Are others finding themselves spending less and less time online?
Recently, I have found myself almost unable to find things online to engage with, Tildes being the rare exception. I feel like I used to be able to find my way down Youtube rabbit holes, scroll on Reddit endlessly, and for a period even get lost on Instagram reels. I still have the urges, but now when I indulge it doesn't feel like an effortless dopamine hit, I feel like I'm fighting the platforms for something, anything engaging.
The channels I enjoyed, even the small ones, seem to all be chasing monetization and the lowest common denominator. Even Beau Miles, one of my favorite people on earth, joined the absolute deluge of people focusing on renovating a crumbling "historic" building or just rehashing his old fun ideas. Gone are the days of the inspired videos like the Human Bean. The miniature painters all seem to be hocking their own inventions or models. It feels like capitalism has crept into every video. Reddit is even worse, where it always feels like there is an agenda or a link to a patreon or scrappy youtube channel and I just feel manipulated by the posts being made.
For lack of a better phrase, I'm just constantly feeling the "ick" being online. I'm actively trying to search out things to engage with, anything even remotely genuine or authentic, and running up against a wall. It just feels bizarre. Maybe I'm alone on this. Or maybe I'm reaching a different stage of life and no longer the target demographic. In any case I just feel myself reaching for my laptop less and less and less. For most folks I think that would be a good thing, but when it's dark out, and I'm too burnt out from work to make progress on whatever home or art project I'm doing it was a really nice way to turn off my brain.
Is anyone else having a similar experience? Are folks happy with this version of online content? Are we entering the dead internet? I'm trying to figure out if this is a real trend or just a personal experience.
I’ve kind of felt the same. A lot of it is that the creators of thoughtful content have moved around quite a lot in recent years. Journalism oitlets have plummeted in quality and variety of what they will publish, and perhaps more importantly aggregators are less likely to pick them up and make them viral, in part because there are less people on them.
A lot of it is likely because people are changing the kind of media they consume. Particularly in the form of short form vertical video. They are watching TikToks, instagram reels, or YouTube shorts. There is a surprising amount of content that I could describe as being “deep-like, but without depth” on those platforms. People making political points also tend to be a lot more effective in them without needing to take a lot of time or words because they can convey passion directly.
I do feel the same and that we are now at the point where the Dead Internet Theory has become latent for those who have been browsing the web for a long time. A lot of content on platforms like Reddit, YouTube, and TikTok is coming from bots, which is making engagement less appetising if you can recognise what's happening.
The "Small Web" is definitely still out there which can offer you a similar experience to before, but it's more effortful trying to do this. Major search engines and social media sites don't have a vested interest in promoting this form of Internet, so you need to rely on traditional forums, obscurer search engines like Marginalia or Wiby, sites like Neocities etc.
Although, as you averted to, I also wonder if this is due to me simply reaching a different stage of life. I don't really enjoy the mindless scrolling of before, I don't derive enough joy from engaging with people online as I would in reality, and I prefer physically engaging with something instead of passively observing through stained glass.
..now that you're pointing it out... yes.
The internet, a long long long time ago, was a "place" where i went to see what was going on. I spent hours on geocities, forums, etc...
I had way more time when i was young... but yet... I really felt it like it was a town, with infinite roads and every road took me somewhere.
Now internet has become just a tool, a sort of huge library, a source of knowledge i can try to tap.
I have seen than i turn on the pc and go online only if i have a problem to solve.
Do i need, i dunno... to install a new OS? Do i need a guide on how to do some handy job at home? Do i need to listen to someone to speak a language i'm studying? Do i... I go to youtube and look for a video there, or i just look for a thread on reddit or, recently, i just prompt an AI and ask for the solution and the sources.
And once the solution i have found works i go back to my normal life.
The town has been demolished, mostly. Some roads are still there but not too many anymore and i think i've become tired to look for them :)
It kinda is a good thing though?
It's OK to sometimes veg out and just mess around on the internet or watch a bad TV show, but if that's the default then this could be your opportunity to change the default to something more healthy.
The famous saying "the more you do the more you want to do" is true, even for us neurospicy people. It's just finding the right thing to do.
Maybe you could try some kind of exercise? What about some nice simple puzzles like a jigsaw, crossword, sukodu?
Read some books!
Get your best friend over and watch a bad movie.
Try cooking something you've never tried before.
These are mostly simple things that are not in the high effort category and barely require leaving the house. Sitting in front of your laptop for hours and hours going down a reddit rabbit hole engages your brain, but doesn't do you any good really.
Of course, this is just my opinion. Take it with a grain of salt. As I get older I realize that it's OK to sometimes engage with the brain dead content when I really need it, but I need more healthy options too.
IMO it's several separate issues.
YT ruined their recommendation algo. It overfits like crazy. It has decided I like 3-4 specific topics and that's it, it never shows anything else. Even when I click "new to you" it's more of the same topics. But I've already seen most quality content on those topics and I'm kinda bored and want something new. But YT never brings anything new. I used to use the Subscriptions feed a lot, but with time that got ruined too. It's natural for channels to fall off, change and even completely die with time. In the past that wasn't a problem, because I'd be constantly subscribing to new channels I discover. But now the algo refuses to consistently find good new creators to subscribe to, so my Subscriptions feed got stagnant too.
Reddit got ruined by bots and extreme amounts of political propaganda. I swear, a redditor could literally poop their pants and they'll still find a way to blame it on "end-stage capitalism" or shoehorn in some Trump whining. It's insufferable. I'm 100% convinced big chunk of it is automated too.
I'm in a years-long trend of the sites I once used getting enshittified one by one and giving them up. I'm getting better at catching myself in the "I'm only logging on out of habit" stage and just pulling the plug. I'm deliberately not seeking out replacements because I recognise social media is designed to be an addiction. If the addiction naturally ends, why seek out another?
A few weeks ago the game I was using to kill time, almost my last source of brain rot, started crashing every time I played it and something in my brain finally un-broke. I've read two full books in the last 12 days, a habit I've been trying to build for years, mostly sitting out on my porch after my toddler is gone to bed. Stress-wise I'm feeling better than I have in years.