Forget growth, lets enjoy what we have

https://lemmy.world/post/90612

Forget growth, lets enjoy what we have - Lemmy.world

There is a huge emphasis I see on just growing community size and creating an alternative to reddit. Back in the day we used to hang out in irc chats with 5-10 active users or forums with few thousand users max. I made friends there I visted across countries. Years after Id log in and people would ask how you’ve been. I had a reddit account for over 10 years and I dont think a single person would recognize my username. Its always felt like people aren’t talking to you but trying to appeal to the whole audience for points. Reddit exploits our psychology for attention but nothing humane is gained there. The super massive “community” ends up as a void where 99% of posts go completely unseen and any discussions suffer heavily from mod mentalities. If this a place where even just ten people call home but feel good doing so, that is more good than a million being miserable. Maybe the best alternative is not to be reddit altogether.

The longer ive stayed off reddit, the more I have grown the love the benifits of Lemmy. Discussions are civil, the vibe is a lot more chill and if anything, it invites users to participate. I wasn't sure if I would manage to avoid reddit given how addicted I was to it. Suddenly, I feel like I've found a better place...

Honestly, both sides of the coin have merits. A quiet place where people recognise each other is perfect for making friends, but bigger communities collect more information and participation. It'll be significantly less personal, but it has its upsides.

Lemmy does deel a lot better than Reddit though, I have to agree :D

I was just going to say this! I follow a few subreddits that involve a lot of theories and sharing of video game information. Those would be absolutely gutted/non-existent with a small community because discoveries would be too slow to maintain interest for most.
The gaming instance on beehaw is picking up steam! But yeah it will take some time before it's able to compete with r/gaming but I am here for it!