Some people’s aversion of algorithms on the fediverse kind of reminds me of people’s aversion of GMO food. Genetically modifying rice to contain more vitamin D is probably good; genetically modifying vegetables to contain more cyanide would probably be bad. Algorithms don’t have to be built to maximize “engagement;” they can be designed to maximize other metrics, or balance multiple metrics, or be user-customizable.

IMO, Mastadon is much worse off for their refusal to implement any kind of algorithm outside their “explore” feed. When I tried using Mastodon, search was unhelpfully in chronological order, and my home feed just got overtaken by the people that post the most. In contrast, Lemmy’s handling of algorithms is pretty good, imo.

As bad as search engines are now, they’d be even worse if they just gave you results in chronological order.

Their line goes up when they show they’re investing in AI, and it goes down when it looks like they’re falling behind or not investing enough in it.

TBH, a lot of times I find myself interacting with ChatGPT instead of searching. It’s overhyped, but it’s useful.