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PaperclipPerfector  4mo ago (text post)   4725 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for December 24, 2023

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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There's a new Open Thread on ACX today.

Am I just imagining it, or were SSC open threads way more interesting a few years back? I remember spending an unreasonable amount of time reading them, and would re-load them and scroll through hundreds of pages of half read comments to see updates. Now they seem kind of dull for the most part?

Adding: also, they seem more difficult to participate in. If I do ever comment, someone either slaps it down dismissively, or there's simply no response.

Another thought: maybe all the interesting stuff is happening on the hidden open threads?

Am I just imagining it, or were SSC open threads way more interesting a few years back?

Substack is a terrible platform to host these threads. When the number of responses exceeds a couple hundred, the page slows to a crawl.

Am I just imagining it, or were SSC open threads way more interesting a few years back?

Well, you can check, the old threads are still right there. From the last time I had this thought and checked, they were significantly better back then, but most of the comments were still meh. There are still some good comments on today's regular ACX posts, as seen in occasional 'highlights from the comments' posts.

I doubt the hidden ones are much better.

I think part of it is that he isn’t writing about the same topics as he used to so people who follow him now are following him for his newer interests around city planning and the like. Those people are less interesting than people who followed him back in the day when he was anonymous and willing to engage more controversial topics.

That's the question, right? Where do the interesting people hang out on the internet?

Where do the interesting people hang out on the internet?

If one knew, one would be there.

The substack move hurt, in that half the thread seems to antiseptic substack guys trying to grift.

Antiseptic?

I'm trying to capture the vibe of Twitter and substack and other social media personalities who feel super fake all the time... Who talk in this newscaster tone, always respectful and nice, Flanders like. The opposite of dick stretching I guess.

And the ACX threads in particular make them that way?

No, the move to substack did. Substack threads on popular substrate all feature people posing and posturing to try to get followers.

I thought that Substack was ACX threads' substrate. I also thought that ACX was always on it, and that the "move" was from the Slate Star Codex domain to the ACX Substack. I wasn't following things closely at the time. Thanks for clarifying.

Absolutely. They're awful now.

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