioned in the 'approved' category and it gave me a sense of relief. Then I found Dr. Martens on the 'avoid' page and learned that they have offshored production to Asia. I was still under the impression that these boots were made in the UK and represented a long tradition of British craftsmanship, and admittedly this impression influenced how I felt about the brand.
The link takes you to the 'about' section with the contact links: you are invited to send them a brand you'd like looked into, or snitch about one whose quality has recently worsened!
In the comments, I'd love to see mentions of brands whose products you own and are happy with. Producers of good things deserve to be lifted up!
The only battery powered tools I use are made by Makita. Started using them in the 90's in my woodworking shop, and it is one brand that is still top quality. Not inexpensive, however, and not really targeted at the DIY crowd. They make the approved list at the site.
There aren't too many other brands that I can recommend with no reservations, though I will give a nod to JM Audio Editions. They make excellent headphones, with each set tuned to your individual specifications. Basically, they are hand-made, and they are as good as anything you can find on the market. One reason I really like this company is their customer service. They will exchange emails with you till they are sure they know exactly what sound you want from their headphones. Also, they have a lifetime guarantee, that applies even to second-hand purchases. I know this is true, as I broke an adjustment post on my set, (bought used), and they offered to fix it for free. I had to pay shipping to them, but not shipping back to me. I went ahead and had them upgrade the headband and retune the headphones, so I spent a little on those two options, but I could have had them repaired for free. They even included a free set of earpads. You don't see customer service like this anymore.
Next to Makita, Festool is another on the list and I can confirm the high quality (and high price) of the products. Their lime green colour scheme is terrible but the tools are good.
Thank you for these recs, especially JM Audio Editions! After my AirPods Max stopped working in just shy of 2 years, I'm extremely interested in repairable alternatives. Do these come with ANC and do you have experience on the quality?
JM Audio Editions doesn't have any models with ANC, and as far as I am aware, they don't have any wireless models. Their market is squarely in the audiophile realm. They do sell Hifiman headphones on their site, but I'm not a fan of that brand.
I do have to make one amendment to my post. JM Audio changed their policy, and no longer have lifetime warranties. My guess is that it was just too expensive for a small company to bear. The warranty is now only one year, though it is transferrable to a second-hand purchaser.
Microplane is on the approved list??
This surprises me greatly. As a long-term user, I can attest that they are an absolute shadow of their original form. Every single corner that could be cut, has been.
The current microplanes last no more than a few months under even quite moderate domestic use. Which is in stark contrast to the early ones, which were a genuine investment... but absolutely worth it, because they were robust and well designed.
You could send the site a hint sharing what you know and maybe get it off the list? Seeing as people are (perhaps rightfully) suspicious of the site's validity, I'd love to know what actually happens if you do.
Do you have any good alternatives? I bought one a few months ago after the long history of rave reviews and was rather underwhelmed
No. :-(
I use them a lot, and have found the deterioration over time annoying and depressing.
Unfortunately most of the alternatives that I have tried are worse.
I'm old enough to remember The Time Before Microplanes and I think they fill a really useful niche, so right now I'd rather have a crappy one than not have one at all.
But if anyone has a suggestion for a better quality competitor - I would like to know, too.
I'll leave some praise for Bosch power tools. I own some that all use the same, interchangeable battery so I only needed to get one battery for multiple tools (which obviously reduced the cost of acquiring the tools but also puts less of a burden on our environment). My latest purchase was a lightweight vacuum cleaner that also uses the same battery!
So far, I have close to zero complaints about all of the tools I own. They aren't the pro tier models but also not the cheapest options either and they've been perfectly adequate for my needs, easy and frictionless to use and maintain, easy to love. Thanks Bosch!
I was interestwas to see Salomon on the watchlist as I still hold their footwear in pretty high regard. What I was really looking for were Buffalo jeans. I blow out the crotch on so many pairs through really inconsequential movement and I'm convinced that they're no longer a brand worth buying now.
I used to love Buffalo Jeans. They were purchased by Iconix Brand Group in 2013. Basically a holding company that licenses brands. While I can't point to one thing for the drop in quality, being purchased by a corporate overlord is usually the beginning of that.
Also, you're probably not getting the same quality if they can now sell Buffalo jeans in Costco for $34.99 CAD.
Too bad. The fit is still good but the quality is always subpar. Private equity firms, what would we do without you.
Salomon quality has gone down. Would not pay more than regular Chinese made whatever anymore.