Has anyone quit using social media?

Dropped Facebook years ago.
Twitter once or twice a week for news and customer service.
LinkedIn once or twice a month
STW!

Dropping Facebook was freeing.

If anyone on here answers “yes”, they’re a liar 😂

I only use Facebook and Strava also. Personally I've moved through my phase of thinking Facebook is toxic and have joined a lot of Facebook interest groups (mushrooms, fermenting, horticulture etc) and have a core of groups that are well run and full of helpful, positive people with any snipping quickly shut down. Yes I can waste time on there but it's only when I've got time to waste. If I had more exciting or important things to do I'd be doing those. I also love the memories and have family and friends across the globe who occasionally post up pictures so it's nice to see a bit of their worlds.

Also I enjoy photography and find it a useful place to store my photos and share with friends. Could just as easily be Instagram but I had Facebook 1st and don't want both.

If anyone on here answers “yes”, they’re a liar 😂

Pretty much exactly the same words went through my mind when I saw the thread title.

My wife has never used it.

I’ve reduced Twitter use recently - taken app off phone and so on.

This has given me much more time to waste on here do constructive things.

In my pretty curated social media 'portfolio' tbh STW is probably my most toxic location - both in terms of what I read and what I type! I come here less and less and can see a point where I don't at all.

The remainder is very placid - FB is just actual real life friends (with those that post drivel weeded out) and some groups for various interests mostly unfollowed so I can dip in if I need/want to. Most of my friends live hundreds or thousands of miles away - whilst I very rarely post anything it keeps me in touch with what they are up to. And on insta I follow exclusively landscape photographers and go there once in a while for some serenity.

I have a LinkedIn account but can't remember when I last went on.

Never visited Twitter or had a twitter account so can't even flounce off because of Musk. I consume my twitter output in quotes in news articles.

My Strava is on private setting so my activities are not posted and my home page is directly to only me, so the way I use it there is no social media aspect to its function.

To an extent your social media experience is in your own hands. I do find it a bit befuddling when people complain about what they see or the time it wasted. The blame for that lays with you.

The blame for that lays with you.

True, but the same applies to being overweight, unfit, addicted to computer games, alcohol, junk food, gambling etc. Excessive social media use is an addiction for many, deliberately driven by platform algorithms.  Some are prone to it, some can resist it but have other weaknesses.  And a lucky few, often found on STW, have no addictions, weaknesses or character flaws.

STW only regular use. Have twitter buy only so I can actually see stuff folks on here post. I never post or just go on there on its own. Dropped FB years ago. Not on LinkedIn or anything else. Do I miss out? Nope. YMMV

I have mulled with the idea of binning facebook, but despite the dross it helps me keep in touch with friends and family scattered across the globe and has even put me back in touch with army mates I'd lost contact with decades ago.  I'm also in a few hobby type groups which are useful.  I have a rule of not accepting a friend request from anyone I don't know and like in real life, and even then they get culled if they post nonsense.  I did lose a few spouting Covid conspiracy garbage, but I'd still have a beer with them if we met up.

Nope.

Twitter - follow tons of good science and tech. I’ll miss it if it goes south.
Insta - mostly friends and good photographers.
Facebook - using less as seems to just push suggested content rather than friends posts/content
LinkedIn - new job and industry sector so using it quite a bit.

As above, if your feed is toxic, take a step back and look at what you are liking and interacting with.

deliberately driven by platform algorithms.

I get the addiction aspect......but I'm not seeing this algorithm element personally. Is it that my use is so tied down and minimal that there is nothing much for the AI to grab on to....or am I blind to what's appearing to the left/right/top of the stuff Id expect to be there (because I chose for it to be there by liking/friending etc)? Whichever way, I don't find myself going down social media rabbit holes. I listen to Americast (the new version) and they have 5 fake profiles mimicking different types of US personality (a maga, a lefty democrat, a conspiracy theory type etc etc) and often discuss what's coming up in their feeds. I have profound views and the only thing that sneaks into mine are Scottish Green Party posts and I think that's probably because I liked them a while back. None I my friends post or share anything political - My social media feed away from here is devoid of politics. Almost an oasis of nice stuff - I
go to the websites of the traditional media for my daily dose of world misery. What makes mine so vanilla, and others so echo chambery? It can only be because you want it to be (or think you do until you don't).

I post on STW and Bearbones Bikepacking. I only use FB for some interest groups I'm in for meet ups/local news/roads information; I don't post. Also have a small array of YouTubers I follow related to my interests but don't comment.

I used to post lots on FB, have a blog and my own YouTube channel, but no more and took it all down, and quite happy with that. Never got interested in twitter or Instagram.

I use here and facebook.  My facebook is a nice place full of support and fun.

I have a twitter account and linkdin that i never use

 my social media feed away from here is devoid of politics. What makes mine so vanilla, and others so echo chambery?

It doesn't have to be politics that gets people addicted to social media. It might be whatever interests them, sport, celebrity 'news', fashion, reality TV or whatever.  Then some Z list celebrity shares some conspiracist bollox and people who follow them start believing it and their feed fills up with it.

I agree, you can have a fairly bland feed and take control of it to a degree, but you have to be proactive and a bit savvy to do that. Lots of people aren't.  The platform providers don't help them and don't want to.

In my pretty curated social media ‘portfolio’ tbh STW is probably my most toxic location

I'm not surprised coming out with crap like that. I'll bet you don't talk like that in real life.

I have Twitter and Insta and here. You can check on use and I've used Twitter for  about 20mins yesterday and Insta for 18mins. I got rid of FB it was just too pants (insta is going the same way with the amount of adverts shoved into the timeline) and Twitter is just some fun. Was on Strava but it was getting to be a drag, and was effecting the way I was biking, so binned it.

Edit: My wife has also never used any SM.

I’m not surprised coming out with crap like that

In what way is it crap? Do you struggle with words that try to distill a concept/process?

But to take that quote as an example, it's picky arsy twonks that can't help themselves but make snarky comments that's gives internet interactions a whiff of bile. Normally made by people who get ignored in real life, looking for an outlet.

I quit Twitter some years ago, probably after the Brexit nonsense as it got too toxic and I decided making myself angry on purpose wasn't healthy. Back on it now with a more relaxed attitude but the shift to forcing right wing nut jobs content on me is making me think it needs binning again.

Dip in and out of FB but my feed seems to have matured away from everyone arguing to old mates updating on their lives, as it should be. I could delete it and not be bothered though.

Got Insta but rarely look.

Regularly come on here, Retrobike, Tamiyaclub and a Leeds forum but that's about it.

In what way is it crap? Do you struggle with words that try to distill a concept/process?

But to take that quote as an example, it’s picky arsy twonks that can’t help themselves but make snarky comments that’s gives internet interactions a whiff of bile. Normally made by people who get ignored in real life, looking for an outlet.

Well this escalated quickly! Can you not see how your original post and that response could be viewed as confrontation and not that friendly? This place is the only form of social media I use and other than the occasional thread it’s a supportive, friendly and fun place to be. Of course it’s a bit grumpy and socially awkward in places, 95% of posters are middle aged, middle class IT workers 😂

Not quit, but pared down.

Instagram - only via a web browser not app, very infrequently.

Facebook - very rarely look in and only at the in-app notifications from select friends, I never scroll the feed.

LinkedIn - quite a lot of the content is fairly useful/ interesting for my job I find, so probably once a week.

Twitter is far to easy to get bothered by angry twonks, so I don't use.

Here, obvs.

Can you not see how your original post and that response could be viewed as confrontation and not that friendly?

You seem to be under the misapprehension that it was intended in any other way!!😀

As I said this place is probably the most toxic and conformational place I visit on the internet in what I read and what I write. I presume he saw an image of himself in my original post's pushing back that consumers are always the victims but instead are often the architects of what they consume. Whatever....

Instagram more than anything. When I was at college our course tutor (who was also our photography lecturer) drilled into us that we should take loads of photos all the time. At the time this involved carrying around an SLR and spending lots of time in dark rooms (yes, I'm that old)

The fact that I can now carry a decent quality camera around in my pocket is IMHO the greatest asset to life that technology has delivered for me personally. I post on instagram all the time, and follow my mates and others who are both prolific and damn good photographers.

I find it interesting that my teenage daughters also use Instagram loads but consider FB and Twitter as platforms for us old people

I use Twitter and FB more for business than personal stuff as they're still useful for getting my stuff out there.

Linkedin? Isn't that just there for recruitment consultants to spam people

Reduced mine a lot . My FB account was hacked. After that,my use went down a lot , and would be zero bar local glimbing group info. Linkedin is awful, and insta a nice place to look pictures, but not much else.

'I have profound views ' - no ego then 🙂

‘I have profound views ‘ – no ego then

Not in the slightest 😀. I would describe anyone who has a definite political leaning, opinion on the existence of God and climate science and is passionate about if a Jaffa cake is a cake or a biscuit, as having 'profoundly held' views. If you are middle of the road agnostic political flip flopper who can quaff a Jaffa without a care, then maybe not.

Just here and LinkedIn. Dropped FaceBook because it was just full of crap and adverts. Had twitter, but it's a cesspit. People post well meaning things and then the trolls arrive. LinkedIn much better, genuine sense of community. Here is a time killer, but I don't mind that, between reading the articles in the magazine.

Don't you be taking the Jaffa Cake's name in vain. I know your mum.

bar local glimbing group info.

I hope this isn’t a typo and there’s a new niche sport to be discovered!

I hope this isn’t a typo and there’s a new niche sport to be discovered!

Glamorous climbing?

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I've not had the apps on my phone for about 6 months and that has made a massive difference. I follow groups I am interested in on FB but never post anything on my own timeline. Have never posted on Twitter but used to follow journalists I like, never ever read the replies though! I suspect I'll bin twitter in the next few days as most people I follow are posting less and moving away.

Have never used Insta or any other social media other than this forum

Not having the apps on my phone is the biggest step change for me. It prevents scrolling by habit.

Facebook is the lowest common denominator. I use it 'socially' because everyone else does, though that's quietly getting supplanted by things like WhatsApp or Discord for organisational purposes. That said, I'm a member of a number of groups whose content I'd miss.

I've been on Twitter forever, though I'm quietly migrating to Mastodon since Muskrat took over.

LinkedIn seems to be a way of attracting parasites hawking CVs unsolicited at people. I just checked my emails for the most recent update from them:

"Mateen is waiting for your response
Supply Chain Project Coordinator at Baxi Heating"

Wait on, sunshine.

Never bothered with Instagram, I looked at it when it first came out and it seemed to be a way of making photos look shit so I never went back.

And of course, the irony of posting about quitting social media, on social media....

As above, if your feed is toxic, take a step back and look at what you are liking and interacting with.

This 100%.

Edit: My wife has also never used any SM.

You could start slowly, maybe a blindfold or some soft rope.

Can you not see how your original post and that response could be viewed as confrontation and not that friendly?

My carefully curated FB feed with Purity running, on the other hand, is an oasis of friendly, interesting & informative content.

Don’t do anything else bar select WhatsApp groups for organising stuff & bantz.

Just this place and Strava. I binned off my Facebook account about 6months after it came out and never bothered with anything else.

I think I’m probably well below low average on social media use and it’s purely because I just don’t feel like it’s a constructive use of my time and updating feeds just feels like another job to me that I could do without. Im not particularly bothered if people know what I have or haven’t been up to.

I don’t have really strong or militant views on it though. I totally get why people use it and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t missing out on some stuff- it’s cool to see photos of a wedding or stag do afterwards and I have mates living abroad whose lives are now I’m sure much more of a mystery to me than if I was on Facebook or whatever.

Overall though I feel like the time I (rightly or wrongly) get back from mostly not having it is worth it.

Perhaps more controversially, I feel like anyone who thinks that the various algorithms are somehow not affecting then or the output they see are kidding themselves tbh. It’s definitely a two way street in my opinion, however careful you might curate your feeds.

I honestly think in 100 years or whatever people will think we were nuts to have a totally unregulated web, the sane way it seems crazy that people could just drive around without a seatbelt years ago.

You could start slowly, maybe a blindfold or some soft rope.

😆😆😆

I honestly think in 100 years or whatever people will think we were nuts to have a totally unregulated web

Yeah I take your point, not totally unregulated and I meant social media not the web really.

I’m sure you know what I mean though.

Never used fb or twitter.

STW only.
Deleted FB, Twitter, Linkedin and Instagram some time ago.
Use Facetime, Skype (yes) & WhatsApp for family contact only.

Yeah I take your point, not totally unregulated and I meant social media not the web really.

I’m sure you know what I mean though.

SM is great for Karens and moon-howlers. It gives them access to a bigger audience, but it's no different to when they make a fool of themselves in town-centres up and down the country on a daily basis albeit to a much more limited audience.

Don't bother with Twitter as any decent content gets swallowed up by cry-babies and mentalists.
Facebook is a free photo storage site, but the forced content get's tiring.
IG is grand as it's MTB/Dogs/People doing stupid stuff.
I know there's TikTok but can't be bothered.

The biggest problem I see with Facebook and Twitter is that there is no User Manual. That means folk just accept the defaults and then don't know how to interact with them to maximise their enjoyment and minimise the unwanted spam. To an extent, the same could be same about this place 😉

But I also see this same issue with other platforms. Take Zwift as an example. They introduced the Holoreplay feature and explained a little about it - but only if you subscribed to the emails. Going on to the Zwift forum, it was possible to learn a bit more about it. However, most folk didn't bother reading any of the explanations and you end up with a constant stream of folk asking questions about these "odd ghost riders". Maybe it's just a symptom of the rate of change of all of these tech platforms that keeping up with it becomes such a necessity/chore.

I think in 30 years time, our children and grand children will look back at these days of unregulated SM in the same way we regard smoking in pubs and cars that didn't have seat-belts.

Some interesting posts and thoughts, I will read through them all over the weekend.

Can anyone tell me, if I uninstall FB from the mobile, can I still continue to use messenger?

That means folk just accept the defaults and then don’t know how to interact with them to maximise their enjoyment and minimise the unwanted spam.

That... and... the rules/settings/defaults keep being changed to counter people getting wise to using them to their advantage.