The state of software and the internet is insane.
Most websites are unfindable.
Every Google search is dominated by SEO marketers.
The internet has lost its beauty in the fiasco of widespread adoption and has been immensely over-capitalized.
Apps can hang for seconds or minutes before we think "something's got to change".
People will spend 30 seconds on a loading screen without a thought.
People will scroll through mindless ads for hours.
People don't need what software is capable of.
People need stimulation.
And software is good at that.
But software could do so much more.
As time goes on, we see how fragile the situation is, and when a small event like a Reddit protest occurs, its impacts are catastrophic to the catalog of the internet.
When I was young, the internet was a place that sparked joy inside me. Now, browsing the internet is a chore. I'm older sure, but the entire experience is completely different.
Before, we had reasons to use Google past the first page. There were useful insights to be found where other people weren't looking. Now, it's complete garbage beyond the 3rd result. Quotes don't work in Google search now. You will never find a good website made by a real human.
Before, using 4chan and Reddit meant that someone was actively engaged and interested in the internet; usually through technology, politics, science, and also at least a little bit deranged. Now, using 4chan means that you are probably some subset of obnoxious, racist, extreme, or otherwise untenable for society. Now, using Reddit means you are probably a nerd. Not a nerd in the interesting way, a nerd in the normie way.
The people were more interesting. The content was more interesting. The world was more interesting.
When someone wanted to learn how to play League of Legends, they have to learn:
All the roles
All the champions
All the abilities
All the runes
All the matchups
This absurd amount of required upfront reading leads to people not being interested in picking up the game as a new player. Its underlying systems are too complex. Nobody wants to do that. And when the game has a problem with toxicity in its matches, nobody is willing to put up with BOTH an intense community and an ever-increasingly difficult game.
This seems to be what is happening to the internet.
People are not learning anything about the underlying technology, they are merely adopting it. People are increasingly divided. People are increasingly intolerant of opposition.
What happens when the internet becomes this complicated, overdone mess of systems?
Has it already happened?
Are our people becoming more toxic? Is our "Internet community" becoming more intense? I think the answer is certainly yes.
How more unusable can our internet get before it causes damage to society, or loses its utility?
Let me know what you think in the comments. As always, thanks for reading.