117 votes

Apollo’s Christian Selig explains his fight with Reddit — and why users revolted

39 comments

  1. [8]
    fefellama
    Link
    Absolutely incredible foresight by him to record his calls with reddit. If he didn't, there would have been a lot more debate about what he said and how he worded certain things. But those audio...

    Absolutely incredible foresight by him to record his calls with reddit. If he didn't, there would have been a lot more debate about what he said and how he worded certain things. But those audio recordings really sealed the deal when it came to public opinion going against reddit, and deservedly so.

    97 votes
    1. [6]
      Kingofthezyx
      Link Parent
      For sure. I think it brings up this advice for anyone who is self-employed or runs/represents a business: Figure out if you live in a one or two-party consent area. This could be based on your...

      For sure. I think it brings up this advice for anyone who is self-employed or runs/represents a business:

      1. Figure out if you live in a one or two-party consent area. This could be based on your country (Christian is in Canada), or your state in the US.

      2. If you live in a one-party consent jurisdiction, record all business-line calls. Storage space is cheap. If you live in a two-party consent jurisdiction, I'm sure we've all called business and heard "your call will be recorded for quality assurance purposes" every time we call a business. You can start the call, let the other person know you're recording the call, and then if they disagree, just don't do business with them.

      Super simple. Don't trust people when your livelihood or security is involved.

      33 votes
      1. [2]
        Akir
        Link Parent
        Not only is storage space cheap, voice is actually super easy to compress; a 30 minute conversation will probably take up as much space as a 5 minute song in MP3, depending on what codec you use....

        Not only is storage space cheap, voice is actually super easy to compress; a 30 minute conversation will probably take up as much space as a 5 minute song in MP3, depending on what codec you use.

        Any half-decent VoIP service will have a call recording feature - so just turn it on!

        12 votes
        1. emmanuelle
          Link Parent
          yep… encode it with Opus 24kbps and it’ll sound just fine but at tiny tiny file sizes

          yep… encode it with Opus 24kbps and it’ll sound just fine but at tiny tiny file sizes

          3 votes
      2. Carighan
        Link Parent
        To save anyone else from Germany the work: It's mutual for us. You need to ask if you want to record the other person, and vice versa. Oh and each party has to be able to decline it freely,...

        To save anyone else from Germany the work: It's mutual for us. You need to ask if you want to record the other person, and vice versa. Oh and each party has to be able to decline it freely, meaning failure to obtain an okay to record the call is not a valid reason to terminate the call in a business context.

        8 votes
      3. [2]
        tibpoe
        Link Parent
        Unfortunately recording calls isn't exactly easy. My android phone has a call recording feature, but the feature is only enabled in India. It also has an obnoxious notification: I've tried several...

        Unfortunately recording calls isn't exactly easy. My android phone has a call recording feature, but the feature is only enabled in India. It also has an obnoxious notification:

        To protect the privacy of all users, when you start recording, both parties are notified with a disclosure that the call is being recorded. When you stop recording, both parties are notified with a disclosure that the call is no longer being recorded.

        I've tried several third-party apps, but I've never had very good luck.

        I have no idea why Google has gone through all this trouble, it honestly feels like malice. All big companies record all their conversations with individuals, but they don't want individuals to do the same thing? I can't see a legal angle here; microphone & lockpick manufacturers aren't held legally liable for how their products are used.

        4 votes
        1. Kingofthezyx
          Link Parent
          Easiest solution there would just be to put your phone on speaker, and record with an external device. Otherwise, using a separate VoIP service would be the best bet if you take a lot of business...

          Easiest solution there would just be to put your phone on speaker, and record with an external device.

          Otherwise, using a separate VoIP service would be the best bet if you take a lot of business calls.

          3 votes
    2. chocobean
      Link Parent
      Completely highlights how important single party consent is for recording. If companies are allowed to track Everything we do, and have bajilliom dollars and legal teams and a whole internet...

      Completely highlights how important single party consent is for recording. If companies are allowed to track Everything we do, and have bajilliom dollars and legal teams and a whole internet platform as their personal soapbox, we need to be able to defend ourselves too.

      As Canadians we kind of got used to having to record ourselves while taking to the oligopoly mega corps that own the country. But it is a privilege we Canadians need to safeguard

      12 votes
  2. [2]
    sixthgear
    Link
    ...and that's why I find myself here at Tildes. In some ways, I think I'm grateful for this Reddit disaster (hot on the heels of the Twitter disaster). I feel like the internet community hasn't...

    ...and that's why I find myself here at Tildes.

    In some ways, I think I'm grateful for this Reddit disaster (hot on the heels of the Twitter disaster). I feel like the internet community hasn't been this self-aware in a long time. We're seeing in real time the fallout of putting corporations in charge of our social technology.

    I, for one, needed a change.

    78 votes
    1. desol8neb
      Link Parent
      I agree completely. I more lurked than posted on Reddit because of that general bad-vibeness that you get from the site, but also because if you say anything against the hivemind you're not in for...

      I agree completely.

      I more lurked than posted on Reddit because of that general bad-vibeness that you get from the site, but also because if you say anything against the hivemind you're not in for a good time. Here it feels more like a small city and I really enjoy it.

      The only thing I'm really missing is custom communities. I need my r/goodanimemes fix somewhere

      10 votes
  3. [3]
    DarkWasp
    Link
    The Verge has had really good coverage of this throughout and I’m glad they interviewed Christian to give him the ability to articulate all of the issues. Regardless of how much this ultimately...

    The Verge has had really good coverage of this throughout and I’m glad they interviewed Christian to give him the ability to articulate all of the issues.

    Regardless of how much this ultimately impacts Reddit in terms of users, I don’t think it’ll be the same. It’s certainly not what I remember from signing up just over a decade ago. It certainly has me looking for and using alternatives that better match the site as it once was.

    35 votes
    1. hushbucket
      Link Parent
      Agreed. Others have articulated the following thought better but I really do think the API issue represents a culminating feeling that the internet is changing for the worse.

      [Reddits] certainly not what I remember from signing up just over a decade ago.

      Agreed. Others have articulated the following thought better but I really do think the API issue represents a culminating feeling that the internet is changing for the worse.

      19 votes
    2. selib
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      yeah I agree, I never thought that this will actually kill reddit, but to me it's the clear beginning of the end as reddit becomes a ad-filled, quick consumption hellhole similar to Facebook.

      yeah I agree, I never thought that this will actually kill reddit, but to me it's the clear beginning of the end as reddit becomes a ad-filled, quick consumption hellhole similar to Facebook.

      11 votes
  4. [15]
    stu2b50
    Link
    We'll have to see how much the userbase is revolting. When I look at the frontpage today, already many of the big subs are open, and for the ones that aren't, people just made new subs which are...

    We'll have to see how much the userbase is revolting. When I look at the frontpage today, already many of the big subs are open, and for the ones that aren't, people just made new subs which are now hitting /r/all just like the old ones use to. You probably wouldn't be able to tell that anything in particular is happening from /r/all. I still don't understand why they set a 48 hour end date for the blackout other than cowardice, because the mods thought if they did permanent the Reddit admins would strip them of mod status and give it to other users. If you really cared, you should blackout until whatever you're protesting changes.

    Ultimately I don't think anything is going to change w.r.g to Reddit. The "alternatives" sites will get a big bump, big for them, but small relative to Reddit. There'll probably be some powermod shakeups that no one cares about.

    32 votes
    1. [4]
      chocobean
      Link Parent
      Re: why ... 48 hour end...other than cowardice Because the API changes came suddenly after years of promising no changes, and because it's incredibly difficult for mods from (at this time) 8838...

      Re: why ... 48 hour end...other than cowardice

      Because the API changes came suddenly after years of promising no changes, and because it's incredibly difficult for mods from (at this time) 8838 subreddits to all agree on one thing. If you have a line of 100 people linking arms and walking together, it's difficult to ask them to all run 10 second dash. You start with asking everyone to pick up their left feet together. It's not cowardice it's coordination of a large number of people.

      Also, initially they thought the black out would merely be to push pressure on the company so they come back to the negotiation table. It was organized before the company stance was made clearly set in stone and before the wild accusations were thrown around. If they had started with total permanent black out when negotiations were still possible, we'd all be saying they over reacted.

      It's not cowardice.

      39 votes
      1. [3]
        stu2b50
        Link Parent
        Then it's just being ineffective. A 2 day blackout was never going to change Reddit's mind about anything. Even if all the new subs weren't popping up, all they had to do was wait 2 days. Even...

        Then it's just being ineffective. A 2 day blackout was never going to change Reddit's mind about anything. Even if all the new subs weren't popping up, all they had to do was wait 2 days.

        Even moreso with the collaboration angle. There's no way you can convince mods now to do more blackouts. Once everyone agreed on a 2 day blackout, it was doomed from that moment. If you couldn't convince people to do perpetual until whatever goals they had were met from the start, it was doomed.

        21 votes
        1. Jitzilla
          Link Parent
          I’m hoping when they come back, it’ll just be to announce creating a new place.

          I’m hoping when they come back, it’ll just be to announce creating a new place.

          2 votes
        2. lel
          Link Parent
          Exactly. Whenever you're organizing something like this, the primary question you should want your target to be asking themselves is "Can I outlast this?" If you say ahead of time "We're only...

          Exactly. Whenever you're organizing something like this, the primary question you should want your target to be asking themselves is "Can I outlast this?" If you say ahead of time "We're only doing it for two days," they're answering "Sure I can!" in their heads before you've even started.

          1 vote
    2. [5]
      Azuzula
      Link Parent
      I was on digg when the migration to Reddit happened. I didn’t understand enough or care about the changes they were making and I thought everything would blow over like they did with changes...

      I was on digg when the migration to Reddit happened. I didn’t understand enough or care about the changes they were making and I thought everything would blow over like they did with changes before.

      It got so boring. I don’t know if it was the changes themselves (honestly I didn’t care at all) or that all the people who generated content left. Everything was stale, repeats, or ads. That’s what made me check out Reddit.

      I see a lot of similarities here, and I think even the users that don’t care will eventually start to miss the content makers and moderators who choose to leave.

      19 votes
      1. [4]
        stu2b50
        Link Parent
        The difference is that there was a place to leave to, namely Reddit. Lemmy and kbin are not and won’t be general replacements for Reddit. People that long for a place to put their content are...

        The difference is that there was a place to leave to, namely Reddit. Lemmy and kbin are not and won’t be general replacements for Reddit. People that long for a place to put their content are going to come back.

        12 votes
        1. [3]
          Azuzula
          Link Parent
          Possibly. We don’t know. I’ve left aim, I’ve left MySpace, I’ve left twitter, Facebook, tumblr, Instagram… at one point for each of these I thought I couldn’t (or didn’t want to) find an...

          Possibly. We don’t know.

          I’ve left aim, I’ve left MySpace, I’ve left twitter, Facebook, tumblr, Instagram… at one point for each of these I thought I couldn’t (or didn’t want to) find an alternative. Nothing is too big to fail.

          11 votes
          1. [2]
            lel
            Link Parent
            I mean, the issue is that, out of those, four of the five definitively didn't fail. Twitter certainly feels like it's about to, but if it happens, it isn't going to be because of an exodus of users.

            I mean, the issue is that, out of those, four of the five definitively didn't fail. Twitter certainly feels like it's about to, but if it happens, it isn't going to be because of an exodus of users.

            5 votes
            1. Azuzula
              Link Parent
              True… they do still exist. But they’ve lost their reputation and trust. I guess that’s kind of what I’m expecting will happen to Reddit. To me, that’s a failure.

              True… they do still exist. But they’ve lost their reputation and trust. I guess that’s kind of what I’m expecting will happen to Reddit. To me, that’s a failure.

              1 vote
    3. Carighan
      Link Parent
      Well, I can only say that personally: I found out I need far less reddit in my day than I've been doing. I am find no longer having access to reddit on mobile (going to miss Boost). I cancelled my...

      Well, I can only say that personally:

      • I found out I need far less reddit in my day than I've been doing.
      • I am find no longer having access to reddit on mobile (going to miss Boost).
      • I cancelled my Premium, the first time since they added it. With no intention to re-subscribe, after all I can just block the ads, I paid the Premium because I wanted to support the site and that is no longer the case.
      12 votes
    4. [3]
      Unsorted
      Link Parent
      Well, looking at stats pulled through the API, it doesn't look like there's been much impact to the number of comments and posts made. A small dip but it's already up today....

      Well, looking at stats pulled through the API, it doesn't look like there's been much impact to the number of comments and posts made. A small dip but it's already up today.

      https://blackout.photon-reddit.com/

      12 votes
      1. stu2b50
        Link Parent
        Wow that’s much higher than I thought it’d be. Posts and comments. Posts are almost back to normal and peak comments are down but not by as much as you’d think given all the subs still in blackout.

        Wow that’s much higher than I thought it’d be. Posts and comments. Posts are almost back to normal and peak comments are down but not by as much as you’d think given all the subs still in blackout.

        3 votes
      2. Jitzilla
        Link Parent
        But what about the quality? That’s harder to measure, but I’m sure it’s significant.

        But what about the quality? That’s harder to measure, but I’m sure it’s significant.

        2 votes
    5. Delgalar
      Link Parent
      Agreed, all I see this being is unfortunately just a bump in the road for Reddit over the long term. I'm seeing just as many posts and shares from people as I did before the blackout started.

      Agreed, all I see this being is unfortunately just a bump in the road for Reddit over the long term. I'm seeing just as many posts and shares from people as I did before the blackout started.

      8 votes
  5. [8]
    snowcrash
    Link
    I'm a big fan of Nilay Patel, and find he elevates the quality of everything he touches at the Verge. He's also the host of two popular tech podcasts, Vergecast and Decoder, and it looks like this...

    I'm a big fan of Nilay Patel, and find he elevates the quality of everything he touches at the Verge. He's also the host of two popular tech podcasts, Vergecast and Decoder, and it looks like this interview will be in the Vergecast episode tomorrow. I'm glad this is getting coverage and he's shining a light on the issue.

    That being said, I noticed the only two reddit alternatives are Lemmy and Kbin, which are so far my two least favourite, though I'm still open to trying them out more.

    24 votes
    1. [3]
      ChthonicSun
      Link Parent
      There's been a new site being shilled on Reddit the past few days, Squabble, no idea how good or bad it is, but it's an alterative if you're willing to try. I for one am probably going to stick...

      There's been a new site being shilled on Reddit the past few days, Squabble, no idea how good or bad it is, but it's an alterative if you're willing to try. I for one am probably going to stick with here and Lemmy / Kbin for the foreseeable future.

      7 votes
      1. snowcrash
        Link Parent
        I've been somewhat enjoying Squabbles. It has the reddit-like ability to create communities (subreddits). It also doesn't bother with federation, and ironically seems to have the least problematic...

        I've been somewhat enjoying Squabbles. It has the reddit-like ability to create communities (subreddits). It also doesn't bother with federation, and ironically seems to have the least problematic ownership.

        I read Lemmy has some questionable ownership (I've seen allegations of pro-CCP politics, though have not confirmed myself), which is ironic considering federation often is suggested as a solution in these ownership bait-and-switches. Among other things, I really liked the /r/CredibleDefense subreddit which would include even-keel discussion about USA and Chinese military, and I fear there simply won't be room for that in such a community. Happy to be proven wrong though!

        3 votes
      2. artvandelay
        Link Parent
        I've been using Squabbles alongside Tildes and Squabbles very much has the feel of Reddit. The feed is more like Twitter but the organization of communities and ability to create new ones as one...

        I've been using Squabbles alongside Tildes and Squabbles very much has the feel of Reddit. The feed is more like Twitter but the organization of communities and ability to create new ones as one sees fit is exactly like Reddit. The UI is a weird mix between New Reddit and Twitter which I'm not really a big fan of.

        3 votes
    2. [3]
      TesterJ
      Link Parent
      I've also seen squabbles.io, which looks pretty simple and easy to use.

      I've also seen squabbles.io, which looks pretty simple and easy to use.

      3 votes
      1. Rokeba
        Link Parent
        Squabbles is very similar to reddit and so far it's ok. I like tildes and squabbles for different reasons.

        Squabbles is very similar to reddit and so far it's ok. I like tildes and squabbles for different reasons.

        4 votes
      2. jamrock_shuffle
        Link Parent
        Squabbles is the most immediately obviously similar to Reddit. Some [eople levy a criticism at it that they do at Tildes too, it's run by a singular dev.

        Squabbles is the most immediately obviously similar to Reddit. Some [eople levy a criticism at it that they do at Tildes too, it's run by a singular dev.

        4 votes
    3. desol8neb
      Link Parent
      I've lurked on kbin a decent amount and I really enjoy it other than the fact it's a little slow to load compared to Tildes. Some other "alternatives" are Slashdot, Something Awful, and 4chan...

      I've lurked on kbin a decent amount and I really enjoy it other than the fact it's a little slow to load compared to Tildes.

      Some other "alternatives" are Slashdot, Something Awful, and 4chan (there's an extension - 4chanx - you can get to remove a lot of the bad stuff). I've been lurking around those places outside of Tildes

      1 vote
  6. [2]
    hobbes64
    Link
    I have used Apollo for a few years and it has been very nice. Frankly the best thing about it is that there are no ads in it. I hear a lot of people complaining on reddit about certain ads that...

    I have used Apollo for a few years and it has been very nice. Frankly the best thing about it is that there are no ads in it. I hear a lot of people complaining on reddit about certain ads that repeat over and over. I've never seen any of them.

    The article mentions that there was a consideration of supporting ads in Apollo if made possible by the reddit API. Yeah I would not use that app. I would certainly pay a few dollars a month to continue using Apollo as long as there were no ads.

    I can't use the Youtube app because there is a 15 second ad when you want to watch a 5 second joke. So I just removed the app from my phone.

    I will simply not use any apps that have ads. I've had enough ads in my life. I'm seeing them on shopping carts, gas pumps, and everywhere else. I will not spend another second of my life looking at them when I have a choice.

    6 votes
    1. Osiris
      Link Parent
      Ads are such a cancer. I don't know how people tolerate them. Between ublock, pihole, and open-source software in general, the only ads I see regularly are billboards, and those should be illegal,...

      Ads are such a cancer. I don't know how people tolerate them. Between ublock, pihole, and open-source software in general, the only ads I see regularly are billboards, and those should be illegal, imo (and are in some US states). I wish more people understood how insidious advertising is.

      5 votes
  7. DanBC
    Link
    About charging to use Apollo: I feel that it's used a lot by mods. And so Reddit would be setting up a couple of weird dynamics: volunteers paying a 3rd party for tools to moderate would really...

    About charging to use Apollo: I feel that it's used a lot by mods. And so Reddit would be setting up a couple of weird dynamics: volunteers paying a 3rd party for tools to moderate would really filter the moderator userbase. And having to pay to mod means there's more room there for marketing shenanigans. Why pay reddit's ad prices when you can approach mods and pay for their tools for a year or so?