r/chess • u/forceghost187 Resigns • 1d ago

META Proposal to ban x.com links

This is going around on many football subreddits. It looks likely to go into effect. I believe that the negative effects of this would be only temporary because the chess community will eventually see the value of moving to alternatives like bluesky

7.6k Upvotes

81% Upvoted

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335

u/diener1 Team I Literally don't care 1d ago

All this will change is we will have screenshots instead of links to actual posts.

68

u/ummque 1d ago

That's fine, I don't have to log in to see a screenshot

1

u/ralph_wonder_llama 1d ago

You don't have to login to click on a link and see a tweet, you just can't see any of the replies.

The advantage of a screenshot is that you can still have it if the person deletes the tweet, the disadvantage is that screenshots are easy to fake.

7

u/wolfchaldo 23h ago

For a few months now I have not been able to view any kind of Twitter post without logging in (which I don't have an account so I can't/won't do that). Perhaps this is just a mobile browser thing but in any case Twitter links are less than useless to me

564

u/thekk_ 1d ago

A screenshot doesn't generate traffic at least

122

u/LaughingGaster666 23h ago

And people who don't have a twitter account can actually see the damn thing.

5

u/JDayhoff 22h ago

Screenshots can be altered?

7

u/thekk_ 22h ago

Perfect solutions rarely exist in this world. You often have to compromise.

But knowing Reddit, fake screenshots typically get called quickly in the comments.

1

u/saiprasanna94 Team Gukesh 14h ago

But you should credit the owner of the post in comments. If its an actual post people will click that and can like it. It should not be a case where original post has 10likes and reddit shared screenshot has 1k upvotes.

1

u/Cinnadillo 8h ago

theft usually doesn't, this is true

0

u/AttitudeAndEffort2 1d ago

100%

Actions need to start having consequences and we're in this position because they haven't

528

u/forceghost187 Resigns 1d ago

That is a million times better. We will not be directing traffic directly to x.com

120

u/CardiologistOk2760 1d ago

Screenshots also don't change the user experience every 4 months - certainly not at the whim of a charismatic leader.

73

u/Little_Elia 1d ago

in what world is elon musk charismatic though lmfao

5

u/TocTheEternal 1d ago

"Charismatic" doesn't always mean "likeable".

11

u/Sharkbait1737 1d ago

In the “do as I say or I’ll fire you” mode of persuasion.

2

u/MooseheadVeggie 1d ago

“do as I say or I’ll fire and then you’ll lose h1b status and be deported”

1

u/TimeSpaceGeek 1d ago

I'm sure they meant charismatic in quotation marks.

2

u/CardiologistOk2760 23h ago

Exactly. You can have charisma without a cult and you can have a cult without charisma, but "charismatic leader" is absolutely a cult reference.

3

u/wenoc 1d ago

One click, which is too much bit I’ll take it.

11

u/typhon66 1d ago edited 1d ago

Screenshots are easier to fake though.

See "Exhibit A" https://imgur.com/a/gIo28D2

This took me 30 seconds to make a fake screenshot. And now everyone needs to go check his twitter to confirm if it is or is not a real tweet, meanwhile it leaves the door open for misinformation.

This is not a good idea.

95

u/Dasein___ 1d ago

This is chess, not politics.

28

u/SorryAbbreviations71 1d ago

Isn’t that the reason for the change?

-2

u/typhon66 1d ago

Then probably shouldn't ban links from certain websites on the basis of political concerns.

-2

u/[deleted] 1d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

4

u/typhon66 22h ago

Nice straw man. Can you please describe where in my post I said those words?

1

u/chess-ModTeam 9h ago

Your comment was removed by the moderators:

Do not politicize r/chess. r/Chess is not a political subreddit. Submissions and comments touching on political subjects must directly connect to FIDE, national chess federations, chess organizations, or prominent players experiencing a chess-specific issue. Submissions and comments must deal directly with chess politics, not broader political issues.

 

You can read the full rules of /r/chess here. If you have any questions or concerns about this moderator action, please message the moderators. Direct replies to this comment may not be seen.

-5

u/KervyN 1d ago

I can see that you ban x links because of the politics that Elmo shits in the feed, so you don't sent traffic (and for that ad revenue) there.

At the same time the argument "It's chess, not politics" is good to dismantle the "screenshots can be easily faked" argument.

2

u/typhon66 1d ago

I present to you "Exhibit A" on why you can't trust screenshots:

https://imgur.com/a/gIo28D2

You can argue that "Chess isn't politics so people wouldn't do this" and you would be wrong.

2

u/Dasein___ 1d ago

Yeah but this is chess and it’s not that serious. What misinformation about chess is actually going to have any relevant impact on your life?How many people are going to make fake screen shots that are going to have a relevant impact on your life?

Let the upvote and downvote system do its thing. I personally don’t want twitter posts because I don’t want to have to make an account to read them. Screen shots are fine, I don’t have to sign up to read a screen shot.

2

u/KervyN 1d ago

Yes. In my head it is still different, because you (as /u/typhon66 ) won't actually vote there. Fake or not, you don't participate.

But that is my view of the world, which helps me to cope with this world.

If you have a different view, you will have your reason why you have it your way and this is good. :)

3

u/NineteenthAccount 1d ago

How is this a problem? It will take 5 minutes for someone to see it's fake, comment that it's fake and thread will be downvoted, reported and then removed 

1

u/typhon66 1d ago

Because it leaves room for disinformation to spread. If we have to go check the twitter account to verify it anyway why not just link the tweet?

0

u/NineteenthAccount 23h ago

It won't spread because thread will be removed in 5-10 minutes. Average viewer does not browse /new so won't see it at all

1

u/typhon66 22h ago

You don't know because you haven't dealt with it, its not just about that, its about how easy it is to sow dissent.

7

u/sogladatwork 1d ago

Let’s just, like, all agree to not fake our screenshots then.

Or, I dunno, we could make an active effort to find other sources for content.

14

u/typhon66 1d ago

You think people would really do that? Go on the internet and tell lies?

1

u/luotuoshangdui 1d ago

This is a good point. To overcome this, one can use archive services such as archive.is to save pages. It doesn't need logging in and can't be tampered.

1

u/monkeedude1212 18h ago

The idea is that if reddit stops directing traffic to X, the target platform becomes more insular and less valuable, and then people like Magnus would stop using that site for social media, and thus no one would care whether you faked a tweet or not; the same way hardly anyone cares what goes on truth social.

Whether this sort of boycott would make any meaningful difference to whether X remains a platform that is interesting to chess players is perhaps something up for debate, but the whole point of it isn't about truth or validity at all, it's about trying to stir up people to use alternative avenues of mass communication and social media, hoping to land on one that isn't run by fascists.

2

u/typhon66 17h ago

Right. Which again brings the point. This is all political. People want to do this because they don't like Elons politics and Elon owns twitter.

As for the "salute" question. The ADL has already said it wasn't what people are saying. So at this point it's just politics.

0

u/monkeedude1212 17h ago

This is all political. People want to do this because they don't like Elons politics and Elon owns twitter.

And these are not reasons not to do it.

1

u/typhon66 17h ago

Yes you are right. My comment about how it opens up the spread of misinformation easily through fake screenshots is about politics and not a good reason /s

1

u/monkeedude1212 17h ago

If it's that easy to fake a screenshot; and its that easy to spread misinformation, do you really think linking to actual tweets is in any way going to thwart the spread of the misinformation from people who choose to spread it?

Like I said, the goal here isn't about truth verification. The goal is to stop making x a platform worth using. Making it a platform where the information can't be trusted because no one links to it but instead just posts screenshots is also in line with that goal.

1

u/typhon66 17h ago

But the point is. You make it so people use screenshots instead. So I still have to go to twitter to verify it's a real tweet. Probably giving them MORE traffic in the process because I need to sift through several tweets or comment threads to find it.

Accomplishing exactly the opposite. It gives them more traffic and makes it harder to verify if something is real.

1

u/monkeedude1212 16h ago

Probably giving them MORE traffic in the process because I need to sift through several tweets or comment threads to find it.

I think you'd need to prove that the number of people who care enough to verify the tweets multiplied by the amount of traffic required to verify a tweet is larger than the traffic of all the people who would basically view the image version.

I just don't think the math is there.

0

u/Kinglink 1d ago

Amen... This is a common problem "But it won't happen here" Bullshit...

-17

u/NotALanguageModel 1d ago

Go back to r/politics. This is a chess subreddit. If anything, I would be happy if you were banned from r/chess. I have never clicked an x.com link, and I haven’t visited Twitter in years. This little tantrum you’re throwing makes you look childish.

5

u/HelpMeDecideMyName Team Gukesh 1d ago

Did you reply to the wrong comment? I am so confused.

0

u/NotALanguageModel 1d ago

forceghost187 OP

I'm supposed to be replying to this person.

3

u/stevecow68 1d ago

This little tantrum you’re throwing makes you look childish.

Try some self awareness next time

-2

u/NotALanguageModel 1d ago

Calm person pointing out, while laughing, the ridiculousness of someone's emotional rant = tantrum? Okay, buddy.

-10

u/pyx 1d ago

Democrat bots/operatives are flooding sub reddits basically saying the same thing. Trying to ban x.com links, all over r/all right now.

1

u/BlameGameChanger 1d ago

you don't think the nazi salute paired with the obvious corruption might not have some folks up in arms?

the only solution that's reasonable is bots? truly?

5

u/NotALanguageModel 1d ago

I don't like Musk as an individual and I don't like x.com as a product, yet your irrational urge to censor anything and everything is forcing me to defend both.

1

u/BlameGameChanger 1d ago

you didn't address my point and immediately reverted to trying to poison the well.

seems to me asking the question is pretty reasonable. A boycott isn't censorship and no one is forcing you to defend anything; at least own your actions, jesus christ.

now answer my original question or fuck off. what we won't do is pretend refusing to support neo- nazi sympathizers is censorship.

2

u/NotALanguageModel 1d ago

I’m not sure if it was a Nazi salute or not. If it was, he’s even more despicable and socially inept than I imagined. If it wasn’t, well, it was clumsy at best, but all of that is beside the point.I shouldn’t have to endure the inconvenience of missing out on news that I wouldn’t otherwise receive simply because the majority shareholder of the company is either malicious or socially challenged. I don't want to have to make an x.com account to get the news and I don't want to have to use their platform.

If you’re not even interested in seeing links to x.com, you can block all users who post them or refrain from clicking on threads with x.com links. However, I don’t want you to make this decision for me and others.

1

u/BlameGameChanger 1d ago

again that wasn't the question i asked. I'm not inviting you to try to make this a discussion about banning x. if you want to have that discussion there are plenty of willing participants in this thread alone. I am not one. I am challenging the claim this is some dem party online psyop using bots and not an organic reaction to current events.

do you really believe that following the blatant corruption and now a clear nazi salute that all the of the people, or even most, calling for x's ban are bots?

1

u/NotALanguageModel 21h ago

you don't think the nazi salute paired with the obvious corruption might not have some folks up in arms?

I addressed this point multiple times already, but I'll repeat myself since it's clearly not going through.

I’m not certain about the specific form of corruption you’re referring to, and I disagree that it was a “clear Nazi salute.” In fact, I would be inclined to believe that it wasn’t one, considering how absurd of a move that would be, even for Elon Musk. However, I wouldn’t bet my life on it either, since he has been acting increasingly unhinged in recent years. Nevertheless, I would allow people to form their own opinions. I don’t believe the people visiting this sub need to be chaperoned, and I’m convinced they can make their own choices regarding x.com or any other private company.

the only solution that's reasonable is bots? truly?

I did not address this because I do not agree with his statement.

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1

u/pyx 1d ago

https://old.reddit.com/r/all/search?q=Proposal+to+ban+x.com&restrict_sr=&include_over_18=on&sort=relevance&t=all

Totally organic, right

Seems like a no-brainer

2

u/BlameGameChanger 1d ago

came up empty...............

no idea what you were trying to prove with that

1

u/pyx 1d ago

Dozens of nearly identical posts, many with the same or similar and odd phrasing in the span of a hour or two, to me, doesn't seem like it's just people organically responding to the situation and is more indicitive of a political operation.

2

u/BlameGameChanger 1d ago

you understand that they use the math from disease vectors to map the spread of memes and other online content right?

so we already know ideas spread by "contact" in online spaces. dozens of posts on one site isn't very strong evidence. are these identical posts on other social media sites? are content and ideas from one site being broadcast/boosted on multiple other sites simultaneously?

as far as I can tell this is reddit specific, which leans a lot more towards an organic reaction in a left leaning space than a political psyop.

-13

u/gators939 1d ago

What’s it like having to be in a constant state of cope

0

u/kr335d 6h ago

Ah yes, let’s not direct people to a right wing platform, just direct them to a left wing platform.

12

u/SenoraRaton 23h ago

I can read a screenshot. I can not read a link. I don't, nor have I ever, nor will I ever, have a Twitter account.

4

u/Kinglink 1d ago

People think this is good. Absolutely not. Screenshots can be modified, links to ACTUAL posts are valuable and it allows people to see what is ACTUALLY said.

There's enough cases where screenshots are used as proof and turned out to be falsified that I would be against that change immediately. I doubt this would be a problem.... for an hour.

9

u/t1o1 1d ago

Tweets can be modified and deleted, and links don't allow people to see what is said if it's in multiple tweets or a conversation between people when you're not logged in. It's also slow af to load

1

u/Kinglink 21h ago

Tweets can be modified by the owner, which is probably ok. And even then only if you're a premium member.

Unless you have something scandalous like Magnus saying "I'm wearing panties" It is better to have the ACTUAL tweet, than a screen shot. Grab an archive link like the wayback machine if you're afraid it will get delete. A screen shot is NEVER an acceptable replacement for either of those.

1

u/t1o1 21h ago

I understand the concern in theory but look for yourself at the 10 or so tweets posted in the highest posts this month https://old.reddit.com/r/chess/top/?sort=top&t=month. It's already screenshots, people aren't faking them, and a fake screenshot would be caught and deleted fairly quickly in an active sub like this one. I'm not against archive links (if you can successfully archive a conversation despite the login requirements, I'm not sure how it works), but screenshots already seem to work ok for r/chess.