#because this genuinely set me off

[hamtigers]

I’ve been here around 12yrs, and when the first attempt at an algorithm was tried, I was among the majority that immediately turned that shit off Tumblr is a blogging site masquerading as a social media site. Not an actual social media site. Control over your feed is essential to keeping what it actually is. It is one of the last bastions of “old internet” where the user actually feels in control of their experience, rather than being fodder to generate clicks and ad revenue through and algorithm.  We like that we curate our feeds, that we get to actually SEE what the people we CHOSE TO FOLLOW are posting without it getting shuffled or drowned out by an algorithm-driven feed!! It’s not hard to figure out how to fill your dash - just search for things you like, browse someone’s blog, and if you like what you see give them a follow. But y’know, with making it increasingly difficult to view peoples actual blogs instead of the neutered mobile-friendly version lately, a lot of the individual user personality is being lost. I hate that I can’t use the little corner tab to direct link to a post on the desktop version of someone’s blog anymore, I have to use the share button that takes you to the mobile version unless I wanna dig thru the blog itself to find the post manually. If you’re so worried about new users not knowing how to use the site bc they’ve been raised on computers doing the thinking for them, then give new users a built in tour that explains the functions. Don’t change the #1 thing that has kept old users like me around, even during the great exodus of the NSFW ban. (Nowhere was better, bc it was all algorithmic fueled bullshit making it impossible to see what I wanted)  Hell, fix the search function if you want creators to be able to be found!! Searching and using followed tags (an old feature that got nuked btw) was how people USED to build communities on this site! People would even make up the most inane bullshit tags to use as a community because they’d all follow it and thus get notified when a friend posted something! (My old skype group used to use “responsible adult problems” since we all met thru this site) I don’t mind the idea of threads in the reply function tho. That’s honestly fine. I hate when someone @s me in a reply but it doesn’t fit in the notification, so I have to take a wild guess at what post it was on, find it, and then scroll thru the replies to see what they were trying to tell me. Which is hell on a viral post. So yes, communication via replies is legitimately clunky as it is if you’re not the OP.

Being able to mute notifications on a post so that you aren’t drowned when it gets popular is also good. And should’ve been made a feature a long time ago tbh. But man, I hate that tumblr live was brought up as an example of the path moving forward. Fuck tumblr live - let me disable it permanently instead of having to go un-toggle and re-toggle the snooze once a week. The reason people have so much vitriol towards it (myself included) is because it’s the first time a new feature has been introduced that felt invasive and forced. Normally whenever something new got rolled out, unless it changed a core aspect of the website like the formatting of the dashboard, users had to the option to switch it off. But tumblr live for some reason has this ‘temporary’ disable that if this is really the route this place is taking, I’m expecting to eventually not even have that option anymore. Fuck an algorithm trying to show me what “25″ posts it thinks I need to see instead of my actual dashboard. When twitter started going more aggressive w/ their algorithm because they wanted their ‘best stuff’ to be viewed first, all it did was hide art and personal posts from friends of mine that weren’t popular, and shunt everything that was already viral to the top of my feed. And then they started putting peoples likes on my feed, completely removing the point of having the difference between likes and retweets. And then it started putting shit that wasn’t even interacted with in my feed, because apparently twitter thinks that I want to see stuff from people I don’t follow just because someone I follow follows them. If I wanted to see it, I’d be following them too! It drives me insane! Literally the only reason I haven’t quit twitter entirely with the fall of tweetdeck (the only way for me to view that dumpster fire in chrono reliably) is because I follow a lot of artists and friends on there that aren’t here on tumblr and I have 0 interest in any other ‘alternatives’.

Hiding duplicate reblogs isn’t the worst thing at surface level, except when you remember that a huge part of the culture here is “talking in the tags”. I personally find an appeal in seeing me and my mutuals all getting excited over the same post, but I can see where that would be redundant to others. So personally, I would want that to be a feature that could be enabled if you choose, not something forced on me. TL;DR if you really are so worried about the new user experience you better make goddamn sure that any changes can be PERMANENTLY opted out of by your existing users. Otherwise you’re going to drive away long-time users, especially those in fandom spaces, in favor of gambling on new ones.

Tumblr’s Core Product Strategy

Here at Tumblr, we’ve been working hard on reorganizing how we work in a bid to gain more users. A larger user base means a more sustainable company, and means we get to stick around and do this thing with you all a bit longer. What follows is the strategy we're using to accomplish the goal of user growth. The @labs group has published a bit already, but this is bigger. We’re publishing it publicly for the first time, in an effort to work more transparently with all of you in the Tumblr community. This strategy provides guidance amid limited resources, allowing our teams to focus on specific key areas to ensure Tumblr’s future.

The Diagnosis

In order for Tumblr to grow, we need to fix the core experience that makes Tumblr a useful place for users. The underlying problem is that Tumblr is not easy to use. Historically, we have expected users to curate their feeds and lean into curating their experience. But this expectation introduces friction to the user experience and only serves a small portion of our audience. 

Tumblr’s competitive advantage lies in its unique content and vibrant communities. As the forerunner of internet culture, Tumblr encompasses a wide range of interests, such as entertainment, art, gaming, fandom, fashion, and music. People come to Tumblr to immerse themselves in this culture, making it essential for us to ensure a seamless connection between people and content. 

To guarantee Tumblr’s continued success, we’ve got to prioritize fostering that seamless connection between people and content. This involves attracting and retaining new users and creators, nurturing their growth, and encouraging frequent engagement with the platform.

Our Guiding Principles

To enhance Tumblr’s usability, we must address these core guiding principles.

Expand the ways new users can discover and sign up for Tumblr.

Provide high-quality content with every app launch.

Facilitate easier user participation in conversations.

Retain and grow our creator base.

Create patterns that encourage users to keep returning to Tumblr.

Improve the platform’s performance, stability, and quality.

Below is a deep dive into each of these principles.

Principle 1: Expand the ways new users can discover and sign up for Tumblr.

Tumblr has a “top of the funnel��� issue in converting non-users into engaged logged-in users. We also have not invested in industry standard SEO practices to ensure a robust top of the funnel. The referral traffic that we do get from external sources is dispersed across different pages with inconsistent user experiences, which results in a missed opportunity to convert these users into regular Tumblr users. For example, users from search engines often land on pages within the blog network and blog view—where there isn’t much of a reason to sign up. 

We need to experiment with logged-out tumblr.com to ensure we are capturing the highest potential conversion rate for visitors into sign-ups and log-ins. We might want to explore showing the potential future user the full breadth of content that Tumblr has to offer on our logged-out pages. We want people to be able to easily understand the potential behind Tumblr without having to navigate multiple tabs and pages to figure it out. Our current logged-out explore page does very little to help users understand “what is Tumblr.” which is a missed opportunity to get people excited about joining the site.

Actions & Next Steps

Improving Tumblr’s search engine optimization (SEO) practices to be in line with industry standards.

Experiment with logged out tumblr.com to achieve the highest conversion rate for sign-ups and log-ins, explore ways for visitors to “get” Tumblr and entice them to sign up.

Principle 2: Provide high-quality content with every app launch.

We need to ensure the highest quality user experience by presenting fresh and relevant content tailored to the user’s diverse interests during each session. If the user has a bad content experience, the fault lies with the product.

The default position should always be that the user does not know how to navigate the application. Additionally, we need to ensure that when people search for content related to their interests, it is easily accessible without any confusing limitations or unexpected roadblocks in their journey.

Being a 15-year-old brand is tough because the brand carries the baggage of a person’s preconceived impressions of Tumblr. On average, a user only sees 25 posts per session, so the first 25 posts have to convey the value of Tumblr: it is a vibrant community with lots of untapped potential. We never want to leave the user believing that Tumblr is a place that is stale and not relevant. 

Actions & Next Steps

Deliver great content each time the app is opened.

Make it easier for users to understand where the vibrant communities on Tumblr are. 

Improve our algorithmic ranking capabilities across all feeds. 

Principle 3: Facilitate easier user participation in conversations.

Part of Tumblr’s charm lies in its capacity to showcase the evolution of conversations and the clever remarks found within reblog chains and replies. Engaging in these discussions should be enjoyable and effortless.

Unfortunately, the current way that conversations work on Tumblr across replies and reblogs is confusing for new users. The limitations around engaging with individual reblogs, replies only applying to the original post, and the inability to easily follow threaded conversations make it difficult for users to join the conversation.

Actions & Next Steps

Address the confusion within replies and reblogs.

Improve the conversational posting features around replies and reblogs. 

Allow engagements on individual replies and reblogs.

Make it easier for users to follow the various conversation paths within a reblog thread. 

Remove clutter in the conversation by collapsing reblog threads. 

Explore the feasibility of removing duplicate reblogs within a user’s Following feed. 

Principle 4: Retain and grow our creator base.

Creators are essential to the Tumblr community. However, we haven’t always had a consistent and coordinated effort around retaining, nurturing, and growing our creator base.  

Being a new creator on Tumblr can be intimidating, with a high likelihood of leaving or disappointment upon sharing creations without receiving engagement or feedback. We need to ensure that we have the expected creator tools and foster the rewarding feedback loops that keep creators around and enable them to thrive.

The lack of feedback stems from the outdated decision to only show content from followed blogs on the main dashboard feed (“Following”), perpetuating a cycle where popular blogs continue to gain more visibility at the expense of helping new creators. To address this, we need to prioritize supporting and nurturing the growth of new creators on the platform.

It is also imperative that creators, like everyone on Tumblr, feel safe and in control of their experience. Whether it be an ask from the community or engagement on a post, being successful on Tumblr should never feel like a punishing experience.

Actions & Next Steps

Get creators’ new content in front of people who are interested in it. 

Improve the feedback loop for creators, incentivizing them to continue posting.

Build mechanisms to protect creators from being spammed by notifications when they go viral.

Expand ways to co-create content, such as by adding the capability to embed Tumblr links in posts.

Principle 5: Create patterns that encourage users to keep returning to Tumblr.

Push notifications and emails are essential tools to increase user engagement, improve user retention, and facilitate content discovery. Our strategy of reaching out to you, the user, should be well-coordinated across product, commercial, and marketing teams.

Our messaging strategy needs to be personalized and adapt to a user’s shifting interests. Our messages should keep users in the know on the latest activity in their community, as well as keeping Tumblr top of mind as the place to go for witty takes and remixes of the latest shows and real-life events.  

Most importantly, our messages should be thoughtful and should never come across as spammy.  

Actions & Next Steps

Conduct an audit of our messaging strategy.

Address the issue of notifications getting too noisy; throttle, collapse or mute notifications where necessary.  

Identify opportunities for personalization within our email messages. 

Test what the right daily push notification limit is. 

Send emails when a user has push notifications switched off.

Principle 6: Performance, stability and quality.

The stability and performance of our mobile apps have declined. There is a large backlog of production issues, with more bugs created than resolved over the last 300 days. If this continues, roughly one new unresolved production issue will be created every two days. Apps and backend systems that work well and don't crash are the foundation of a great Tumblr experience. Improving performance, stability, and quality will help us achieve sustainable operations for Tumblr.

Improve performance and stability: deliver crash-free, responsive, and fast-loading apps on Android, iOS, and web.

Improve quality: deliver the highest quality Tumblr experience to our users. 

Move faster: provide APIs and services to unblock core product initiatives and launch new features coming out of Labs.

Conclusion

Our mission has always been to empower the world’s creators. We are wholly committed to ensuring Tumblr evolves in a way that supports our current users while improving areas that attract new creators, artists, and users. You deserve a digital home that works for you. You deserve the best tools and features to connect with your communities on a platform that prioritizes the easy discoverability of high-quality content. This is an invigorating time for Tumblr, and we couldn’t be more excited about our current strategy.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

MDZS x Brazil (1985)

(Yes. Real movie dialogue)

[barksbog]

i found a thrown off slow worm tail yesterday. it makes sense they can do that because they are lizards but it's still wild!

putting it under the cut for mild gore

[krotiation]

this soundtrack genuinely makes me so emotional like damn. the jack vs fiona scene at the end of ep 2 is already so perfect and then they had to go make this beautiful as hell ost with it too. those bastards

[anotherpapercut]

the girlbossification of ruth bader ginsburg has to be one of the most just plain annoying aspects of white liberal feminism. like it's not as actively harmful as a lot of other shit obviously. but it is soooooo annoying. if I never see another notorious rbg tote bag as long as I live it will be too soon

[gemharvest]

Hate thissss I feel like I haven't been properly productive today (somehow posting two art things Doesn't register properly in my mind) so I wanna stay up to get as much as I can down, but I also need to go to sleep in case I'm called in tomorrow because fuuuuuck going to work on little sleep that shit sucks. But also, the possibility of being called in makes me wanna stay up even more, so I can finish art in case I don't have time tomorrow. So now I'm sat up at 12:30 tired as shit but unable to draw or go to bed. The never-ending cycle of hell.

[aceofwands]

idk man I just think of all the franchises you could try to make the Next Big Thing by creating a bunch of new shows and movies, maybe don't pick the one with the notoriously nitpicky obsessed with canon fandom ?? if you don't plan on applying any sort of consistency to the world, characters, alien cultures, entire ethical and moral framework of the universe, etc etc ????

[thevioletcaptain]

.

[arsenicflame]

genuinely, how do you learn to cope with the idea you'll have mental health issues for the rest of your life? how to you learn to find peace with the fact that rock bottom is always going to be just around the corner and theres nothing you can really do to stop it?

[demigod-of-the-agni]

the fuck did they do to pavitr again

Edge of Spider-Verse (2024) Issue #4

[turtlespancake]

me when i write a character who is prone to dooming themself and then they run off and doom themself. core traits are stubbornness and a willingness to disregard their own humanity gET BACK HERE IM NOT DONE WITH YOU

[milimeters-morales]

(NOT ATSV) my ideal miguel and miles friendship (bordering on enemies) dynamic is where Miles is sort of a Mean Girls figure where he’ll say the worst things to Miguel, who actually has no problems dishing that shit right back out, is usually too fed up or somewhere else mentally to reply. They fight a lot, more physically than verbally, usually in a slapstick comedy type of way. Miles is banned from Nueva York once a month and got a restraining order against Miguel in his own dimension. His parents fucking hate him and Miguel hates them right back. Rio has tried and failed to poison him via food and Jeff is considering hiring a hitman. Gabriel is beloved by them. Miles takes Miguel’s money at least twice a week to go spend it just because he can. Miguel has tried (and succeeded once) to get Miles sick with a future illness because he figured out the lesbian bar Miguel liked to perform at in drag. Miles has cried at least once in every room of Miguel’s apartment and Miguel has been confused on what to do each time besides an awkward hug and pat on the back. People are rightfully worried for Miles’s safety at least 80% of the time but when they aren’t they’re shaking their heads at the two’s antics. They need to be separated until they have a healthy “this is a grown ass man / this is stupid little girl i don’t like at work” relationship and it’ll take an act of god for either of them to realize their current one isn’t healthy at all and has extremely negative impacts on their mental state.

[giantkillerjack]

Don't Starve is a great game if you played Stardew Valley and had the thought, "this is fun, but I hate how it relaxes and comforts me!"

[cassmouse]

Me, walking out of the cinema after watching Frozen Empire: Well that was terrible and forgettable and disappointing and I didn't like it at all.

Me, over a month later: I have LITERALLY not thought of anything but Phoebe and Melody and the other silly little characters in this film for like five weeks straight it's becoming a slight problem- What? Oh yeah, I didn't like the film at all. anyway here's my Checkmatch playlist and all the fanfic I've read-

[zerodaryls]

i often find myself questioning reality and i'm thinking that maybe people shouldn't let their 8 year olds watch The Truman Show (1998) because it might actually create lasting psychological damage

[tennessoui]

*holds microphone to your face* miss kit, your brain is so interesting and amazing and i love everything it thinks of, so I have to ask *deep breath*….if, in a modern au/whatever-you-choose-au, how would you portray a Vader&Anakin duo? How obsessed would they both be with Obi-Wan? How would the old man handle getting the Skywalker attention x2? How dark would you make it or could you see it going in a more comedic direction? If in the GFFA universe, would they both be Obi-Wans Padawan (via loophole/bullshit-wxlapnation)? How much shit would they get up too? And finally….would be Obi-Wan be getting the double D? 😳

*yanks back mic* that’s all! Thank you for you input, and I’ll def be watching out for that body politic au 😉

(2/2) Whoops! Forgot to add the “Vader-no-crisp-version-just-a-twin note” 🙈😵‍💫

hm this is a great ask -and also thank you for the compliment!! so funnily enough 2 different fics/universes jump to mind, and neither are exactly what you're after, but both are close in different ways -

in the playmaker au, where undercover obi-wan is corrupted by mob boss anakin, anakin is written as having two personalities: anakin & vader, and in the ficlets, both names are used but not interchangeably. they're meant to reflect vaderkin's mind at whichever moment, so it's sort of like both vader and anakin are obsessed with obi-wan and he's getting a crazy amount of attention

but closer to what you're after is: 'if you love me let it remain unnamed', where for some hand-wavey reason, obi-wan and anakin from the gffa universe hop to a different universe where the jedi have fallen and there's an empress and a rebellion. they don't meet vader, but they do meet an older anakin skywalker who goes by the name set and is a smuggler, and for a few days, obi-wan has the undivided attentions of both his padawan who is in love with him and set who wants to fuck him

(spoiler alert, set fucks him. anakin also fucks him. it's a double d situation)

that fic ends with the gffa pair finding their way back to the correct galaxy (it's assumed at least) and set!anakin finding his own obi-wan in his galaxy!

and that's because i'm like a very weird writer/shipper where when i say i only ship obikin i mean i only ship them with each other's other part. i don't really read or have interest in writing a time traveling anakin story where he gets with old ben or a time traveling obi-wan story where he gets with a padawan anakin or something or an anakin from another dimension after his becomes vader. no one understands him like his anakin/his obi-wan understands him and they're a matched set!! idk how i would handle two anakins for one obi-wan in a scenario where it's not a temporary glitch but an actual long-term thing