Withdrawing from social media!

[Data]

Just thinking out loud really! Ok, so it's not as bad as it sounds. But recently I've been thinking I'm spending far too long on various websites. I moderate too...still! I've tried to let go of the mod job several times and succeeded for just a few weeks at a time. The site I moderate is a professional auto engineering site and you need to know stuff to be able to effectively mod it. You'd see what I mean if you saw the site. They have had trouble getting folks to do it so I got stuck with it. But at last I have been able to give it up for good. Then I started looking at other sites I contribute to and thought I'd just say "goodbye" because the reason I joined was to learn about certain bikes and other stuff. But you tend to stay around...don't you...long after you become knowledgeable about the subject. Usually it's quite good fun, and it has been on some sites. But after 11,12 or 15years of fielding questions and giving answers I started to think I've actually got better things to do. You get the same old questions over and over again because some folks don't know how to do a proper search to find the answers. And that's ok I guess, but it does get a bit boring. And the one thing I've learned is that time is precious as you get older. Yet another of my close friends keeled over last week and he was only just a tad older than me. Known him for 40 years.

At this point I'll just mention I'm not talking about this site. You're stuck with me for now! Since retirement I do find I have quite a bit of stuff to do. And I love it...being retired that is! I do have more time to ride the bike (don't need much excuse to do that). But after totting up the amount of time I spend on various websites I was pretty amazed to find I was spending 18-20hrs a week doing modding and contributing to all these sites. Can't go on I thought. It's too much of a tie especially the mod work. Dunno how you mod guys on here do it by the way.

Anyhoo, not leaving here as it's good fun and we have such a nice bunch of guys on here. Not aware of any girls though. Do we need to start doing a recruitment drive for girls?;)

[horobags]

feel a bit the same sometimes Data. It can get a bit much, and I spend far too much time on F/B. But,, waking up on a wet sunday morning I'd rather be reading two wheel owners ramblings than political ramblings on BBC1. I find F/B can be interesting and educational some of the time. The thing about social media is that Joe Public can post almost whatever they want , and there hasn't been a filter invented for narrow mindedness' yet, so youv'e just got to learn to ignore a lot of the shit that is posted..

[Funkycowie]

I have been reducing my social media usage too, I run this place so can't avoid it. Most social media is used to find info on crypto, computing, or 3D printing, I rarely contribute. I do watch too much youtube though, I start by looking for a tutorial or something and end up falling down random rabbit holes.

[Data]

Scuse me Horobags....just ignoring you... No...not really. Yes, the shitty things don't bother me. It's just the time factor really. I just hadn't realised how much time I was spending onscreen until I totted it up. I do Facebook but only for manufacturers sites. I don't get involved in daily chit chat. I do spend a significant amount of time building computers and writing code, something I've done for 30 years. But cutting down my web time will make a big difference. Hey ho!

[Data]

I have been reducing my social media usage too, I run this place so can't avoid it. Most social media is used to find info on crypto, computing, or 3D printing, I rarely contribute. I do watch too much youtube though, I start by looking for a tutorial or something and end up falling down random rabbit holes.

Yep exactly Peter. Those darn rabbit holes always get ya! I must say though, you have an excellent site here. Far better than many others I've been on.

[horobags]

I just look at shiney new bikes most of the time!!

[Rocketman122]

good youre not leaving here

if youre talking about forums, thats one thing. I come and go to a few specific ones. but social media...the ones that track, data mine, sell it, then force the advertisements on you...yea, Im so happy I gave it the boot. I only had FB. im so happy im not in that bad loop. its fake and toxic.

the last year I used it for the classifieds, contacting companies for CS, and to ask a specific question in a group. but im free

next is to boot google completely. ive been doing a good job with that but moving to pinephone to be rid of android.

I want less engadgement and intereaction with my phone. its annoying as hell. people are slaves to it. a phone controls people. not the other way around

how was your surgery? you bouncing back?

[roadster]

As Rocketman says there is a big difference between the instant messaging to all and sundry such as facebook etc. and the sensibly moderated forums such as this one. I really appreciate the environment where forum members can write intelligently without too much fear of the toxic and malicious minorities who are now plaguing general social media. This does depend on people such as yourself maintaining both the software/system and the moderating. So a big thanks to you and all who help.

[Data]

As Rocketman says there is a big difference between the instant messaging to all and sundry such as facebook etc. and the sensibly moderated forums such as this one. I really appreciate the environment where forum members can write intelligently without too much fear of the toxic and malicious minorities who are now plaguing general social media. This does depend on people such as yourself maintaining both the software/system and the moderating. So a big thanks to you and all who help.

Exactly. This is a great site and well run. As some of you guys know I've been on a well known Vespa site. I've been there for around 11yrs. It's a great site but in the opinion of many it's vastly over moderated. I share that view. It seems a member may start a technical request for information; we all answer yet suddenly because seemingly a mod doesn't like to hear the science because it conflicts with modern mythology, they close the thread down. Usually there hasn't been any conflict or anything you might construe as conflict. Often they do this incase their is conflict but in doing so stop a valuable process. They seem to ban many people often without any proper basis. You cannot of course complain. I've never been banned but did get ejected once from a thread because I was explaining how oil chemistry works. So because I was explaining the actuality of proven science they thought it best to eject me as this could cause conflict amongst others who prefer to believe that the world is flat! Yeah, go figure! I was flooded with emails and some pm's about that from other outraged members who wondered what the heck was going on as they wanted information, proper information. So I sent them all the information by email so they could see the facts. But that was a request for information that didn't get fully answered in the public domain. To my knowledge nothing like that happens here. We are extended considerable privilege here to keep things ok.

[Data]

good youre not leaving here

if youre talking about forums, thats one thing. I come and go to a few specific ones. but social media...the ones that track, data mine, sell it, then force the advertisements on you...yea, Im so happy I gave it the boot. I only had FB. im so happy im not in that bad loop. its fake and toxic.

the last year I used it for the classifieds, contacting companies for CS, and to ask a specific question in a group. but im free

next is to boot google completely. ive been doing a good job with that but moving to pinephone to be rid of android.

I want less engadgement and intereaction with my phone. its annoying as hell. people are slaves to it. a phone controls people. not the other way around

how was your surgery? you bouncing back?

Yeah, thanks Rocketman. I've had some surgery but elected first for a more minor op to find out how serious my spinal issue is. In fact just got my official results and it's actually not as bad as the MRI shows. It's already healing to some degree which almost never happens. Surgeon wants to see if we can avoid bigger op by waiting a bit longer. All good so far.