• bmsok@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      8
      ·
      10 months ago

      StumbleUpon was my jam. I could procrastinate my homework for HOURS with that toolbar!

      The temptation to explore felt real. Not like clickbait.

      It was that wonderful time on the internet where you got the chance to enrich your knowledge without having an algorithm force stuff on you because it thinks it knows what you like.

      I love being surprised and love learning new things. The algorithms, AI, and SEO have stripped all of that curiosity and discovery away.

      • UNWILLING_PARTICIPANT@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        6
        ·
        10 months ago

        StumbleUpon was incredible. I actually engaged with the larger internet, rather than mostly sticking to the kiddy pool of comment sections. It’s actually where I met my longtime partner, and now very good friend, so it had “real world” implications for me as well

        I love being surprised and love learning new things. The algorithms, AI, and SEO have stripped all of that curiosity and discovery away.

        I feel this as well. Everything I see or read now is accompanied by the slight suspicion that I’m reading fake content. Like is this picture or article something that another human put time and effort into, because they were trying to communicate something, or is it just generated based on what will garner eyeballs?