Facebook Alternative?
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Substack
I woke up this morning musing about The Facebook, and the love/hate relationship many have with it. And my own desire to share and comment on the many interesting things I see in my day, the random musings I have as I browse The Interwebs or relax on my balcony or people-watch in a pub. I try to share things on The Facebook, but like us all I am at the mercy of the algorithms as to who sees what. I know some friends would like to see my content more reliably, and join in the discussion, but I am frustrated in how I have little control over that connection.
It’s been compared to a river of information flowing past, with some gems in the midst of the garbage, but it’s not really a flow you watch, like Twitter. It’s more like a series of snapshots, taken now, of a selection of what’s been posted so far by friends, the public, by advertisers, a selection The Facebook has decided is appropriate for you. Meaning what will generate the most revenue for Them. It is like a river though, in the sense that a lot can flow by before you take another peek.
I know I have friends out there that try to follow my ramblings, and that often reply with thought provoking comments. And I in turn would like to engage with their content better. I’m not sure how to deal with the latter scenario, but I may be able to direct my own content better - via Substack. It’s basically a creation platform with access via a newsletter. And a growing community of other creators. There is an option to charge, but I think I might as well leave it as free. I'll give it a whirl. Comment policy will be the same as on my streams, “Don’t be a Jerk”.
I won’t abandon The Facebook, but I’ll see how this works in comparison. Pass on my info to any friends you think might be interested.
Thx for the comment. Yes, I won't be abandoning FB, but it is hard to get a good discussion going there. The issue is finding people that are interesting, posting a good discussion topic, and then relying on FB to ensure those people see your post. The last part id th weak link, and why I'm adding this in. There also is Discord, blogs, Google groups, and various discussion forums on specific sites. There also is sitting around a lounge or cafe discussing philosophy and politics, but that's mainly in the 1800's in Europe, so not much help.
BTW - if you get dumped into FaceBook jail, there are sites that sell buttons or patches, saying just that!
Hmm. Well, I may end up staying on FB to see photos and posts from friends and family there, but yes, there could be other interesting places to have discussions. Someplace, for example, that doesn't ban me for three days for 'offending community standards' by simply saying 'Americans are dumb' regarding support for a certain past President. I have seen so much worse than that of course, and finally they changed their mind: whoever 'they' was.