#algorithm sucks sometimes

[strange0-0storm]

Hey uhh... I just wanted to talk about the fact I posted my first art on Tumblr and I can't find it in the related hashtags (it was smg4 and smg34) there are a few other people that have the same problem I won't say that I have a great art but the fact that it only got one like made me depressed (I just want senpai to notice me lmao)

I think I've noticed this happened too a couple people, I hate that tumblr isn't pushing your posts, sometimes algorithms SUCK. Seeing posts on tags are so weird and I hate how it's not showing up for you :(

ALSO HELP SENPAI. THATS A NEW ONE

HI HELLOOO‼️‼️👋👋👋

[nymika-arts]

the real reason why tumblr is my favourite social media is people actually interact with the things I create here lmao. I post on any other app and most of the time even people I know don't stop long enough to drop a like on it

[possessed-paranoia]

Whenever I come across transfem selfies on accounts that exist solely for making fun of people, I can’t help but worry, wonder, if she’s okay. Or if she even knows what’s happened.

This world is too cruel.

[flayedflesh]

is there still hope for me

[olberic]

a crucial and often overlooked part of the social media experience is the need to see posts from ppl about things you do not care about. do not misconstrue my words because im not talking about giving bigots a platform. im talking about following ppl who never shut up about a game i never want to play. people who post about their oc for a manga ive never read. fan artists who you have no idea what the hell theyre drawing but you like their style. vaguely horny artists who have kinks i dont understand. people who post about bands from the 70s as if theyre still together and on tour. people who are obsessed with poetry when youve never found a poem you really feel. like sometimes you gotta follow somebody totally at random just for the enrichment and see where it takes you.

[xxswagcorexx]

thinking about that ashswag testrun ep......

[tobeyno]

it’s funny cause when you post stuff you actually like posting you get 6 notes tops but when you decide to cater to a fandom you like it becomes your top post

[takenakamomozou]

i hate the tiktokification of social media. like why is there a swipe up feature on twitter videos too. instagram too. me falling into an adhd trap after accidentally clicking on the reels tab

[kaleviaz]

My art is a lil all over the place with themes but it could use some love. ;u; Thank you for this opportunity. <3

If you're an artist and are having trouble building followers, especially if you're new on tumblr or back after leaving, reblog this with some of your art. It will be visible to everyone checking the notes. Everyone keep checking the notes and follow whoever puts their cool art in them. People keep telling me I'm Tumblr famous so maybe this helps!

[theglitternet]

The problem with reblogging posts with takes about social issues is that you start getting ones that are either a) just straight up not relevant to me as a cis/white person at all (not in a idgaf way, in a “how do I even interact with this post” way) or b) just absolutely fucking awful. Just dreadful opinions

[medicinemane]

Oh, you're a youtube thumbnail?

Then why aren't you pointing at anything?

[milktian]

just found out some twitter accounts are spelling leaks like "l3aks" as if that doesn't completely ruin the purpose of muting a word. hate it here. I will kill them in armed combat /hj

[anika-ann]

Don't. Ruin. The. Good. Unique. Thing. About. This. App.

I'm begging you.

This. This is how you murder it. Tumblr is different in this and that's why it's still alive.

An open letter to @staff

I already submitted this to Support under "Feedback," but I'm sharing it here too as I don't expect it to get a response, and I feel like putting in out in public may be more effective than sending it off into the void.

The recent post on the Staff blog about changing tumblr to an algorithmic feed features a large amount of misinformation that I feel staff needs to address, openly and honestly, with information on where this data was sourced at the very least.

Claim 1: Algorithms help small creators.

This is false, as algorithms are designed to push content that gets engagement in order to get it more engagement, thereby assuring that the popular remain popular and the small remain small except in instances of extreme luck.

This can already be seen on the tumblr radar, which is a combination of staff picks (usually the same half-dozen fandoms or niche special interests like Lego photography) which already have a ton of engagement, or posts that are getting enough engagement to hit the radar organically. Tumblr has an algorithm that runs like every other socmed algorithm on the planet, and it will decimate the reach of small creators just like every other platform before it.

Claim 2: Only a small portion of users utilize the chronological feed.

You can find a poll by user @darkwood-sleddog here that at the time of writing this, sits at over 40 THOUSAND responses showing that over 96 percent of them use the chronological feed. Claiming otherwise isn't just a misstatement, it's a lie. You are lying to your core userbase and expecting them to accept it as fact. It's not just unethical, it's insulting to people who have been supporting your platform for over a decade.

Claim 3: Tumblr is not easy to use.

This is also 100% false and you ABSOLUTELY know it. Tumblr is EXTREMELY easy to use, the issue is that the documentation, the explanations of features, and often even the stability of the service is subpar. All of this would be very easy for staff to fix, if they would invest in the creation of walkthroughs and clear explanations of how various site features work, as well as finally fixing the search function. Your inability to explain how your service works should not result in completely ignoring the needs and wants of your core long-term userbase. The fact that you're more willing to invest in the very systems that have made every other form of social media so horrifically toxic than in trying to make it easier for people to use the service AS IT WORKS NOW and fixing the parts that don't work as well speaks volumes toward what tumblr staff actually cares about.

You will not get a paycheck if your platform becomes defunct, and the thing that makes it special right now is that it is the ONLY large-scale socmed platform on THE ENTIRE INTERNET with a true chronological feed and no aggressive algorithmic content serving. The recent post from staff indicates that you are going to kill that, and are insisting that it's what we want. It is not. I'd hazard to guess that most of the dev team knows it isn't what we want, but I assume the money people don't care. The user base isn't relevant, just how much money they can bring in.

The CEO stated he wanted this to remain as sort of the last bastion of the Old Internet, and yet here we are, watching you declare you intend to burn it to the ground.

You can do so much better than this.

[mollyjames]

The point shouldn't be to identify for sure 100% what is ai art and what isn't. I keep seeing posts advising one to look out for wonky perspective (as if perspective doesn't routinely trip up even the most experienced artists) or to pay attention to fudged detailing (as if impressionism wasn't one of the most influential artistic movements in history), and I think that's coming from a good place but frankly it's a losing battle. Remember when everyone was on about counting the fingers or counting the teeth, and a week later they had that shit ironed out completely? All you're really doing is giving these people more data points to work with to refine their algorithm. It's just going to be constantly shifting goalposts, and at a certain point real artists are going to get exhausted trying to make their art look as not algorithmically generated as possible. It'll be impossible to keep up.

So what should we do? Honestly, I think old practices are still best practices. Find real artists and follow them. Don't repost art, and dont spread reposted art. If something doesn't have a source, skip it. Support artists you like, either by sharing their work directly or donating. And if someone's work looks suspicious? Maybe give them a second look. See some of their other art before jumping to conclusions.

And yes, that means sometimes, you're gonna be tricked. Some people are going to fly under the radar and pass off ai art as their own. And that sucks, and they're liars, but you can't let the obsession with bad actors police real artists out of their communities, or discourage new artists from entering the scene.

[foxmulderautism]

also waking up realising I posted an excerpt that I didn’t really want to post in hindsight but it’s okay bc this sites algorithm is so fucking bad barely anyone saw it 👍

[letsreblogartstuff]

for the most part these days i don't get upset over how little engagement I get, but every now and then it does just kinda hit.

I've been drawing and posting almost consistently for years now; there's sometimes a lull where I take a break, but I always go back and get active again. I follow other artists, interact with them, am constantly drawing and working and posting - but on every single place where I post, I'm lucky if any sort of engagement manages to reach double digits. on here I'm lucky if I get one like, even with the amount of people who clearly followed for the art.

been three years of working on original art and it just feels like im trying to run up an endless, fast moving downwards escalator :''')