mookulator

Is it bad Lemmy etiquette to “pollute” the All feed of a niche instance?

https://lemmy.world/post/1313288

Is it bad Lemmy etiquette to “pollute” the All feed of a niche instance? - LemmyWorld

I heard that the All feed aggregates content from all communities that instance members have subscribed to, meaning if I subscribe to a new community, it’ll start showing up in everyone else’s All feed. Let’s suppose I have an account on an instance with a particular thematic focus. Should I avoid subscribing to communities outside of that theme, in order to preserve the purity of their All feed?

Jul 10, 2023 at 7:01pmWeb
Show threadErkJul 10, 2023
Nah. That’s what Local is for
Show threadHangingFruitJul 10, 2023
100%. If the owner doesn’t want specific content there, he can always defederate
Show threadRotaryKeyboardJul 10, 2023
If you did this, you would prevent your fellow instance users from subscribing to content they are interested in. That wouldn’t be very neighborly.
Show threadLaurelRerunJul 10, 2023
I would say that it’s too early for anyone to know what a more solidified etiquette will be. So for now just do whatever you want so long as you pay attention to any changes in public opinion or rule changes.
Show threadCountVonJul 10, 2023

If an instance allows anyone to sign up then I think they need to tolerate those users having different tastes and interests, within reason. Most instances have policies against illegal content, and many don’t allow porn. Defederation is the tool instance admins can use to prevent subscriptions to content they don’t want to host. Other than that, if other users don’t want to see certain content, they can simply not subscribe to it and avoid the All feed. Personally I like browsing All precisely because it shows me things I didn’t know about, and might be interested in.

Currently there’s no way for users or instance admins to block specific communities. I hope that will be made available at some point, so content blocking can be done at a more granular level and defederation can be reserved for more extreme cases. Instance admins would be free to curate their All feed if that’s what they want to do. Users would be free to pick an instance that suits them, possibly one with a heavily curated feed or instead choose one that hosts a broad array of content. A broad array of content is much less likely to be an issue if you users block at the community level so they don’t have to see it.

Show threadmookulatorJul 10, 2023
Thanks. I think it is possible for users to block communities one at a time! I can do it in Memmy
Show threadCountVonJul 10, 2023
Ahh I think you’re right, I got it mixed up. Users can block communities, it’s whole instances that they can’t block. Only instance admins can do that, via defederation.
Show threadAviandelight Jul 10, 2023
I think it’s a good idea to be cognizant about visiting other communities that are not in your home instance. Most people enjoy seeing new things and ideas within reason. I would say that as long as you aren’t embarrassed by announcing to the community your own personal interests then go for it. And if it is something you would be embarrassed to share them maybe make an alt account on that instance for your own personal use.
Show threadVanillaDrinkJul 10, 2023
The All Feed show you all communities from all instances. Whether you are subscribed to them or not. The Local Feed shows you all communities from your instance. Whether you are subscribed to them or not. The Home Feed shows you only communities you are subscribed to. This includes any communities you follow from other instances.
Show threadkiwifoxtrotJul 10, 2023
Not quite, the All feed shows you all posts from all communities subscribed to on your instance. If there isn’t a user subscribed, it isn’t pushed to that instance.
Show threadVanillaDrinkJul 10, 2023
Oh! That’s interesting. Thanks for clearing that up. :)
Show threadAnomanderJul 10, 2023

So that one subscription is effectively how 'my' instance becomes aware any specific community off-instance, in order to check for posts there?

That both makes sense and is rather counterintuitive at the same time.

Show threadtjJul 10, 2023
It is indeed. Main consequence of this is that if you join a new or small instance, you will see less of the fediverse without actively seeking it
Show threadKichaeJul 10, 2023

I think it becomes pretty intuitive if you can hold in your mind the model of each instance as a totally separate, independent website with no inherent ties to any other.

The problem is, everything here kind of vaguely looks like a place we're used to being a single website, and each instance looks more or less like each other, so that sense of independence and difference is lost. But if you think of it like, I don't know, Facebook or something like that having the possibility of communicating with mydumbwebsite.com, it becomes a lot clearer that that communication needs to be initiated somehow.

Show threadyancyJul 10, 2023
How can I see all feeds on all instances?
Show threadsnooggumsJul 10, 2023
If you are on a popular instance where everyone else has subscribed to other instances you might get lucky!
Show threadtrashcanJul 10, 2023
You can do that on liftoff app
Show threadJackbyDevJul 10, 2023
No, it is fine, if people want to see the local thematic focus they have the Local view.
Show threadstaticJul 10, 2023

If it's a real instance? No problem, deal with it!

In the futute I expect there would be spam instances with fake upvotes, yes those should be banned.

Show threadWolf Link 🐺Jul 10, 2023

Personally I think it’s even the opposite. What Lemmy needs is more interesting content and interaction, whether it’s “niche” or not, and making content more visible to others spreads awareness so to speak. Deliberately holding back your own interests just because it could inconvenience someone else on the internet IF they sort their feed in a specific way … that’s counter-productive both for the site as a whole and your own spare time / interests in particular. Just subscribe to whatever community you want.

Especially if it’s something niche that would not get much traffic otherwise.

Show threadLithJul 10, 2023
Agreed - I want to come across as many communities as possible while I build my subscription list. I’d prefer if I could see all communities everywhere, but with the system the way it is, the next best thing is for everyone to subscribe to as many communities as possible. Please subscribe to anything you want!
Show threadtotallynotarobotJul 11, 2023
I like discovering new communities and content through other people, but I will say y’all need to lay off the furry porn.
Show threadMargot RobbieJul 11, 2023
I block NSFW on Lemmy.
Show threadwriteblankspaceJul 14, 2023
No. In fact, you’re helping your instance. If people don’t want to see your niche instance, they gotta get out of the All feed and go back to their Home.