Not webdev related compared to all my posts, but still related to the internet. Surely enough by now, most of us feel bogged down by algorithms on various platforms that it starts to affect us mentally. You could go cold turkey, but you might need them for work, family, or even just staying connected to things you're interested in. The internet has become a vital part of our lives and there's been a lot of discussion on how we can manage our habits, especially with the youth. I've been interested in creating healthier online habits for a good while now.
A few instances of what I've tried so far:
Grayscaling - Changing the colour scheme of a site/app/etc. To black and white makes it more boring to look at.
Site blockers- Extensions and programs that can block access to domains. You may also have the option to set a time limit.
Detoxing - Uninstall the app for X period of time or set limits to when you can access it.
If you've never heard of these ^ try them out. But if you're like me, chances are these didn't work. My brain is too cheeky to realize I'm intentionally setting limits and will try to mitigate them somehow, losing the effectiveness of the method. Most of social media and the internet is like crack, and you'd probably do anything to get your hands on it. So I'm trying to find ways on how I can make things a little easier for me.
In this post I'm starting with the desktop version of YouTube, because I use the PC version more than my phone. This is what has worked with me so far. TLDR: Download an extension that redirects YouTube to your subscribers section. Note: This isn't the extension I personally use, but I've seen it being recommended often.
Double note: None of what I link are part of any sponsorships or anything. The reason I'm writing this is because we're way past the realization of how social media rewires our brain that it's come to the point of government intervention. Whether that's good or not depends on who you ask, but I think it would be good for us to take in some accountability ourselves and try to use the tools we're offered better than how we currently use it. I've been into privacy and social media use for a couple years now that I've cut back a lot, but these things are a lot more integrated in my life than I'd like to admit, especially for communication and work. So it's impossible to go off-the-grid compared to what some people suggest.
Approximately a month ago, I noticed I got sucked into rabbit holes with the algo because of my home feed. I don't have any particular YouTubers I like to watch compared to when I was younger, but it's the content that gets me engaged, because there's always something that's related to what I could be remotely intrigued by, and the format is always kept fresh. Be it a video essay, meme, official content, etc. Either way, really hard to stop. But then I wondered, what if I could create my own algorithm? How would one do this?
It begins with your subscribers.
In my experience, I started to see a lot less of who I'm subscribed to compared to the humongous amount of content I get from other people I never knew before. A lot of social media likes to act like this. You have to actively click on the subscriptions tab to see everything from the people you sub. But if I'm being honest, that's so much work, even if it's about navigating to just one button. I just want to watch what I want easily without rotting my brain. So I looked for a way that could somehow make this easier, if I can just view my subscribers page only. Turns out there are extensions (Chrome Only) for that. And it made a whole world of difference to finally cut out all the fat.
If you want to take it further (which is probably easier if you don't have favourite people to watch), you can do a complete detox and clear out your entire subscribers list using extensions like the above. This'll leave you with nothing but the search bar to get to where you want. Alternatively, you can now start to consciously choose who to subscribe to and see if their content is worth watching, or if it's time to shut the door and move on to new content.
Doing this really helped me watch more consciously. Do I watch any of my subscribed channels extensively? Nope. What I've done is subscribe to channels I vaguely know about that cover a variety of interests. So I can dip in if I feel like it. But more importantly, it just helps remove a lot of clutter and just watch specific things by searching them up, and then hopping off. If I really want something new, the sidebar of recommended videos are still there whenever you watch any video in general. You can also remove that via extensions if you wish. The one I hyperlinked is known to be a complete package in removing all kinds of features on YouTube that you may not want. I'm not on that level yet so I haven't tried it myself, but this is the one that's been recommended.
I found myself being able to watch long form content more often and stay more engaged with it. Even if I seek the algorithm with the sidebar, everything just feels much more intentional now rather than trying to numb my brain with noise and images. Granted I don't have Youtubers that I like so much to watch their videos a lot. This would be sort of different if it was the other way around; but this is what's worked for me! I'd love to know if anyone else has tried cutting back on YouTube or any other social media and what has or has not worked for you. Feel free to drop a comment in the comments section. :D